The Fine Art of Butchering a Pig

I was invited to an interesting event this week, hosted by Great Taste Magazine and Chef James Chavez at the Doubletree in Anaheim.  They were calling it a "Pig Potluck" and the local chefs who are a part of the magazine's networking group were asked to bring a pork dish to share. The highlight for me was a demonstration of breaking down a whole pig by Chef Amar Santana of Charlie Palmer's at South Coast Plaza.

The Organic Cellar was there, and as we all stood, genteelly sipping our wine, Chef Amar took knife to pig.

Pig has really taken a front seat on many restaurant menus in the last couple years and just about every interview you read with a chef under the age of forty will include an testimony as to how much he (yes, usually it's a "he") loves pork.  I see new barbeque restaurants opening monthly here in Orange County, and even attended an event at BlogHerFood 2010 which featured bacon as appetizer, main course, pasta and dessert. 

What do you think about this trend of people going pork crazy?