• Carson Now on Facebook
  • Follow Carson Now on Twitter
  • Follow Carson Now by RSS
  • Follow Carson Now by Email

Inaugural Reno Vegan Chef Challenge launches April 2019 in Northern Nevada

Event Date: 
April 1, 2019 (All day)

Reno Vegan Chef Challenge​ is proud to roll out the vegan welcome mat for the ​inaugural Reno Vegan Chef Challenge inspired by the hugely popular Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge and Burger Battle culinary events.

Local restaurants/chefs will be challenged to create original vegan appetizers, salads, soups, entrees, and desserts and options for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and brunch for their April 2019 menus.

Their prize: recognition as ground-breaking, inaugural participants in Reno Vegan Chef Challenge which brings to the table a wider availability of vegan dining choices — alongside their traditional menu selections.

“The idea,” says Gehn Shibayama, organizer of the Reno Vegan Chef Challenge, “is to not only showcase Reno eateries and promote a plant-based diet, but also to show how popular and in demand healthy, tasty, and satisfying vegan options are, and thus encourage restaurants to keep these items on their menus year-round.”

It’s not just vegans who crave vegan options, he adds: “According to the organizers of the Sacramento Vegan Chef Challenge, of the people who dine at Vegan Chef Challenge participating restaurants, and who vote afterward, less than half self-identify as strict vegan or vegetarian. More and more these days everyone wants to have healthy plant-based options when dining out.”

The Reno Vegan Chef Challenge kicks off on April 1, 2019, and Challenge categories include Breakfast or Brunch, Appetizers or Small plates, Lunch, Dinner Entree, and Dessert options.

The Reno Vegan Chef Challenge is a community event; everyone who dines at participating restaurants is a Judge for the Challenge. Vote immediately following your dining experience at renoveganchefchallenge.com beginning April 1, 2019.

Winning dishes in each category will be announced in early May, and prizes will be awarded to participating chefs and restaurants. Awards in various categories will be based on diner ratings, comments, photos and the dining experiences of the Vegan Chef Challenge organizing team members.

The following restaurants and their chefs will participate in the inaugural Reno Vegan Chef Challenge (additional restaurants to follow as registration is open until March 15, 2019).

— Thali - thalireno.com - Recognized as the first-to-commit, inaugural
— Challenge Restaurant! The Pizza Collective - thepizzacollectivereno.com
— Maya’s South Indian Cuisine - ​mayascuisinereno.com
— Zeppelin - ​zeppelinreno.com
— Moo Dang - ​thaimoodang.com
— La Famiglia - ​lafamigliareno.com
— Thai Lotus - ​thailotusreno.com
— Great Full Gardens - ​greatfullgardens.com Laughing Planet - ​laughingplanet.com

Restaurants interested in participating in the Vegan Chef Challenge please contact Gehn Shibayama renoveganchefchallenge@gmail.com​ by March 15, 2019.

See the website here: https://renoveganchefchallenge.com

About Vegan-Inspired Food
Vegan​: all foods except eggs, dairy, cheese, butter, poultry, meat, fish/seafood and honey; and any animal food derivatives (i.e. gelatin, broths, whey, casein, etc.)

Benefits of a vegan diet: Vegan cuisine is nutritious, delicious, heart-healthy, cholesterol & dairy free. Choosing to eat “veg” is also compassionate toward people and animals, and environmentally responsible.

To learn more, please visit: ​chooseveg.com​ or nutritionstudies.org/whole-food-plant-based-diet-guide.

Top Stories

... or see all stories

Laura Ricks, TOSA/Instructional Coach at Empire Elementary School, was honored as the Carson City School District’s Educator of the Year, at the Tuesday, April 23, school board meeting and annual event.

Additionally, Sandra Guzzetta, special education paraprofessional at Bordewich Bray Elementary School, was recognized as the Education Support Professional Employee of the Year, and Chelise Crookshanks, principal at Mark Twain Elementary School, was recognized as the district’s Administrator of the Year.

5th St View

Photos capturing the beautiful views in Carson City on Tuesday afternoon at 5th and Roop Street.

Tickets are now available for this summer’s Capital City Brewfest. This year’s event takes place June 22 on Curry Street at McFadden Plaza in Carson City. More than two dozen brewers, as well as several food trucks, will line the street from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Plus there will be live music on the McFadden Plaza stage.

The Carson City Planning Commission meeting will be held Wednesday, April 24 in the Bob Crowell Board Room of the Carson City Community Center located at 851 E. William St. at 5 p.m.

The agenda includes trail improvements, a therapeutic horse riding academy, a care facility and more.

Western Nevada College’s Veterans Resource Center and Wildcat Veterans Club invite the community to participate in a Walk for Hope on Wednesday, May 1, at 9 a.m.

It's an opportunity to bring awareness to the national and local issue of suicide and identify local resources and learning opportunities for prevention. Veterans and military personnel experience death by suicide at a rate that is about 1.5 times higher than civilian populations.

Looking for a place to take your little ones this week? Look no further! Here is a list of family-friendly (and fun!) activities and events happening this week around the capital city.

