This year we are delighted to be honoring Michael McCarty, Proprietor of Michael’s New York and Michael’s Santa Monica, for his extraordinary achievements and contributions to the culinary industry, his long-time dedication to C-CAP, and his commitment to nurturing the next generation of chefs. (Indeed, some of the country’s finest chefs began their careers at Michael’s, including Jonathan Waxman, Mark Peel, Nancy Silverton, and Sang Yoon.) Michael has been a visionary in the culinary industry, and his groundbreaking initiatives helped establish California Cuisine as a movement that transformed cooking in the United States. Along with Alice Waters, Michael pioneered the organic, sustainable, seasonal, local, ingredient-driven farm-to-table explosion of New American regional food that has now become the gold standard for great American dining. Check out the great story on Michael in the recent issue of Mariani’s Virtual Gourmet.
We are thrilled to have Bette Midler and Martin von Haselberg (longtime friends and eating partners of Michael and Kim McCarty) as honorary chairs. The benefit will showcase creations from more than 30 of New York City’s top chefs. Celebrity chefs will be on hand to offer their creations to our guests and will be assisted by C-CAP students and alums, the chefs of the future.
The funds raised at the benefit are extremely important to our organization. With funds raised last year, we were able to offer over $3 million in culinary school scholarships, career and college advising, and job readiness training to underserved teenagers across the country.
