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Celebrity Chef Dinner

The Cliffs Celebrity Chef Dinner

Travelers Rest, SC + Hotel Domestique

October 18, 2019

Fuel For The Ride Ahead

The night before the ride, join us at Hotel Domestique for an evening under the stars sampling culinary creations from the country’s top chefs. Enjoy each course with a glass of wine selected by a master sommelier. While you indulge, take advantage of the intimate setting to speak with chefs and celebrity guests. You might find yourself riding next to them on Saturday!

Event Information
Hotel Domestique
Travelers Rest, SC
October 18, 2019
7-10 p.m.

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Meal With A Cause

Proceeds from the event benefit Meals on Wheels of Greenville.

Meet Our Chefs

Matthew Accarrino

Executive Chef at SPQR
San Francisco
Matthew Accarrino is the nationally recognized executive chef. He had originally hoped to become a professional cyclist until a leg injury turned his passion for cooking into a career. Matthew’s unique culinary style draws inspiration from his Italian heritage, personal experience, and classical training with some of America’s best chefs. Under his direction, SPQR has been awarded a Michelin star for six consecutive years. He has been nominated five consecutive times for the prestigious James Beard Foundation Award for “Best Chef: West.” Food & Wine Magazine named him “Best New Chef” in 2014. He also cooks for the Holowesko Citadel Racing Team and is the Chef Consultant for The Tour of Utah and Haute Route North America.

Ted Cizma

Global Executive Chef at SpaceX
Los Angeles
Chef Ted Cizma began his culinary career in his hometown of Chicago. The son and grandson of butchers, he found his place in the kitchen at age 13. In 1998, he opened Grace Restaurant in Chicago’s West Loop, earning “Three Stars” from the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun Times as well as being named “Best New Restaurant” by Chicago Magazine. In 2000, he was chosen as Food & Wine magazine’s “Best New Chef” in America. After selling his successful restaurants, Cizma spent several years as a highly sought-after consultant to luxury resorts and hotels. He then joined SpaceX in 2011 with the mandate to design, build and operate a food service facility for SpaceX employees. Cizma is a dedicated supporter of No Kid Hungry and cycles hundreds of miles each year to raise money to provide meals for kids who otherwise might not eat.

Nick Graves

Executive Chef at Restaurant 17
Travelers Rest, SC
Chef Nick Graves grew up in Pawley’s Island, South Carolina, where he worked with award-winning chefs Bill Austin and Louis Osteen, both known for bringing Southern cuisine to fine dining. These chefs inspired Graves to pursue a career in culinary arts, with the ultimate dream of becoming an executive chef. Graves has worked with the Rebel Restaurant group as a research and development chef, and most recently worked with the executive chef at Halls Chophouse in Greenville, South Carolina. Graves is currently the executive chef for Restaurant 17, located adjacent to Hotel Domestique in the foothills of the Blue Ridge mountains in Traveler’s Rest, South Carolina. Restaurant 17, owned by George and Rich Hincapie, is known for house-made, modern cuisine, crafted with ingredients sourced from local farms.

Michael Kramer

Chef/Partner at Jianna
Greenville, SC
An industry veteran, Michael Kramer previously opened McCrady’s in Charleston and Voice in Houston and earned Best New Restaurant nods for each. The California native started his career at Wolfgang Puck’s Spago in Los Angeles and then to the famed Mansion on Turtle Creek in Dallas. In 2013, Kramer moved to Greenville, South Carolina to take a position as Table 301 Restaurant Group Executive Chef of Culinary Operations for the restaurant group. He soon added Executive Chef at The Lazy Goat to his responsibilities, a position he held until opening Jianna. Jianna is a modern Italian kitchen that features modern Italian cuisine and freshly shucked oysters. In addition, Kramer was also a contestant on Season 12 of Beat Bobby Flay on The Food Network.

Craig Rogers

Owner and Shepherd at Border Springs Farm
Patrick Springs, Va.
Chef Craig Rogers is the owner and shepherd of Border Springs Farm in Patrick Springs, Virginia. His lamb is featured and used by some of the most well-known chefs in America. Craig’s lamb graze on specially sown high-sugar grasses which, coupled with a unique breeding, creates a rich lamb flavor with an exceptionally sweet fat. Border Springs Farm lamb has been guided by Craig’s passion for great food, devotion to farming, and sustainable animal husbandry. He is a frequent author on issues relating to farming policy, farmer interactions with chefs, and farm-to-table sales. Border Springs Farm is also the host of the annual festival known as LAMBSTOCK.

Francis Turck

Executive Chef at The Cliffs at Keowee Vineyards
Sunset, S.C.
Chef Francis Turck’s career spans more than 25 years, during which he has worked for such prestigious facilities as the Peabody Hotel in Orlando and Ta-boo in Palm Beach, Florida and with such notable chefs as Larry Forgione and Jean Georges Vongerichten. An honors graduate from the Culinary Institute of America, Francis is passionate about not only food but exquisite wine and has also studied to become a Certified Sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers. Francis is inspired by local, seasonal ingredients and his cuisine has been described as American with regional flair. Chef Francis Turck has been with The Cliffs since 2006, when he was quickly recognized for his creative culinary skills and promoted to Executive Chef of The Cliffs at Keowee Vineyards. He also serves as the Vice Conseiller Gastronomique of The Cliffs Chapter of Chaîne des Rôtisseurs.

Ken Vedrinski

Executive Chef, Owner and Sommelier at Trattoria Lucca and Coda del Pesce
Charleston, S.C.
Ken Vedrinski is executive chef, owner and sommelier of Trattoria Lucca and his all Italian seafood restaurant that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean, Coda del Pesce. Moving deftly through an award-winning career spanning decades, and a variety of haute cuisine styles, Vedrinski has found his passion and heritage in Italian fare. A three time James Beard Award semi-finalist, he has found his “place” in Charleston, a coastal city rich with fresh bounty from the land and sea. Trattoria Lucca was a James Beard Award semi-finalist for Best New Restaurant in 2009, and Vedrinski was also recognized as a James Beard Award semi-finalist for Best Chef in the Southeast in 2011. With a devoted following and industry acclaim, Vedrinski and his restaurants are redefining Italian cuisine in the Lowcountry.