By Dathan Kazsuk
When chef Blake Gotliffe and his family opened Landon Estate in Clayton a little more than a year ago, weddings and private events were only part of what they envisioned for the property.
There was also the outdoor kitchen.
Built around a six-foot Argentine-style grill, wood-fired oven and other equipment designed for cooking with flame, smoke and coals, the kitchen was always meant to become a playground of sorts for Gotliffe and other chefs.
This fall, that vision becomes Kindled for Good, a five-event guest-chef series running from Aug. 30 through Dec. 13 at Landon Estate. Eleven chefs will participate throughout the inaugural season, with a portion of proceeds from every event benefiting the Autism Society of North Carolina.
“Landon Estate had been open for a little over a year now, and we finally have the opportunity to start using the property for some of the things we envisioned beyond weddings and private events,” Gotliffe says. “The outdoor kitchen has always been a big part of that vision.”
For Gotliffe, who also owns Under the Oak Catering, Kindled for Good isn’t simply about moving a restaurant dinner outdoors. He wants visiting chefs to use the space as an opportunity to try something different.
“We built this incredible space around live-fire cooking, and I wanted to give really talented chefs, and myself, the opportunity to come out here and just have fun with it,” he says.
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More Than a Fundraiser
While food may be what initially brings guests to Landon Estate, Kindled for Good has a deeper purpose.
“What I hope separates Kindled for Good is that it doesn’t feel like a traditional fundraising dinner,” Gotliffe says. “The cause is incredibly important to us, but we want to create an experience people would be excited to attend regardless—great chefs cooking together, outside, over fire, doing food that may be completely different from what you’d experience in their restaurants.”
The connection to the Autism Society of North Carolina is deeply personal.
Landon Estate is named for Gotliffe’s son, Landon, who is on the autism spectrum, non-verbal and hearing impaired. Gotliffe says his family’s experience has also made him increasingly aware of the financial struggles many families face while trying to access services for children on the spectrum.
“My family has been fortunate to not have to endure some of the financial hardships that come with autism,” he says. “So after learning how so many NC families with children on the spectrum are struggling for even the routine services and with very little, if any, government assistance, things like respite care and summer camps are never even a thought in these families’ minds.”
The Autism Society of North Carolina provides education, advocacy and direct services throughout the state. Landon Estate already contributes a share of its yearly profits to the organization, while at least 10% of proceeds from Kindled for Good will support its programs.
“Philanthropy and hospitality have always been my passion,” Gotliffe says. “Kindled for Good became a way to bring all of those things together and hopefully give something back to an organization that means a great deal to our family.”
Giving Chefs the Keys to the Kitchen
The chefs participating in the first season were chosen not only for their cooking, but also because of Gotliffe’s relationships with them and their approaches to hospitality.
“We weren’t looking for five versions of the same dinner,” he says. “We wanted chefs with distinct personalities, backgrounds and styles who would look at the Landon Estate kitchen and each do something completely different with it.”
His approach is simple: Show the chefs the grill, wood-fired oven, plancha and other equipment and ask, “What would you want to cook here?”
That freedom is part of what Gotliffe believes makes live-fire cooking so interesting.
“Fire changes both the food and the experience around it,” he says. “There’s obviously the flavor you get from wood, smoke and coals, but there’s also an unpredictability and simplicity to it that I think brings out a different side of a chef. It’s primal, and we love it.”
Guests will also be able to watch that cooking unfold.
“The kitchen is part of the event,” Gotliffe says. “Guests can smell the wood burning, see a whole fish or a large cut of meat cooking over the fire and actually watch the chefs work. There isn’t that wall between the dining room and the kitchen.”
Five Very Different Events
The series opens Aug. 30 with the Summer Harvest Dinner, featuring Gotliffe alongside Crawford Hospitality chefs Aaron Salita, Conor Delaney and Suzanne Downs. The four-course dinner includes passed canapés, a welcome cocktail, wine pairings and live violin music. Tickets are $175.
On Sept. 13, Gotliffe teams with Wye Hill Kitchen & Brewing chef Bobby McFarland for Forth and Fork, an elevated football tailgate featuring heavy appetizer stations, a Carolina Panthers game on the big screen and yard games. Tickets range from $60 to $100.
Lagana Omakase follows Oct. 4 with Gotliffe and Lagana chef Luis Zouain creating a 12-course experience across three stations with sommelier-guided wine pairings. Tickets range from $160 to $200.
On Nov. 8, Pearls, Bubbles and Boards brings an oyster roast to the lawn with raw, grilled and steamed North Carolina oysters, artisan charcuterie and cheese, Champagne, wines, live music and yard games. Tickets range from $60 to $100.
The season concludes Dec. 13 with the Feast of Seven Fishes, a seven-course dinner featuring Gotliffe alongside Eric Montagne, Keith Rhodes, Jamie Davis, Luke Owens, Katrin Sydnor and Serge Falcoz Vigne, with a special starter from Shellum Seafood. Tickets are $250.
Food, Fire and Something Bigger
Located less than 30 minutes from downtown Raleigh, Landon Estate surrounds the original 1828 Sanders-Myatt house and includes a main hall, Bluestone Patio, pecan grove and outdoor kitchen. The property has primarily been known as a wedding and private-event venue, but Kindled for Good marks another step toward making it a destination for chef-driven experiences.
Gotliffe hopes guests leave remembering the food, the fire and the experience of watching chefs they know from some of their favorite restaurants cooking in an entirely different setting.
But he also hopes the dinners accomplish something beyond the plate.
“I hope the experience introduces more people to the work the Autism Society of North Carolina is doing,” Gotliffe says. “If we can create a dinner that people genuinely look forward to every month, and that excitement translates into awareness and meaningful support for an organization and cause that has meant so much to our family, then Kindled for Good is doing exactly what we hoped it would.”
