Celebrity Chefs at the Show - Demonstrations, Recipes and Tastings.

Annie Somerville is the Executive Chef at the celebrated Greens Restaurant at Fort Mason in San Francisco. The author of two best-selling cookbooks, “Fields of Greens” (1993) and “Everyday Greens” (2003), Annie is commited to using garden-fresh produce and cooking based on the seasons. Greens has introduced millions of delighted fans to a sophisticated, meatless cuisine packed with transcendent flavor. The San Francisco Chronicle noted that, “for beautifully prepared, superbly satisfying vegetarian fare, no restaurant compares with Greens. It is a major culinary landmark, elevating vegetables and grains to a new art form

Appearing with Annie is Wendy Johnson is one of the founders of the organic Farm and Garden Program at Green Gulch Farm Zen Center in Marin County, a major resource of seasonal produce for Annie Somerville. A Buddhist meditation teacher who is deeply engaged in environmental work nationally, Wendy is an adviser to the Edible Schoolyard program of the Chez Panisse Foundation and has helped to establish many garden programs in public schools and local communities in the Bay Area. Her column, “On Gardening,” has appeared in Tricycle: The Buddhist Review for more than ten years. She is the author of the remarkable book “Gardening at the Dragon’s Gate”.

Brandon Jew, executive chef at Bar Agricole in San Francisco, has won the hearts of food critics. Patricia Unterman, writing in the San Francisco Examiner, called Jew's dishes "little masterpieces." Specifically, she said the tomato salad is one of the best in San Francisco, and that the salt-baked sea bass is "one of the finest little fish dishes in town." Michael Bauer, in his restaurant review in the San Francisco Chronicle, noted that "Jew is able to coax beautiful flavors out of his ingredients," and awarded Bar Agricole a coveted three stars.

For Brandon, working with local farms to obtain the freshest and best ingredients possible is the most natural thing in the world. A San Francisco native, he has early memories of accompanying his Chinese grandmother on her daily trips to buy fresh produce and ingredients for family meals. All of the farms he now works with are certified biodynamic or organic. He says that as farms change in the Bay Area, his cooking will also change as he makes use of what they grow.

Greg Dunmore, owner and executive chef of Nojo in the Hayes Valley district of San Francisco, reflects on how the restaurant came to be. “Sushi, who doesn't love sushi? But there is something about the flavors of cooked Japanese food that appeals to my soul.” Greg first sampled yakitori in Atlanta and he was “immediately hooked.” Greg worked at Terra in Napa Valley.

His mentor, Hiro, asked him to take the reins at Ame in San Francisco; where Greg “took everything I’d learned about Japanese food and elevated it.” But it wasn't until he was sitting at a dark and boisterous neighborhood yakitori shop in Osaka, Japan, drinking local sake and eating perfectly grilled chicken skewers, that he realized what he really missed was yakitori - this was what he wanted to cook and that was where Nojo was born. He traveled Japan from Sapporo to Fukiyoka, exploring regional izakaya, sake breweries and yakitori shops, and sampling the remarkable food of Japan. At Nojo, Greg offers the best of both cooking styles - yakitori with its emphasis on quality ingredients, the chef's deft hands and the special tare sauce, and izakaya, where creative seasonal small plates are offered in a relaxed and lively environment. Fittingly “Nojo” is the Japanese word for farm, as many ingredients come from local farms.

Sam Mogannam took over Bi-Rite Market in San Francisco’s Mission District from his father and uncle in 1998. He not only renovated the space, he revised and replaced what was being offered, changing the little market to a locavore destination in the process. Sam came from a culinary background, and his sense of food service as hospitality and as an expression of community are evident in all of the Bi-Rite offerings. His recently opened 18 Reasons serves as a community gathering place, gallery, educational space and center for the advancement of sustainable food systems.

Kris Hoogerhyde and Anne Walker opened the acclaimed Bi-Rite Creamery in 2006.  A veteran of the food industry, Kris found her calling as a baker working with Anne at San Francisco’s 42 Degrees Restaurant.  Anne’s career has spanned two decades as a pastry chef at some of San Francisco’s finest restaurants, including Cypress Club, Stanford Court Hotel, and Slow Club.

James Ormsby, consulting pastry chef, marries artistry and solid experience in his role at Bluestem Brasserie. His desserts reflect his dedication to using locally-sourced, seasonal ingredients, and provide a sweet comfort-food finish to the restaurant’s more savory menu offerings.

James has had broad exposure, having recently served as executive chef at Plumpjack Café, and has traveled to Asia on a number of occasions to serve as guest chef in upscale dining establishments. He has participated in countless Bay Area food benefits, and has consulted on dozens of top-brand food products. James takes “dessert” and elevates it to an exciting level of creativity and taste sensations.

Connie Green learned to forage for wild ingredients from her grandmother.  She tells the story of taking chanterelles that she’d gathered to the two leading French restaurants in San Francisco in the late ‘70s. Both turned up their noses at the idea of “local” chanterelles, preferring to use canned French mushrooms instead.  Both, she notes, closed within five years in the face of the growing interest in locavore foods.

Connie is the founder and head huntress of Wine Forest Wild Mushrooms, one of the most highly regarded wild-food businesses in the country. She provides the results of her woodland excursions to a clientele of top chefs around the country – and to consumers through her on-line store.

Appearing with Connie is Sarah Scott. Connie and Sarah co-authored the foraging resource, "The Wild Table."  Sarah served as executive chef at the Robert Mondavi Winery from 1993 to 2006, cooking with and for most of the world’s great chefs, and is now a chef, educator and culinary consultant.  She has been a contributor to Bon Appetit.

The celebrated host of over 3,000 cooking shows, broadcast worldwide, Martin Yan enjoys distinction as a certified Master Chef, a highly respected food consultant, a cooking instructor and a prolific author. In 1978, he pioneered a daily TV Chinese cooking show: the now classic “Yan Can Cook.” Infusing lessons with warmth, humor and vitality, he quickly won a devoted following.

In 1985, he founded the Yan Can Cooking School in California.  In 2007, he created The Martin Yan Culinary Arts Center, a unique international culinary academy for professional chefs in Shenzhen, China. Also a restaurateur, his Yan Can and SensAsian restaurants offer inventive pan-Asian menus.

Melanie Eisemann is co-founder of Avedano's Meats, a San Francisco neighborhood butcher shop that sources whole animals from local, sustainable farms and breaks them down by hand, the old-fashioned way. Melanie’s passion for good food led her into the world of humanely raised meats, locally produced goods and sustainable fishing practices. She’s also an organic gardener and the founder of Lazy Daisy Duke's Landscaping.

David Budworth (aka "Dave the Butcher") started his career in 1989 at the Ashbury Market in San Francisco. Dave now manages Marina Meats, cuts at Avedano’s Holly Park Market, and is the butcher for Fatted Calf's Pork Happy Hour every Wednesday. As well as teaching classes, Dave is an encyclopedia of butchering - full of facts, recipes and lore.