This month, I had the pleasure to be an Audi US partner. They came to Nashville with their PROOF series. PROOF is a world-class culinary experience by chef, restaurateur, author, and culinary celebrity Ashley Christensen. Audi and a culinary series? I asked this too. but quickly learned it was the perfecting pairing.
According to “Taking the Heat: Women Chefs and Gender Equality in the Professional Kitchen” less than 20% of all chefs and head cooks in the United States are women. And only 6% of the head chef positions at the top 15 restaurant groups in the US are held by women. Audi, along with culinary icons around the globe, believe those statistics are simply unacceptable. I do too. Any brand that wants to help women rise to the top has my full support. We need seats at the table and head of the table.
Audi partnered with the James Beard Foundation to launch PROOF. PROOF is – a female-led pop-up restaurant experience that’s bringing accessible luxury to four cities across the country – including Nashville. Ashley was the lead chef and 2 other amazing female chefs customized the drinks and dessert. Keep scrolling to see the pairings. The series aligned with the relaunch of the Audi Q3. I had the pleasure during the visit to test drive it around Nashville. We started in the The Gulch and ended downtown at a custom mural. They had a VIP experience set up in the Gulch for anyone to test drive and the mural was open to the public for a week.
My favorite feature was the navigation on the dashboard. It makes GPS so much safer and easier to use when driving. The panoramic sunroof pictured above was my second favorite. The car is sleek and beautiful. After driving such a lovely car, I knew the meal would be just as amazing. For the PROOF series, we went to a beautiful pop-up restaurant in East Nashville. We enjoyed three courses of uniquely crafted food and drinks. Honestly, it was amazing from beginning to end. See the pics below which don’t do the flavors and smells justice. I wanted a to-go box.
Be sure to check out the new Audi Q3. It’s a great price for a luxury midsize vehicle. It starts at $34,700! Yes, all those features and that swag for a great price. Thanks Audi for letting me in on the awesome dining and driving experience.
