MenuMasters Event Raises Nearly $45,000

(Le Mars) — The Le Mars Educational Enhancement Project, or LEEP hosted the seventh annual MenuMasters event Saturday evening at the Plymouth County Fairgrounds.  More than 500 people attended the food festival, which provided an evening of entertainment and fun.  24 teams of chefs from various businesses and organizations, competed for the title of “Best Food” and “Best Theme.”  Many of the teams decorated their booth space to better illustrate their food item.  A check amounting to $44,740 was presented to Le Mars Community School District Superintendent Dr. Steve Webner from the LEEP organization.  To date, LEEP has disbursed $208,774.77 for textbooks, equipment, technology, and teacher requests to enhance the education of students educated at Le Mars Community Schools.

LEEP gave the Legacy Award to both Primebank and American Bank for their consistent sponsorship and participation of MenuMasters.

Best Theme was presented to the Le Mars Ambulance Services with chefs Darrell Kleihauer and John MacGregor – Team Trauma, Blood and Guts.

Judges Choice Award was given to Team: “Building For the Future” with chefs Mike Murphy, Joe Sitzmann, and Nick Jalas.

Best Food was a tie between Team “Joe’s Crab Shack” and Team Backyard Boys.  The chefs included: Joe Galles, Jeff Mackey, and Steve Van Otterloo.

Beat Appetizer was presented to Kevin Eekhoff and Jason Vande Brake from Team Northwest Bank with Cheeseburger in Paradise Soup.

Best entree’ or main dish was prepared by chefs Michael Hargens, Kevin Bolton, and Charlie Mohning, members of the Le Mars Fire and Rescue Department with Backdraft BBQ Firehouse Brisket.

Best Dessert Award was presented to chefs representing Primebank.  Jordan Sitzmann, Mark Schmidt, and Tommy Conger.  The Primebank chefs prepared “The Primebank Dynasty Dish.”