Knife Fight Dinner for A Place at the Table
Two of the things that I know about myself include the following…
I am more stubborn than Mom’s dog (who thinks I’m her person), which means I can be persistent in getting her to go outside for pottying when she’s insistent on staying inside.
I am one of the more competitive folks you know, which means I don’t know how to watch a sports event without having a team or individual for whom I’m cheering.
Last November, both of these traits proved instrumental as I battled to win the Knife Fight Dinner from Rocky Top Hospitality at the fundraiser for A Place at the Table. Bidding got heated during the live auction, but, in the end, I came out victorious and was able to bring my group for an evening of deliciousness.
If you are asking “what is a knife fight dinner?”, you are not alone in your confusion… It took me quite awhile to really grasp what this was on the list of live auction items. A “knife fight” is a cooking competition where two chefs face off in a head-to-head culinary battle using mystery ingredients and a limited amount of time to create a multi-course meal. In this Rocky Top Hospitality version, each chef was able to work with a sous chef, and the duo could pair the mystery ingredients submitted by our group with anything in the kitchens.
Our group of 10 attendees chose these 6 mystery ingredients:
Lychee
Matcha powder
Popcorn
Potato chips
Sauerkraut
Steak
We also requested that the evening’s signature cocktail be made with whiskey, and, as we finally partook in our knife fight dinner last night, the Rocky Top Hospitality team did not disappoint on anything, throwing in beer and wine to complement the cocktails as well as dessert made by the head of events herself… It was all so very fabulous that I can’t wait to walk you through each step of the evening!
Chef Joe and Chef Marcos were very impressive. The way they combined unique ingredients to create absolutely delectable dishes while including elements of their personal histories was remarkable. From appetizer to side dish to main dish, everything was amazing! It was super challenging to pick a winner.
Dean Ogan, Founder and Owner / Operator of Rocky Top Catering, started the evening by introducing the chefs, explaining the mystery ingredients as well as outlining how the evening would flow; then, the chefs got to work. As each dish was finished prepping, the chef was able to present the dish to the group, explaining how they decided what to prepare and listing which ingredients were included.
Although everything was truly tasty, my favorite was the grilled corn, cucumber, avocado salad. Chef Marcos used two of the mystery ingredients in this dish that was the very first thing served. As a bonus, he created the recipe from scratch on the spot, which means it had never before been used by Rocky Top, and Dean said that the rave reviews from our entire group meant it might be added to their catering offerings.
It was so good, that our group simply had to get the recipe, and Chef Marcos was kind enough to oblige us. For the salad, they used 8 corn ears grilled, 4 avocados diced, 1/2 red onion diced, 2 heirloom tomatoes diced, 2 Roma tomatoes diced and 1 cucumber diced. For the dressing, they used 1 cup of mayonnaise, 1 bunch of cilantro, 1 bunch of parsley, 3 tbsps of apple cider vinegar mixed with Matcha tea powder, 2 lychee minced, 1 tbsps of roasted garlic paste as well as salt and pepper. Y’all, this was amazing!
Lucky for me, as I was present in the moment, socializing with everyone and enjoying all the delicious dishes, the magnificent Christina Noel was capturing the many moments in this blog post. Thank you so very much, Christina, for these videos and photos!
Meanwhile, once the chefs stepped out for us to vote, tallying the votes was very tight, but the combination of the opening corn salad, the potato salad that took Liz back to her youth and steak rooted in his Argentinian roots were simply too good for Chef Marcos to not win. Kudos to all the chefs in this knife fight!
It was such a joy to be in community with so many members of my squad while we enjoyed watching the chefs exhibit their mastery and tasted all these delicious food and beverage treats, but what was most important is how we were supporting such a vital cause with this winning auction bid.
As is explained on A Place at the Table’s website, 1 in 7 residents in Raleigh are food insecure while 1 in 5 children go hungry. For many unhoused individuals, it’s like being invisible with people walking right by you, and soup kitchens are unlike restaurants, feeding such an incredible number of people that they become more numbers than human-beings. There are over 1 million restaurants across the country, but A Place at the Table is 1 in a million, where anyone is welcome to dine regardless of means. Table accomplishes its mission of dignity and power in choice because it is Raleigh first pay-what-you-can cafe. Patrons from all walks of life come together to share a meal. We all eat together. The best part is how you wouldn’t even know that Table is a nonprofit. To the average consumer, it’s exactly like any other restaurant… until a volunteer behind the counter says “Your suggested price is… Would you like to pay that price, pay less or volunteer for your meal?” Everyone chooses what to eat and how they’ll pay for it.
Thank you so very much to Rocky Top Catering for contributing this experience to the live auction at A Place at the Table’s fall fundraiser, and, if you’d like to help A Place at the Table continue providing community as well as good food for all regardless of means, please consider becoming a Table Neighbor, where you donate each month for a sustaining impact. You can visit this website for more information.
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