What could be better than eating and drinking for a good cause?
That in a nutshell – make that a lobster shell – is the concept behind Table for Ten, an extravagant culinary event that raises money for charity.
More than 320 gourmet food and wine lovers – including many from Newport Beach – gathered at Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa in Dana Point on March 8 for a gourmet experience that featured a reception with wines and tray passed hors d’oeuvres plus a silent auction, a six-course dinner paired with wine and cooked tableside by a noted Orange County chef served at uniquely decorated tables.
Ten Newport Beach chefs participated in the event.
Chef Pascal Olhats and Food Network winner Chef Jessica Roy of Café Jardin in Corona del Mar dazzled guests during the reception with their display of fresh oysters, roe, and other seafood delicacies, while Justin Winery Executive Chef Rachel Haggstrom (formerly with the Balboa Bay Resort) served several decadent appetizers alongside pours of Justin wines.
Newport chefs serving signature cuisine tableside included Cannery Seafood of the Pacific’s Markus Hagen, Coliseum Pool & Grill at The Resort at Pelican Hill’s Erik Sandven and Diego Bernal, Newport Beach Marriott Resort & Spa’s Andy Arndt, Nobu Newport Beach’s Frank Gorriceta, The Mayor’s Table at Lido House’s Riley Huddleston, The Pacific Club’s David Martin, and True Food Kitchen’s Noe Moreno.
The deserving nonprofit of the event, Make-A-Wish Orange County and the Inland Empire, was represented at the event by its President and CEO Gloria Jetter Crockett and Make-A-Wish America CEO Richard K. Davis.
In explaining the nonprofit’s mission, Crockett said, “Our organization provides children with life-changing wish experiences. These children are battling critical illnesses with many enduring years of chemotherapy treatment, surgeries and doctor’s appointments. Then, Make-A-Wish comes along, and we provide our wish children with hope, strength and inspiration. Parents tell us that their children are more likely to comply with treatment when they have a wish to look forward to. They fight harder, they have hope.”
Table for Ten prompted some very generous supporters to step up for Make-A-Wish. Presenting Sponsor Mary Murfey of Newport Beach, along with three other generous attendees, each contributed $15,000 in the Fund-A-Need portion of the evening.
Table for Ten raised more than $350,000 for the Make-A-Wish Orange County and the Inland Empire.
For more information about Make-A-Wish Orange County and the Inland Empire, visit ocie.wish.org.
Photo credits are Bob Hodson, Tony Lattimore, Mackenzie Romano and Chris Trela.
