Seafood Throwdown, Common Ground Country Fair, Unity Maine, Sunday September 21st

2 Local Chefs, 1 Mystery Fish Local seafood

A tall order of competition will be on the menu at the Common Ground Fair this weekend as two chefs from two very popular restaurants in Bar Harbor throw-down to create a dish using a locally caught fish revealed just moments before they’re asked to prepare it.

The Seafood Throwdown will take stage at 1:30 pm in the Country Kitchen Demo Tent on Sunday September 21st. The event is free to the public and is sponsored by Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance and Penobscot East Resource Center. Its purpose is to educate the audience about the state of our fishing communities, the health of the ocean, and the importance of under-appreciated species using locally caught seafood. That’s not all.

The chefs may only bring with them 3 of their favorite ingredients from their homebase. They will then be given $25 and 15 minutes to find the rest of their ingredients from the fair’s farmers market. Bobby Will from Fathom restaurant in Bar Harbor will go up against Cassady Pappas from Havana also of Bar Harbor. Bobby has spent the past 15 years in professional kitchens in the Boston and New York State area.

“My focus has always been driven towards seasonal, farm to table cooking with a passion for whole animal butchery, and both modern and traditional cooking methods. I grew up in Ipswich Massachusetts and the Gloucester area. They are both large fishing communities, and I have been fishing and butchering my own catches since I was a kid. My menus are very seafood heavy and as best as possible I always seek the off the grid, underutilized fish. This weekend’s fish, whatever it may be, may have already seen a place on my menus before.”

Cassady has a rich culinary background as well. At Havana, he prepares local seafood, vegetarian and meat dishes with a Latin flair and an eye toward sustainability. Cassady consistently seeks out New England farmers and fishermen to purchase products that taste great, and are great for the environment and local economy.

The chefs will have one hour to prepare the all-local dish for a panel of judges and tastings for the audience in attendance. While they work, Emcee Patrick Shepard of Stonington-based Penobscot East Resource Center will be keeping the mic alive with a host of special guests including commercial fisherman Tim Rider, talking about the issues facing today’s fisheries. Shepard has a commercial fishing background and works for Penobscot East as their Fisheries and Seafood Associate.

Also on deck for interviews will be the panel of judges: Amanda Beal – Sustainable Food Systems Research and Policy Consultant and NAMA board member, Jennifer Obadia – Sustainable Food Systems Consultant working with Health Care Without Harm, Tim Goltz – Administrator at Lincoln County General Hospital, and Aaron Dority – Federal Policy Director at Penobscot East.

Seafood Throwdowns are designed to be fun events that help the public understand the ecological, social, food system, and economic importance of locally caught seafood and community-based fisheries.

For more information, please contact:

• Patrick Shepard at 207-367-2708
• Cynthia Bush at 978-281-6934.