HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SC – The sixth annual Hilton Head Island Seafood Fest, sponsored by the David M. Carmines Memorial Foundation, is set to take place Friday, April 5, 2013, 5-8pm, and Saturday, April 6, 11am-5pm, at Shelter Cove Community Park.
The popular, family-friendly event serves as the foundation’s annual fundraiser with proceeds – from admissions, beverage sales, restaurant purveyor fees, artists’ fees and auction funds – benefiting the American Cancer Society, the M.D. Anderson Cancer Research Center and the Island Recreation Scholarship Fund.
The Friday night component of this year’s Seafood Fest, now a two-day event, will be a more intimate gathering than the main event on Saturday and will feature live entertainment from Cranford & Sons—Hilton Head Island’s Rockabilly-Folk Explosion/Low Country Stomp band—as well as delicious food from Alexander’s, Black Marlin’s, Cool Breeze, Hudson’s Seafood House on the Docks, Island Kettle Corn, Joe Loves Lobster Rolls LLC, The Old Oyster Factory, Red Fish, Skull Creek Boathouse and Street Meet.
Seafood Fest will continue on Saturday and feature more than a dozen area restaurants dishing up local and regional seafood specialties, and other tasty dishes, as well as an “Iron Chef”-style competition, local artists showcasing their talents, live entertainment by The Headliners and a silent auction with incredible items.
Participating restaurants include: Alexander’s, American Culinary Federation, Black Marlin Bayside Grill, Bluffton Oyster Co., The Chart House, Cool Breeze, The Crazy Crab, Gillan’s Fresh Seafood & Oyster Bar, Hana Sushi & Japanese Fusion, Hudson’s Seafood House on the Docks, Island Kettle Corn, Joe Loves Lobster Rolls LLC, The Old Oyster Factory, Red Fish, Skull Creek Boathouse, Steamers Seafood and Street Meet, among others.
The Better Show, a daily, national television show, will be filming a segment called “License to Spill”. The segment will feature Hilton Head Island, the Seafood Fest, and some of the local food and chefs participating in the event.
Up to six local chefs will compete in the “Iron Chef” event, modeled after the TV show of the same name. Competing chefs will be presented with identical “mystery baskets” containing a variety of ingredients, including two local seafood items, and each chef will be allotted one hour to create an appetizer and an entrée.
Finished plates will be judged on creativity, composition, taste and presentation, and winners will be awarded prizes and trophies. Ron Andrews, President of the Low Country Chapter of the American Culinary Federation, is assisting with competition logistics and organization. Andrews has competed in numerous culinary competitions and will also serve as one of the event’s judges.
The Headliners, a long-time favorite musical group among locals and visitors, will perform big band, classic 50s and 60s rock-‘n’-roll, beach music, Motown, disco hits from the 70s and hits from the 90s.
Additional activities will include a “Kids Zone” with inflatable bounce houses and games, Famous Crab Races, a Bocce Ball Tournament by the Italian American Club of Hilton Head (please contact info@iachh.org to participate) and a silent auction.
Sponsors say the silent auction, which has become one of the event’s most popular components, will be “even bigger and better” this year. Last year, winning bidders enjoyed a variety of exciting items, such as a chef-prepared four-course meal, a wine tour in Sonoma County, a guided turkey hunt on one of the region’s premier private hunting properties and a deep-sea fishing expedition.
Admission is $5 for adults and FREE for kids younger than 12. Food and refreshments available for purchase with tickets.
For additional information please visit davidmcarmines.org, or call 843.681.7273.
