Kenosha's HarborPark Jazz & Blues Festival to feature Cooking Studio

Got this bit of fun foodie news about the upcoming HarborPark Jazz & Blues Festival to take place in Kenosha on August 16th. Kenosha is one of our family's favorite places to head for a day or weekend. There are so many fun attractions, a lot of beautiful accessible lakefront and lots of good food. How fun that this music festival is morphing into a music and foodie festival! Read more in this press release from the HarobrPark Jazz and Food Festival, sent over from my friends at the Kensoha Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Chef Daniel Bonanno and Gateway Technical College Culinary Arts program partner with HarborPark Jazz & Blues Festival - Aug. 16, 2014

KENOSHA – Kenosha native and restaurateur Chef Daniel Bonanno and the Gateway Technical College Culinary Arts program will join forces at the Aug. 16 HarborPark Jazz and Blues Festival to launch the “Cooking Studio.” This interactive cooking demonstration provides the avid foodie, aspiring cooks, and gourmet food aficionados an atmosphere to ask questions about easy to find ingredients and explore preparation techniques for roasting a Wisconsin Berkshire Pig. Attendees will have a chance to taste samples of the savory Pork cuisine along with a succulent tasty side perfect for your robust taste buds.

The Cooking Studio offers a unique complement to the musical programming of the day-long HarborPark Jazz and Blues Festival. “I’m honored to be the first Chef to host this inaugural cooking demonstration and look forward to bringing other great Chefs to this event for many years to come. It's a tremendous opportunity to showcase creative but easy ways to cook and navigate the Kitchen while having a glass of wine and listening to some great music on the lakefront," said Chef Daniel Bonanno, owner, Pig in a Fur Coat. “We are very grateful to Chef Daniel for bringing his epicurean expertise back to his hometown and lending his name to support our cause,” said Tim Mahone, Chairman, Mahone Fund.

Chef Daniel, a Kenosha Bradford graduate, grew up in an Italian household where he discovered a passion for food – and particularly Italian cuisine. He studied at Apicius Culinary School in Florence, Italy, but returned to his native Wisconsin to get closer to farmers and ranchers. With Bonnie Arent his partner from Racine, he opened “A Pig in a Fur Coat” in Madison, which was named best new restaurant and drew national media attention as a featured restaurant on the Cooking Channel’s America’s Best Bites. Daniel, who worked for several years as a sous chef at Chicago’s Spiaggia restaurant was a semifinalist in the Rising Star Chef portion of the James Beard Awards.

Chef Daniel is looking forward to working with Gateway's Culinary Arts program to mentor Reuther Central High School culinary students as they prepare this decadent cuisine for the inaugural Cooking Studio. “It's always great to give back and help the community that I grew up in. And there is no better way to do that, than with educating the youth as they consider their career options,” said Chef Daniel.

“As we continue to pursue pathways of learning, this partnership with Chef Daniel gives our students hands-on experience and career insight as they participate in these educational opportunities,” said Terry Timmons, Dean of Service Occupations, Gateway Technical College.

Tickets are available online at mahonefund.org and also at Tenuta's, Andrea's and the Kenosha Community Foundation office. Advance General Admission tickets are $30 and $35 at gate. The Texas Roadhouse VIP lounge tickets are $85.

Gates for the Jazz and Blues Fest open at 1 p.m., and music begins at 1:30 p.m. Terry James and the Blue Flames and the Nellie “Tiger” Travis Blues Band (nellietigertravis.com) were recently added to the musical lineup, which features headline performers Jazz Funk Soul – featuring Jeff Lorber, Everette Harp and Paul Jackson Jr. – on the main stage at 7 p.m. Rounding out the musical lineup on the main stage are Chicago’s very own and talented trumpeter, Corey Wilkes and his Quartet and the KUSD Jazz All Stars, under the direction of Ken Wiele.

The HarborPark Jazz & Blues Festival is produced by the volunteer efforts of the Mary Lou and Arthur F. Mahone Fund, which promotes educational and career opportunities for students and to support healthy lifestyle initiatives which reduce healthcare disparities in communities of color. All proceeds benefit the Mahone Fund which strengthens and enhances our very important community initiatives in Kenosha.