Farm fresh ingredients and the desire to serve are a winning combination for both Wholesome Wave and Executive Chef Duane Keller at 14K Restaurant. Chef Keller’s belief that only the freshest ingredients should be used in his dishes, along with strong ties to community outreach projects made the Hamilton Crowne Plaza and 14K Restaurant a natural choice to partner with Wholesome Wave for their third annual meeting.
Finding affordable, local produce can be even more difficult when you have to make every food dollar go as far as possible to feed your family.
To help combat this problem, Michel Nischan, two-time James Beard Foundation Award winner, founded Wholesome Wave to make fresh, local food more available and affordable. Programs like Double Value Coupon Program encourage SNAP, WIC and FMNP recipients to use their benefits at participating farm markets- keeping the funds within the local communities, providing new revenue streams for small and mid-size farms, and providing the community with more affordable fresh, local food.
The Hamilton Crowne Plaza and 14K are proud to be hosting the Wholesome Wave annual meeting in Washington DC this week. For the Tuesday demonstration, Chef Nischan will join 14K’s Chef Keller to prepare a four-course, locally-sourced meal for 130 guests.
We are pleased to host this year’s additional speakers at the Wholesome Wave meeting:
Jose Andres
Most visitors to Washington are familiar with chef Jose Andres from a visit to one of his restaurants – Jaleo (get the dates and try not to share them), Oyamel, Zaytinya, America Eats Tavern (be sure to visit before that leaves us on July 4th), or if you’re really lucky – Minibar (make reservations 30 days in advance). Many people don’t know that his tireless efforts to promote affordable fresh food recently landed him on Time Magazine’s list of 100 Most Influential People in the World.
Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan
Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan manages the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food program and authored the 1990 Organic Foods Production Act. She is a proponent of community and urban gardens and was one of Time Magazine’s Most Influential People in 2010.
Congresswoman Chellie Pingree
From a farming family herself, Congresswoman Pingree started an organic farm to sell produce and yarn from her sheep – providing opportunities for knitting and yarn businesses in the community.
Audrey Rowe
As Administrator for the Food and Nutrition Service as the USDA, Audrey Rowe is responsible for the 15 nutrition assistance programs designed to provide children and families with better access to food and a more healthful diet.
To learn more or follow the details of the event, follow us on Twitter – https://twitter.com/#!/14krestaurant
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