People. Planet. Purpose.
Featured Project
Debra Hensley’s Social $timulus:
Cooks For a Cause
Thank you to everyone who came out to support Cooks for a Cause!
The winners of the cooking competition were...
Overall Grand Champion:
Team 4 John Davis, Melissa Watt, Chris Rosenthal, Pam Miller and Bob Morgan
1st Course Winner:
Team 5 Libbie Sherman, Andres Cruz, Bill Barr, Mike White and Crystal Wilkinson
2nd Course Winner:
Team 2 Andrew Tan, Denise Smith, Scott Mayes, Rona Roberts and Becca Self
Meet the Distinguished Chefs/Judges:
Chef Ouita Michel has always made locally grown ingredients a priority in her cuisine. Since buying the Holly Hill Inn in 2000 and opening the fine dining restaurant in May 2001, Ouita’s use of locally sourced foods both helps sustain Bluegrass family farms and provides her customers only the freshest, best-tasting fine cuisine. Her three restaurants have purchased almost $1 million of Kentucky-grown meats, dairy products, fruits and vegetables over the last 10 years. "For me, it was the study of French and Italian cuisine and the realization that they use local agricultural artisan products in their food," Michel recently told Kentucky Living magazine. "And that's why it's so good. That's why from the beginning of wanting to be a chef, I've had a commitment to local agriculture. Buying local is an old-fashioned tradition that we sort of abandoned for a few decades." Chef Ouita’s work continues to earn accolades from local and national fans. She was nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award in 2011 for the fourth year in a row as Best Chef in the Southeast, competing against chefs in major metropolitan areas. Southern Living featured her in its May 2009 issueʼs Southern Chef Salute. Ouita is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y. Active in her community, Ouita is a member of Slow Food USA; a founder of Francisco’s Farm; and in 2010 was named to the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, a statewide citizens group working to improve education for Kentuckians.
Chef Beth Hanna is the chef and owner of Hanna's on Lime at 214 S. Limestone St. in downtown Lexington. The restaurant has been at this location for 40 plus years and Hanna has operated it for the last 8 1/2 years. Hanna's on Lime is a small breakfast-lunch establishment known for comfort food, relaxed atmosphere and loyal downtown following. Beth is a native Lexingtonian and a graduate of UK. After a career at Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Hanna left to get a degree in culinary arts from Sullivan University in Louisville.
Chef Mark Smith started cooking at the age of 19. Born in Danville, he fell in love with all different styles and it came natural too him. Mark has cooked for the Marriott and the Holiday Inn most of his career. He is a Graduate of Sullivan CulinaryArts, Personal an Private Chef, and Catering. Mark is the Executive Chef at Windy Corner Market.
Chef Jill Bakehorn and her mother Judy started Bluegrass Catering in 1991. They offer a broad range of creative menu choices — whether for a luncheon, elegant sit-down dinner, dinner buffet or classic cocktail reception. All menu items are prepared from scratch and recipes have been chosen exclusively for you. The last few years have been busy for the family business as they opened a private events facility called The Barrel House, located in the heart of downtown, in Lexington's Historic Distillery District. And in early 2011, they opened The Barrel House Gardens, which is located directly across from The Barrel House Events Center.
Chef Mamadou "Sav" Savane knew when he arrived in Lexington with this new wife, former Peace Corps volunteer, Rachel, that he would have to do the "home cooking" since she did not learn to cook during her time in Guinea. He had spent many years observing his talented mother and sisters cooking, so Sav called up what he had learned and began cooking at home and for guests at their home in Lexington. His grilled meats were popular during block parties in their neighborhood and he got the idea of cooking on a larger scale. For many years Sav rolled the idea of an African restaurant around in his head and finally decided the time had come and in 2008. He jumped in, opening Sav's Grill & West African Cuisine on S. Limestone. His menu was very basic in the beginning with only four dishes on offer, but he quickly added other features and the menu is full and with many choices now. Sav has been thrilled with the positive reception of his food offerings and have enjoyed being a representative of Guinea in Lexington. The number of different nationalities who have declared his food, "Just like home!" has been amazing and he feels very lucky to be able to satisfy such a diversity of people with the home cooking he learned from his family.
Chef Cooper Vaughan has worked in the food and beverage industry for the last 15 years. He started in 1994 after graduating from the Le Cordon Bleu. Cooper spent several years in Lexington at local restaurants before seeking further training and work experience out of state. He returned to Lexington in 2002 to finish a degree in Hotel Restaurant Management from Transylvania University. After graduating, he moved to Tennessee to work at Blackberry Farm. In 2007, Cooper returned home to work for Dupree Catering and Events as an assistant manager and event coordinator. As of 2011, He has opened Apiary Catering and Events. It has always been a dream of his to run his own restaurant. Cooper is inspired by the many artisans that make this field so exciting. It is his hope that Apiary will present an opportunity to expose aspiring chefs to the importance of cultivating a synergy between food, service and the local supply chain that makes it all possible.
PEOPLE. PLANET. PURPOSE.
Debra’s Social $timulus hosts festive and informative gatherings that feature really cool things going on in Lexington. Through these events, we connect local initiatives, talent, great food and stimulating conversations. Every event is at a different location, free and open to the public.
