The schedule is not yet final for Madison’s upcoming Chef Week, but one thing is clear from the events already in play: Chefs are looking to bust out of their own kitchens and comfort zones and collaborate with their peers on novel and fun mash-ups.
Thirty-some chefs from the Madison Area Chef Network will be mixing it up for the rest of us from March 4 through March 13. Now in its second year, Chef Week 2016 looks to expand its audience with events ranging from kids' brunches to food truck lunches to late-night soirees. The chefs hope to make some of the planned mash-ups more approachable (read: cheaper) and family and vegetarian-friendly. But there will be plenty for gourmands too, including a first-time menu collaboration between Tory Miller of L’Etoile and Graze and Elizabeth and Tim Dahl of Nostrano.
Paulius Musteikis
Chef Elizabeth Dahl of Nostrano.
MACN launched in 2014 with a mission to strengthen Madison's food system through collaboration and community. Jonny Hunter, of Underground Food Collective, credits Dahl with bringing the idea for a chef week to the group; such events take place in bigger cities like Chicago, where Dahl worked for a number of years. This year, Isthmus presents the event with MACN.
Hunter and Miller kick off the week March 4 with a Pop-up Food Truck (locations to be announced on Twitter and Instagram), followed by pizza chefs creating noodle bowls, a sushi chef making chicken wings, and a fake wedding reception complete with a lamb roast and dance-off. There will be kitchen takeovers, an evening devoted to the ever-humble chicken tender, and plenty of boozy brunches to keep the gray skies of March at bay.
Some of this year's participating chefs include Shinji Muramoto (43 North, Sushi Muramoto and Restaurant Muramoto), Patrick DePula (Salvatore's Tomato Pies), Molly Maciejewski (Madison Sourdough), Laila Borokhim (Layla's), Matt Schieble (Harvest) and Evan Dannells (Merchant.)
Chef Week will culminate with a street food event at Graze and L'Etoile on March 13; it's a fundraiser for the Madison Area Farmers' Market Double Dollars Program, which allows people to match their FoodShare dollars up to $25 at local farmers’ markets. There will be live music, drinks and dishes from around the globe created by Madison's own. Tickets are available through Isthmus Tickets. Look for the full event schedule for Chef Week in Isthmus on March 3.
