Austin Foodie Bits: Week of October 19

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October is crazy time for food and wine events in Austin. This week alone there are 13 events in my post and that’s not including the full complement of cooking classes at Central Market and Whole Foods, wine tastings at stores around town, and events that I didn’t come across. Needless to say, there’s much to keep your palette happy in the coming few days. If you don’t have a good food experience this week, don’t blame me.

While every event I list as a “Do Good” opportunity is just that,  a chance to support important local causes while enjoying a fun event, in the coming couple of weeks, a particularly critical cause will be in the spotlight in Austin: the Komen Foundation. The annual Komen run is just a couple of weeks away on November 1, and between now an then, you can enjoy cupcakes and wine or a girls night out in support of the Komen foundation. Both events are at great price points, $13 and $20 respectively, so I hope that as many of you as possible will take the opportunity to get out and enjoy some local foodie fun while supporting breast cancer research.

This week brings two new changes to the ever-evolving Foodie Bits format:

• I’ve added [VALUE] and [GREAT VALUE] tags to indicate events that are priced at less than $40 and $20 respectively. A fellow food blogger reminded me last week that I’ve been featuring a lot of $100+ events, particularly in the “Eat Well, Do Good” section, and that’s not a practical price point for many food and wine lovers. While I don’t control the price points of the events, I can make a point of searching out a wider variety of events at different prices points (which I will). I’m also going to make a point of calling cost-effective events out so they are easy to find.
• I’ve rearranged the order a bit. As always, the post will focus first on this week’s events with charting activities but is now followed by the “Eat well, Do Good” section to call better attention to future events that give us an attempt to feed our stomachs and our souls at once. I’ve moved the future-looking “Plan Ahead” section to the end of the blog and am only including links to those activities, not a full write-up. As each of these events moves in the current week’s schedule, I’ll dig a little deeper and provide commentary. My goal is to keep providing as many events as possible in this post while being realistic about how much time I have to spend on it each week.

As always, please let me know what you think about the format changes and what I can do to better make this post useful to you. And, without further adieu, let’s get started.

