Minneapolis Chefs Celebrate Jacques Pépin
- When
November 13
- Where
- Andrew Zimmern’s Private Studio Kitchen Minneapolis, MN
This private gourmet event is the opportunity of a lifetime. Andrew Zimmern will team up with fellow chefs Gavin Kaysen, Christina Nguyen and Karyn Tomlinson to curate a dining experience for you and 17 guests in Andrew’s private Minneapolis Studio Kitchen.
Highlights
- Andrew Zimmern will team up with fellow James Beard Award winners/nominees Gavin Kaysen, Christina Nguyen and Karyn Tomlinson to curate a dining experience for up to 18 guests
- Dine in Andrew’s Studio Kitchen — an exclusive behind-the-scenes opportunity not open to the public
- Customized 4-course menu presented and prepared by host Andrew and guest chefs, served with wine, beer and non-alcoholic beverages
- Greeted upon arrival with beverages and hors d’oeuvres
Event Host
Andrew Zimmern
Award-winning TV personality, chef, writer and sustainability advocate
Andrew Zimmern is an Emmy-winning and four-time James Beard Award-winning TV personality, chef, writer and passionate global citizen. As the creator, executive producer and host of the Bizarre Foods franchise, Andrew Zimmern’s Driven by Food, What’s Eating America, Emmy-nominated Family Dinner, Wild Game Kitchen and the Emmy-winning The Zimmern List, he has devoted his life to exploring and promoting cultural acceptance, tolerance and understanding through food. You can also find him judging Iron Chef: Quest for an Iron Legend on Netflix, The Silos Baking Competition on HBO Max and mentoring young chefs on Food Network’s All Star Academy. Later this year, he will premiere Andrew Zimmern’s Field to Fire. He has written four books, including the Ippy Gold Medal award-winning AZ and the Lost City of Ophir. Andrew is the founder and chairman of Intuitive Content, named one of the top 100 production companies in the world by Realscreen, and Passport Hospitality, a restaurant and food service development company.
He is passionate about his philanthropic endeavors and sits on the boards of Services for the UnderServed, EXPLR Media, Soigne Hospitality, Giving Kitchen and Beans is How. He is on the advisory boards of Procure Impact and the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, and serves on City Harvest’s Food Council. Andrew is a Global Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations World Food Programme and The Nature Conservancy, and is the International Rescue Committee’s Voice for Nutrition. He is a founding member of the Coalition for Sustainable Aquaculture and the Independent Restaurant Coalition.
Guest Chefs
Gavin Kaysen
Chef and founder of Spoon and Stable, Demi, Cooks | Bellecour, Mara Restaurant and Bar and Socca Café
Chef Gavin Kaysen is the award-winning chef and owner of Soigné Hospitality Group in Minneapolis known for his nationally renowned restaurants and cafés in the Twin Cities as well as his leadership in the culinary profession. He is passionate about mentorship and creating a more professional work environment for hospitalitarians. Chef Kaysen is the recipient of two James Beard Awards, “Rising Star Chef of the Year 2008” and “Best Chef: Midwest 2018.” In 2022, he served as the executive culinary producer for the reboot of “Iron Chef” on Netflix and as a judge on Food Network’s “Bobby’s Triple Threat.” In 2023, Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal named Chef Kaysen one of the city’s “Most Admired CEOs” and Star Tribune recognized him as one of the “50 People Changing the Way Minnesotans Eat.”
Christina Nguyen
Executive chef and co-owner of Hola Arepa and Hai Hai
Christina Nguyen is Executive Chef and co-owner of Hola Arepa and Hai Hai restaurants in Minneapolis, MN. She and her husband Birk Grudem started Hola Arepa as a food truck in 2011 and established a permanent home for it a couple years later. In 2015, Hola Arepa was named one of Bon Appetit’s 50 Best Restaurants, and brunch dish Tostada Chilaquiles was featured on the cover of Food & Wine Magazine. They opened Hai Hai, their second restaurant, a few years later. Hai Hai has been featured in the Best New Restaurants in America lists of Eater, Thrillist and Esquire Magazine in 2018. Christina was also named Esquire’s Rising Star Chef of the Year in 2018. A finalist for a James Beard Award in 2019 and 2020 and a semifinalist in 2018 and 2023, Christina won the James Beard Award for Best Chef Midwest for Hai Hai in 2024.
Karyn Tomlinson
Chef and owner, Myriel
Chef Karyn Tomlinson was just named a 2024 FOOD & WINE Magazine Best New Chef and is a three-time James Beard semi-finalist. She is the celebrated chef and owner of Myriel, an internationally acclaimed restaurant located in St. Paul, Minnesota. With her deep-rooted passion for sustainability, Karyn has positioned Myriel as a beacon of sustainable dining, earning global recognition from publications like The Washington Post, Esquire, and The Wall Street Journal. Her culinary journey began in rural Minnesota, where she developed an early appreciation for the connection between food and the land. After honing her skills at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris and gaining invaluable experience at Fäviken in Sweden, Karyn returned to her Midwest roots to create Myriel. An eloquent advocate for local food systems, Karyn continues to inspire others through her speaking engagements, restaurant consultations, and media appearances on global food sustainability.