Tour of Kitchens
1/26/2013
Tour Tickets are now SOLD OUT.
Tickets will not be for sale the day of the Tour.
The 4th annual Tour of Kitchens will be on Saturday, January 26th, 2013.
For more information, visit coralgablestourofkitchens.com.
About the Tour of Kitchens
The 4th annual ten-stop TOUR of KITCHENS takes place on Saturday, January 26th, 2013, and will showcase eight of Coral Gables’ finest private home kitchens (plus an opening and closing location) and will offer food tastings, table setting displays, and the sale of home-related merchandise. The Tour is a fund raising event for the Coral Gables Community Foundation and the Culinary Arts Program at Coral Gables Senior High.
Featured restaurants/food purveyors include: Cibo Wine Bar, Christy’s, Zak the Baker, Giardino’s Gourmet Salads, Sweet Art by Lucila, Rock Star Pastries, Spice Galore, Lasso the Moon (catering), the Culinary Arts Program of Coral Gables Senior High School, Roc Kat Ice Cream Co., JoAnna’s Marketplace, Seasons 52, Xixon, and Ready, Set, Cupcake!
Featured vendors are: Pottery Barn, Deco Candles, Williams-Sonoma, Aragon 101, and Coco Bella.
You may begin your Tour any time from 10:00 AM on with breakfast bites, coffee and mimosas at Snaidero kitchens + design showroom (4110 Ponce de Leon Boulevard). At check in, Tour participants will be given a program booklet containing the Tour map. Homes on this self-guided Tour will be open until 2:00 P.M., and participants may visit the homes in the order they choose. Last entry to the Tour homes will be 1:45 PM.
The Tour finishes with a Closing Event in the Books & Books outdoor courtyard (265 Aragon Avenue) from 12:30 P.M. to 2:00 P.M. featuring champagne, a wide array of desserts, a display on Kitchen Trends by kitchen design consultant Julia Johnston, and cookbook authors who will be on hand to mingle and to sign books. This is all included in your Tour ticket price ($50). Honorary Chair and Coral Gables’ First Lady Carmen Cason will also be on hand at the closing event to meet and greet participants. Featured cookbook authors are: Bernie Matz, Linda Gassenheimer, and Raquel Roque.
TOUR TICKETS are $50 per person and all-inclusive of food and beverages, and may be easily purchased through the website coralgablestourofkitchens.com, at the starting point (Snaidero, 4110 Ponce de Leon Boulevard) on the day of the Tour, or at the Giant Gables Gourmet Garage Sale (1217 Granada Boulevard). Participants may also call to buy tickets: 305-446-9670. Tickets will be mailed to you (or can be available at will call if we are too close to the event date).
Apollo Bank is the Presenting Sponsor. Others include: Harborfront Landing, Snaidero kitchens + design, Mercedes-Benz of Coral Gables, and the Alma Jennings Foundation.
Giant Gourmet Garage Sale
One of the eight homes features the GIANT GOURMET GARAGE SALE: a partnership with Les Dames d’Escoffier Miami. his everything-but-the-kitchen-sink Garage Sale offers new and gently used aprons, art, bakeware, baskets, bric-a-brac, candles, ceramics, china, collectibles, cookbooks, crystal, dish towels, flatware, gadgets, linens, napkins, pots & pans, small appliances, stemware, tins, Tupperware, vases, and much more. The Giant Gourmet Garage Sale will be held at 1217 Granada Boulevard from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM. This is the home of local celebrity dessert chef Lucila Venet-Jimenez, whose business “Sweet Art by Lucila” is very popular for specialty cakes for weddings and other special occasions.
Admission to the Giant Gourmet Garage Sale is free, however, to gain admission to Lucila’s kitchen (featured on the Tour) you must have a Tour of Kitchens ticket (wristband) to enter her home (the garage sale takes place in the side yard. Tickets to the Tour of Kitchens will be sold from this location. (The Tour is from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM.) Upon purchase of a Tour of Kitchens ticket, you will receive a program booklet with the location of the other Tour stops (and a map). [Please Note: Tour stops are not disclosed until the day of the Tour for the protection of the homeowners.] Garage Sale patrons who purchase a Tour of Kitchens ticket must still wait until 10:00 AM to enter Lucilas’ home. The GGGS also features the bountiful Dames Marketplace offering locally grown fruit and vegetables, potted herbs, vegetable “starts,” prepared foods and baked goods-all homemade or homegrown by our chapter’s chef, caterer, and farmer members.
