Paulius Musteikis
Madison Sourdough will host two MACN events, one featuring Detroit-style pizza. Pictured are Andrew Hutchinson (left) and Kevin Brungraber (right).
For the past three years, the Madison Area Chefs Network’s annual Chef Week has been all about showcasing our local and regional chefs. That’s still a focus in 2018, but this year’s event has been redesigned with the experience of the diner in mind.
“We wanted to cover both bases,” says MACN spokesman Bryan Weinstein. “We wanted the chefs to be creative and collaborative, but we also wanted people to show up and have fun: It’s as much about the guests as it is about the chefs.”
This year’s event has a new focus on affordability and accessibility, starting with the March 4 kickoff party at the Goodman Community Center, which features a menu of culinary creations from 13 of Madison’s best local chefs. Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for children 6 and younger.
It’s a big shift from last year’s kickoff party, which was held at Graze and L’Etoile and cost $65. And while past kickoff dinners have donated a portion of proceeds to charity, all the money made from this year’s event will benefit the Goodman Community Center food pantry.
Also new this year is the emphasis on fun, affordable dinners to balance out events that are “more of a splurge,” Weinstein says. This includes a number of $15 dinners early in the week. On March 5, there’s a Detroit-style pizza takeover at Madison Sourdough featuring creations from Andrew Hutchinson of Madison Sourdough and Daniel Bonanno of A Pig in a Fur Coat. On March 7, there will be a Polish feast at Madison Sourdough featuring dishes from Kevin Brungraber of Madison Sourdough, Shanna Pacifico of Camp Trippalindee and Laila Borokhim of Layla’s Persian Food. And on March 9, David Oliver of Natt Spil will serve Italian-Chinese dim sum at Osteria Papavero.
For those seeking a higher-end experience, there’s plenty of that too, including a five-course, “whole-hog” dinner at Heritage on March 5; a six-course, all-vegan dinner at The Green Owl Cafe on March 7; a six-course “honey dinner” at Harvest on March 9 (benefiting the nonprofit Girls Inc.); and a six-course Japanese-Italian fusion dinner at Muramoto Downtown on March 10. All these events feature at least five collaborating chefs. There will also be brunches, lunches, cooking competitions and plenty of late-night dining options later in the week, including a Polynesian-inspired luau at RED on March 9 and Spanish market-style tapas party at Estrellón on March 10.
While the format of Chef Week has shifted slightly, Weinstein says the concept remains the same. But he hopes this year’s event will be successful in engaging more diners — and not just those who consider themselves “foodies.”
“Events are just generally more successful when you make them more accessible for people with families,” he says. “For people who aren’t necessarily going out to big dinners every month, [Chef Week] would be a fun thing to engage in.”