Be Spontaneous: This Week’s Events

• [NEW] [VALUE] October 19-21: FLAVORS of Austin @ Primizie – Continuing with the new series featuring restaurant week-style menus year-round, FLAVORS of Austin’s focus this week is on Primizie, an Italian Osteria in East Austin. Primizie’s special tasting menu features a Sicilian pastry filled with caciocavallo cheese, and house made Italian sausage, a spaghetti tossed with caramelized garlic, fried caper berries and salt cured tuna row, and a semolina cake with toasted almond gelato (just to name a few things). For only $40 ($60 with wine pairings), you’ll be treated to a full survey of Primizi’s style and culinary point of view. I’ve tasted food from Primizie at recent events and was duly impressed. Make reservations online or call 236.0088.
• [UPDATED] [DO GOOD] [GREAT VALUE]: Cupcake and Wine Paring to Benefit Komen Austin – The folks from House Wine and The Cupcake Bar are at it again. They are pairing cupcakes and wine (you read that right) and this time proceeds from the event will benefit Komen Austin. Sample three cupcakes, including Berry Pink Strawberry Cupcake, Halloween Caramel Apple Cupcake, and a Dark Chocolate Cupcake. Then pair them with one of three especially selected wines. At just $13, this is no-brainer event. Stop by on your way to the Slow Food Austin fundraiser or the Film & Food event. 6 pm – 8 pm. RSVP to info@thecupcakebaraustin.com to let them know you are coming so they can have enough wine and cupcakes on hand.
• [DO GOOD]October 21: Slow Food Austin Fund Raiser – Slow Food Austin is hosting their first fund raiser and it promises to be a fun and tasty event. Learn all about raw milk cheeses from Whole Foods’ Global Cheese Buyer Cathy Strange. You’ll get to taste complimentary beers from Austin’s (512) Brewery and honey from Round Rock Honey. The lovely Barr Mansion is hosting the event, so it will be a feast for the eyes as well as the taste buds. For only $50 ($40 for members) you’ll learn a lot, taste some great food, and support an important cause. 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm.
• [DO GOOD]October 21: 7^th Annual Film & Food – The Austin Film Festival is hosting its yearly fundraiser in support of the Young Filmmakers Program designed to help kids ages 9-18 explore creativity and build literacy skills via filmmaking and screenwriting. A host of local restaurants including the Blemont, Eddie V’s, Jezebel, Roaring Fork, and Ranch 616 will provide great food while attendees enjoy music and bid on items in a silent auction. The Driskill is a beautiful venue and the cause is a great one, so get out your fancy clothes and come out for a fun and tasty evening. $85. 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm.
• [NEW] October 21: Central Market Fall Creek Vineyards Winemaker’s Dinner – Join Ed and Susan Auler, the owners and winemakers at Texas’ own Fall Creek Vineyards along with Central Market Westgate Executive Chef John Maxwell for an evening of food, wine, learning, and fun. The Aulers will present five of their wines paired with five courses created to compliment them. I’ve taken several classes with Susan and she is truly a delight. I’m sure this event will make for a memorable evening. The dinner will be served in the café and reservations are required. Seating is limited. 7 pm – 9 pm. $75. Reserve online.
• [NEW] October 21: FINO Chef’s Table Fresh from Italy – Emmett and Lisa Fox, the owners of local favorites FINO and Asti are just back from a whirlwind trip of Italy and they are ready to share all that they experienced and tasted along the way. The dinner will feature dishes and wine pairings inspired by their visit, and Lisa and Emmett will show photos and tell stories. $65 ($100 with wine pairings). 6:30 pm. Call 474.2905 to make reservations.
• [NEW] [VALUE] October 21: GO TEXAN Two-Sip Tasting – Join Devon Broglie, Whole Foods Market Regional Wine Expert, and celebrate Texas Wine Month with this special GO TEXAN class. Learn about varietals that are emerging as Texas’ signature grapes, including Tempranillo, Sangiovese, and Viognier. You’ll also experience a blind tasting of wines from Texas and around the world so you can truly put Texas wines in context. 6:30 – 8:30 pm. $35. Register online.
• [NEW] [VALUE] October 22: Traveling Bistro Bistro Set October Dinner – Local caterer Traveling Bistro is creating The Bistro Set, a private dinner club. The club’s October Dinner will be held at the historic Charles Johnson mansion, home of the American Legion, Travis Post 76. Members will enjoy wonderful meals, fine crafted beverages, a bit of food education and great company in this cozy historic setting right on Lady Bird Lake. The four course menu will be paired with wine from Grape Creek. The dinner’s cost is $50 per person, but @TravelingBistro Twitter followers will receive a $12 discount, making this event a $38 value. 7:30 pm. Purchase tickets online. Call 587-5097, or email travelingbistro@gmail.com for more information.
• [NEW] [GREAT VALUE] October 23: Whole Foods Sunset Supper & Cinema Featuring Psycho – Whole Foods and Alamo Draft House bring you dinner and a movie on the roof of the Lamar mothership store. The movie is free and you can purchase wonderful food and drink from the store. A special $15 three course menu is available to go with the theme of the movie. This is a great event for friends or even an innovative date night.
• [DO GOOD] October 24: Slow Feast in the Field – Green Gate Farms will host its third annual Slow Feast in the Field celebrating local, naturally grown, freshly harvested food to benefit the Austin Discovery School (ADS). This magical evening will feature a progressive five-course gourmet meal served outdoors at the historic Bergstrom homestead. You’ll dine on seasonal fare surrounded by fields of produce. The menu will feature heirloom vegetables and Duroc/Berkshire pork raised at the farm and prepared by Chef Jesse Bloom of Ecstatic Cuisine. This is yet another opportunity to sample the best that Austin has to offer while supporting a really great local group. 7 pm – 10 pm. $100 per person. Purchase tickets online.
• October 24: Dai Due Seafood Supper Club at Rain Lilly Farm – A quick trip to the markets and shrimp boats in Aransas Pass can yield anything this time of year, from fresh flounder on their annual migration to giant yellowfin tuna and huge, fresh shrimp. Paired with Rain Lily’s amazing produce – grown within oyster-shell-throwing distance of the table – this simple, fresh resource can really shine. Join the amazing Dai Due team for a multi-course bacchanalia of seafood, served raw, stewed and grilled over pecan under the pecan trees on a beautiful fall evening. $75. BYOB. To reserve, e-mail info@daidue.com with the number in your party. Payment required in advance.
• [NEW] October 24: Fredericksburg Food & Wine Festival – The weather is beautiful so why not take a drive out into the Texas hill country to visit lovely Fredericksburg? The $20 cost of admission includes three wine samples, sessions of the Grape Expectations cooking school, music, games, an auction, and food samples. What a lovely way to spend a fall weekend in Texas. 12 pm – 7 pm. Fredericksburg Marktplatz.
• [NEW] [DO GOOD] [VALUE] October 25: Grow Local, Eat Global 11^th Annual Fundraiser – The Green Corn Project helps Central Texans grown their own organic gardens. As you might imagine, they need all of the support they can get to help change the way we eat one household at a time. Join them for their annual fundraiser at Boggy Creek Farms and enjoy food tastings from local restaurants like Café Josie, Fete Accompli, Lake Austin Spa Resort, Mulberry, Olivia, and more. Many of these restaurants haven’t been at recent tasting events, so it will be a real treat to sample their food at this event. You’ll also be able to watch chef demonstrations complete with tastes and recipes, and enjoy music from local artists. At $40 per person, $35 if you pre-order your tickets, this is one of the most affordable fundraisers of the season

