The nonprofit Tucson City of Gastronomy (TCOG) recently sent out a call for applications for new Chef Ambassadors to represent Tucson as a UNESCO City of Gastronomy, both abroad and in the community.
Professional chefs, sous chefs, and pastry chefs who are currently employed in the Southern Arizona food industry and with at least three consecutive years of experience are eligible.
Selected applicants will undergo training to learn everything they need to know to speak knowledgeably about Tucson’s culinary history, culturally layered cuisine, heritage ingredients, traditional dishes and food preparation techniques, contemporary food scene, and the reasons Tucson qualified for the UNESCO designation.
“Every year, we receive several invitations to send Tucson chefs to sister Cities of Gastronomy around the world,” said Jonathan Mabry, TCOG Executive Director.
“In the past, we have sent Chef Ambassadors to do cooking demonstrations, collaborative dinners with local chefs, and discussion panels in Cities of Gastronomy in China, Spain, Mexico, and Turkey, and we are sending them to Italy and Saudi Arabia this fall.”
Locally, Chef Ambassadors also do cooking demonstrations for the public and participate in TCOG culinary events.
Applications open now and are due by midnight on August 14th.
Interested chefs can download the applications and instructions on the TCOG website.
The non-profit Tucson City of Gastronomy was formed in 2016 to manage the 2015 UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy designation for metro Tucson and Southern Arizona.
It works with stakeholders in the local food system and food economy to leverage the designation to increase appreciation of our food heritage, culinary assets, and food system innovations, promote them on a global scale, and link them to heritage foodways preservation, culinary tourism, and economic development.
Learn more about the Tucson City of Gastronomy at tucson.cityofgastronomy.org.
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