El Ay Si Hosts Fundraising Event for Top Future Chef Winners

June 7, 2011 - PRLog -- El Ay Si Hosts Fundraising Event for Top Future Chef Winners

– Proceeds Will Kick-start Scholarship Funds for Two Super-star Culinary Students –

LONG ISLAND CITY, N.Y. – June 7, 2011 – On the heels of the Top Future Chefs Competition, El Ay Si Restaurant will hold their first annual Top Future Chefs fundraising event on Tuesday, June 14 from 6:30 pm to 9 pm at El Ay Si in Queens.

The El Ay Si Top Future Chefs Competition winners will showcase their newly created dishes for the restaurant’s menu and every dish sold over the course of the year will contribute to their scholarship funds. Guests of the event can enjoy wine, hors d’oeuvres, and leave with goodies bags.

Guests are encouraged to contribute a suggested donation of $20 and all proceeds will go towards initiating the students’ scholarship funds. Supporters of the event include: Macy’s Culinary Council, Modern Spaces NYC, On Location Tours and Vitacoco to name a few.

Food and Finance High School students Lazarus Lynch, winner of the culinary competition and Shania Thomas, winner of the baking competition will be on hand to speak about the inspiration behind their dishes. Food and Finance High School Assistant Principal Joseph Clausi will also be on hand to discuss the students’ scholarship fund.

“From the first day we started construction on El Ay Si, I hoped that we would be more than just another restaurant,” says Xerxes Novoa, operating partner at El Ay Si. “After participating as a judge in the Future Chefs Competition and seeing the enthusiasm and talent that these kids have, I feel that our restaurant is just scratching the surface in being able to help the community. I am very excited for the bright future these kids have ahead of them.”

The event will take place at El Ay Si restaurant at 47-38 Vernon Boulevard in Long Island City in Queens and is open to the public.

Photos of the El Ay Si Future Chefs winner are available upon request.

For more news updates and information about El Ay Si’s Top Future Chefs Competition, go to www.elaysi.com. Follow the El Ay Si on Twitter @ElAySi and become a Facebook fan at http://www.facebook.com/pages/ElAySi/141800695039.

About El Ay Si
El Ay Si is located between 47th Road and 48th Avenue at 47-38 Vernon Boulevard in Long Island City, Queens. Named for its location, El Ay Si is a neighborhood restaurant that feels special, but is also really accessible to everyone. The restaurant opened in 2009 and is the creation of Xerxes Novoa, owner of The Orchard on Manhattan’s Lower East Side; executive Chef Chris Frakes, formerly a chef at Manhattan restaurants EU and Butcher Bay; and Jonathan Duke, who serves as El Ay Si’s manager.

From local DJs, artist’s showcases to a renowned magician, El Ay Si is the place this community has been waiting for. Queen’s resident DJ Love on the Run hosts “The Good Life” weekly listening party on Thursdays at 9pm.

El Ay Si is open for brunch on Saturday and Sunday 11:30am – 3:30pm and dinner Wednesday – Sunday 6pm – 10pm and on Friday and Saturday is open until 11pm. El Ay Si accepts reservations for parties of 6 or more. For more information about El Ay Si, go to www.elaysi.com.

About the Food and Finance High School
Food and Finance High School is a public school that draws students from throughout New York City. The unique program offers comprehensive culinary arts instruction, a cutting-edge science program with Cornell University Cooperative Extension that features an aquaponic fish lab, as well as a curriculum where students master their academic subjects, often using food as an integrating theme.