Enjoy Fruit Tarts, Sparkling Wines, and French Culture at a Professional Pastry Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Celebrate the season’s freshest flavors with tarts from the region’s top pastry chefs at the 7th Annual Concours de Tartes aux Fruits, coming to the Multnomah Athletic Club on Thursday, August 7th from 5:30- 7:00 p.m. The nonprofit Alliance Française of Portland, has partnered with the Multnomah Athletic Club and the Oregon Culinary Institute to sponsor this culinary competition of seasonal inspiration.
Last year, over 20 of the best Pastry Chefs in the area competed in this annual event. Guided by a simple set of rules, the chefs sculpted inventive tarts that may not have been offered in their respected bakeries and restaurants. 2013 winners were Julia Eisen-Meyers and Sharon Espinoza from Fleur de Lis Bakery, Annie Yen of St. Honoré Bakery, and a tie for third with Bryn Robson of Bluehour Restaurant and Emily Shipp of St. Honoré Bakery. Chefs who are interested in competing this year can register here.
The MAC’s new head pastry chef, Michael Barckley, will be making his Concours de Tartes aux Fruits debut. Barckley attended the Restaurant School at Walnut Hill and has since worked at a number of highly respected establishments, including the Four Seasons in Scottsdale, Lacroix with Chef Jean Marie Lacroix, Classic Cake Company with the coveted Chef Robert Bennet, and the popular Philadelphia restaurant R2L. Additionally, Barckley worked for Chef Phillipe Boulot previously at the Heathman Restaurant in Portland before becoming the Pastry Chef at a sister restaurant in Santa Rosa, California.
Guests will enjoy a sampling of tarts, sparkling wines, Lillet aperitif wines, as well as imported French cheeses and charcuterie. Tickets are available to the public. Members of the Alliance Française of Portland or the MAC should reserve with the organization directly; tickets are $25 each. Nonmembers can purchase tickets for $30 here or by phone at 503-223-8388.
CALL FOR CHEFS!
Seventh Annual Concours De Tartes Aux Fruits
Portland’s 7th Annual Concours de Tartes aux Fruits will be held Thursday, August 7, from 5:30-7:00 p.m. at Multnomah Athletic Club (MAC), 1849 SW Salmon, in Downtown Portland. The event is organized by the nonprofit Alliance Française in partnership with the Oregon Culinary Institute and Multnomah Athletic Club. In this event, chefs from throughout the city will compete to win recognition for creating the best fruit tarts. Celebrity judges will include Sam Bakall of the Oregonian, Danielle Centoni, a food writer, editor, recipe developer and former editor of MIX Magazine, and Barb Randall of the Lake Oswego Review. Members of the public will purchase tickets to attend the juried competition and enjoy sampling the tarts as well as sparkling wine, French-styles ham and imported French cheeses.
What the Competing Chefs Will Provide, and When
Each contestant will provide two 10-12” tarts of the same style. It is also possible for chefs to enter two different styles of tarts so long as he/she provides two 10-12” tarts of both styles. Chefs are to deliver tarts to Multnomah Athletic Club, on the day of judging, ideally between noon and 3:30 p.m. Special arrangements can be made for delivery outside of this timeframe. Tarts will be stored in a walk-in refrigerator until judging begins at 3:45 p.m. Tarts can be provided on cardboard rounds or plates/ platters provided by the contestants (label those on the bottom for tracking/return).
Guidelines for the Tarts
Tarts must be topped with fruit, which should be the predominant item on the composition of the tart. Tarts can be of any style – torta, pie, French tart etc.
About Multnomah Athletic Club:
MAC is a private, not-for-profit athletic and social club located in downtown Portland, Oregon, at 18th and SW Salmon streets. Formed in 1891 by 26 football players, Multnomah Athletic Club means as much to families as it does to athletes. A complete club, with first-rate facilities, superb cuisine, and fun social activities, MAC is a second home to many of our 17,000-plus resident members. The club’s mission is “to enrich lives, foster friendships and build upon our traditions of excellence in athletic, social and educational programs.” In January 2009 James Beard Award winner and French Master Chef Philippe Boulot joined the Multnomah Athletic Club as Executive Chef overseeing the Sports Pub, a fast paced American pub, the Men’s Bar a gourmet classic, Joe’s, a takeout restaurant featuring fresh rolled sushi, and a large catering venue that can hold events up to 400 people and multiple small parties. As a nod to his heritage, Boulot received the “Chevalier de l’Ordre du Merite Agricole” or Knight of the Order of Agricultural Merit in July 2004 and the next level of the order, the Officer in the National Order of Agricultural Merit (Ordre National du Mérite Agricole) in October 2011, the first and only NW chef to receive this distinction. He was honored with the James Beard Best Chef: Pacific NW award in 2001 and Chef of the Year from the Academie Culinaire de France in 2005. Based on his close work with the farmers and ranchers of Oregon and the Pacific Northwest, Boulot was named Oregon Chef of the Year in 2014 by the Oregon Beef Council and serves as an advisor to the Council’s Culinary Committee to help ranchers promote beef with chefs and food professionals. Boulot brings French traditions and holiday celebrations to the MAC and strives for “freshness, flavor and truthful presentation on every plate.” He creates contemporary regional dishes using only the finest seasonal ingredients on the market while combining ethnic touches to produce a relationship of tastes and textures.
Facility
MAC’s eight-level main clubhouse overlooks Providence Park and is within walking distance of downtown Portland. Activities are offered for all club members: young and adult; girls and boys; and women and men. Short-term child care is available while parents use the club. Top-rated instruction and coaching is available in many sports. The clubhouse is also host to a variety of local, regional, and national sporting competitions throughout the year, and has been a venue for international championships on multiple occasions.
About the Alliance Française of Portland:
The nonprofit Alliance Française of Portland, the nation’s 8th largest Alliance, serves close to 2,000 students per year in its French classes and counts close to 10,000 event attendees annually. www.afportland.org
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