Lamb Fest is back for a 2nd year, and it’s bigger
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
A new brand of lamb is just the start of what’s sure to be a juicy, finger-licking Sunday afternoon in East Liberty.
This year’s Western Pennsylvania Lamb Cook-Off at the Ace Hotel Pittsburgh also will be bigger than last year’s, with more chefs, more food and an expanded footprint that will allow upward of 1,000 lamb lovers to sample small bites of one of the region’s most celebrated proteins.
The culinary experience also known as Lamb Fest is being presented by Pure Bred, a super highquality brand of “holistic lamb” developed by Chef Thomas Keller of The French Laundry and Keith Martin of Elysian Fields Farm near Waynesburg. Pure Bred lambs are raised respectfully and humanely on several family farms in southwestern Pennsylvania and southeastern Ohio, including Elysian Fields. The end product, say its owners, is lamb that is more tender and pure in flavor.
The fest takes place from 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday, and will feature 33 local and visiting chefs — some of whom will travel to Pittsburgh from as far away as Las Vegas and Austin, Texas, to take a stab at preparing the day’s tastiest dish.
The primary goal of the “Iron Chef”-like cook-off is to raise awareness for prized Pennsylvania lamb. Pure Bred, which debuted in 2005, is on the menu in some of the country’s most famous restaurants, including those of Mr. Keller, Grant Achatz, Danny Meyer and Pittsburgh’s Duquesne Club.
But it’s also a showcase for the region’s top chefs, mostly self-selected into teams of two to five. Turning two 70-pound lambs into lunch for hundreds in just a few hours demonstrates their talent and creativity, says organizer Victoria Bradley of Table magazine, which is co-sponsoring the event along with the East Liberty hotel,
All attendees will receive a wooden nickle to cast their vote for the coveted People’s Choice Award. This year, a panel of celebrity judges and local food experts will name a Critic’s Pick.
Organizers had hoped to sell around 300 tickets to last year’s inaugural event. It ended up selling out at 650, and more than 200 folks were turned away at the door, Ms. Bradley says.
“We really underestimated how fanatic people are about lamb, and how it speaks to so many different ethnicities,” she says. Then again, Pittsburgh is a food town that celebrates its restaurants and chefs, “and the chefs go all out, and play to the crowd,” she says.
Along with the lamb, which comes broken down into primal cuts, chefs get their choice of fresh produce from Paragon Foods and bread from Mediterra Bakehouse. To capture last year’s title, a team comprised of Roger Li of Umami, Derek Burnell of Round Corner Cantina and Dan Kern, who runs a small group of restaurants in Erie, wowed the crowd with four dishes that included barbacoa lamb in a fresh tortilla and lamb robatayaki(skewers) with leeks.
Mr. Li & Co. will be back to defend their title, along with Sam DiBattista of Vivo Kitchen, Kate Romane of Black Radish and Scott Walton of Acorn and other familiar faces. But nearly half the field will be newbies, including an all-Greek team comprised of Michael Smalis of the Greek Gourmet, Matt Bournias of Pastitsio and former chef and Pittsburgh Magazine restaurant critic Valentina Vavasis. They’re not intimidated by the competition.
“We are Greeks! Lamb is an essential part of our culture,” says Ms. Vavasis. “We all grew up cooking and eating lamb with our parents and grandparents and absolutely love it.”
Mum’s the word on the exact menu, but Ms. Vavasis says everything — including the yogurt — will be made from scratch using traditional methods.
“We’re the underdogs,” she says. “But we have good hearts and are hard workers. So we hope we can do our people well.”
Tickets are $65 in advance for ages 13 and up, and $25 for children ages 5 to 12 (go to showclix.com, and search “lamb fest”). A few may be available at the door, but check social media ahead of time @WPALambFest on Twitter @WesternPALambFeston Instagram to make sure they are; last year they were sold out.The Ace is located at 120 S. WhitfieldSt. in East Liberty.
Drinks are not included in the price, but there will be beer and other bar offerings for sale throughout the day.
If you’re looking to make a weekend out of it, the Ace Hotel is offering two complimentary tickets to the fest if you book a room on Saturday and Sunday and use the code LAMBFEST2018.
A portion of the event proceeds will once again benefit the Pittsburgh Emergency Medicine Foundation. Last year, the fest raised more than $4,000 for the nonprofit, which funds research and education in the field of emergency medicine.