On Tuesday, July 8 at 6 p.m., nine of Philadelphia’s most talented chefs will descend upon Union Transfer to compete in Brewery Ommegang’s third-annual Hop Chef Philly for a chance to represent the city in a cook-off at the brewery’s annual Belgium Comes to Cooperstown event. Each chef will prepare and serve an innovative, original dish inspired by one of the brewery’s five pairing principles, and top local food experts will judge the plates, with the strongest entry earning a trip to Cooperstown to compete against winners from other cities and take home the title of Hop Chef 2014.
The outstanding line-up of competing chefs, primed to engage in 140-character banter on Twitter, includes Jeremy Nolen of Brauhaus Schmitz and the upcoming Whetstone; Townsend Wentz of Townsend; Chad Vetter of City Tap House; Jonathan and Justin Petruce of Petruce et al; James Kenngott of Strangelove’s; Ben Puchowitz of Cheu Noodle Bar and the upcoming Bing Bing; Travis Masar of Sampan and the upcoming Independence Beer Garden; and Jennifer Choplin.
Hop Chef Philly 2014 contestants pictured (from left): Jeremy Nolen, Travis Masar, Ben Puchowitz, Townsend Wentz, Jennifer Choplin, Jonathan Petruce, Chad Vetter, James Kenngott, Justin Petruce.
Ommegang has also confirmed the judges for this year’s Hop Chef Philly: Collin Keefe of thedrinknation.com; Danya Henninger of Zagat Philly; Nicholas Elmi, Top Chef winner and chef-owner of Laurel; Arthur Etchells of foobooz.com; Caroline Russock of Citypaper’s Meal Ticket; Will Blunt of starchefs.com; and Carly Szkaradnik of Eater Philly. FOX 29 news anchor Mike Jerrick, a 10-time Emmy Award winner and co-host of “Good Day Philadelphia,” will serve as master of ceremonies.
YOU can be a part of this annual brew- and food-infused competition! Samples of all Hop Chef Philly dishes, as well as all paired Ommegang beers, will be available to guests throughout the event. Doors open at 6 p.m. and contest begins at 7 p.m. Tickets, $50, can be purchased online.
“As we gear up for another spirited Hop Chef competition, we look forward to the contestants’ playful smack talk, inside jokes and previews of their dishes on Twitter and other social media,” says Megan Maguire, Ommegang Market Manager. “But there’s a serious amount of culinary talent in play, as well, and some awesome prizes—which makes being a part of Hop Chef even more rewarding.”
About Hop Chef
Hop Chef is an annual competition, held in cities across the country, in which talented local chefs each create one dish showcasing their imaginative beer and food pairing skills. The dishes, all paired with Ommegang beers, are served to a panel of judges and to all attendees; each chef is on hand and gets no more than 10 minutes to describe and defend his or her dish to the judges. Chefs are judged on five pairing principles: Simple Pairing, a direct interaction between food and beer; Incorporation, utilizing beer in the cooking process; Mimicking, matching the flavor profile of a dish with the flavor profile of a beer; Story Telling, tracing the history of the dish and the beer; and Experimental, making beer the star of the dish.
The Hop Chef Competition is part of the Ommegang program known as Great Beer Deserves Great Food®, a national initiative dedicated to the idea that fine beer deserves its rightful place at the table with fine foods. The Philadelphia event joins others in a series of chef cook-offs across the U.S., culminating in a Grand Hop Chef cook-off at Ommegang’s Belgium Comes to Cooperstown Festival on August 8 and 9 at the brewery. Participating sponsors include Saveur magazine, StarChefs, Verterra and Vitamix.
Fans (and food and beer lovers) should follow the chefs on Twitter (hashtag #HopChef) as they taste Ommegang beers and create their competition dishes.
Don’t delay: purchase tickets online!
- Competition photo: Brewery Ommegang
