It was a beautifully warm, breezy evening at the Four Seasons Hotel as the city's foodie elite came to eat, drink and celebrate Houston's burgeoning culinary scene at StarChefs.com's Rising Stars Revue Gala.

"This is the best night of my life," said David Grossman (chef/owner of Branch Water Tavern) as he plated bites of roasted cervena venison with sweet potato and brussels sprout hash, bacon confit and pomegranate jus.

Grossman and the other 13 Rising Stars award winners pulled double duty at the event, manning stations to serve the dish that "clinched" their award-winning status while also making time to mix, mingle and enjoy the night before officially accepting their awards.

A mixed crowd of 300 industry folk and passionate foodies made their way to each station, sampling dishes like braised Australian short ribs by Cinq's Jeramie Robison, a salad of shaved winter vegetables by Randy Rucker of Bootsie's and Jamie Zelko's shrimp and grits, as well as wine pairings by Sean Beck (of Backstreet Café and Hugo's) and cocktails, like Bobby Heugel's Anvil Paloma.

And more than pride was on the line for the busy chefs: Guests were given a scorecard to vote for a fan favorite dish, with eventual winner Chris Shepherd of Catalan favored for his empanada-like Jamaican curried goat pies. (I wonder if he'll take the Jade with him to Underbelly later this year...)

With the crowd encouraged to move around the pool area, where the outdoor gala was held, the vibe of the evening was casual and celebratory, even before StarChefs.com editor-in-chief Antoinette Bruno and managing editor Will Blunt took to the stage to say a few words about their experience in Houston and the chefs that they honored.

"This has been one of the best StarChefs events," Bruno said, mentioning the successful online campaign engineered by Houston Chowhounds founder Jenny Wang to get Houston on the website's radar.

Talking to CultureMap, Blunt echoed her sentiments. "The weather, the venue, the food, the chefs... the energy of the Houston culinary community is intoxicating," he said.

After honoring each of the announced Rising Star chefs with thoughtful introductions about their contributions to the Houston food scene, it was time to announce the Rising Star Mentor Award. Voted on by the other award winners, Brennan's of Houston general manager Carl Walker was credited with fostering and supporting talented chefs in Houston, to raucous applause.

Sadly it will be at least three years before Houston gets another visit from the StarChefs.com crew. But when they come back to crown another crop of talented chefs, we'll be ready.