Cultural Council for Palm Beach County Welcomes 150 Chat Fans to Season's First CULTURE & COCKTAILS At The Ben

Dave Lawrence, President & CEO of the Cultural Council for Palm Beach County, welcomed nearly 150 guests to last week's CULTURE & COCKTAILS, kicking off the 18th season of the popular series. The informative and fun event was held in the beautiful rooftop ballroom of The Ben in downtown West Palm Beach and featured a real chewable topic.

The event featured a tasty conversation with:

- Chef Lindsay Autry, co-partner and founder of The Regional Kitchen & Public House in West Palm Beach. She has held positions in restaurants on the East Coast and in Mexico, made headlines as a finalist on Bravo's ninth season of Top Chef, and was a three-time James Beard nominee (2018, 2019, 2020) for Best Chef: South. Autry describes her cuisine as soulful, embracing Mediterranean flavors with a blend of her Southern roots.

- Chef Pushkar Marathe, Executive Chef at Stage Kitchen & Bar and Ela Curry Kitchen, both in Palm Beach Gardens. Born in India, his culinary roots originate in the rich tapestry of flavors from his homeland. His early culinary training was in Switzerland and has held cooking positions in restaurants in the Caribbean, the Middle East and around the United States.

- Chef Lisabet "LB" Summa, Executive Chef at Elisabetta's Ristorante in Delray Beach and West Palm Beach. After working in restaurants in Chicago and South Florida, she became the culinary catalyst for the 18 restaurants of the Big Time Restaurant Group. Summa is one of the few women in the U.S. restaurant industry who is both a senior culinary operation executive and owner.

Moderator: Libby Volgyes, award-winning food and restaurant photographer

Among the distinguished attendees were Edrick Barnes, Bruce Beal, Deborah Bigeleisen, Christopher Caneles and Stephen Nesbitt, Maureen Conte, Donald M. Ephraim and Teri Sriberg, Bobbi Horwich, Jeremy Johnson, Rene & Daryn Kirchfeld, Deborah Pollack, Barry & Mary Ann Seidman, Jean Sharf, former Palm Beach Post columnist Leslie Gray Streeter, and more.

The next live CULTURE & COCKTAILS At The Ben will be:

January 9

Palm Beach STYLE:
Today & Tomorrow

A Buzzy Conversation with

- Bonnie Roseman, fashion stylist and designer who began her career selling art before shifting to "art to wear" collections from designers all over the world. Featured in People Magazine and on NBC's The Today Show, she went on to design collections for the Home Shopping Network before opening her own retail boutique off Worth Avenue, and now hosts the weekly Bonnie's Buzz About Town on Legend Radio 100.3 FM.

- Steven Stolman, designer, author and "observer of all things stylish" spent many years as a "worker bee' on Seventh Avenue before launching his own collection of resort wear sold in tony towns like Southampton, Palm Beach and Beverly Hills. He later served as president of Scalamandré, the renowned textiles house, where he wrote his first book, Scalamandré: Haute Décor. More books followed including the popular Confessions of a Serial Entertainer and, most recently, Bill Cunningham Was There, co-authored John Kurdewan, the photojournalist's longtime partner at The New York Times. Stolman currently consults on matters of design, product development, and marketing for a host of designers and manufacturers.

- Annette Tapert, author of The Power of Style and The Power of Glamour has published 12 books from a collaboration with style icon Slim Keith to books on celebrity, society, fashion, style, decorating and entertaining. Her picture and textbook The Power of Style profiled 14 icons including Coco Chanel, The Duchess of Windsor, CZ Guest, Jacqueline Onassis and Babe Paley.

Moderator: Pamela Fiori, author of In the Spirit of Palm Beach and former editor-in-chief of Town & Country

The Ben is located at 251 N. Narcissus Avenue in West Palm Beach. Free valet parking will be provided for each of the CULTURE & COCKTAILS conversations, running from 5 to 7 pm.

Note: Admission to each of this season's CULTURE & COCKTAILS At The Ben is $100 per person, $150 for VIP Seating, and FREE for Supporter, Contributor, Patron and Business Arts Partner level members of the Cultural Council. RSVP to Debbie Calabria at 561.472.3330 (or visit www.palmbeachculture.com/cocktails).

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