Second Annual Summit Wine and Food Festival Kicks Off Friday

With its close proximity to New York City, New Jersey is sometimes overlooked when it comes to the culinary scene. But that's sure to change this weekend when the Summit Wine and Food Festival brings together some of the country's most renowned chefs, sommeliers, and winemakers right here in Summit.

The three-day event, which will take place partly at the Grand Summit Hotel and partly at Reeves-Reed Arboretum, will feature cooking demonstrations, wine seminars and tastings, full-course meals and samplings, cocktail seminars, book signings by celebrity chefs, and mixology, beer, and spirit presentations.

This will be the festival's second year in downtown Summit. Its success can be attributed to its local founder, Ivan Ruiz, owner of The Wine List of Summit and sommelier, restaurateur, and consultant.

"(Ruiz) decided New Jersey has never done anything like this, and New Jersey really should," said Diane Klaif, who is responsible for the festival's Marketing and Public Relations.

"About two years ago, our Summit downtown was suffering, and we wanted to do something to create some buzz," Ruiz said.

And create some buzz it did. Last year's wine and food festival brought in more than 1,500 people. Ruiz explained that the previous year, those who attended the first day's events went home and spread the word and the following day, "all our cooking demos were packed!"

"We run a very, very successful festival," Ruiz said. "We're at the same level as Food Network and the big guys."

Speaking of big names, the 2010 Summit Wine and Food Festival has them.

Iron Chef Jose Garces, Food Network personality and author of Simply Delicioso, Ingrid Hoffman, registered dietician Diane Henderiks, Food Network personality and chef Aarón Sánchez, New Jersey chef and culinary influence Dennis Foy, world-renowned sommelier Steven Olson, Bravo's Top Chef contestant Dave Martin, Master Sommelier and mixologist Fred Dexheimer, wine consultant, writer, Master Sommelier, and Master of Wine titles, Doug Frost, and the list goes on.

This year's festival boasts 35 chefs and 45 sommeliers, hailing from as far as Florida and as nearby as Connecticut. Due to last year's success, Ruiz tells us there is a waiting list of chefs and wine experts who are hoping to be a part of this year's events.

So what exactly can one expect at the much-anticipated festival?

The complete detailed list of events and appearances is available on the official Web site: SummitWineandFood.com and on our events calendar at summit.patch.com/events, but here's an abbreviated rundown of a weekend that's sure to delight the senses:

On Friday, September 24, the main event is a Gala Dinner in the Grand Ballroom at The Grand Summit Hotel to honor legendary New Jersey chef Dennis Foy. The six-course meal will be exquisitely prepared by nationally renowned chefs including David F. Felton, Jose Garces, Craig Shelton, Douglas Rodriguez, Pichet Ong, and chef of the hour, Foy himself.

Klaif called the Gala Dinner "the most lavish of all the events that weekend," and added, "Each of the courses will be prepared with a phenomenal wine or two."

Saturday kicks off with a series of hour-long cooking demonstrations, wine and cocktail seminars such as Martinis 101 and Caribbean Cocktails, and book signings by Ingrid Hoffman and pastry chef Pichet Ong.

The afternoon promises some fierce competition during The Sommelier Summit Showdown, hosted by Steve Olson (aka Wine Geek), where top experts demonstrate their abilities to pair wine and cuisine.

A number of the Saturday events will be taking place at Reeves-Reed Arboretum.

"Of course, the arboretum is all about nature and beauty and we wanted to highlight that," said Klaif, specifically referring to the cooking demonstrations that will focus on farm-to-table preparation and all-natural ingredients.

The second day will culminate with a Saturday Night Grand Reception and Tasting at the arboretum. More than 15 different chefs and 20 different wineries will be offering small-plate food samples and drinks in the unique setting of the arboretum grounds.

"There'll be candlelight and the lights in the trees, and it'll just be spectacular!" Klaif said.

The Food and Wine Festival concludes on Sunday at the Grand Summit Hotel with another full day of cooking demos and seminars. Demonstrations include those with titles such as Dave's Famous Black Truffle Mac 'N' Cheese, Tacos My Way and Eat to Beat Diabetes.

As for the educational seminars, choose from the likes of Pairing Cheese with Wine and Beer, Greek Wines and Learn to Taste and Rate Wines. In addition, there will be various wine tasting sessions held in the afternoon.

Sunday will also provide opportunities for book signings with Dave Martin from season one of Bravo's television series Top Chef and teacher and former cooking school owner Lourdes Castro.

The weekend will wrap up on Sunday evening with an event that won't be easily forgotten: The Game Showdown. And in case you were thinking what I was thinking, no, we're not talking fun and games. We're talking foul, as in birds, although no one is ruling out the possibility of fun.

Seven different chefs will prepare an original entrée using one of seven different game birds paired with a pre-determined wine selection.

The results will be critiqued by a panel of judges consisting of a journalist, a winery representative, a sommelier, a chef, and a consumer, and only one competing chef will be declared the winner.

Tickets for each of the weekend's events can be purchased online at the Wine and Food Festival Web site. Cooking demonstrations and seminar events each cost $30, while tickets for the larger meals and competitions start at $50.

"Other (food and wine festivals) are over $100 and they don't even get to taste the food!" Ruiz said.

In describing the Summit festival, Ruiz continued, "You can take photos, shake hands. It's very intimate. That's what we want it to be."

The second annual Wine and Food Festival is predicted to bring in 2,500 food and wine lovers. According to Ruiz, 80 percent of the tickets have already been sold.

"We're hoping to make it a regular event," Klaif said. "We're starting off small, and thinking big."

A portion of the proceeds from the event go to benefit the Community Food Bank of New Jersey.