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CHEF GEOFFREY ZAKARIAN TO BE SPOTLIGHT GUEST AT NEW YORK COMIC CON

Renowned Chef Will Host Exclusive NYCC Dinner at The Lambs Club and Headline Food & Comics Panel!

Norwalk, CT, August 22, 2012: New York Comic Con (NYCC) officials have today announced that Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, the accomplished chef who has presided over some of the country's top kitchens, will be a Spotlight Guest at the annual pop culture convention in October. Chef Zakarian will host an exclusive dinner at The Lambs Club, his popular New York City restaurant on West 44th St., as well as be the main attraction for a Food & Comics panel which will take place along with other NYCC programming at the Javits Center on Friday, October 12, 2012.

The dinner at The Lambs Club, which will also be on Friday, October 12, will be limited to 16 fans and will include the opportunity to meet Chef Zakarian in person. The four course menu with wine pairing will be specially created by Chef Zakarian himself. In addition, C.B. Cebulski, writer and talent scout extraordinaire, Joe Quesada, Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Entertainment and award-winning writer and artist, Jonathan Hickman will all be joining in the dining experience. Tickets for the dinner will go on sale at 12 noon EDT on September 5, 2012. The Food & Comics panel which will be taking place at the Javits Center and featuring Chef Zakarian will be open to all ticketed convention attendees.

New York Comic Con, which attracts over 100,000 fans and is one of New York City's largest annual events, will take place at the Javits Center October 11 - 14, 2012. The pop culture extravaganza features top talent and major artists from all areas of the pop universe including comics, film, television, music, books and gaming. Some of the many guests who have already been announced include Axel Alonso, Sean Astin, Tom Felton, Robert Kirkman, Christopher Lloyd, Anne Rice, Burt Ward and Adam West.

"This is the second year in a row that we have showcased a chef at New York Comic Con, which underscores how proud we are to include artists from all walks of life at NYCC," notes Lance Fensterman, Group Vice President and Show Manager for NYCC. "Chef Zakarian is a superstar and his success in creating fine food dishes and launching successful restaurants make him eminently qualified to appear at New York Comic Con. The pop culture world embraces artists from all areas of discipline and Chef Zakarian is certainly a master artist when it comes to food. I know that he will bring tremendous energy to our show and I'm very thankful to him for participating in NYCC and for sharing his knowledge and expertise with so many of our fans."

Tickets are currently available for purchase at http://NewYorkComicCon.com. Companies interested in exhibiting should contact Larry Settembrini a [email protected]. Other information about NYCC, as well as news about ReedPOP, which organizes a range of pop culture events, is available at http://facebook.com/NewYorkComicCon and http://twitter.com/NY_Comic_Con. Organizers note that many more guests will be revealed over the next few weeks and fans should keep their eyes on NYCC's website for additional announcements.

ABOUT CHEF GEOFFREY ZAKARIAN: Geoffrey Zakarian's taste, style and passion for fine cuisine have defined his career, which has spanned more than 20 years. An accomplished chef who has presided over some of the country's top kitchens, Zakarian travels the world on a never-ending quest for new ingredients, techniques and challenges to enhance the dining and hospitality experiences at his establishments.

Zakarian's rise to culinary prominence began at Le Cirque, where he took his first job in a kitchen. Over a period of 5 years, he worked his way up from Pastry Sous Chef to Chef de Cuisine under Chef Alain Sailhac. During these formative years, Zakarian would travel and stage at places such as Arp(bleep)ge and Au Quai des Ormes in Paris, Auberge de l'Ill in Alsace, The Dorchester in London, Le Chantecler with Jacques Maximin in Nice, and Pierre Orsay in Lyon. In 1987, Zakarian took his first turn as Executive Chef at the legendary 21Club. In 1988, restaurateur Jeffrey Chodorow hired him to be the Executive Chef of 44 at the Royalton Hotel. Zakarian ushered in the era of the sexy hotel restaurant, turning 44 into an emblem of 1980's chic. In 1995, he opened the Blue Door at the Delano Hotel in Miami, helping to again successfully create a dining hot spot in a cultural mecca.

In 1997, Zakarian became Executive Chef of Patroon, re-enchanting its existing regulars as well as drawing a new clientele. In 2001, Zakarian added the title of owner to his résumé with the opening of his first restaurant Town,to which he brought his culinary and decorative vision to life. Both Patroon and Town were awarded Three Stars each from The New York Times . Following in the successful footsteps of Town, Zakarian opened Country, a restaurant that aptly showcased his passion for quality food and wine that was imbued with his innate sense of distinguished hospitality, grace and elegance. Country was awarded a Michelin Star in its first year of operation along with Three Stars from The New York Times. In 2007, Zakarian signed on to conceptualize and oversee the entire food and beverage program at the 700-room hotel The Water Club at Borgata in Atlantic City. He brings is signature sense of hospitality to the room service, lounge, pool, spa and events menus and has earned much praise for his work "raising the bar" in this beach town.

In Fall 2010, Zakarian opened two restaurants in New York City. The Lambs Club, at The Chatwal Hotel, features his signature modern American cuisine in a luxury bar and grill setting, and The National, at The Benjamin Hotel, ishis version of the types of grand cafés that are found across Europe. In May 2013, he will open Ocean Blue on Norwegian Cruise Line's Norwegian Breakaway.

Outside of his work in the kitchen, Zakarian is also an accomplished writer. In 2006 he decided it was time to put his craft and techniques onto paper. His debut book, aptly named, Geoffrey Zakarian's Town / Country, was published by Clarkson Potter. The cookbook has been chosen as an Editor's Choice by The New York Times Book Review and has been lauded as "...one of the best books of 2006," by food critic Amanda Hesser.

Zakarian credits his staying power with a quest for timelessness and an enduring love of restaurants. "I still dream of techniques I can apply to pull intense and interesting flavors out of food," he said. "I dine out all the time, first because I love it, but secondly because, as a chef, you need to see restaurants from the dining room perspective, not just from the kitchen. As a chef, you have to be vigilant about every facet of the meal." Fashion and design provide inspiration as well. He explains, "Food goes through similar style trends and redefinitions as fashion. You need to know that landscape to understand how to achieve something timeless."

Recently, Zakarian emerged victorious in the 4th Season of Food Network's The Next Iron Chef, Super Chefs. He now appears regularly on Iron Chef America, demonstrating a razor-sharp knowledge of culinary techniques in this fast-paced cooking competition. When he's not battling in kitchen stadium, Zakarian stays busy filming CHOPPED, where he is featured as a recurring judge, andhighlights his favorite dishes on The Best Thing I Ever Ate.

For more on Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, his restaurants and television shows, please visit http://www.GeoffreyZakarian.com. Follow Chef Geoffrey Zakarian on Twitter: @GZChef

ABOUT REEDPOP: ReedPOP is a boutique group within Reed Exhibitions which is exclusively devoted to organizing events, launching and acquiring new shows, and partnering with premium brands in the pop culture arena. ReedPOP is dedicated to producing celebrations of popular culture throughout the world that transcend ordinary events by providing unique access and dynamic personal experiences for consumers and fans. The ReedPOP portfolio includes: New York Comic Con (NYCC), Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (C2E2), Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) Prime & East, Star Wars Celebration, Fantasy Football Fest and the UFC Fan Expo. The staff at ReedPOP is a fan-based group of professionals producing shows for other fans, thus making them uniquely qualified to service those with whom they share a common passion. ReedPOP is focused on bringing its expertise and knowledge to world communities in North America, South America, Asia and Europe.