James Beard Dinner to be held July 30 at The Lakehouse at Deer Creek

Chef Tamara Stanger in the garden on the property of The Lakehouse at Deer Creek. Photo credit: The Lakehouse at Deer Creek. Photo: The Lakehouse at Deer Creek

HEBER CITY, Utah. — The James Beard Foundation, one of the most highly recognized culinary arts institutes in the world, is hosting a three-course meal in the Park City area on July 30 as one of 10 Taste America series dinners over the summer. The meal will be prepared by Tamara Stanger, Executive Chef of The Lakehouse at Deer Creek, who has a reputation for producing unique and authentic flavors.

The mission of the Taste America series is to support local chefs and restaurants while helping to provide industry-wide relief in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has impacted countless restaurants. “Every year they shift their focus based on the needs of the industry,” says Robyn Lee, the James Beard Foundation’s local planner for the Park City area. “Their focus for a while now has been keeping restaurants open during the pandemic.”

Presented with a number of restaurants in the Park City and Heber areas, the James Beard Foundation settled on The Lakehouse in part because Tamara has worked with the organization before. “Tamara worked with James Beard back in Arizona and I think they really liked the food she prepared. They also look for diversity, equality, and someone following in their mission,” says Robyn Lee.

The meal will cost $150 per ticket, and tickets will only be sold two, four, or six at a time so that individual parties can be seated together and maintain safe social distance. There will be two seating times for the evening, 5:30 pm and 8:00 pm.

65 percent of proceeds earned from ticket sales will go towards the participating chef’s restaurant, and 35 percent will go towards supporting the James Beard Foundation’s national programming, which includes the Open for Good campaign. A key component of this campaign is the James Beard Foundation Food and Beverage Investment Fund for Black and Indigenous Americans, which recently provided a second round of $15,000 grants across six national regions.

Among other cities to be featured in the series include Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Chicago, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Denver, Seattle, San Francisco Bay Area, and Boston.

Tickets can be purchased at www.jamesbeard.com/tasteamerica.