Five chefs from prestigious restaurants across the U.S. will visit St. Croix next spring to take part in the annual St. Croix Food and Wine Experience, the organizers announced Wednesday.
The celebrity chefs include:
• Todd Gray of Equinox restaurant, Washington, D.C. Gray recently teamed with the White House to work on Michelle Obama’s Healthy Kids Initiative. He is a five-time nominee for the Best-Chef, Mid-Atlantic award from the James Beard Foundation.
• Josef Desimone, culinary director at the Facebook corporate campus.
• Paula DaSilva of 1500° restaurant, Miami.
• Simon Stojanovic, of Altamare and Tikl, Miami. His resume extends from restaurants in Australia and Europe to the Caribbean.
• Mike Lata, executive chef and owner of Fig, Charleston, S.C. Lata was the winner of the 2009 James Beard award for best chef in the Southeast.
The St. Croix Food and Wine Experience has been rated one of the top 10 food events in the world by Forbes.com. According to Wednesday’s news release, the 2013 celebration of local cuisine will include a series of fundraising events from April 14 to 20, including:
• Tuesday, April 16 – Gourmet Vintner Dinner at Tutto Bene prepared by Gray. The cost will be $250 per person.
• April 17 – The annual Food Fight held at eat@canebay featuring Desimone, DaSilva, and Stojanovic competing with three island chefs in a hilarious series of challenges that has had past competitors swim in the ocean, crack conch and answer tricky questions such as “What cut of meat did Lady Gaga wear?” Admission is $75.
• April 18 – The 13th annual Taste of St. Croix featuring more than 50 local restaurants, 20 wineries and hundreds of wines, rums, beer and more. Live entertainment and a culinary competition with dishes judged by celebrity chefs, VIPs and special guests. Admission: $95.
• April 19 – Cork & Fork Dinners. Hosted in private homes and historic sites, each Cork & 
Fork dinner pairs a celebrity chef with a renowned winemaker. Lata, and DaSilva. Admission: $1,000 per person.
• April 19 – Sunset BBQ featuring DeSimone and two supporting Facebook chefs along with Stojanovic. The guest chefs will team with culinary students from the St. Croix Educational Complex to show off their grilling and culinary talents. Admission: $50 adult, $25 child.
Additional events scheduled for the week are:
• April 14 – Cuisine on the Green Golf Tournament on the Carambola Golf Course, with culinary bites and cocktail samples at select tees. Open to golfers and non-golfers. Admission: $200 per golfer, $75 per taster.
• April 16 – City Crawl. Participants can enjoy specialty beverages and food samplings from participating restaurants and bars as they stroll the streets of Christiansted. Admission: $100.
• April 17 – Food & Wine Symposium. Held at the Palms at Pelican Cove, the symposium features education-based wine tastings from celebrated wine makers and sommeliers. $25.
• April 17 – The Galleon Wine Dinner. St. Croix chef Kenneth Biggs works with local farmers to create a stellar menu featuring Banfi wines. $150.
• April 20 – Kids Cooking Class. Celebrity and local chefs, including the Crucian Contessa, will offer cooking classes for children ages 6 to 12 years old. Sponsored by Innovative. $25 per child.
• April 20 – Wine in the Warehouse. Saturday night brings everyone together for wine tastings with winemakers, cocktail samplings, small bites and music as the warehouse is transformed into an elegant dining experience. Sponsored by Leeward Management. $100.
Tickets to all events are available now through Patron Packages and Sponsorship Partnerships. Individual tickets to most events are on sale now and can be purchased at http://www.stcroixfoodandwine.com. Further information on the event is also available at the website.
Funds raised support educational, community and economic development programs of the St. Croix Foundation.