An Evening of Aloha: Celebrating the Friscia Family and UCSD Burn Center

This has been a life-changing summer for Chef Antonio Friscia (Stingaree, Gaijin, Campine). At a 4th of July party his wife Stacy was severely burned over almost half of her body in an accident around a fire pit. It was touch and go for awhile; she needed to be kept in an induced coma initially and required multiple and extensive surgeries.

The good news--for Stacy and Antonio, their two sons, and their extended family and friends--is that not only is Stacy recovering, she is homeward bound, where she still has a lot of physical therapy and healing to do.

To celebrate her recovery and the superb treatment she received at the UC San Diego Burn Center, Antonio wanted to throw a big bash. So, Enlightened Hospitality Group, which is home office to Stingaree and Campine, is hosting An Evening of Aloha, a benefit for the Burn Center which will be held at Stingaree this Sunday, Sept. 16 from 4 to 8 p.m. There's a minimum $20 donation at the door and all of the proceeds will go to the Burn Center.

Participating restaurants and chefs are San Diego favorites, including the Cooks Confab, to which Antonio belongs:

Brian Sinnott (L. A Specialty)

Jeff Jackson (A. R. Valentien)      

Jason Knibb (NINE–TEN)

Trey Foshee  (George’s California Modern)      

Chad White (Counterpoint)

Melissa Mayer (Martini Media)

Jack Fisher (Jack Fisher Confections)

James Foran (Market) 

Olivier Bioteau (Farm House Cafe)

Christian Graves (Jsix)

Aaron LaMonica (Blind Lady Ale House/TigerTiger)

TK Kolanko (The Fishery)

Paul Arias (The Fishery)                                           

Katie Grebow (Café Chloe)         

Paul McCabe (Delicias)

Amanda Baumgarten (Herringbone)

Shane McIntyre  (Searsucker)

Ryan Studebaker (Gingham)

Carlos Ochoa (Gabardine) 

Anthony Sinsay (Burlap)

Hanis Cavin (Carnitas Shack)

Donald Coffman (Paradise Point)

Andrew Spurgin

Those of us who know and love the Friscias are so grateful for Stacy's recovery and hope you'll join in to help raise money for the UC San Diego Burn Center, which serves San Diego, Riverside, and Imperial Counties as well as Western Arizona. It is one of only eight certified burn centers in California and Arizona that meets the standards of the American Burn Association and American College of Surgeons. The proceeds from An Evening of Aloha will go towards discovering new therapies, fighting infection, expanding facilities and capacity, purchasing specialized equipment, providing training, community education, and, of course, providing comfort.

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What Are You Doing This Month? Three Places to Be.

Like you, I go through phases when I'm almost never home and it looks like I'm about to hit one again--there's just so much going on for food lovers in May in San Diego. I'm just going to mention three I think you should pay attention to. I've linked to the sites at the top to send you to more information or ticket sales.

GMO Labeling forum and fundraiser at Warwicks, May 4 at 7 p.m. There is a battle going on over genetically modified (or engineered) organisms. This is a plant or meat product that has had its DNA artificially altered in a lab. You might be aware that corn, for instance, is now commonly engineered to produce pesticides in its own tissue. There have been no long-term studies of GMO safety to humans and there's no labeling required in the U.S. to alert consumers that food they buy has been genetically modified (unlike many other countries, which do require it). There is an effort to put a proposition on the November ballot in California that would require food sold in retail outlets in California to be labeled if it includes genetically modified ingredients. It's called The California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act. You can learn more about the ballot measure, GMOs, and labeling at this upcoming forum hosted by the La Jolla Village Merchants Sustainability Committee. It will feature:

• Nancy Casady: Member, California Agriculture Board & GM, People's Food Co-op in OB

• Mike Copass: Genetic engineer & microbiologist

• Fernando Aguerre: Reef co-founder & president, International Surfing Association

• Isabel Cruz: Restaurateur (Coffee Cup, Isabel’s Cantina & Barrio Star) and farmer (Stargazer Farm)

• Moderator: Michelle Ciccarelli Lerach, attorney & owner of Cups/Cups Culinary, La Jolla 

Eat. Drink. Read. A Culinary Event for Literacy at the NTC Promenade McMillin Event Center in Liberty Station, May 16 at 5:30 p.m. Reading and food are a natural pairing. This year's lineup of chefs is as inspired as the books they chose to base their dishes on, including Whisknladle's Ryan Johnston (Playing for Pizza), Urban Solace's Matt Gordon (A Moveable Feast), The Red Door's Miguel Valdez (The Odyssey), George's Modern's Trey Foshee (A Sheltering Sky), Gabardine's Chad White (Ugly Fish), Eclipse Chocolat's Will Gustwiller (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Craft & Commerce's Craig Jimenez (Beyond the Reef), and more. Plus, there will be drinks courtesy of Stone Brewing Co., 12 Signs Wine, Honest Tea, Solar Rain, SOL Market, Craft & Commerce mixologists, and DiningOutSD. Tickets are a steal at $60 and the proceeds help support the vast array of local literacy projects supported by the San Diego Council on Literacy.

Le Dîner à San Diego at an undisclosed location on May 25 at 6 p.m. They've taken place in France, Germany, and last year in Chicago, New York, Altanta, and San Francisco. Now it's San Diego's turn. Here's your opportunity to participate in a giant flash mob pop-up picnic dinner. For $25 a person, you show up (the where is still a mystery and part of the fun) dressed in white with a picnic meal, drinks, dishes, utensils, linens, chairs, etc. The organizers provide a table, entertainment, and who knows what else. Don't want to make your own meal? No prob. Le Dîner à San Diego has partnered with catering firm Campine and Snake Oil Cocktail Co. Now you can buy tickets and a five-course meal with champagne for $50 a person. We're talking house-made pâté, local charcuterie, a spring quinoa salad, roasted whole jidori chicken, and more. It'll be an intimate dinner of up to 4,000 and proceeds will benefit Slow Food Urban San Diego, which will organize school field trips through the group's farm-to-school program.



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