Eat Well, Do Good

• [NEW] [VALUE] October 28: Paint the Town Pink Ladies Happy Hour – Ladies, grab your girlfriends and get ready to get into a bit of trouble. Local favorites Sugar Mama’s, Cornucopia Popcorn, Tito’s, and Milk and Honey Spa are putting on a great event at the Belmon to benefit the Komen foundation. With the Austin Race for the Cure just around the corner on November 1, this is a great way to celebrate one another while helping support research into this disease that can so quickly impact any one of us. The donation for the event is (at least) $20, which is a steal considering the fun you’ll have. 6 pm – 8 pm. Donate online or at the door.
• [NEW] November 8: Sustainable Food Center Inaugural Chef Series Benefit Hosted by La Condesa – To celebrate the importance of locally grown and harvested food, La Condesa will host the inaugural Sustainable Food Center Chef Series on Sunday, November 8 at 6:00 p.m. Austin’s most exciting and innovative chefs will be on hand to prepare an exquisite multi-course tasting menu featuring fresh meats and produce from the Austin Farmers’ Market. Experience amazing food from local chefs including Rene Ortiz, executive chef at La Condesa, Tyson Cole, executive chef at Uchi, Shawn Cirkiel, executive chef at Parkside, Todd Duplechan, executive chef at Trio, Jesse Griffiths of Dai Due Supper Club, and Laura Sawicki, pastry chef at La Condesa. This will indeed be a night to remember. $150 with all proceeds benefiting the Sustainable Food Center. 6:00 pm. Purchase tickets online.
• [NEW] November 4- 20: Les Dames d’Escoffier Food Fight Online Charity Auction – I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised to learn that professional women leaders in food, fine beverage, and hospitality have a world-wide philanthropic organization. Eating well and doing good just go so naturally together. The local Austin chapter of this organization will be hosting their first online event –a Food Fight — that will feature auctions of all sorts of interesting food experiences, including a VIP evening at Stubbs, a customized Oscar Party, an artisan cheese getaway for two in Oregon, and a holiday cookie party. The event promises to be a fun way to support this organization while bidding on unique experiences you can’t otherwise purchase. Watch their site (and this one) for more details as November 4 approaches.

Plan Ahead: Events in the Next 3 Weeks

• [NEW] October 29: Ciolas Foods of Tuscany and Wines of Antinori Dinner
• [NEW] October 30: Cooking Class International Food & Wine: France
• [NEW] [GREAT VALUE] October 30: Whole Foods Sunset Supper & Cinema Featuring Ghost Busters
• [NEW] [VALUE] October 30: Tea Embassy Halloween Afternoon Tea
• [NEW] October 31: Dai Due Halloween Feast of Junk at the Cathedral of Junk
• [NEW] October 31: MAX’s Underground Halloween Party
• [NEW] November 2: Cooking Class Celebrate the Season, Texas-Style
• [NEW] November 5: Texas Wine and Food Festival November Night to Remember
• [NEW] November 6-7: MAX’s Wine Dive Austin Cellar Classic
• [NEW] November 14: Dai Due Whole Hog Class
• [NEW] November 15: Dai Due Whole Hog Boucherie Dinner