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On the town

Culinary statesman cooks for fundraiser

By MARY JANE PARK
Published January 25, 2006

When the man in charge of dinner cooks for the president, you anticipate that dinner will be amazing. Saturday night, patrons of "Imagine for Kids" were treated to dinner arranged by Robert Irvine, whose resume commands instant respect.

For starters, he worked for the British royal family for a decade and was named Knight Commander of the Victorian Order, chosen personally by Queen Elizabeth II and the only chef in the world to have that distinction.

He has cooked for Academy Awards ceremonies for the past five years and will again in March. He will soon have his own show, titled Fit for a King, on the Food Network.

He has been the chef for the past five presidential inaugural dinners and is the premier chef on Air Force One. Because he has presidential clearance, he was able to bring his knives, a mandoline and a mixer along with him on the flight from Philadelphia to Tampa; he and two other chefs, Ruben Espinal and George Kralle, traveled by commercial coach class.

In November, auctions raised $26,000 for Irvine to prepare dinners for the bidders. Saturday night, he donated his time and persuaded others to donate the food.

"Imagine for Kids" is the sprawling fundraiser for children's educational programs at the Arts Center, the Museum of Fine Arts and Soulful Arts Dance Academy; organizer Wendy LaTorre enlisted the help of pop artist Peter Max, who came to the Tampa Bay area in November and again over the weekend.

On Monday, LaTorre estimated that when all the donations are counted, the project will raise nearly $475,000.

John Schloder, the museum's director, announced that part of the money will equip a traveling art exhibit that will go to every elementary school in the county over the next four years, reaching roughly 49,000 students between kindergarten and fifth grade.

The Pinellas schools will buy the mobile unit, and the museum will fill it with interactive displays and art reproductions.

Back to the dinner: The meal featured foods that Irvine has prepared for government leaders and other celebrities. In fact, his chef's coat bore the presidential seal. LaTorre said he told a different story with every course.

The appetizer, which the chef called a mosaic of salmon, tuna and diver scallops with field greens and olive oil, was a favorite of Princess Diana, LaTorre related.

The fourth course, a St. Clement's orange and lemon sorbet, he prepared for actor Angelina Jolie.

For Max, there was a separate meal, "Peter's special," Irvine said. The artist is vegan.

Helping the other three chefs was Martin Knaust, a University of Florida political science major from St. Petersburg, who loves to cook. Over the holidays, he expressed an interest in Irvine's work, and LaTorre arranged for him to be in the kitchen with the pros.

The setting for Saturday's gathering was the home of Tim and Anje Bogott, who are redecorating. Anje Bogott said workers and scaffolding were in the house until very nearly the last minute, and the results so far are spectacular.

Linda Khan, a senior design consultant with Robb & Stucky in Tampa, is supervising the work, which includes ceiling murals, stenciling, faux finishing and even hand-applied gilt.

Tim Bogott, who is the chief executive at the TradeWinds Island Resorts in St. Pete Beach, was an early investor in the furniture and design company.

The group enjoying the meal and the company included Arts Center executive director Evelyn Craft, museum board of directors president Carol Upham, Beth Morean, Steve and Sonia Raymund, Tom and Mary James, Dr. Bill LaTorre, Cecil Martin, Darlene Grayson, Kevin Harrington and Crystal Williams, Ron and Lenne Nicklaus Ball, Roger and Sally Zeh, Phil an d Michele Farley, Annette Bradley and Bob Stewart.

"The whole night ended up being really magical," LaTorre said.

Speaking of royalty, Stephen King was the headliner at Eckerd College's "Writers in Paradise" conference that began over the weekend.

Comfortably dressed in a black tee, black jeans and white athletic shoes, he visited with guests Saturday night at a reception hosted by Eckerd's dean of faculty, Lloyd Chapin, and his wife, Louise.

It was a relatively small gathering in the President's Dining Room on the Eckerd campus. Conference co-directors Dennis Lehane, the alum whose most famous work is Mystic River, and novelist Sterling Watson, who is head of the college's creative writing program, welcomed those attending the cocktail party before King's soldout appearance on campus.

Poet Peter Meinke was there, as was Laura Lippman, creator of the Tess Monaghan detective character and author of Every Secret Thing.

Additional guests included Kathy Watson, Marty Wallace, Peter and Helen Wallace, Edward Rucks and Kathryn Howd, Marshall Rousseau, Frank and Vicki Fox, Scott Wagman, Melissa Wagman, Valerie Scott Knaust and Stan Cowen, Bob and Tina Douglass, Ted and Jean Wittner, Fran Risser, Dick and Helen Minck, and Howard and Dina Sachs.

At what the Junior League of St. Petersburg called the inaugural Mayoral Ball on Friday, re-elected Mayor Rick Baker and his wife, Joyce, greeted hundreds of well-wishers in the Coliseum.

Lots of municipal officials, including the entire City Council, Deputy Mayor Goliath Davis, and police Chief Chuck Harmon, attended and mixed with numerous business and civic leaders.

Carl Lavender Jr., executive director of Boys and Girls Clubs, conceived the idea for the gala, which made more than $10,000 for the league, Boys and Girls Clubs and the Doorways Scholarship Program.

The league's Lori Russell chaired the event committee, which also included Mandi Bagley, Robin Grabowski, Kelsey Littlefield, Sarah Lucas, Donna Mainguth, Tracy Meehan, Stephanie Preston, Brooke Smith and Andrea Winning.

Mary Jane Park can be reached at 727 893-8267; fax (727) 893-8675; e-mail park@sptimes.com P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731.

[Last modified January 25, 2006, 00:55:16]