About Les Dames d’Escoffier Miami
Les Dames d’Escoffier Miami is comprised of female food, farming, hospitality, and wine professionals dedicated to: funding annual culinary and/or agriculture scholarships for exceptional young South Florida women; supporting and fostering regional agriculture; and funding organic school vegetable gardens, nutrition, and cooking education for area youth and for our region’s farm labor force. Garage Sale proceeds will help underwrite these projects.
About the Coral Gables Community Foundation
The Coral Gables Community Foundation is a §501(c)(3) nonprofit whose mission is to improve the quality of life for all of those who live, work, study and/or play in the City Beautiful. Since its inception, the Foundation has distributed nearly $4 million to worthy causes.
To view a virtual copy of last year’s Tour of Kitchens program booklet, click here. Addresses of the homes are not disclosed until the day of the Tour to protect the homeowners.
Like TOUR of KITCHENS on Facebook for more fun, creative inspiration on kitchen design, and other fun foodie-related news. Follow @TOURofKITCHENS on twitter.
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TOUR of KITCHENS 1/29/2012
SPECIAL THANKS to everyone who sponsored, volunteered, fed, attended and enjoyed our 3rd Annual Tour of Kitchens!
Guests enjoyed beautiful homes, delicious food, and ended the day at the Coral Gables Museum where they were treated to champagne, dessert, music, and guest speakers. The event raised more than $12,000 and also contributed to the Culinary Arts Program at Coral Gables Senior High.
Next year’s event—SAVE THE DATE: Saturday, January 26th, 2013—promises to be even better!
2012 Tour Stops included . . .
SNAIDERO KITCHENS + DESIGN | 4118 Ponce de Leon Boulevard
SNAIDERO’s ultra-modern showroom was the starting point of our Third Annual TOUR OF KITCHENS on Saturday, January 28th. Attendees enjoyed a generous breakfast spread that included mimosas, and espresso courtesy of HOUSE OF APPLIANCES. SNAIDERO builds dream kitchens featuring the finest Italian furnishings, fixtures, and finishes—Set up an appointment for a consultation (786-662-3850) with Senior Designer ALLISON ORTIZ, or stop by: Mon-Fri 9 AM-5 PM. Guidebooks in hand, attendees left the Showroom to visit the five homes in any order between 9 AM and 1 PM [ending at the Museum event, held 1 to 4 PM.
606 San Antonio Street
"Canadian Blue "quartzite counters from KEYS GRANITE and American Cabinets by FRANK GONZALES & JOSEPH BARTOSZEK DESIGN were the most popular feature on the Tour. The Torres' (Coco and Venny, pictured above) entirely new kitchen featured all VIKING appliances, custom-made Cuban tile backsplash, and deep "Shaws Original" sinks from CORAL GABLES KITCHEN & BATH. The deeper-blue island top is JOHN BOOS American Walnut. MARGAUX INTERIORS displayed a sea-inspired table setting and serving pieces, and THE LOCAL Craft Food & Drink provided tastings. KRISTEN PEARCE DESIGNS offered jewelry, as well as stylish paper and gift items (available at ISABEL in South Miami).
803 North Greenway Drive
Spectacular details and a dazzling collection of vases and stoneware from all over the world delighted visitors to this 1933 old Spanish. The kitchen features double JENN-AIR ovens, a spiral staircase, and a skylight created using a stained-glass door from Venice. Popular with family for entertaining, the spacious central patio has multiple areas for seating, plus there is an outdoor kitchen in the back yard. NAUTICA DESIGN GALLERY presented a nautical-inspired Table Setting and displayed items for sale, and PARDO'S Peruvian Cuisine's chicken and green rice was a big hit!
