This morning, the four lead chefs of the 2026 Tower Bridge Dinner showcased the dishes they will be serving at the high-profile event.
The chefs were announced on June 3 by Visit Sacramento, the city’s tourism bureau that has hosted the farm-to-fork dinner since 2013. Each year a different slate of local chefs is selected.
Headlining this year are Kate Sutherland of Waterboy, Giancarlo Zapata of Chicha Peruvian Kitchen, Francisco Rivera of Hawks Public House and Joe Pruner of Bocce Ristorante, a new East Sacramento Italian restaurant that has been hosting pop-ups in anticipation of its impending opening.
This year’s menu comprises four dishes, which the team of chefs has been developing for the last six months. Each chef took the lead on one dish, but the team worked collaboratively to refine the final results and served them in unison.
Chefs Kate Sutherland of Waterboy, Joe Pruner of Bocce Ristorante, Francisco Rivera of Hawks Public House and Giancarlo Zapata of Chicha Peruvian Kitchen introduce the dishes they will serve at the upcoming Tower Bridge Dinner during a preview showcase at the Central Kitchen in Sacramento on Monday, Aug. 3, 2026. LIBBY SIMPSON libby.simpson@sacbee.com
“So the menu overall was inspired by two things. One is all the farmer immigrants who came to work the fields and made them what they are today, and the second is the river running through Sacramento … The goal is to create a nice cohesive menu where we’re representing everyone who came before us and worked the fields and gave life to the region,” chef Pruner said.
The first course was spearheaded by chef Zapata, titled “Current of origins: Where Peruvian tradition meets Japanese technique.” Slices of seared sesame-crusted ahi tuna were arrayed on a pool of pureed rocoto and red bell pepper leche de tigre, topped with toasted quinoa and sesame crunch, a relish-like cucumber chalaca and cilantro oil, served with root vegetable chips.
The first course of the upcoming Tower Bridge Dinner was served during a showcase preview at the Central Kitchen in Sacramento on Monday, Aug. 3, 2026. The course will include albacore tuna tataki, toasted quinoa and sesame crust, rocoto and bell pepper leche de tigre, fresh cucumber chalaca, cilantro oil and root vegetable chips. LIBBY SIMPSON libby.simpson@sacbee.com
The second course, titled “Current of heritage: Where Portuguese and Italian traditions shape the valley” and designed by chef Rivera, featured a mushroom and ricotta rotolo, like a rolled lasagna, accompanied by a linguiça ragu.
The second course of the upcoming Tower Bridge Dinner was served during a showcase preview at the Central Kitchen in Sacramento on Monday, Aug. 3, 2026. The course will include mushroom and ricotta rotolo and linguiça ragu. LIBBY SIMPSON libby.simpson@sacbee.com
Next in line, titled “Current of community: Where Filipino, Japanese and Chinese traditions enrich Sacramento,” was chef Pruner’s dish of adobo-roasted quail with crispy garlic rice, marinated tomatoes and cucumbers, served with lettuce and fresh herbs.
The third course of the upcoming Tower Bridge Dinner was served during a showcase preview at the Central Kitchen in Sacramento on Monday, Aug 3, 2026. The course will include Filipino-inspired adobo quail, crispy garlic rice, marinated tomatoes, cucumbers lettuce, and fresh herbs. LIBBY SIMPSON libby.simpson@sacbee.com
Finally, chef Sutherland’s dish, titled “Current of legacy: Where Hispanic and Mexican traditions cultivate the future,” was a riff on chili verde with cross-cut pork roulade seared until brown and crisp, topped with salsa verde, and served with braised heirloom beans.
The fourth course of the upcoming Tower Bridge Dinner was served during a showcase preview at the Central Kitchen in Sacramento on Monday, Aug 3, 2026. The course will include roasted pork belly chile verde and braised heirloom beans. LIBBY SIMPSON libby.simpson@sacbee.com
Visit Sacramento’s Tower Bridge Dinner is arguably the city’s most prestigious event of the year, and gaining access can be difficult. Even though it will feed over 800 diners, most of the seats get preemptively snapped up by corporate sponsors. Visit Sacramento did offer a lottery system wherein a finite number of people could potentially win a spot at the table. That lottery closed on July 27. Lottery winners were charged $350 each for the non-refundable and non-transferable tickets.
The preview was hosted by The Central Kitchen, Sacramento City Unified School District’s kitchen facility. The kitchen provides free meals to 80 schools, amounting to 43,000 meals each school day.
Chefs Francisco Rivera and Kate Sutherland joke with each other while preparing the dishes they will serve at the upcoming Tower Bridge Dinner during a preview showcase at the Central Kitchen in Sacramento on Monday, Aug. 3, 2026. LIBBY SIMPSON libby.simpson@sacbee.com
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Sean Timberlake is the food and dining reporter for The Sacramento Bee. He has been writing professionally about food for over 20 years.