LuckyRice

Sunday

For culinary aficionados who love to cook and eat, the Talk+Taste Brunch featured cooking demonstrations by masters of Asian cuisine as they prepared regional specialties. Hosted by Ching-He Huang, the host of Cooking Channel’s “Chinese Food Made Easy”.

Saturday

Legendary chefs Daniel Boulud and Susur Lee, masters of French and Chinese cuisine, came together for an unprecedented collaborative Chinese banquet dinner at Restaurant DANIEL. The evening started with inventive cocktails paired with hors d’oeuvre chinois followed by a gastronomic feast personally prepared and hosted by Chefs Boulud and Lee.

Friday

Guests feasted their way through Asia’s diverse cultures without leaving the majestic Mandarin Oriental ballroom overlooking Central Park. The Grand Feast featured inventive, Asian-influenced fare interpreted by an acclaimed lineup of master chefs from Asia cooking alongside the LUCKYRICE Culinary Council.

Thursday

Iron Chef Morimoto designed and cooked an adventurous Japanese “omakase” (chef’s choice) dinner with wine pairings provided by Wines of Germany and cocktail pairings by Suntory YAMAZAKI Single Malt Whisky.

Thursday

As the entertainment capital of the region, Macau is a burgeoning cosmopolitan hotspot boasting some of Asia’s finest dining. Diners experienced traditional Macanese cuisine, a blend of Portuguese, African, Indian and Southeast Asian, prepared by visiting star chefs David Wong and Tong Ion Keong from the Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT) in Macau. Each dish was paired with Portuguese wines from Sogrape Vinhos, courtesy of Evaton, amid the backdrop of the legendary James Beard House – a truly unforgettable evening.

Thursday

Hosted by Momofuku, the LUCKYRICE Night Market featured traditional Asian street grub, as well as inspired offerings interpreted by gastrohipsters from New York City. Guests experienced the celebratory chaos and delicious energy of Asian night markets…with a distinctly Brooklyn flavor.

Tuesday

We toasted the start of the LUCKYRICE Fest 2011 with a spirited evening of Asian-infused cocktails and style. Hosted by the iconic tastemakers behind the fashion darling Opening Ceremony, this event featured cocktails concocted by the city’s top mixology talents.

Monday

The 2011 LUCKYRICE Festival kicked off with an intimate dinner with Chef Anita Lo at the critically-acclaimed annisa restaurant. Diners feasted on specially created dishes celebrating different LUCKYRICE Festival events along with wine pairings from Monika Caha Selections.

Wednesday

Chef Michael “Bao” Huynh prepared a sumptuous multi-course Vietnamese meal for our friends in the media who came to hear about the 2011 LUCKYRICE Festival events.

Wednesday

We simultaneously kicked off ticket sales for the LUCKYRICE Festival and celebrated the opening of the new Asian BBQ restaurant Ember Room on the Lunar New Year with Chefs Ian Chalermkittichai and Todd English and plenty of friends.

Monday

At the closing dinner of the LUCKYRICE Festival and Restaurant/Bar Week, our guests joined Malaysia Kitchen to dine on dishes by celebrated Malaysian-inspired Chefs Zak Pellacio (Fatty Crab and Fatty ‘Cue) and Simpson Wong (Cafe Asean) at a special dinner celebrating the rich flavors of Malaysian cuisine at the legendary James Beard House.

Sunday

Our guests learned about the flavors of Asia as interpreted by star chefs representing Malaysian, Taiwanese, Chinese, Korean and Singaporean cuisines. The chefs performed cooking demonstrations and provided tastings of their signature dishes. This all-afternoon event took place at the legendary International Culinary Center, the training ground for many of today’s most distinguished chefs. Participating chefs: Zak Pelaccio of Fatty Crab and Fatty ‘Cue, Eddie Huang of Baohaus, Willin Low of Singapore’s Wild Rocket, Jennifer Maeng of Temple Restaurant and Ching-He Huang of the television show Chinese Food Made Easy.

The city’s most intriguing pastry chefs – as selected by LUCKYRICE Culinary Council Chef Pichet Ong (Village Tart) – dished out desserts – sweet and savory that winked at their Asian inspiration. All the treats were complemented by artisanal brews selected for each course by Mighty Leaf Teas.

