Taste dishes from 11 top Miami chefs at Miami Beach benefit

The chefapalooza Chefs 4 Neighbors brings together top talent from Miami’s restaurant scene. The culinary virtuosos come up with fine-dining tastings, many of them paired with cocktails and wines, to raise money for Neighbors 4 Neighbors’ Family Fund.

Participating chefs include Matthew McDonald of the National Hotel, Gordon Maybury of Turnberry Isle and Gianluca Messano of La Moderna.

When, where, how much

Chefs 4 Neighbors will take place 7:30-10 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24, at the National Hotel, 1677 Collins Ave., in Miami Beach.

Tickets cost $75. To order, go to NationalHotel.com or Eventbrite.com.

What to expect

“Guests will arrive to the National Hotel, where they will be guided to the Aqua Pool and Lounge,” says Nicole Whitaker, director of sales and marketing for the National Hotel, describing the event staged at the hotel’s poolside Aqua Club and Lounge. “There will be 11 chef stations and two bars around the venue [and] guests can choose which taste they want as there will be no lines and nobody will run out of food. When they are ready for their next bite, they can go back for more and speak with the chefs individually.”

How it all started

The inaugural event was hastily organized in three weeks and managed to raise $5,000 and drew about 200 attendees.

“Last year, when Hurricane Irma hit Key West, it directly impacted our chef Matthew McDonald, who had lived in the Keys and has many friends and family members still in the Keys,” Whitaker says “He approached our [general manager] Yaser [Mohamad], and I said he wanted to do something to raise money for his colleagues and also give them a chance to step away from the mess of the hurricane, relax a little and showcase their talents in Miami. We decided to create a chef ’s showcase event. We connected with Neighbors4Neighbors, whose focus was on the hurricane efforts.”