Jekyll Island Club Hotel Chef Abigail Hutchinson Invited to National Press Club Gala

Jekyll Island, GA: Five celebrity chefs shared the spotlight at a gala dinner in April at the Fourth Estate Restaurant, National Press Club, Washington, DC. Each contributed one course to a five-course wine dinner along with tips and techniques for gourmet cooking. Executive Chef Abigail Hutchinson of the Jekyll Island Club Hotel was asked to prepare the entrée for the occasion.
The entrée, the highlight of the dinner, was Molten Filet Mignon Wellington stuffed with boursin cheese, shiitake, morel and white button mushrooms with brandy and fresh herbs wrapped in puff pastry. “Guests were very happy with this main course and intrigued by the stuffing; they wanted to know all the secrets of the flavor and the preparation,” said Chef Hutchinson.
 
Other chefs who prepared courses were NBC-TV Cooking Hostess Sheelah Haye Stepkin; Joe Randall who was chosen by Ebony magazine as one of the top ten 2008 African-American chefs; Sue Moats, chef at The Greenbrier resort in West Virginia; and Jill Prescott, a former PBS Cooking Hostess and friend of Julia Child.

Author and gourmand, Joe David of Warrenton, VA, was on hand to autograph his book Gourmet Getaways, a collection of cooking schools, chefs, and romantic U.S. getaways in which the Jekyll Island Club Hotel is featured. To write the book, the author spent over a year, traveling the U.S. interviewing chefs and acquainting himself with popular resorts and cooking schools. Some of America’s hottest chefs and their recipes are featured in the book, including John Ash, Abigail Hutchinson, Patrick O’Connell, and Joanne Weir.

Cooking at the Club, the hotel’s four-day cooking school designed by Chef Hutchinson, is scheduled next for August 30 through September 3, 2009. Participants receive a culinary welcome gift and chef’s jacket, and enjoy superior accommodations in Crane Cottage for four nights, welcome reception Sunday evening followed by a Sunday Dinner Dance with dinner and entertainment in the Grand Dining Room, hands-on cooking classes in the kitchen at Crane Cottage over three days, patisserie sessions, wine tasting Monday evening with the sommelier; full breakfast each morning; and gourmet farewell dinner on Wednesday evening. To learn more about the cooking school, visit the website:  www.jekyllclub.com.

Kevin Runner, General Manager of the Jekyll Island Club Hotel, said, “We appreciate the contribution of Chef Abigail to the high standards of excellence our guests have come to expect of the Grand Dining Room, Courtyard at Crane, and the Café Solterra in addition to the food service for banquets, weddings and other social events at the Hotel. Since coming to the hotel in 2006, Chef Abigail has received many awards including selection to prepare courses at the James Beard House in New York City and a Gold Medal from the American Culinary Federation.”  

For reservations or information, please contact the Jekyll Island Club Hotel, 371 Riverview Drive, Jekyll Island, GA, 31527 or call 800-535-9547 or 912-635-2600.

Article posted May 1, 2009.