Saturday

At this ultimate food celebration, seven hundred Asian food lovers traveled and feasted their way through Asia’s diverse cuisines and cultures without leaving the magnificent Mandarin Oriental ballroom overlooking Central Park. An incredible line-up of acclaimed chefs–including those from the LUCKYRICE Culinary Council and top chefs who take subtle inspiration from Asian ingredients or spices–created special tastings that reflect their artistry while celebrating the flavors of Asia.

Peek & Eat trained her camera on all the delicious and beautiful dishes at the Grand Feast.

Chef Anita Lo of Annisa and Rickshaw Dumpling Bar taught us to stuff and wrap our own dumplings.

Friday

Inspired by the festive night markets of Asia–from Taipei and Singapore to Hong Kong and Kyoto–LUCKYRICE threw a giant party with Momofuku chef David Chang. Centralized under the historic and newly re-opened Archway Under the Manhattan Bridge in Brooklyn’s DUMBO, the outdoor feast served up traditional Asian night market grub as well as some not-so-traditional street food interpreted by some of the city’s gastrohipsters. Vendors sold Korean tacos stuffed with kimchee, hotdogs topped with Thai pickled cucumbers and mango, mouth-watering Vietnamese baguette sandwiches (banh mi) and other Asian street food–authentic and inspired. There was also a dedicated Malaysian Pavilion featuring the best variety of Malaysian food in the area. Along with food samples and beverages, our partners poured beer, cocktails, tapioca tea and more.

Chamagraphy captured some beautiful shots of the food and the crowd at the Night Market.

Get a glimpse of the flavors our guests experienced at the the Malaysia Pavilion.

Chefs Eric Ripert (Le Bernardin) and David Chang (Momofuku), along with Tim McHenry of the Rubin Museum of Art discussed the connection between Buddhist ethics and food as well as the impact of Buddhism on their lives – in and out of the kitchen.

Thursday

New York City’s best bartenders concocted a collection of unique Asian-inspired cocktails to kick off the LUCKYRICE Festival at The Bowery Hotel. We were honored that Cameron Bogue of Bar Pleiades served a drink called the “LUCKYRICE” which he made with Vietnamese coffee infused Jose Cuervo Tradicional tequila mixed with a house-made Chinese 5-spice horchata.

Wednesday

We gathered at Chef Zak Pelaccio’s new restaurant Fatty ‘Cue to tell our friends in the media about the festival and of course, to try the scrumptious Southeast Asian BBQ . Take a look at the picture of the evening’s mouth-watering menu to see what we ate. Culinary Council chefs Anita Lo, Pichet Ong, Michael "Bao" Huynh and Daniel Boulud were on hand to help us talk about the festival.

Saturday

Friends and family gathered to celebrate the Year of the Tiger at Albert Trummer’s hidden Chinatown gem, Apothéke. The talented mixologists there put together a special drink for the evening called the “Deal Closer.” We’re not sure how many deals got done that night, but we can surely report that a good deal of business was discussed. Thanks to Bulldog Gin, Dragon’s Hollow Wines, Tiger Beer and Fiji Water for providing the vital liquids.

Tuesday

LUCKYRICE organized a party to celebrate the release of Kitchen Chinese, the first novel by food and travel writer Ann Mah, at the Museum of the Chinese in America. We’re impressed that Ann is the now the third published author in her family. Her mother Adeline Yen Mah is the well-known author of Falling Leaves and her father-in-law is the journalist and author Joe Klein, famous for Primary Colors.

Tuesday

Chef Tadashi Ono of Matsuri brought the hot pots. Writer Harris Salat of the Japanese Food Report brought the wit. New York Mutual Trading Company came with premium sakes and LUCKYRICE brought the hungry, beautiful people. A perfect recipe for a party.

Tuesday

LUCKYRICE joined Yongja Kim to help raise awareness about her new book that describes how to make Korean food. Jean-Georges Vongerichten who wrote the foreword introduced us to Yongja and we are very happy that he did. We can only imagine how good the food would be if we put Yongja and all her friends together in a kitchen for one night.

Thursday

LUCKYRICE co-hosted and produced a party to celebrate the release of the Momofuku cookbook written by David Chang and Peter Meehan. David’s favorite band, Endless Boogie, cranked their amps to 11 and the beer flowed freely courtesy of Stella Artois. We were honored that Julian Van Winkle III flew up from Kentucky to help pour his Old Rip Van Winkle bourbon. As evidenced by the photographs, a good time was had by all.

Momofuku fans take note. The book is not just a collection of creative recipes; David and Peter also recount the making of Momofuku from humble East Village outpost to national phenomenon.