THE MENU:
Our menu is seasonal & sustainably-sourced from our favorite farmers, ranchers & fishermen! Our wine pairings come from some of the most notable and highly acclaimed winemakers in California, many of whom will be in attendance!

Passed Appetizers:

• Fierce Foods Cookbook beet poké on watermelon radish crisp

  • Paired with: Bella Union Sauvignon Blanc

• Beef tenderloin tartare on artisan baguette 

  • Paired with: Native Hands Rose

• Grilled oysters with chili butter

  • Paired with: Rombauer Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc

• Raw oysters with cherimoya & shallot mignonette and smoked trout roe

  • Paired with: Rombauer Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc

• Varied wine tastings provided by Postino WineCafé

• Craft cocktails provided by St. George Spirits and Slow & Low by Cooper Spirits

• Thompson & Scott non-alcoholic sparkling chardonnay

• ISM Brewing craft beer, Long Beach

All courses served family-style with sides of seasonal vegetables (vegan or vegetarian on request): 

Charcuterie Course:

• Wine pairing: Rombauer Chardonnay

• Charcuterie & Cheese 

  • Pot of Farmhouse at Roger’s Garden Chicken Liver Mousse

  • Handmade charcuterie by Chef Paul Buchanan

  • Handmade feta cheese by Chef Andrew Johnson

  • Chef Tony’s Sweet Onion & Herb Jam and Bread Artisan Bakery Baguette

• The grazing boards are handmade by Chef Coby Laird and will be available for auction.

Course One: Farm

• Wine pairing: My Favorite Neighbor ‘23 Rosé

• Curated by Chefs Andrew Johnson, Doug Settle & Abby King and Whitney Aronoff

• Spring Salad mixed with seasonal farm abundance

• Rebel Mountain Farm lettuce, spring peas, baby fennel, snap peas, radish, pickled strawberries

• Hearth & Harvest roasted strawberry vinaigrette, bloomy goats cheese crottin

Course Two: Sea

• Wine pairing: Bob Cabral Pinot Noir & Booker Vineyard  ‘23 Rhone Inspired White Blend 

• Curated by Chefs Richard Mead, Paul Buchanan & Paddy Glennon

• Plancha seared local halibut with strawberry black pepper salsa

• Tehachapi Grain Project Sonoran wheat with coconut braised Gai Lan, red chard & garlic scapes

Course Three: Ranch

• Wine pairings: Booker Vineyard ‘21 Fracture

• Curated by Chefs Michael Puglisi, Tony Thomason and Claudia Gonzalez

• Herd & Grace prime beef tenderloin with fire-kissed spring mushroom confit & herbed hotel butter

• Grilled spring asparagus with roasted pepper relish

• Crispy Weiser Farm Magic Myrna potatoes, rosemary and a sprinkle of Starseed Kitchen spices

Course Four: Sweet Endings Cake Walk Auction

• From Viktor Benes Bakery:

  • Coconut cake, carrot cake, Boston cream pie, marble cake with chocolate ganache

• From Chef Cathy:

  • Fierce Foods Cookbook Chavacado Pudding

  • GF chocolate layer cake

• OCSA culinary team Dessert TBA

• Fresh Berry Galette with Vanilla Creme (3)

Chef's Table Friendship Dinner
May 3rd, 2025 at 5:00pm
Tanaka Farms, 5380 3/4 University Dr, Irvine, CA 92612

• Guests arrive at Tanaka Farms at 5:00pm

• Parking is free onsite

• Guests will be welcomed by MLP volunteers at the wagon stop at the entrance to the farm

• Guests will be escorted up the hill to the main venue on a tractor-pulled wagon

• The event will begin with appetizers, wine pairings, craft cocktails and live music

• Dinner will be a seated around 6:45pm, and guests will be treated to a multi-course, family-style meal all cooked over fire on the farm by our extraordinary chefs, known collectively as Team Green

• All seats are assigned and will be marked by a name place card

• The informational and fundraising portions of the event will be tied into the dinner program

• The event will conclude around 9pm

• Attire is “farm chic” meaning farm-friendly footwear with gala/party clothing. The evening will be chilly so please come prepared with sweaters and jackets.

We’re offering two types of tickets only this year:

• Single seats at our community table - $450 (early-bird), $500 (regular price)

• Table of ten seats - $4500 (early-bird), $5000 (regular price)

• All seats are VIP. This event will be more intimate than in years past.

MaxLove Project is dedicated to improving the quality of life of families facing childhood cancers, pediatric rare diseases, and chronic hospitalizations with evidence-based culinary medicine, emotional health support, expert-driven health education, and therapeutic community.

It’s our goal to raise $250,000 to support our programming and transformation in 2025. Programmatic funding will support our Ohana Day events, mental health therapy for families, nutrition care/nutrigenomics and online resources.

Donate Here