By Stephanie Meditz
Evening of Fine Food is an opportunity for individuals and businesses alike to enjoy fine dining, entertainment and networking.
On Feb. 28, Queens Centers for Progress (QCP) will host its 27th annual “Evening of Fine Food” at Terrace on the Park in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park.
Evening of Fine Food offers fine dining, networking and entertainment to garner support and raise funds for QCP’s efforts to help individuals in the borough with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
“We’ve been around for 72 years…and this is the 27th anniversary of the event,” Wendy Gennaro, QCP director of development, said. “Basically, all of the proceeds go to the organization, so outside of the expenses, 100 percent of what we raise at this event goes to support our programs here in Queens.”
QCP’s programs promote independence and community engagement for children and adults with developmental disabilities.
Local restaurants like Bourbon Street and Austin’s Ale House have attended Evening of Fine Food since it began.
“On the restaurant side, we have some very loyal restaurants that come back every year. They’ve been through the ringer over the past few years, but they still show up, which is amazing,” Gennaro said.
QCP also has longtime sponsors who offer financial support every year, including Veronica Tsang, Gerald Caliendo Architects, Resorts World NYC and Grubhub.
“What we love most is when we honor people and they keep coming back. We’ve been very blessed in that way,” she added.
Each Evening of Fine Food celebration recognizes various movers and shakers who contribute to the wellbeing, culture and community of Queens, referred to as “Chefs of the Year.”
Frank Wu, president of Queens College, is one of this year’s honorees.
“I am as excited to be [a] chef for the QCP Evening of Fine Food as I am to live in the world’s borough where every culture is represented by its cuisine,” Wu said in a statement.
Brett Swanson, community affairs and social impact at Grubhub, will also be honored at the event.
At Grubhub, Swanson focuses on food insecurity and restaurant revitalizations.
“Because he does what he does, he impacts so many people in the borough. They are always handing out meals to people in communities…and not only do they feed people in the community, but they also support local businesses by using food from the local businesses to feed people. He’s just a great example of what someone can do for people in the community.”
He feels extremely grateful to be honored in this way and to support QCP’s overall mission.
“QCP’s work has changed the lives of so many, and I am incredibly proud to be aligned with such an amazing group,” Swanson said in a statement. “Cheers to many more years to come.”
Although QCP typically honors individual people, it will honor The Leadership Team at Stop & Shop this year.
This year, Queens Centers for Progress will honor Stop & Shop for its promotion of QCP’s Supported Employment Program for individuals with developmental disabilities.
“Stop & Shop has hired hundreds of our individuals to work in their stores throughout Queens and they’re a great employment partner to us,” Gennaro said. “What they do for our individuals by employing them is give them a sense of pride, a place to go to work every day where they thrive, earn an income and are out in the community. We’re all about inclusion and integration into the community, so they really help us in that way by doing these hires.”
Last year, QCP created the Claire Shulman Spirit of Community Award in honor of the former borough president who frequented Evening of Fine Food.
This year’s recipient is Tanya Duhaney, Community Affairs Bureau for NYPD South.
“Tanya is selfless every day of the week,” Gennaro said. “I’ve never seen anyone who’s so busy doing things for everyone else, and she’s just a force in the NYPD, so we’re really excited to be honoring her.”
Entertainment at Evening of Fine Food will consist of Frank Sinatra cover singer Jim Altamore, casino tables, a silent auction of items donated by the community and a selfie booth.
Most of the Queens business community attends the event, as do individuals who want to support the cause and influencers from QCP’s partners, such as Yelp.
“In the past, we’ve had upwards of 700 people attending the event,” Gennaro said. “Over the years, we’ve added entertainment, we’ve added more restaurants, we’ve added more companies with different offerings and expanded our reach by getting more attention on the event so we can get more people to experience it. It’s just grown so much from a small, intimate thing to this exciting, full of energy, networking, food extravaganza.”
Tickets are available for $135 at https://queenscp.givecloud.co/qcpfinefood.
QCP also offers several sponsorship packages ranging from $1,500-$7,500 that include tickets.
Packages over $3,000 include VIP seating and early entry.
“[Evening of Fine Food] affords companies the opportunity to get their name in front of a lot of people,” Gennaro said. “We also have a lot of signage at the event…we really try to give everyone great value for their money between tickets and ads and attention and letting everyone know what an amazing thing they’re doing by sponsoring the event.”
Vendors interested in donating their food and time to the event can call the QCP office at (718) 380-3000, ext. 324 or visit https://queenscp.givecloud.co/qcpfinefood for more information.
