Tarbell will be featured in Bell Bank’s advertising and social media and will support Bell Bank’s mission of paying it forward through charitable work in the community.

“We’re very proud that Mark has joined our team of Champions,” said Michael Solberg, Bell Bank president and CEO. “He’s someone who has become so respected in his field over the years and can now use his talent and renown to help others. He is exactly the kind of person we want to partner with –someone who tries to make the community an even better place.”

Tarbell studied in Paris at L’École de Cuisine La Varenne and at age 23, moved to Arizona to join the Boulders Resort in Carefree. In 1994 when he opened Tarbell’s, an iconic central Phoenix establishment. He then opened Barmouche in 1999, The Oven (in Colorado) in 2004, The Wine Store in 2013, and The Tavern in 2014.

Nominated for Best Chef Southwest by the James Beard Foundation, Tarbell is a two-time inductee into the Arizona Hall of Culinary Fame. He has been the weekly wine columnist for the Arizona Republic since 1994 and has made frequent TV and radio appearances, including as the winner of Iron Chef America.

Tarbell serves on many advisory councils and boards and frequently lends his services at events as a chef and wine connoisseur, helping raise millions of dollars in support of causes including the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, CASA, Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Hospice of the Valley, and C-CAP.

“I am so honored and extremely humbled to be named a Bell Bank Champion,” said Tarbell. “Philanthropy is always at the center of everything we do and I feel extremely privileged to work alongside Bell Bank raising valuable funds for charity and serving our community.”

Tarbell joins a strong roster of Bell Bank Champions including chef Gavin Kaysen, actor Josh Duhamel, philanthropist and Arizona pro football player Larry Fitzgerald Jr., retired NFL player and commentator Ben Leber, retired NHL player and Stanley Cup winner Matt Cullen, NBA player Tyus Jones, pro sports broadcaster Marney Gellner, college basketball coaches Lindsay Whalen and Ben Johnson, professional golfers Tom Hoge and Amy Olson, and sports radio personality and country singer Chris Hawkey.