off broad appetit dinner @ pasture

Let me just say that this dinner was worth every penny! Thank you so much to the generous donations from DC, Aunt Julie, Mom and Mom and to my ebay purchasers for buying my cake stands.

The event was set up with Chef manned stations, which was so much better than a formal sit down dinner. You could walk up to each Chef, ask them questions and eat the food all while mingling and imbibing.

To drink, the options were beers of the Taste the Local variety, Barboursville wines and two cocktails made from local spirits. I immediately went for a cocktail.

The food, the food, the food!

When we go to tasting events or small plates dinners, we always try to pick a favorite dish. Neither one of us could make up our minds at this event.

My two favorites were the Border Springs Farm lamb with charred corn from Chef Sean Brock and Autumn Olive Farms pulled pork with pork belly and grits from Chef Walter Bundy from Lemaire.

Evan’s two favorites were the Rappahannock oysters prepared by Chef Edward Lee and the Sam Rust Seafood fried rockfish with slaw from Chef Ashley Christensen.

We had a great time chatting with Levi, brewer from Starr Hill. And we always love running into our favorites from Hardywood Park Brewery. I got to meet some of my favorite Virginia bloggers like Kendra, Fatback and Foie Gras, Tim and Mary, E.A.T. and 17 Apart and (one of my favorites of the evening) Kira, @KSiddall.

Chef Edward Lee told me how he caught a buzz by making edible tobacco at his restaurant in Kentucky, The Marinara repped his new favorite restaurant in D.C. and Chef Jason Alley got emotional talking about the importance of working with amazing organizations such as Feedmore, the beneficiary of the event.

The whole evening was a wonderful experience and every participant, both Chefs and guests were lovely, friendly and having a great time. I feel absolutely honored to have been able to attend such a great event. I couldn’t have done it without the support of my friends and family and for that I feel humbled and blessed and very very full.