The traveling culinary competition Cochon 555 — five pigs, five chefs, five winemakers — lands this Sunday in San Francisco at the Julia Morgan Ballroom. Though the squeamish (or fans of Babe and Wilbur, for that matter) might want to steer clear, pork-loving epicureans should start smelling bacon bits in anticipation of this epic pig cook-off between five of SF's culinary heavyweights. This year's lineup includes Ravi Kapur of Prospect, Brandon Jew and Salvatore Cracco of Bar Agricole, Matthew Accarrino of SPQR, David Bazirgan of Fifth Floor Restaurant and David Varley of Michael Mina. The winning chef (determined by a panel of judges and attendees) will be crowned the local "Prince of Porc," and will advance to the GRAND COCHON at Aspen Food & Wine to compete for the coveted title of nationwide "King of Porc." The chef to beat this year is David Varley of Michael Mina, 2010's reigning "King of Porc" champion.
The whole extravaganza aims to promote the sustainable farming practices of heritage breed pigs in local and national communities. Guests will be treated to wine tastings, pig breakdown demonstrations and a feast of two whole roasted pigs. Also, Iberico Fresco will be on the floor offering samples of their Iberico pork off their plancha.
Wanna go? We're giving away a pair of tickets to the person who can most creatively complete the following line in the comments:
"This little piggie went to the market…"
We'll choose a winner on Thursday afternoon.
Cochon 555 is Sunday, June 5
3:30 pm VIP opening; 5 pm general admission
General admission tickets start at $125 per person and are available at www.cochon555.com. VIP tickets for $200 include a private tasting of Domaine Serene, Davis Family Vineyards, Ridge Vineyards, Dobbes Family Estate Winery, Zacherle, Alysian and Pey-Marin. Plus start the celebration early with artisan cheeses from Cheese Plus and a sustainable oyster station with Black River Caviar. Reserve wines are accompanied with craft brew from Magnolia Brewery, cocktails from St Germain and jars of heritage bacon.
