Chefs Gather at Kendall College to Celebrate Mexico City

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• Christopher Koetke, Executive Director of Kendall College introducing the guest chefs.
• Greg Elliot from Lockwood plating his dish.
• Rick Bayless speaking on the connections between Chicago and Mexico City.
• Arun Sampanthavivat crushing Thai chili peppers.
• Daniel Ovadia from Paxia (Mexico City) serving his Chinicuiles (Worms) in Oaxaqueno chile sauce.

Last night many braved the wind and rain to attend a Taste of Sister Cities: Mexico City, a fundraiser that took place at Kendall College. Hosted by the Mexico City committee of Chicago Sister Cities International, the event was to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Chicago's relationship with Mexico City. The event showcased four renowned chefs from Mexico City, including Enrique Olvera. Olvera's restaurant Pujol is ranked in the top 50 on the S. Pellegrino list of the World's Best Restaurants. Students and instructors from Universidad del Valle de Mexico, the culinary school in Mexico City and Chicago's Kendall college created the pastries for the evening.
Seven Chicago chefs also participated in the event and represented a variety of different types of food available in the city. Jimmy Bannos' team (he was not present) cooked up jambalaya from Heaven on Seven, and Greg Elliot from Lockwood cooked up a beef cheek dish with butternut squash on blue cheese bread pudding. Randy Waidner (Gibson's), Laura Piper (Trattoria No. 10), Arun Sampanthavivat (Arun's) and Carlos Gaytan (Mexique) all prepared dishes as well.

Rick Bayless, who has a very strong connection to Mexico City, created a dish of butternut squash tamales with Gunthorp Farms suckling pig, red chile paw paw sauce and lime-scented arugula. Bayless also spoke at the event about his strong connection to Mexico City and how his dish represented the technique he learned in Mexico City (where he learned to make tamales), with the local ingredients he has grown to love in Chicago.