3700 Granada Boulevard
Gracious homeowner W. ALLEN MORRIS, just returned from Karate, greeted guests at the entrance of "Granada House". A repeat on the Tour by popular demand, the kitchen is exemplary of a kitchen made for staff rather than family use, and is reminiscent of the kitchens at Vizcaya. The kitchen featured new flooring and VIKING refrigerator, and will be completely renovated and featured again on next year's Tour for a before-and-after. PETRA SOY CANDLES were popular with attendees, as was the fare from RUTH'S CHRIS STEAKHOUSE. The home is a replica of "Tara" from the movie GONE WITH THE WIND, and at the time it was built (1956 by Georgia architect Frank McCall) was the largest private home in Dade County.
501 Alhambra Circle
"Casa Bella" was once the home of CLAUDE and MILDRED PEPPER. Built in 1926, this historic house is both a local and national landmark due to ELEANOR ROOSEVELT'S regular winter stays with the PEPPERS. The home of Foundation Chair Bill Bonn and Ruben Ceballos, Mr. Bonn is pictured above with Past Chair (2008) Jeannett Slesnick and Foundation Immediate Past Chair Jerry Santeiro next to a striking Table Setting provided by NEIMAN MARCUS with a floral arrangement from FLEUR-DE-LIS DESIGNS. Guests enjoyed samples of the fare from RINCON ARGENTINO, and MEXICAN PEWTER IMPORTS displayed serving pieces and giftware.
1319 Castile Avenue
Owned by ERNESTO FABRE, this architecturally detailed 1923 old Spanish designed by George Fink and phineas Paist is the home of Chef GABRIELA MACHADO of COPPER BOX CATERING. Mr. Fabre completed a renovation in 2010 that included an IKEA kitchen design with a VIKING refrigerator built into custom cabinetry. The Table Setting in the dining room was designed by NYALI TRADING COMPANY. In the lush outdoor patio area complete with canopied sitting room, the CORAL GABLES GARDEN CLUB sold herbs and infused vinegars. Guests enjoyed samplings made by Chef Gabriela. Also pictured second from left in bottom right photo is "Casa Bella" (previous page) Homeowner Ruben Ceballos.
1400 South Greenway Drive
Guests enjoyed samplings from CRAVE and shopping for specialty embroidered and monogrammed items from STITCHING AROUND in this magnifident 1926 Mediterranean, known as the "Stevens-Hughes House". The house was designed by Dudley St. Clair Donnelly and remodeled in 1929 by phineas Paist. The original homeowner, Greta Hughes (an opera singer and Howard Hughes’ aunt), hosted parties that included baseball legend Babe Ruth. Homeowners Matthew Meehan and Rod Hildebrant know how to throw a party themselves hosting the annual fund raiser "A Night in Bollywood" to benefit Sunil's Home Orphanage in India. The house is transformed each year and hosts approximately 1,300 guests (back half of kitchen looking toward sitting area pictured above).
CORAL GABLES MUSEUM | 285 Aragon Avenue
Coral Gables Senior High's Culinary Arts Program served up a delicious bread pudding to complement the assortment of desserts at the Closing Event hosted by the CORAL GABLES MUSEUM. Guests also got to sample desserts from A PIECE OF CAKE, ANGIE's WORLD CUISINE, CRAVE, PETERBROOKE CHOCOLATIER, SPRINKLE DESIGNS, RUTH'S CHRIS STEAKHOUSE, and THE TOFFEE TIN while drinking Martini & Rossi courtesy of BACARDI U.S.A., Inc. Randy Fertel author of The Gorilla Man and The Empress of Steak, and local favorite Chef/Owner/Cookbook Author Nino Pernetti of Caffe Abbracci were on hand to sign their books, while John Clark Adams played guitar and sang.
