Burke, who has published two cook books and operates restaurants throughout the country, appeared on the second season of the American-television cooking show, Iron Chef America. He will compete later this year against 14 other world-renowned chefs on Top Chef Masters, a reality show on Bravo.

This is the fourth consecutive year that a celebrity chef will attend An Evening of Wine & Roses, which features the region’s finest foods and the world’s most savory wines. This year, the event will be held March 25 at Morris County Crossroads Corporate Center in Mt. Olive, Morris County.

"We’ve been so fortunate to welcome so many high-caliber celebrity chefs to this important event," said Megan Sandow, Newton Memorial Hospital Vice President of Development."This year is no different. David’s accomplishments and business sense are impressive and he will be a perfect complement to the Wine and Roses’ theme, which is to sample great, innovative food creations while also donating to an important cause, Newton Memorial Hospital. And few chefs are more creative than David Burke."

Burke received his education at the Culinary Institute of America and perfected his skills with French chefs Pierre Troisgros, Georges Blanc and Gaston Lenôtre. At 26 years old, he won France’s coveted Meilleurs Ouvriers de France Diplome d’Honneur for unparalleled skill and creativity with his native cuisine.

Burke has also received Japan’s Nippon Award of Excellence, the Robert Mondavi Award of excellence and the CIA’s August Escoffier Award. National Restaurant News named Burke one of the 50 Top R&D Culinarians and Time Out New York honored him as the "Best Culinary Prankster" in 2003.

In May 2009, Burke was inducted into the"Who’s Who of Food & Beverage in America" by the James Beard Foundation. Later that month, he also won the distinctive, Menu Masters award from nation’s Restaurant News as one of the nation’s most celebrated innovators. Star Chefs, the magazine for culinary insiders, awarded Chef Burke with the"Contribution to American Cuisine Award" at the 2009 Star Chefs Congress.

In 2003, Burke opened a business now known as David Burke Townhouse. He later developed David Burke at Bloomingdale’s, a dual concept restaurant offering both a full service "Burke Bar Café" on one side and a"Burke in a Box" take-out and eat-in concept on the other side. He also opened David Burke’s Primehouse in The James Chicago Hotel and a Burke in a Box at Foxwoods Resort & Casino.

His collection continued to grow with the purchase of Fromagerie in Rumson and David Burke Las Vegas, which he opened in 2007 at Venetian Resort, Hotel Casino. In New York City, he owns Fishtail by David Burke and David Burke Prime at Foxwoods Casino & Resort.

Among his creations are Pastrami Salmon (now available at Perona Farms) and flavored oils. He also developed GourmetPops ™, ready-to-serve cocktail lollipops and Flavor-Transfer Spice Sheets and Flavorsprays, both designed to eliminate fat while keeping the flavor.

His cookbooks include Cooking with David Burke, which was published in 1995, and David Burke’s New American Classics, by Alfred A. Knopf, which launched in April 2006.

Burke will be the featured guest at Wine & Roses exclusive VIP room. An unnamed celebrity guest will also attend this year’s event in the equally exclusive Wine & Roses after party.

The event includes opportunities to win a variety of prizes, including a trip for two to San Francisco and a $1,000-per-ticket contest to win a Mercedes E350C, one of the event’s most entertaining aspects.

All proceeds raised from the event will benefit the 2010 Annual Giving Program which supports capital equipment, technology, programs and services at Newton Memorial Hospital. Other major sponsors include, Champagne Grand Event Sponsor, The Selective Group Foundation as well as Bordeaux Sponsors, Cohn Benefit Consultants and T.A. Mountford, Co.

Call the Newton Memorial Hospital Foundation office at 973.579.8309 for more information, including sponsor and restaurant-vendor opportunities. Tickets cost $125 per person; VIP-room tickets are $200 per person or $350 per couple.