One of the largest foodie events is the Triangle is coming up in Chapel Hill in a month, TerraVITA! It takes place over three days, November 1-3, 2012.
TerraVITA features "some of the finest biodynamic and organically grown wines and microbrews in the world with some of the very best North Carolina chefs, known and celebrated for their outstanding reputations and chosen for their devotion and allegiance to locally grown ingredients!" The main event, called the Grand Tasting on the Green, takes place on 11/3 from 1-4:30 pm and is full of samples and tastes from dozens of brewers, winemakers, chocolatiers, cheesemakers, and a range of the best chefs in the state.
A couple of years ago, I attended the first Grand Tasting on the Green, and here are some highlight pictures from that experience.
You can read my full post on that year's Grand Tasting here. Advance tickets are $65 or $55 without alcohol. Tickets can be purchased here. The full list of participating restaurants/beverage vendors can be seen here, and it includes local favorites like Herons, Acme, Crumb, Market, and Escazu.
But if you're a regular reader, you may have learned that I'm less interested in big tent events than other foodies because I have a compulsion to TRY EVERYTHING and that never ends well. So where you are likely to find me is at the side programming at TerraVITA this year.
The first event takes place on 11/1, 7-9 pm, and it's called the Chefs' Harvest Potluck. It takes place at the Town Commons in Carrboro, is $55, and 100% of the proceeds go to benefit the Carrboro's Farmers' Market. It will feature dishes "from 20 top chefs in the Triangle, including Andrea Reusing from Lantern, Sara Foster from Foster’s Market, Bill Smith from Crooks Corner, Sean Fowler from Mandolin, Adam Rose from Il Palio, Kevin Callaghan from Acme Food & Beverage Company, Bret Jennings from Elaine's On Franklin, Seth Kingsbury from Pazzo, Vimala Rajendran from Vimala’s Curryblossom Café, Jim Nixon from Panzanella, Marshall Smith at Glasshalfull, Aaron Vandemark from Pancuito, Sam Suchoff from The Pig and more." Tickets can be purchased here.
The next event, taking place throughout the day on 11/2, 9:30 am-4:15 pm, is TerraVITA's wonderful Sustainable Classroom, described as "a combination of culinary workshops, tastings, and beverage and food demonstrations featuring food and beverage experts and aficionados." You can choose between attending two sessions for $35 or four sessions for $50 throughout the day, and each lasts about 1.25 hours. You may very well find me at the Coffee & Chocolate session in the morning or perhaps Constructing a Cookbook with local food celebrities Sheri Castle and Bill Smith. The description for that one is
Thousands of cookbooks flood the bookshelves of every avid cook, but which stand the test of time and are referenced time and again? Classic cookbooks, such as the Joy of Cooking, Mastering the Art of French Cooking and Larousse Gastronomique are passed down from generation to generation; from grandmother to mother and from mother to child, each with their own notes in the margins. Cookbook writing may seem simple but creating recipes and writing a cookbook extends far beyond the kitchen and into the heart and soul of the author. Sheri Castle and Bill Smith have both successfully woven their food passion and recipes into their award-winning cookbooks. Join Bill and Sheri as they take you through the whims and (sometimes funny) woes of the process while sharing a couple of favorite recipes of their own.
The Sustainable Classroom program is here, and tickets can be purchased here.
That evening, 11/2, 7-10 pm, will be the premiere of the Carolina Table: East Meets West Dinner at Chatham Mills in Pittsboro, which I plan to attend. It "showcases three chefs--one from eastern NC, one from western NC, and one from the Triangle. The chefs work together to prepare a six-course meal centered on local ingredients. This year, the chefs include James Beard nominee Vivian Howard from Chef and The Farmer (Kinston), Cassie Parsons from Harvest Moon Grille (Charlotte), and Adam Rose from Il Palio (Chapel Hill). Dessert will be prepared by Jael and Dan Rattigan from French Broad Chocolate Lounge (Asheville, NC)." It's a six-course dinner, $65 without wine and $78 with. Tickets can be purchased here.
If you're so inclined to try it all, you can purchase a 3-day pass for all the events for $220. If your stomach is as large as your eyes, that may just be worth it. Come early November, you can also expect me to post on the events I'll be attending, and I hope to see you there! Make sure you let me know to look out for you.
