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  • Avery Pursell, Marcel Vigneron and Christopher Vetter

    Avery Pursell, Marcel Vigneron and Christopher Vetter

  • Craig Strong and Teresa Siriani

    Craig Strong and Teresa Siriani

  • Kai Kalama, Mark Dacascos and Ryan Kalama

    Kai Kalama, Mark Dacascos and Ryan Kalama

  • Mandy Armstrong, Lissa Strong and Jan Smith

    Mandy Armstrong, Lissa Strong and Jan Smith

  • Michael Dene

    Michael Dene

  • The after party at Montage

    The after party at Montage

  • Alma chef Ari Taymor (with folded hands) and staff

    Alma chef Ari Taymor (with folded hands) and staff

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Kedric Francis

Ah, a sunny day spent at Montage Laguna Beach. Does it get any better than that? Well, yes, when that day includes wine, cocktails, music from the Kalama Brothers and tastes from some of the best chefs in SoCal. Even better, it’s all for the great cause of raising money for hungry kids. One in five children in the U.S. struggles with hunger, including more than 2.4 million kids in California.

Taste of the Nation drew some 500 foodies to the resort to sample the culinary creations of top LA chefs Michael Hung (Faith & Flower), Ben Ford (Fords Filling Station), Ari Taymor (Alma), Marcel Vigneron (Beefsteak) and David Coleman (Chianina Steakhouse). OC was well represented, too, with the always-affable Greg Daniels of Haven Gastropub and chic Shirley Chung of Twenty Eight Restaurant joining Craig Strong, the chef at Studio at Montage, who hosted the event.

Thanks to the chefs, guests and sponsors that included Sysco and Citi, some $200,000 was raised for No Kid Hungry, which will benefit Second Harvest OC Food Bank, Community Action Partnership of OC, and other local groups.