Staff Photo by Tim Barber/Chattanooga Times Free Press
Chef Nick Goeller prepares Chicken Saltimbocca at 212 Market.Want to sample the cuisine of the world, but never leave town? Interested in sitting down with a chef to learn his secrets for authentic food preparation and presentation?
These are two of the reasons why theme dinners are drawing diners into local restaurants.
“They’re a lot of fun,” says Sally Moses, owner of 212 Market. “Everyone wants a chef to come out to their table and talk about the food, describe where it came from, how it was grown, what he did to it.”
The Tennessee Aquarium hosts theme dinners four times a year at 212 Market. The most recent, inspired by the book and movie “Eat, Pray, Love,” offered guests dishes from Italy, India and Indonesia.
“I try to pick a theme that relates to the aquarium galleries in some way or an animal at the aquarium,” said Betty Miles, the Tennessee Aquarium’s special events coordinator.