MetroCooking D.C. has added additional household names to the show’s all-star lineup December 1-2. Chef Jacques Pépin will make his appearance at the December event. Bethenny Frankel will also join MetroCooking D.C.. She is a lifestyle maven and entrepreneur. These added personalities bolster the cast of stars already scheduled to appear, including headliner Chef Emeril Lagasse and chef-authors Carla Hall and Lidia Bastianich.
Pépin is a French-born chef, author and TV personality. He is dean of Special Programs at the International Culinary Center, formerly known as the French Culinary Institute, in New York. Pépin is also Executive Director of Culinary for Oceania Cruises, overseeing seven water-borne restaurants.
Frankel is a well-known television personality, founder of SkinnyGirl cocktails, and has been on several shows, including The New York Housewives and Shark Tank. In 2008, she published “Naturally Thin: Unleash Your SkinnyGirl and Free Yourself from a Lifetime of Dieting” and “The SkinnyGirl Dish: Easy Recipes for Your Naturally Thin Life.” In 2011, she sold her SkinnyGirl Cocktail Company to Beam Global for $100M.
The Metro Cooking D.C. James Beard Stage is a coveted, annual attraction and this year, Lagasse and top chefs from the D.C. area and local celebrity, will be participating, including Scott Drewno. Drewno is no stranger in the D.C. area—certainly not—after having won the RAMMYS 2018 Best New Restaurant of the Year award for Chiko with co-founders Danny Lee and Drew Kim. Amy Brandwein, RAMMYS 2018 Chef of the Year, from Centrolina, will also join the chefs.
Scheduled for Saturday on the James Beard Cooking Stage are chefs Vikram Sunderam, Emeril Lagasse, Amy Brandwein, Carla Hall, Michael Schlow and Scott Drewno.
For Sunday, chefs Erik Bruner-Yang, Kevin Tien, Jcques & Claudine Pepin, Nicholas Stefanelli, and Russell Smith are scheduled.
Erik Bruner-Yang, of Maketto; Vikram Sunderam, of Rasika and Bindaas, and Michael Schlow, of The Riggsby and Alta Strada, will also be on the big stage; along with other regional Beard-honored winners and nominees. Cooking classes will be conducted by chefs from Sur la Table.
A new Holiday Gingerbread House Competition will be featured. Local professional and amateur bakers will showcase their creations and have a chance at prizes that include “People’s Choice.” MetroCooking D.C. is organized by Bethesda, Maryland-based E.J. Krause & Associates.
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This post was updated December 1 to reflect the James Beard Cooking Stage appearances.