2012 Committee
HONORARY CHAIR | City of Coral Gables First Lady, Carmen Cason
CO-CHAIRS (pictured below) | Pat Blanco & Heather Harris
SUB-COMMITTEES
Advertising | Jeannett Slesnick, Chair
Donna Reno, Susan Rodriquez (below on right)
“Cappuccino & Croissants” Kick-Off Event | Allison Ortiz
Closing Event | Cecilia Slesnick and Catherine Grieve, Esq., Co-Chairs
Check-In (Tickets Programs & Goodie Bags) | Elena Luca, Chair
Raffle | Sharon Trbovich, Chair
Restaurant & Food Sponsor | Tina Sayago, Chair
Table Setting Design & Vendors | Cindy Fedde, Chair
Tour Homes | Julia Johnston, Chair
TOUR CONSULTANTS
Julie Connor • Robin Dunlap • Marlin Ebbert • Leslie Rivera • Mary Young
(homeowner Matthew Meehan and volunteer Susan Rodriguez)
HOMEOWNERS
William Bonn & Ruben Ceballos
Ernesto Fabre
Miriam & Amadeo Guazzini
Rod Hildebrant & Matthew Meehan
W. Allen Morris
Coco & Venny Torre
RESTAURANTS
Copper Box Catering | Crave | Pardo’s Peruvian Cuisine | Rincon Argentino
Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse | The Local Craft Food & Drink
CLOSING EVENT PARTICIPANTS
A Piece of Cake | John Clark Adams, Music | Angie’s World Cuisine
Bacardi U.S.A., Inc., Martini & Rossi
Books and Books | Coral Gables Museum
Coral Gables Senior High School Culinary Arts Program
Crave | Randy Fertel (Author, Guest Speaker)
Julia Johnston, CKD CAPS • Kitchens For Cooking
Maria’s Events | Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse |
Nino Pernetti (Chef-Owner, Author, Guest Speaker), Caffé Abbracci
Peterbrooke Chocolatier | Planet FIAT of West Miami
Allison Ortiz, Snaidero kitchens + design
Sprinkle Designs | The Toffee Tin
Claire-Francis Whitehurst, Linens Sponsor
RAFFLE ITEM DONORS
Angelique Euro Café | Angie’s World Cuisine | Aromas del Peru
Cindy & Carl Fedde | Crave | Donna Reno & Susan Rodriquez
House of Appliances | Kristin Pearce | Mexican Pewter Imports
Pardo’s Peruvian Cuisine | Petra Soy Candles
Rincon Argentino | Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse
Sharon & Bob Trobovich | Snaidero kitchens + design
Stitching Around | The Local Craft Food & Drink
United Way of Miami-Dade Miami Wine & Food Festival | Violetas
GOODIE BAG ITEM DONORS
Aromas del Peru | Bacardi U.S.A., Inc. | Baptist Health South Florida
Bill Bonn, Chip Clip and Signs Sponsor | City of Coral Gables
Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce | Coral Gables Museum
In The Gables Magazine | Elena Luca (Goodie Bag Sponsor)
Planet FIAT of West Miami | SNAIDERO Kitchens + Design
The Villagers, Inc. | Whisk Gourmet & Catering
TABLE SETTING FLORALS & DESIGN
Coral Gables Garden Club | Fleur-de-Lis Flowers
Margaux Interiors | Mud Pie | Neiman Marcus | Nyali Trading Company
VENDORS
Coral Gables Garden Club | Girls Scout Troop 276
Kristin Pearce Designs | Mexican Pewter Imports
Nautica Design Gallery | Nyali Trading Company
Petra Soy Candles | Stitching Around
ADDITIONAL SPONSORS AND DONORS
Arva Moore Parks, Coral Gables Museum
Aura Reinhardt, Bacardi U.S.A., Inc.
Baptist Health South Florida
Mayor Jim Cason & First Lady Carmen Cason, The City of Coral Gables
Tina Sayago, CoralGablesRestaurants.com
Fred Couceyro, City of Coral Gables Parks and Recreation
Ileana & Miguel DeMarziani, Rincon Argentino
Doctors Hospital Volunteers
John R. Allen, Jr. | Home Financing Center
Photos by Lety
Christine Rupp | Coral Gables Museum
Spris pizzeria e ristorante
Symphonettes Volunteers
Mark A. Trowbridge | Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce
Mercy Vera & Students | Gables High Culinary Arts Program
Waste Management
Flip through our virtual
2012 Tour of Kitchens programme