Carson City Parks, Recreation and Open Space is looking for volunteers to help us clean up trash and other debris at the Carson Ridge Disc Golf Course on Saturday, May 4 from 10 a.m. to noon. Register today using the link here to spend a sunny day volunteering with your community.

Parent night series hosted by Carson City Juvenile Services will examine school absenteeism and attendance this Thursday, April 25. Parents, families and students are encouraged to attend.

At noon Friday April 26 on Paul Esswein’s radio program "A Masterclass for Master Plans" on KNVC 95.1 FM Carson City Community Radio, Carson High School AP students Bebe Keil and Tanner McCune will be his guests.

Prepare for a phenomenal adventure as the Twain Train VIP Excursion makes its triumphant return to the second annual Mark Twain Days Festival. Departing from the Eastgate Depot in Carson City on Friday, May 10 at 2:30 p.m., passengers will embark on a remarkable 24-mile round trip ride to Virginia City where they can experience various Mark Twain events.

Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team members, Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District and the USDA Forest Service, may burn piles this week at Lake Tahoe if conditions and weather are favorable. Smoke will be present.

The Nevada Department of Transportation will host a virtual meeting and in-person public meetings to gather public feedback on proposed options for improving US-395 between southern Carson City and the Nevada-California border at Topaz Lake.

ALAMO, Nev. — The Nevada Department of Wildlife is seeking the public’s help in identifying two individuals responsible for illegally releasing approximately 25 turkeys onto the Key Pittman Wildlife Management Area on April 9, 2024.

flyer for event all info included in body of post

BAYA is taking over the MAC in Carson City for an all out volleyball battle royal. With 4 courts in action, all skill levels are welcome and matched with players at the same level.

A 43-year-old man was arrested Friday for suspicion indecent exposure, a gross misdemeanor offense, and felony Department of Alternative Sentencing violation, according to a Carson City Sheriff's Office booking report.

It’s spawning day at the Lahontan National Fish Hatchery Complex, and volunteers clad in rubber boots and jackets move quickly around the south Gardnerville building, fishing nets in hand.

Important Qualities in Elected Officials

Attend the April 27th workshop at 9am – Qualities of an Effective Elected Official.

There are still a few spaces left for the "Victorian Secrets With Tea" on Saturday, April 27, 2024, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. The deadline for signing up has been extended to Thursday, April 25. The Carson City Historical Society (CCHC) presents this afternoon tea in the Carriage House behind the Foreman-Roberts Historic House at 1207 Carson Street, Carson City.

Every month, the Park Rangers offer various Ranger-Led programs that include educational opportunities, historical fun, and exciting adventures. All programs are offered for free and take place in one of the many Carson City parks and open space areas.

St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Carson City will host its first "Walking as One at 1" labyrinth walk on Saturday, May 4 from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. at 314 N. Division at Telegraph.

"Walking as One at 1" happens on World Labyrinth Day each year where participants across the globe engage in a labyrinth walk at 1 p.m. local time. This synchronized practice creates a 24-hour rolling wave of peaceful energy that passes from one time zone to the next across the world. The idea is to collectively contribute to a sense of unity and harmony.

The wise early settlers of Carson City made sure future residents would enjoy the beauty and the endless benefits that come with the planting of trees. What was then but a barren high-desert sagebrush landscape, is today a celebration of the hardiness of trees as well as the early settlers.

On Friday, April 26 at 1 p.m., the Washoe Valley Forum hosts a living history presentation, “The Reno Cure.” Local authors and historians David and Gayle Woodruff assume the fictive characters of wrangler Clive, and cook/housekeeper Vivian, that worked at a Washoe Valley “divorce ranch” from the 1940s to 1960s.

Local musician Liz Broscoe has released a song that features Lake Tahoe and the challenges to keep it blue, and it could become the next battle cry to protect the lake.

Liz has been working on a new album for over a year and she wrote "Mother Earth" as one of the songs for that album. She had finished writing the song when she saw the videos of the thousands of pounds of trash left on Zephyr Shoals on the 4th of July.

A local family and others aided in the search and location of a missing elderly woman Saturday night in Carson City.

Carson High School named Mikey Hoffer and Selma Works as the 2024 Prom King and Queen. A short coronation ceremony was held during the prom dance. Additionally, Rodrigo Diaz and Alissa Powers were crowned Carson High School’s Friendship Ball King and Queen during that dance Thursday evening in the Morse Burley Gym.

Carson City’s Community Development Director Hope Sullivan will be the guest speaker at the next Rotary Club of Carson City meeting. The public is invited to attend.

Here is the Carson City area road report for the week of April 22-28, 2024. Closures are expected at the following locations due to road and utility work:

The Carson City School Board meeting will take place Tuesday, April 23 beginning at 6 p.m. at Carson High School.

Join local authors and historians David and Gayle Woodruff as they look back to those golden days of yesteryear when Ben, Adam, Hoss and Little Joe stood for honesty, decency and owned about 1/3 of the Lake Tahoe Basin (at least in the TV show).

On Sunday, May 5 head down to the Carson Ridge Disc Golf Park for a fun tournament-style round of Cinco de Mayo Disc Golf beginning at 10 a.m. Rain or Shine, the round will include both the Pony Express and Stadium Courses for a total of 27 holes.