Top Chefs Battle for Title of Vancouver Aquarium Chowder Champion

Vancouver B.C. – Twelve of Vancouver’s top Ocean Wise chefs will heat up the Vancouver Aquarium on November 23 as they compete in a cook-off for the title of 2011 Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown Champion.

“This friendly, but fierce, competition brings together 12 of Vancouver’s best chefs as they compete with original ocean-friendly seafood chowder, paired with local craft beer,” says Mike McDermid, Vancouver Aquarium’s Ocean Wise partner relations manager. “The judging panel has selected 12 Ocean Wise recipes submitted by B.C.’s top chefs for what will be an incredible night of great tasting chowder, all in support of sustainable seafood.”

The following local Ocean Wise chefs will go head-to-head, creating delicious, sustainable Ocean Wise chowders:

Eric Pless – Coast Restaurant
Tyler Groenestyn – Codfathers Seafood Market
Jennifer Dodd – Edible Canada
Daiji Tanaka – Hapa Izakaya Kitsilano
Paul Cecconi – Local Lounge-Grille
Nicholas Croooks – The Noodle Box
Chris Whittaker – O’Douls Restaurant and Bar
Chester Velas – Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts
Natasha Harris – Sunset Bay Yacht Group
Ron Gibb – Westward Ho! Public House and Grill Room at the University Golf Club
Myke Shaw and Kelsey Timler – Vancouver Aquarium
Ned Bell – YEW restaurant + bar at the Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver

Guests will be invited to taste the savoury chowders with paired craft beers, and vote on the People’s Choice Award, while a panel of five judges–including C Restaurant’s Robert Clark, Canada’s first Certified Cicerone Chester Carey and 2009 B.C. Restaurant Hall of Fame Inductee and food and wine guru Sid Cross–will determine the night’s champion.

The Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown takes place on November 23, 2011, at 7 p.m., at the Vancouver Aquarium. Tickets are $40, or $32 for Vancouver Aquarium members, and are available at www.vanaqua.org. All proceeds from the evening will directly support the Aquarium’s Ocean Wise program. Chowder Chowdown is a 19 + event.

About Ocean Wise™

The Ocean Wise symbol next to a menu or seafood item is the Vancouver Aquarium’s assurance of an ocean-friendly seafood choice. With over 3,100 Ocean Wise partner locations across Canada, Ocean Wise makes it easy for consumers to make sustainable seafood choices that ensure the health of our oceans for generations to come.www.oceanwise.ca.

About the Vancouver Aquarium

The Vancouver Aquarium is a global leader in connecting people to our natural world, and a self-supporting, non-profit association dedicated to effecting the conservation of aquatic life through display and interpretation, conservation practices, education, research, and direct action. www.vanaqua.org.