Island resident appears on Food Network
Thoa Nguyen, a chef, restaurateur and Northwest culinary influencer, competed on Food Network’s hit show “Beat Bobby Flay,” now in its fourth season. Her episode, called “Homeland,” will air on Thursday, May 14 at 7 p.m.
“Onions get chopped and garlic gets smashed when Vietnamese-born Thoa Nguyen does battle with high-end chef Jason Hippen. Chefs Anne Burrell and Scott Conant decide who has the cuisine to reign supreme,” the episode description said.
The competition format pits two professional chefs against one another for the opportunity to do battle with Flay. Nguyen had previously been invited to appear on “Top Chef.” Her restaurants include Chinoise Cafe in the Issaquah Highlands and Wabi Sabi Sushi Bar in Seattle.
She was born in Saigon, was raised in Cho Lon, the city’s Chinatown district, and moved to the U.S. in 1975, at age 11. She lives in Mercer Island with her husband Barry and their two children.
Read more here.
The Princess and the Frog and ice cream at YTN
In April, Mercer Island’s Youth Theatre Northwest opened a new Black Box theatre at their interim home in Emmanuel Episcopal Church. The Black Box theater was made possible by community donations and government grants. The new space includes a platform stage and will seat up to 125 people. The church will be YTN’s home for three years to allow for fundraising, design, and construction of the Mercer Island Center for the Arts.
YTN’s next show is ‘The Princess and the Frog’ which opens on Friday, May 15 and runs through May 31. The show is appropriate for ages 3 and up. YTN will be holding a special ice cream social event for preschool families at 2 p.m., Saturday, May 23. For more, visit www.youththeatre.org.
