Chef Duane Keller's Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich |
From our friends at Walker's Grille...
Chef Duane Keller of Walker's Grille Selected to Compete in Nationwide Thomas' Hometown Breakfast Battle Contest During National Breakfast Month
DC area locals are asked to help vote Chef Keller to the top!
Chef Duane Keller of Walker's Grille in Alexandria is in a battle, a breakfast battle! Thomas' Breads has named the James Beard Award winning Chef as one of the 135 top chef's across the country and now he is duking it out with the competition to see who be named the Hometown Breakfast Battle champion. Each chef was challenged to create a unique breakfast dish using a Thomas' English Muffin or Bagel plus a local twist or ingredient.
Chef Keller's creation named the "Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich (USB)," features grilled Filet Mignon, Chesapeake Bay crab cakes, poached eggs, hollandaise sauce, tomatoes and micro greens all stuffed between two Thomas’ Original English Muffins.
Chef Keller is representing the Alexandria area and is looking for local voting support! Fans can vote for Chef Keller and his recipe at http://www.thomasbreakfastbattle.com/recipes/“ubs”-ultimate-breakfast-sandwich.
The first round of voting runs through September 27th and voters are encouraged to vote daily. If (and when!) Chef Keller is voted as a top 16 finalists, he will continue to go through rounds of voting through October 25th when a winner will be named soon after. Voters will also be automatically entered into a random drawing to win free Thomas' products each day and the consumer grand prize of $10,000 at the end of the contest!
The special edition UBS is also available on the the Walker's Grille menu through October 31st at $19.
About Chef Keller:
Duane Keller, has over 25 years of experience at fine hotels and restaurants along the East Coast and Canada. Recipient in 2001 of the James Beard Foundation Certificate, New York where he was invited to be a guest chef, Keller has won numerous awards over the years that reflect his ever-expanding inventiveness and inspirational accomplishments: the DiRona Award, Sarasota, Florida; the Gold Spoon Award at the Four Star Delta Bow Valley Inn, Calgary; the Red Seal Award at Emerald Park, Vancouver; the Wine Spectator Award; the C.C.A. Chef of the Year Award; and the Florida Top 100 Award, to name just a few. In addition to these honors, in 2002 Keller helped Julia Child celebrate her 90th birthday with dazzling gastronomic creations; he has been named frequently in Washingtonian Magazine as one of the area’s top chefs hailing in their “Top 100,” “Top 50,” and “Best Brunches,” and he was featured in Gourmet Magazine when head chef at the 17th century Ashby Inn in Paris, Virginia. A native of Saskatchewan, Keller’s training under the world’s finest European chefs in Canada, including Gerald Ehler of Calgary, initiated his creative approach—that of incorporating the style and cooking techniques of old world cuisine into that which is new. Keller celebrates his passion by sharing with others through charitable work: he has created heart-healthy menus for the American Heart Association, fed the homeless and disadvantaged in Sarasota as well as Hurricane Katrina relief, and cooked for the Pentagon during rescue operations of 9/11.
About Walker's Grille:
Walker’s Grille is committed to protecting the future of local environment and believe the extra steps are worth the effort. Walker's Grille is proud to be the first and currently only restaurant in Virginia to earn LEED Gold Certification, awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council. Walker's uses eco-friendly operations that include recycled design materials, a recycling program, and energy efficient equipment to reduce water and energy consumption. The menu items are made from all natural, fresh products sourced from local and regional farming communities. The vendors are all committed to ethical and environmentally friendly farming practices. The meat and poultry are Certified Humane. The seafood served is sustainable from domestic sources.