Coast-to-coast Celebration Of Culinary Legend Benefits Culinary Education And Re

Twenty restaurants from coast-to-coast, along with dozens of culinary stars, will join together to honor Julia Child on her 90th birthday as part of the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) Foundation's "In Celebration of Julia" on August 1st.

Participating restaurants will create special dinners that are infused with recipe influences from Julia Child. A special video presentation will bring greetings from the grand lady herself in addition to a live phone greeting to all restaurants. Tickets range from $150 - $250 per person. Many locations will also include a silent auction, featuring custom culinary trips and unique products and services.

This one evening will be the IACP Foundation's "official" birthday celebration for Julia Child, who will participate in the celebrations at the Fifth Floor Restaurant in San Francisco. Each of the venues in the different cities will be hosted by a culinary personality, including Julia's personal friends Jacques Pipin, Anne Willan, and Graham Kerr.

Participating locations at press time creating a birthday feast include:

Aspen, CO Renaissance
Baltimore Gertrude's
Charleston, SC Upstream
Charlotte, NC Mimosa Grill
Chicago Mossant Bistro
Dallas Abacus
Denver Panzano Ristorante
Louisville, KY The Oakroom at the Seelbach
Miami Chef Allen's
New Orleans Cobalt
New York City The French Culinary Institute
Phoenix, AZ The Biltmore
Portland, OR Red Star Tavern & Roast House
Salt Lake City Bambara Restaurant
San Francisco The Fifth Floor
Seattle The Painted Table Restaurant
Tulsa, OK The Polo Grill
Washington, DC Hotel Monaco Restaurant
"We hope everyone will celebrate Julia's birthday just as she would -- enjoying good food and good company," said Paul Barrett, chairman of the IACP Foundation. " The goal for this national celebration is to honor Julia, who epitomizes the creativity, passion and pioneering spirit that has elevated the status of the culinary arts in recent years. This event will enable us to provide scholarships for formal culinary training, research and travel grants for food writers, grants to libraries with significant culinary collections for the preservation of rare and out-of-print cookbooks and related research materials as well as children's cooking programs."

For more information on the IACP Foundation "In Celebration of Julia" birthday dinners honoring Julia Child, contact Ellen McKnight of the IACP Foundation at 502.581.9786 or email Ellen McKnight at emcknight@hqtrs.com. Calling the participating restaurant of your choice directly will secure your reservation for the event.

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The International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) is a non-profit society of individuals employed in, or providing services to, the culinary industry. The association is dedicated to helping members achieve and sustain success at all levels of their culinary careers. The IACP Foundation is the philanthropic partner of the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) that solicits, manages and distributes money for education and charitable programs related to the culinary industry.