Details on Ken Oringer's Epic, Chef-Studded Clio Anniversary Blowout

Ken Oringer, proud papa. (Photo via Facebook/kenoringer)

In honor of Clio’s 15th anniversary this year, Ken Oringer invited back 15 alums of his Back Bay fine-dining destination to produce an epic, 15-course extravaganza on June 5. “I wanted to do some kind of blowout event; 15 years is quite a milestone for a restaurant,” Oringer told me yesterday. “I was going to bring maybe Thomas Keller or Daniel Boulud or some of my friends who are big-name chefs, and then I said, you know what would be satisfying, [would be to] bring everybody back for one night and reminisce about stories from the old days.”

While Keller and Boulud won’t be on hand (unless they decide to make a surprise appearance in the dining room, of course), it’s still quite amazing to see on paper (er, online) just how many impressive toques have passed through the Clio kitchen to make waves in both local (Craigie on Main, AKA Bistro) and national (Manresa, Marea) restaurants. “It’s almost like being a proud dad, because for over 15 years we have been fortunate enough to have some amazing, amazing, talented people,” Oringer says.

Check out the full lineup of chefs, plus some of the courses they have planned below. (Not all are finalized, Oringer says, and the below courses are not necessarily in the right order.) It’s $175 for the 15-course feast (excluding wine pairings), which is pretty reasonable when you take into account the amount of talent in the kitchen that evening. Call 617-536-7200 to book a reservation.

Ken Oringer + Douglas Rodrigues, Clio

Tony Maws, Craigie on Main: pasta with sea urchin and cockscombs

Chris Chung, AKA Bistro: abalone

Alex Stupak, Empellon and Empellon Cocina

Alex Talbot and Aki Kamozawa of Ideas in Food: caviar and ice cream

Sam Gelman, Momofuku Ko/Momofuku Toronto: clams, king crab, calamansi, and Thai chili jam

John Paul Carmona, Manresa: vegetable course, with vegetables from Manresa’s Love Apple Farms

Doron Wong, China Grill: potato-crusted shrimp dumpling with bacon-braised daikon and lily puree

Jason Hua, The Dutch: black bass with crispy rice and nameko mushrooms

Todd MacDonald, La Gazzetta at Villa Pacri

Phillip Kirschen Clark, formerly of Vandaag: shima aji

Andres Grundy, formerly of L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon: veal breast with sweetbreads

John Critchley, Urbana

Rick Billings, Jose Andres’ ThinkFoodGroup: Mango sticky rice “2.0”

Rene Herzog, Marea: chocolate malt, buttermilk, and cherries, amaro, and buckwheat

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