Tour de Forks Events

TOUR DE FORKS EVENTS

STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE
August 16, 6 p.m.
Edie and Lacy Williams host this event in their log home in Skyland, lavish with local art. Preparing the meal is Troy Guard, chef and owner of TAG, of Denver. Troy trained at San Diego’s La Costa Resorts’ five prestigious restaurants and in the kitchen of legendary fusion Chef Roy Yamaguchi. Troy also served as an Executive Chef at NYC’s hotspot Tao and as Chef de Cuisine at the Doc Cheng’s restaurant in the Raffles Hotel in Singapore. Troy was named one of the Great Regional Chefs of America by the James Beard Foundation.

WESTERN HOE DOWN
August 18, 6 p.m.
The Hoe Down kicks off at the Lacy Barn. There’ll be classic cowboy cuisine by Keely Murphy of Arrangements, two-steppin’ music by the Ghost River Band, a cash bar, horseshoes and an opportunity to bid on homemade pies and silent auction items.

PROGRESSIVE HISTORIC CRESTED BUTTE LUNCH
August 20, 11:30 a.m.
Tour four small homes in downtown Crested Butte representing different historic eras of the area. Keely Murphy, founder and chef of Arrangements Catering, will orchestrate the creation of a delicious lunch, followed by fabulous desserts.

TREASURES IN TOWN
August 23, 6 p.m.
Begin with appetizers and a salad at the 1886 home of Carollyn and Don Holder, locally known as the “Eagle’s Nest.” Across the street is the cozy and hospitable 1893 home of Wynn and Leah Williams where dinner and desert will be served. From these private and intimate spaces, right in the middle of town, you can enjoy views of Paradise Divide, Gothic and Mt. Crested Butte.

Opera performer as well as chef and founder of Diva Catering, Elizabeth Bond will prepare Bellini (peach nectar and bubbly Prosecco), followed by platters of antipasti. The seated three-course dinner will include traditional Tuscan fare with a 21st Century sensibility. An enticing array of variety of desserts will complete the feast.

CHEFS ON THE EDGE
August 24, 5:30 p.m., Appetizers, 6:30 p.m., Competition 7 p.m. Cash bar: all night.
This sell-out event forces local chefs to create extreme cuisine under pressure in a one-hour contest. This year’s fierce but friendly competitors are Michael Busse, owner of Garlic Mike’s, Kate Ladoulis, owner of django’s restaurant and wine bar, and David Wooding, Head Chef at Maxwell’s Steakhouse. Michael Marchitelli of the Gourmet Noodle will return as emcee for the event and multi-event champion Jason Vernon of Soupcon will serve as judge. With the unveiling of the secret ingredient, stoves will ignite and food processors will whirl as the chefs race to display culinary prowess within an hour.

DESTINATION: The Reserve on East River
CIELO
August 25, 6 p.m.
Time of arrival: 6 p.m. Excursion maximum: 30, Toll: $150
Tour Guides: Cathey and Don Humphreys
Chefs: Ben Breslauer, The Club at Crested Butte; Kyleena Graceffa, Owner of The Secret Stash and Lobar; Ben Diem, Co-Owner of Lobar
Cathey and Don Humphreys home, Cielo, is designed with “parkitecture,” bearing strong elements of historic national park lodges. The home is full of materials from a 120-year old Globe Elevator, 12” x 12” beams signed by the craftsmen, hand-forged spikes and nails, and a compass rose made of three distinctive types of hardwood.

Chef Ben Breslauer was Sous Chef for the Sharon Country Club in Sharon, Connecticut before studying at the Chiang Mai Thai Cooking School in Thailand. He is also a graduate of the New Zealand School of Food and Wine. Chef Ben’s resume includes Timberline and Soupcon in Crested Butte, Alreds’s in Telluride and the Club at Crested Butte.

For an added feature to this evening, Kyleena Graceffa and Ben Diem of the Lobar will be shakin’ up the industry’s latest favorites in martinis. The Lobar has won Best Martini four times in CB News’ Best of the Butte.

FIRST CLASS ALL THE WAY
September 4, 6 p.m.
From the decks and windows in this mountain home at the Summit, guests will enjoy 360-degrees of vistas up and down the valley. Iron Chef of Crested Butte competitor Mike Marchitelli has consistently garnered local dining awards for the Gourmet Noodle’s menu consisting of his family’s classic Italian recipes. With Mike’s warm personality and expertise with Italian cuisine, the Gourmet Noodle is a local favorite, as will be this Tour de Fork’s event.

HISTORY ABOUNDS
September 11, 6 p.m.
Capture the beauty of fall colors in the entire Crested Butte valley as you gaze from David and Patty Miller’s 360-degree deck in Trappers Crossing. Enhance this view with a history lesson about the early settlers and a better understanding of the fascinating geological history of the mountains as the infamous duo of Professors Bruce Bartleson and Duane Vandenbusche, both of Western State College, share their wealth of knowledge about the area.

A graduate of the Academy of Culinary Arts, Mike Busse of Garlic Mike’s, takes pride in using only the finest of fresh seasonal ingredients for his dishes, such as in his ever-favorite Panzanella – a Tuscan Bread salad. Mike conducts cooking classes at Interiors, performs private home cooking demonstrations, and has been featured on Denver’s CW2 morning show cooking segment.