Page 21 - OhioRA 2012SpringFlipBook

www.ohiorestaurant.org 19 Spring 2012 Issue

News Bites

Two ORA Restaurant Member chefs – Richard Blondin, Refectory Restaurant & Bistro of Columbus, and Anne Kearney, Rue Dumaine of Dayton – were named semi-finalists in the “Best Chef of The Year: Great Lakes 2012” category. Blondin and Kearney are both celebrated chefs in their own right and have been

serving guests in their respective restaurants for many years.

Kearney was also named a finalist in the competition. The top prizes will be announced by the James Beard Foundation on May 4 and 7.

Two ORA Restaurant Members Recognized by the James Beard Foundation as Semi-fnalists in the 2012 Restaurant and Chef Awards

Columbus’ own Cameron Mitchell recently announced that Mitchell’s Ocean Club, his award-winning modern American supper club, was named one of the nation’s “Top 100 Restaurants for Best Service” in the

2012 OpenTable Diners’ Choice Awards. Mitchell’s Ocean Club is the only Columbus restaurant included on the list, which features notable dining destinations from across the country.

“The entire Cameron Mitchell Restaurants team is thrilled that Mitchell’s Ocean Club was lauded with this accolade,” said Cameron Mitchell, founder of Cameron Mitchell Restaurants. “This award reflects our guest services of ‘yes is the answer, what is the question?’ that is the hallmark

of Mitchell’s Ocean Club and all Cameron Mitchell Restaurants.”

The Diners’ Choice Awards for the top 100 restaurants providing the best service were generated fromnearly 5million reviews collected from verified OpenTable diners between Feb. 2011 and Jan. 2012 for more than 12,000 restaurants in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. All restaurants with a minimum number of qualifying reviews were included for consideration.

Mitchell’s Ocean Club Named an OpenTable “Top 100 Restaurant for Best Service”

Join industry leaders, foodservice professionals, Ohio ProStart ® students and educators at the annual Ohio ProStart Celebration of the Stars event on May 16 at Galloway’s Mental Memorial Golf Course. The Ohio Restaurant Association and the Ohio Restaurant Association Education Foundation (ORAEF) host the event every year to award scholarships to Ohio ProStart students, to recognize

excellence in the foodservice industry, and as a way of highlighting all of the great relationships that are fostered through the Ohio ProStart program.

Last year, nearly 200 guests, including Ohio ProStart students, parents, industry representatives and friends of the foundation, attended the event. Attendees said the event

offered them many beneficial opportunities, including meeting new foodservice talent, reconnecting with industry peers and witnessing the valuable role that the ProStart program plays in so many young people’s lives.

The Ohio ProStart ® Celebration of the Stars Will be Held May 16, 2012 at Mentel

Memorial Golf Club in Galloway