NAVARRE — The Navarre Beach Area Chamber of Commerce announced this week that celebrity chef Geoffrey Zakarian will appear at this year’s Taste of Navarre.
The event is Sunday, April 28, along Santa Rosa Sound behind the chamber’s office. Zakarian will offer a cooking demonstration and sign his book.
“We’re just really excited,” said Kelley Fuller, the chamber’s president and CEO. “This will be a good thing for Navarre and our member businesses. It’s not every day you get to rub elbows with a celebrity chef.”
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Fuller said the 2011 “Iron Chef” winner and star of the Food Network’s “Chopped” will make a seafood dish featuring local fare. Space will be limited to 300 ticket-holders.
Among the other celebrity chefs considered for the Taste of Navarre were Cat Cora, Andrew Zimmern and Anthony Bourdain.
“We went through various celebrity chefs and we thought (Zakarian) would be a good fit for our community and who could really showcase our area and the seafood industry,” said Nicol Gray, committee chairwoman for Taste of Navarre.
“He’s fun and energetic and he relates well to a crowd. From our options, we thought he would be what’s best for the Navarre area,” Gray said.
Taste of Navarre will feature food from local restaurants and a cooking demonstration from chef Jim Shirley of Fish House in Pensacola.
Tickets are $25 for regular admission and $75 for VIP admission, which includes a copy of Zakarian’s book.
TO LEARN MORE: For more information, call the Navarre Beach Area Chamber of Commerce at 939-3267.
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Angel McCurdy at 850-315-4432 or amccurdy@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @AngelMnwfdn.
