Pop-up restaurant on ice set for January 2014 run

Hitzeralso said he will be sleeping out on the river to raise funds for the homeless.

Co-creator Joe Kalturnyk of RAW Gallery once again designed and will build the tent which resembles a piece of ice thrusting up from the surfacewith aluminum scaffolding and steel connectors.

Last year, an estimated 1,300 dinner guests fought freezing temperatures to experience the meal on ice. Chefs, too, battled the elements of making five-courses inside a makeshift kitchen. At times drinking water froze, the heating failed and electricity blacked out.

Well be a little better prepared . . . I know a little more what to expect, Hitzer said.

As for diners, the 31-year-old chef tells them, to expect to leave your expectations at home.

Chefs are given carte blanche on their menus.

Twelve chefs will each get a two-night run at the restaurant, serving five courses with alcohol pairings during three nightly seatings of 30 guests each. A chef-run tasting bar seating 10 will also serve three bites with an alcoholic drink. A first-come-first-served weekend brunch for $20 will be served by Talia Syrie, chef at Come N Eat Caf inside Neechi Commons.

Newcomer chef, Jesse Friesen from Lobby on York is thrilled with the opportunity to cook at the outdoor restaurant.

This is not only a one-of-a-kind crazy prairie event, this gives all of us involved in RAW: almond a chance to showcase not only what we do in our businesses but to express ourselves as individuals through food, said Friesen. There is no holding back.

Guest chef Jason Barton-Browne, who works at Teatro restaurant in downtown Calgary, will take the kitchen reins on the last two nights.

This is a pretty neat little thing Winnipeg has, said the 32-year-old sous chef.

He hasnt come up with his menu yet but said, my intention is to bridge the gap between Calgary and Winnipeg food and bring proper prairie traditions to the table.

Last year the restaurant, believed to be the first of its kind in North America, sold out of tickets in a week.

Tickets this year go on sale at Deer + Almond onTuesday Dec. 10, cost $100 each or $45 for the tasting bar and are available exclusively to RAW Gallery members for the first 10 days. (Memberships cost $25 at Deer + Almond.)

Hitzer said the move to initially limit sales to RAW members is meant to draw more attention to Kalturnyks work and expose more people to the gallery.

General public tickets go on saleFriday Dec. 20at Deer + Almond.

Besides Hitzer, this years return chefs include: Scott Bagshaw (Deseo Bistro), Adam Donnelly (Segovia), Aron Epp and Ben Kramer (Elements), Tristan Foucault (Peasant Cookery), Eric Lee (Pizzeria Gusto) and Alex Svenne (Bistro 7 ). Chefs Friesen (Lobby on York), Luc Jean (Janes at Red River Community College) and Edward Lam (Yujiro), all newcomers to the ice eatery, will also cook as will Barton-Browne from Calgary.