Chef Tommy Fraioli of Sea Rocket Bistro wins Chef of the Fest!

The San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival announces the winner of the 2012 Chef of the FestCompetition Presented by Creekstone Farms and Hosted by Big Green Egg, is Chef Tommy Fraioli (see photo) of Sea Rocket Bistro! Fraioli’s winning dish was Deconstructed Banh Mi Vietnamese Sandwich with pork cheek, jalapeno, cilantro, carrots, cucumbers, and daikon.

The sweet reward for Chef Tommy Fraioli includes$1,000 cash prize awarded by Creekstone Farms, an invitation to headline the 2013 San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival, a feature in Cooking Light Magazine’s The Dish, Taylor Guitar GS Mini Guitar, Lamborghini Corsa watch, Big Green EGG Outdoor Cooker with accessories, True Professional Wine Refrigeration Unit and round-trip airfare for two on Southwest Airlines.

Celebrated as one of the largest culinary showdowns in Southern California, the competition challenged seasoned and up-and-coming chefs in San Diego’s thriving culinary scene to show off their skills in the kitchen. 32 local chefs battled it out for the “Chef of the Fest” title and$50,000 in cash and prizes. Attendees also voted in this year’s first ever People’s Choice Award.

Top 10, Category, and People’s Choice winners:

Chef of the Fest / 1st Place

Tommy Fraioli – Sea Rocket Bistro

2nd Amy DiBiase – The Shores Restaurant

3rd Jon Sloan – Roy’s Restaurant

4th Anthony Sinsay – Burlap

5th Scott Thomas Dolbee – Kitchen 1540

6th Dustin Anselm – Jake’s Del Mar

7th Neil Dandekar – Vela Restaurant

8th Aron Schwartz – Marina Kitchen

9th Stephen Window – Roppongi

10th Nicholas Bour – Rancho Bernardo Inn

People’s Choice Award

Jaison Burke – The Pearl Hotel

Category Winners

Poultry Javier Placentia – Romesco Baja Med

Vegetarian Eric Bauer – Veladora

Seafood Amy DiBiase – The Shores Restaurant

Meat Tommy Fraioli – Sea Rocket Bistro

Dessert Aron Schwartz – Mari