Kitchens of note and dishes to remember

It’s not every day you can meander through a gorgeous neighborhood, stop in various homes to see fabulous kitchens and then sample phenomenal food from local restaurants, prepared right in front of you by those establishments’ executive chefs.

But it can happen every year.

The fourth annual Kitchens of Note Tour put on by The League of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra was sold out once again this year, bringing 425 attendees into the Berkeley Hall community to visit six homes and their respective hosts on Sunday afternoon.

Lois Wilson, co-chairperson for the event, said the funds raised through the tour every year make up about one-third of the League’s annual funds to support HHSO.

“I believe that it is unique to the community at this time,” she said on Thursday afternoon, adding this sort of event reaches out to the community as a whole, even those who aren’t involved with HHSO or regular patrons of the arts.

Wilson has been involved with the event from its inception, she said, bringing the idea with her from a similar League in Augusta, Ga., with which she was passionately involved before she moved to the Lowcountry.

“And these communities are just wonderful,” Wilson said of the hosts’ neighborhoods, past and present. The location and restaurants have been new each year, sometimes a restaurant or two carrying over for an extra year, keeping the excitement fresh for annual attendees.

A local restaurant was stationed in each of the six kitchens being showcased. Each restaurant was represented by its executive chef and often an owner, assistant or another member of the team as well. More importantly for the fundraiser, these chefs’ time, expertise and food were 100 percent donated to the cause.

New places, new faces

For the majority of the hosts, this was their first interaction with the League or with HHSO. Mary Briggs, HHSO president and CEO, and Kathy Corley, a member of the HHSO Board of Directors, were noted as members of the Berkeley Hall community themselves and a couple of the friends and neighbors who initially approached several of the hosts about participating.

Lisa Marie Temple and her husband Stephen have lived in the Lowcounty for about two years now. They agreed to be hosts for the event after friends approached them about it some months back, Lisa Marie Temple said. Since then, she has become a member of the League and wants to become more involved with the community, she said.

“It’s fun!” John Cardone said outside of his castle-like home. He said he was enjoying the opportunity to meet new people and show his home to folks who were interested.

Old Fort Pub Executive Chef Keith Josefiak said this sort of event is a perfect way for the community to “meet” the restaurant and vice versa.

Jeff Congdon, The Bluffton Room executive chef/general manager, was of a similar mind, saying it was “a good opportunity to say, ‘hi’ ” to friends and patrons of the restaurant and possibly make some new friends.

Matt Valentino, The Pearl Kitchen & Bar executive chef, said he was happy to have an opportunity to watch people eat his food.

“I get to see direct reactions of people trying our food,” he said, happy to be in a different sort of kitchen for a change.

Tom Boland, R&D Wine Boutique executive chef, used this event as an opportunity to create something new, not featured on the restaurant’s menu, while still in the spirit and style of the restaurant. A handful of the chefs participating on Sunday gave attendees something new to try if the restaurant was an old favorite. And some of those dishes may make it onto the menus soon, the chefs said.

For the love of music

“This is very much a part of who we are,” Tula Collias said in her kitchen. She and her husband George have been steadfast patrons of the symphony, wherever they’ve lived, she said. “We’ve been symphony people for most of our married lives.” Their love of music made this event special and personal to them, Tula Collias said.

“It’s wonderful (to see) how dedicated everyone is who volunteers for the symphony cause. ... It brings so much to our community,” she said, emphasizing the importance of sharing HHSO with future generations.

Paulette Henderson’s kitchen was shown for the fundraiser as well. Having experience in fundraising and passion for music, the event was close to her heart. She said raising funds for fine arts can often be more challenging than some other causes but that this is truly a worthy cause.

Marsha Levin’s contemporary home was unique in every way — inside and out — and she was happy to people-watch as attendees flowed through the front door.

“Everyone who comes through here has a smile on their face,” Levin said, smiling herself. “That’s how I know I did the right thing.” And that sentiment is two-fold, she explained. She saw how much joy people had in participating in the cause and she was happy to have played a part. Levin was also assured that the choices she made in designing her contemporary home were spot on, while she watched strangers’ eyes light up with each fresh glance around her home, she said.

The restaurants were in on the cause, as well.

Michael Cirafesi, Ombra Cucina Rustica executive chef, said he’s participated in events similar to this before and relishes the opportunity to be at it again.

“Anything we can do to help (the community), we’ll do it,” Cirafesi said.

“It’s nice to be able to do something for the symphony and be part of the community,” said Clayton Rollison, Lucky Rooster Kitchen + Bar owner and chef.

The day would not be possible without the 80 or so volunteers who set aside the day to support the HHSO. They were dispersed among the six homes, helping eager attendees find parking spots or the next house, pointing out marvelous features of the homes (and kitchens, of course) and guiding curious folks through the sometimes labyrinth-like hallways if their noses steered them off the path.

This story was originally published September 25, 2016 at 7:22 PM with the headline "Kitchens of note and dishes to remember."