In 2012, Menu of Menus® celebrated its tenth anniversary with a move into a stunning new space -- Silver Street Station -- with plenty of room for the thousands of guests that showed up and with the inaugural Iron Fork competition. Last year saw master chef Monica Pope hosting the knockout Iron Chef-style cookoff, which pitted up-and-coming chefs Amanda McGraw and Kevin Naderi against each other.
It was Naderi who won last year's competition, as both chefs worked their hardest to incorporate a secret ingredient -- wasabina -- into both an appetizer and an entrée for a panel of judges. This year, Naderi will return to defend his title.
And in a fun twist, Randy Evans has been selected as this year's host and emcee for the competition. Evans, chef and owner of Haven, was once Naderi's boss -- and he'll be responsible for picking the competing chef who'll challenge Naderi's title.
Menu of Menus® opens its doors at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 9. The 2013 Iron Fork competition will kick off at 8 p.m. on the main stage and feature approximately one hour of creative, quick-witted cooking. Stick around afterward -- Menu of Menus® will run until 10 p.m., and you'll need all of that time to taste the 50 restaurants we expect this year.
Tickets are on sale now for $45, but that price will increase to $50 on April 1. Tickets will be available at the door, but for $60 -- so buy early. VIP tickets are available for $85, which includes admission an hour early at 6 p.m. (so very worth it) and complimentary valet parking until 6:30 p.m.
Tune in next week, when we'll announce the second chef competing in this year's Iron Fork challenge.
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