AMERICAN CULINARY FEDERATION PRESS RELEASE For Immediate Release: April 7, 2015

Media Contacts: Jessica Ward: (904) 484-0213, [email protected] Jennifer Manley: (904) 484-0247, [email protected]

Jeremy Tummel, Chef de Cuisine at The Lodge at Pebble Beach, Named 2015 ACF Western Region Chef of the Year St. Augustine, Fla., April 7, 2015—Jeremy Tummel, chef de cuisine at Stillwater Bar & Grill

at The Lodge at Pebble Beach, Pebble Beach, California, recently won the 2015 American Culinary Federation (ACF) Western Region Chef of the Year. The competition was held at the College of Southern Nevada, Cheyenne Campus, North Las Vegas, Nevada, March 20-21. The ACF Western Region Chef of the Year award, established in 1963 and sponsored by Unilever Food Solutions, recognizes an outstanding foodservice professional who works and cooks in a full-service dining facility. This person demonstrates the highest standard of culinary skills, advances the cuisine of America and gives back to the profession through the development of students and apprentices. At the regional competition, Tummel prepared rabbit three ways to include rabbit roulade with black truffle and speck ham, country rabbit sausage and rabbit liver foie gras served with braised lentils, asparagus and sauteed mini root vegetables in 1 hour, 40 minutes for a panel of judges. Tummel will now prepare to compete for the national title against his regional counterparts during Cook. Craft. Create. ACF National Convention & Show, Orlando, Florida, July 30-Aug. 3. The chef who wins the national competition will receive the title of U.S.A.’s Chef of the Year and $5,000. "This competition was a six month learning curve for me as I have never participated in an ACF competition,” said Tummel. "I was surprised when I received a gold medal and very relieved and excited! I am looking forward to the finals, win, lose or draw, I know it will be another great culinary experience that I am lucky enough to be a part of. Thank you to everyone that has helped out and supported me along the way." Tummel, of Monterey, California, has an associate degree in restaurant management from Santa Barbara City College, Santa Barbara, California. His experience includes executive chef, Ciudad, Los Angeles; executive chef, Wine Cask, Santa Barbara; and executive chef, Epiphany, Santa Barbara. Tummel recently traveled to the Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Marunouchi in Japan as an ambassador for California’s central coast’s food and wine. He has been a featured chef at Pebble Beach Food and Wine Festival for three years. The 2015 ACF Western Region Culinary Salon was part of ACF’s Signature Series, which provides professional development for chefs and culinary students through educational programs, conferences and competitions. Learn more at www.acfchefs.org/culinarysalons, or at Facebook.com/ACFChefs or on Twitter @ACFChefs. About the American Culinary Federation The American Culinary Federation, Inc. (ACF), established in 1929, is the standard of excellence for chefs in North America. With more than 17,500 members spanning nearly 200 chapters nationwide, ACF is the leading culinary association offering educational resources, training, apprenticeship and programmatic accreditation. In addition, ACF operates the most comprehensive certification program for chefs in the United States, with the Certified Executive Chef®, Certified Sous Chef®, Certified Executive Pastry Chef® and Certified Culinary Educator® designations accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies. ACF is home to ACF Culinary Team USA, the official representative for the United States in major international culinary competitions, and to the Chef & Child Foundation, founded in 1989 to promote proper nutrition in children and to combat childhood obesity. For more information, visit www.acfchefs.org. Find ACF on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ACFChefs and on Twitter @ACFChefs. ###