What a way to start off the new season!  Presenting a classic Chicago Chef Battle, featuring Chef Jill Barron of Mana Food Bar, Chef Ben Sheagren of Hopleaf, and Chef Jared Van Camp of Old Town Social.  With Goose Island sponsoring this year’s series, can you guess what the battle's key ingredient will be?

Hosted by Studio 312's Jimmy Carrane, the evening will include audience tasting and judging each chef's entry, followed by an awarding of prizes for the winning chef.  Join other Chicago Public Radio fans for an evening of music, food, comedy and of course, complimentary beer provided by Chicago's Goose Island Brewery.

Additional details:

Chef Jill Barron has worked with ethnic foods her whole career. Her casual, elegant approach to dining has appealed to the Chicago scene since her return from California in the 90’s, winning Chicago magazine’s best new restaurants for both De Cero Taqueria and Mana Food Bar. She feels that vegetables have been underated, and is proving to Chicago that a meatless meal can be satisfying, delicious, and familiar.

Chef Ben Sheagren is the Executive Chef of Hopleaf Bar; a local, self-taught chef, he has worked in Chicago kitchens such as Fortunato, Deleece, and Tournesol for over ten years. As Chef at the Hopleaf for the past four years, his food has been described as everything from nouveau-Belgian, to modern Midwestern. He prefers to think of it in more straightforward terms, as sophisticated comfort food that goes well with great beer and wine.

Chef Jared Van Camp was the sous chef at one of the most acclaimed restaurants in the world, Blackbird, where he worked and learned at the hip of Paul Kahan. He then went to open Osteria di Tramonto as Executive Chef where he created the menu and concept with Rick Tramonto.  Despite this pedigree and working with these bold-faced names, Jared has recently opened Old Town Social; a casual, unpretentious neighborhood spot that has it’s own in-house charcuterie program & a distinct focus on blue-collar food.

Jimmy Carrane is the host of WBEZ's Studio 312, now available on podcast, and numerous comedy specials heard on the station.  A founding member of legendary Chicago comedy group Jazz Freddy, Jimmy also teaches at the Second City. He is excited to be hosting this event because it counts towards his community service for something he was charged with back in 2004.