Guests gather at the Haugland residence
Saturday during the Stafford Township PTA’s inaugural Chef’s Tour fundraiser. Tuckerton’s 217 East Main provided plates of lamb and feta pastries at this stop on the tour, which included seven homes and one restaurant. (STAFF PHOTO: SHAWN HUBER)
Times are tough, but the Stafford Township Parent Teacher Association shed light on this holiday season by tapping into a wealth of local resources for a recent fundraiser.
Rooted in the community and rich in creativity, the Chef’s Tour featured seven homes and one restaurant on Dec. 6 throughout Stafford and Barnegat.
“It’s a night out during a hectic time. Nonprofits need to become more and more creative,” said Ginny Leung, a PTA member of the Chef’s Tour Committee who was stationed at the Haugland home on Beachview Avenue in Manahawkin where she dished up lamb and feta pastries provided by 217 East Main, Tuckerton. “I hope this becomes a tradition.”
Sweeping porches, large balconies and fluted columns give this estate a southern plantation feel. A spacious floor plan lends itself to entertaining, and a number of fireplaces keep it cozy.
“This is my make-believe home for the night,” Leung said.
The Chef’s Tour Committee began planning in August after seeing the success of a similar event over the last nine or 10 years in another district. Local businesses and area chefs jumped on board, donating time, skills, food and prizes.
“We think this is an adventurous endeavor,” said Kristin Nissen, co-owner of Between the Sheets, Ship Bottom.
As sponsor of the Ercolano home on Kristine Avenue in Manahawkin, which featured a pianist and personal chef Ted Kanterman’s pecan-crusted salmon and fusion risotto, Between the Sheets donated a Ladies Paradise grand prize package valued at $1,000.
Nissen and co-owner Maryann Schmid attended the inaugural event, which attracted more than 400 guests and raised $25,690, after expenses.
The tour featured 55 gift baskets and eight grand prizes. Grand prize raffle tickets were sold at $5 each or three for $10 and basket raffle tickets cost $10 a sheet. Tours were staggered in groups of 50, each spending about 30 minutes per home. Tickets could be purchased from PTA representatives in each group and were good from home to home. The drawing took place at the end of the event at OceanFirst Theater/Stafford Township Arts Center.
Other grand prizes included a 32-inch flat screen TV and new tire package; and a three-day, two-night trip to Washington, D.C., a gas card and an American Girl doll, among many others
Of the more than 50 baskets, prizes included a tailgate package; four VIP passes to Chowderfest next year; tickets to STAC; and a family movie night package with a Blockbuster gift card and DVDs, among many others.
“We were really lucky, 99 percent was donated,” said Lori Wyrsch, Chef’s Tour Chair. “It’s all a profit for the kids.”
The PTA will use the money for assemblies, programs and items that can’t necessarily be put in the school budget, Wyrsch said as she handed out bags of treats, detailed directions, brochures, recipes and information for all the guests. She did so while urging visitors to try Chef Ian Smith’s Puerto Rican roast pork at the Coughlin home on Lighthouse Drive in Ocean Acres.
Smith, of Ocean County Vocational Technical School, chairs the Taste of Southern Ocean County and, on Saturday, brought one former student, Brian Wilkie, and a current student, Armando Gonzalez to lend a hand.
“It gives them an opportunity to play around with some interesting little tastes we might not normally do. Seeing as how it’s a culinary school, we can make anything we want,” Smith said. “It’s always nice to participate in community, especially around here.”
The homeowner, who decorated her house a little earlier than usual for the event, agreed.“I’m really psyched,” Cindy Coughlin said.
All homeowners on the tour shared the sentiment, and many even trusted their homes to the PTA, leaving to take the tour themselves, which included many more stops, among those already mentioned.
Kate & Ally’s Bistro, Forked River, prepared she crab soup in bread bowls, filet on toast points and diver scallops at the Schanker home on Kristine Avenue in Manahawkin.
“We try to incorporate a little bit from each aspect — new items, the menu and catering,” Chef Todd Menegus said.
In addition to the bistro’s display, a 16-foot Christmas tree was one of many attractions, including the children’s individual trees, each decorated according to their personalities.
Sweet Jenny’s prepared filet of beef Wellington and broiled baby crab cakes at the Selert home on Deer Lake Court in Manahawkin. Family and friends are important to the homeowners, making Sweet Jenny’s — a family-friendly restaurant in Barnegat and Ship Bottom — the perfect choice for this warm and welcoming home.
Next stop, the Ebner residence in Mayetta was a colorful and cozy treat of a home with a Candyland theme.
The Lizzie Rose, Tuckerton, provided assorted scones and pastries, Out of this World Chocolate Covered Pretzels created a gorgeous and tasty spread and COFFEE bouTEAque, Beach Haven, offered flavored coffee and tea, perfect for the cold winter night.
The sweet surprises didn’t stop there, though. The grand prize at this home was a three-day, two-night trip to Hershey Park, and basket prizes included items from Carvel and Edible Arrangements.
The house itself was as sweet as the food and featured a colorful, beautifully painted “Under the Sea” playroom as well as a Charles Dickens village display.
The Hurricane House in Barnegat was the only restaurant on the tour and it was packed with guests enjoying appetizers and ice cream for the occasion.
The restaurant, owned by Don Maier, mixes old and new and, like all other stops on the tour, was a huge hit during the event.
On Topside Avenue in Manahawkin, Joey’s Pizza and Pasta, Manahawkin and Beach Haven Crest, dished up assorted stromboli aside Bisque’s (Beach Haven Crest) legendary lobster bisque at the Petillo residence.
“I think this is a great thing,” Darlene Petillo said, “and I hope they keep doing it.”
The PTA has already set a date for next year. Mark your calendars for Dec. 5, 2009.
