Great chefs.  Gourmet cuisine.  Fine wines.

p_galaMonterey Bay Aquarium’s 10th Annual Cooking for Solutions event kicks off Friday, May 20, with the Cooking for Solutions Gala featuring gourmet dishes by celebrity chefs and 70 outstanding restaurants, organic wines from 60 premium West Coast wineries, a sushi lounge, a silent auction, and book-signings by Rick Moonen, Cindy Pawlcyn and P. Allen Smith.

A host of activities over “three delicious days” are planned around the theme of discovering how our choices protect the health of the soil water and ocean wildlife:

Celebrity Chef Cooking Demonstrations • May 21 – 8-11:30 am
Featuring sustainable seafood by Michael Cimarusti (Providence, Los Angeles), William Dissen (The Market Place, Asheville) and Virginia Willis (author & TV personality). Includes a continental breakfast and take-home recipes by all the chefs.

Coastal Living Pavilion Presentations • May 21 – 9:30 am-4: 30 pm, May 22 -10 am-3 pm
Laugh while learning about protecting the planet during two days of special presentations and cooking demonstrations from the Food Network’s Alton Brown and Robert Irvine, author and TV host P. Allen Smith, and Nathan Lyon, host of PBS’ Growing A Greener World.

Food & Wine Adventures • May 21 – 9:30 am-3:30 pm
Take part in one of six group events led by our celebrity chefs-each exploring sustainable foods in the kitchen and on the farm. Depending on the adventure, you’ll join John Ash and Peter Pahk; Seth Caswell, Eric Warnstedt and Ed Kenney; Cindy Pawlcyn; Bun Lai; Rick Moonen or Charles Phan.

Saturday and Sunday Salon Series • May 21 and May 22
Intimate events with leaders in the sustainable and organic food movement. Programs range from compelling conversations to cooking demonstrations – all in a small-group setting.

Sustainable Foods Celebration • May 21 – 10 am-6 pm
With Sam Choy, Mark Dommen and Lee Richardson. Learn more about sustainable seafood, organic agriculture and sustainable winemaking at information booths as you visit the aquarium galleries. Attend cooking demonstrations by celebrated chefs and sample sustainable seafood. Mingle with local growers and producers and graze on local produce and artisan foods while the kids enjoy making crafts, photos and trying healthy snacks in the Kids’ Zone.

Savor the Gulf Coast Champagne Breakfast •  May 22 – 8-10 am
A Korbel champagne/mimosa reception plus live music with a Cajun flair, followed by a seasonal, sustainable breakfast buffet – Southern-style. With Virginia Willis, Lee Richardson and Regina Charboneau, who’ll share their love for the Gulf region and its cuisine.

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