Foodbank to Host Inaugural Santa Barbara Fork & Cork Classic on Sunday, June 1st at Montecito Country Club

The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County is pleased to announce the inaugural Santa Barbara Fork & Cork Classic taking place Sunday, June 1st from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., at the Montecito Country Club, 920 Summit Road in Montecito.

“We look forward to hosting the first annual Santa Barbara Fork & Cork Classic and invite the entire community to participate,” said Erik Talkin, CEO, Foodbank of Santa Barbara County. “Many in our community rely on the nutritious food distributed by Foodbank. By taking part in this event, you are helping to support the over 300 local nonprofit partners Foodbank works with annually to supply healthy produce and staples.”

The event will honor: Chef Michael Blackwell of Montecito Country Club; Leslie Mead Renaud, Director of Winemaking at Foley Estate, Lincourt and Two Sisters; and Clarissa Nagy, Winemaker at Riverbench for their leadership in the local food and wine industries. Proceeds from the Santa Barbara Fork & Cork Classic will benefit Foodbank’s over 300 local nonprofit partners and Foodbank youth programs like Teens Love Cooking (TLC), a seven week long after school program that provides middle school-aged teenagers the opportunity to learn hands on cooking skills and improve their knowledge of food and nutrition.

A sneak peak at Tastes featured at the event include: Blush Restaurant and Bar, Ca’Dario, Finch & Fork at the Canary, Intermezzo, The Lark, Montecito Country Club, The Secret Ingredient, Whole Foods Market, Santa Barbara Gift Baskets, Restaurant Bella Vista at the Four Seasons, and Via Maestra 42. Wineries and Other Sips include: Blair Fox, Buttonwood, Carr Winery, Cass Winery, Deep Sea, Dierberg and Star Lane Wineries, Jaffurs, Foley Estate, Firestone Winery, La Fenetre, Lincourt, Luna Olivo, Nagy Wines, Qupe, Riverbench Vineyard, Sans Liege Wines, William James Cellars, Zaca Mesa, and Cutler’s Artisan Spirits.

Current sponsors are First Click and Mentor as Platinum Spoon Sponsors and Courtland-Dane, FastSpring, and Village Properties as Silver Spoon Sponsors.

Pre-Sale General Admission tickets are $65 or $75 at the door. Pre-Sale VIP tickets are $95 or $125 at the door. VIP tickets include admission to the event, a fun-filled swag bag and additional perks. To purchase tickets, learn about volunteer opportunities or to see the latest list of restaurant and winery event partners, visit http://foodbanksbc.org/ForkandCorkClassic.html .

For sponsorship or exhibitor opportunities, please contact Misha Karbelnig at (805) 967-5741 x119 or mkarbelnig@foodbanksbc.org.

About the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County

The Foodbank is celebrating over 30 years of eliminating hunger and food insecurity by distributing nutritious food, education, and other resources through its own programs and to a network of over 300 member non-profit partners and programs in Santa Barbara County. Last year, the Foodbank distributed what translates into more than 8.5 million meals – of which fully half was fresh produce. This served over 102,000 unduplicated people from Carpinteria to Santa Maria, an amazing 1 in 4 people. For the fifth consecutive time, the Foodbank has recently been given a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America’s largest and most-utilized independent evaluator of charities. Only 4% of the charities rated have received at least 5 consecutive 4-star evaluations, indicating that Foodbank of Santa Barbara County outperforms most other charities in America. More information at www.foodbanksbc.org.