California winners selected for Restaurant Neighbor Award
The California Restaurant Association would like to congratulate the state winners of the 2009 Restaurant Neighbor Awards. The winners will represent California in the National Restaurant Association competition. National winners will be announced at an awards dinner in Washington D.C. on Sept. 13.
In the large business/national chain category, BJ’s Restaurants Inc. was selected for its nationwide Team Action to Support Communities Force program involving individual team members volunteering for community events. BJ’s TASC Force program started in January 2008 as a way to encourage volunteerism within the company.
The Winery Restaurant and Wine Bar in Tustin won in the mid-size business category. The 2-year-old business is incredibly active in region-wide charitable efforts, including working with the Rooster’s organization on its Culinary Masters event and Share Our Strength’s Taste of the Nation.
Lake Wohlford Café of Escondido won in the small business category for its involvement with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation resulting in raising more than $10,000 for the charity.
Lawrence Chu of Chef Chu’s Chinese in Los Altos Hills was selected as Humanitarian of the Year. As president of the Asian Chef’s Association of San Francisco, Chu worked with a team of chefs and culinary students to prepare and serve 2,000 meals to the needy at Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco over the holiday season. His efforts earned a 2009 Community Award of Excellence from the Chinese Restaurant News, and accolade as small business of the year from California Assemblyman Ira Ruskin.