Though the remnants of Winter Storm Jonas could have hampered attendance, Weylin B. Seymour’s was packed on Sunday for the Cochon 555 food competition and fundraiser. Attendees feasted their eyes and their taste buds at the annual event, which pits five chefs against each other over their various heritage pig dishes. They also supported the Piggy Bank Foundation through purchases of meat from an onsite pig carving.
The 2016 NYC contestants were Angie Mar of the Beatrice Inn, Justin Smillie of Upland, Hillary Sterling of Vic’s, Danny Mena of Hecho en Dumbo and Michael Poiarkoff of Vinegar Hill House. After sampling the dishes and imbibing many of the numerous wines and cocktails available, attendees voted for which chef they would like to see move on to the Grand Cochon event in Colorado this summer. Of course, all who partook in the merriment were winners but Angie Mar proved the true victor. She even crafted a pig-related dessert — a red velvet cake with pig’s blood in it.
Photos by Sachyn Mital for the Village Voice