Joey Altman began his culinary training at the age of 16, and has since emerged as one of the foremost chefs specializing in multi-cultural cuisine. Utilizing his international background in restaurants and catering services, Altman has worked as a chef and consulted for many notable restaurants across the country. In 1989, at the age of 25 he opened Miss Pearl’s Jam House in San Francisco, where he garnered three and four star reviews for his tropical dishes inspired by Caribbean, Cajun, Creole and Pacific Rim cuisine.

Jennifer McLagan, author of the multi-award winning cookbook, Bones, comes back to the Classic to feature her brand new release, Fat.  In Fat, McLagan sets out with equal parts passion, scholarship, and appetite to win us back to a healthy relationship with animal fats - fundamental to the flavor of our food. 

Laura Werlin’s Cheese Essentials was a 2008 James Beard Award finalist.  Her previous books include: The New American Cheese, The All American Cheese and Wine Book, and Great Grilled Cheese. Werlin’s articles on food have appeared in Food & Wine, Fine Cooking, Saveur, Cooking Light, and Country Living.  We're fortunate to have Laura back at the Classic to share her dedication to, and passion for, the world's finest artisanal cheeses. 

After several sojourns working and living in France, he followed his increasing fascination with wine by joining the London wine trade, working in the retail and importing sectors.  In 1979 he moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, and again worked importing European wines to that province. In 1985, he taught in the Finger Lakes region of New York, and then took up teaching wine at the Culinary Institute of America in the Hudson River region of New York.  With his colleagues he co-authored Exploring Wine, the Culinary Institute of America’s Complete Guide to Wines of the World.  In 2003, he brought out his 2nd book, The Sommelier’s Guide to Wine.  At the Classic, Smith will debut his newest book, WineWise.

Freelance food consultant, food stylist, and food writer, Rahamut has operated the Wendy Rahamut School of Cooking Since 1998. Wendy has hosted a long-standing weekly television cooking show entitled Caribbean Flavors and has also appeared on The Food Network. She lives in Trinidad with her family.  At the Classic, Wendy will debut her new cookbook, Modern Caribbean Cuisine.

“Martha Foose's Screen Doors and Sweet Tea is a treasure-chest of superb recipes like Green Chile Rice, Lady Pea Salad, and Sweet Tea Pie. And her stories of growing up in Mississippi have the unmistakably Southern cadence of tales swapped across the dinner table. The book has given us a new appreciation for the genius of Delta cuisine, and even better, it has us yearning to cook, gather friends, and tell stories.”
—Matt Lee and Ted Lee, authors of The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook

The author of Charcuterie and Chef/Proprietor of the acclaimed Five Lakes Grill, Polcyn has been featured in local and national publications, including The New York Times, The Detroit News, Atlantic Monthly, Gourmet, Bon Appetite, Playboy, Detroit Hour Magazine, The Detroit Free Press and Wine Spectator. 

If you missed Ted last year, you'll want to be sure not to do so this year. If you happened to catch one of Ted's demos, you understand why he is widely recognized as one of the world's most entertaining and engaging outdoor chefs and barbecue personalities. Reader is a media favorite-a bold and passionate enthusiast who has appeared numerous times on Live with Regis and Kelly and who's a major name on the cookoff/barbecue circuit. 

Named one of American’s Best New Chefs in 1993, Yamauchi has held the executive chef role at several of the Midwest’s finest restaurants including Tribute, Le Francais, Carlos and Gordon, and Saltwater at the MGM Grand in Detroit, recently named best restaurant in Michigan by the Detroit Free Press. In June of 2008, he left the MGM Grand to return to the Epoch Restaurant Group as executive chef of Forte in Birmingham

Rick Halberg graduated at the top of his class at the C.I.A. in 1977 and went on to work at the famed Depuy Canal House in upstate N.Y. before moving home to Michigan to eventually open award winning R.I.K.'s the Restaurant, Emily's and Tutto Bene.  He began at Hiller's in 2006 and is developing a complete line of prepared foods to take home for this upscale suburban Detroit group of family owned specialty supermarkets.

Villegas spent two formative years studying and working in cooking schools and top restaurants in France before continuing his studies at the New England Culinary Institute. Shortly thereafter he settled in mid-Michigan and over the next twenty years owned and operated both Dusty's Wine Bar and Restaurant Villegas. His cooking show, Fork in the Road, is now seen nationally on PBS. 

A graduate of the prestigious New England Culinary School and veteran of several Ritz-Carlton Hotel restaurants around the country, Molinaro is currently the Executive Chef at the NECI where he contributed mightily to the newly released A Master Class: Sensational Recipes from the Chefs of the New England Culinary Institute.

Amanda with her husband Paul and executive chef Myles Anton are the proprietors of Trattoria Stella in the Village at Grand Traverse Commons in Traverse City Michigan where they employ a strong “farm to table” philosophy changing the menu every day. Amanda manages the 250-bottle wine program and focuses on the education of their staff and the community through a series of wine and service classes.  She continues to pursue her own education and more certifications in the vast field of wine.  Most recently, she passed the Advanced Sommelier Exam in August of 2007 and will be eligible to sit for the Master Sommelier exam in 2009. Beyond their professional focus, their two dogs and daughter, Sofia Adele, Paul and Amanda support education, arts and conservation related causes throughout the community.