Battle of the Chefs

By Mitchell Acks

The Battle of the Chef’s judged by 4 young intelligent kids was held on August 28, 2017 at the new Burger & Lobster located in the Times Square.  

Burger & Lobster was a generous host with the space and many rounds of scrumptious food. This is new location near 4 Times Square and behind legendary Auerole. They are doing something right with various locations worldwide, first starting in London. They have another location West 19 in NYC  

Many would enjoy their signature burger on a delicious bun or different Lobster rolls.  

There were 6 renowned chefs that prepared their interpretation of a “best” Lobster Roll or Burger (on a roll!), which will be evaluated and judged by 4 hungry children! The 6 chefs competing were Executive Chef Danny Lee of Burger & Lobster Bryant Park, Executive Chef and Owner Patrick Appolonia, Chef Justin McManus, Owner of McManus Cafe, Chef Mariano Maximo of McManus Cafe, Chef DJ Dallas Green and Chef Shani Porter. Each made their specialty burger like Patrick’s Pizza Burger with Pepperoni or lobster roll. I wish we could have had them. The judges were the only ones to try them but still were lots of delicious food to sample.

Tashiana Washington, a talented actress and singer, was there to lend her support. She

Gimme the Loot for which she has received a 2014 Black Reelaward nomination for Outstanding Breakthrough Actress Performance. Complex magazine named Washington one of the 25 Breakout Actresses to Know in 2013.

Everyone really enjoyed the delicious mini versions of Burger & Lobster’s famous Original Burger and Original Lobster Roll, drinks provided by Tito’s, another sponsor, and tasty desserts by other sponsors like Sweet Sam’s and Basked by Melissa during a fun filled evening.

There was a short informative video about the organization and plight of children refugees. It is very sad that 65 million children are refugees.

We saw of the organization’s resources and alliances with their Humanitarian Box Displays like Books in a Box, Hope in a Suitcase and Walk With Me Expandable Shoes. These neat Shoe That Grows, a sandal invented by inventor Kenton Lee that can adjust its size, allowing children in impoverished nations to grow up without having to go barefoot. The shoes, which come in catch-all Small and Large sizes, can grow 5 sizes and last at least 5 years. It is sad that there are over 300 million children who do not have shoes according to Shoes that Grow.

All proceeds from this event goes directly to help give hope and happiness to refugee children through education and integration programs.

The Amal Alliance, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) dedicated to

empowering displaced youth through social development programs at refugee camps around the globe.

They have a global presence in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and U.S. with vast array of talented volunteer individuals that help with education and integration programs.

This organization is co-founded by two professionals who wanted to give back. Dr. Rose Cardarelli, retired from the US Army, served at the National Defense University in Washington, DC specializing in Human Security. Ms. De La Fuente who has worked at various Embassies and on political campaigns, specializing as a liaison within the diplomatic, governmental, and political realms.

More information about the organization can be found at: http://www.amalalliance.org