Harvest Moon Edition
This week's notable food and drink events
Hey, it’s officially the start of autumn—and only two months behind the rest of the nation. As Austin prepares to enjoy its allotted two to three weeks before winter comes stomping in by watching the leaves change (as in dry up and die) and trying to add the word “brisk” to its vocabulary without sounding like a tool, local food and wine events are wholeheartedly embracing the season, like the Girlstart 12th Year Birthday Bash And Fall Party. Celebrating a dozen years of proving to girls that they can excel at math, science, and technology without turning into joyless, sexless ciphers, Girlstart invites you to indulge in “smartinis,” hors d’oeuvres, and cake balls in their honor. In grand Girlstart tradition, it’s a party that’s feminine without being girly, cute without being cloying, and sassy with an undercurrent of substance—and as the studios that wait until now to roll out their Oscar pics know, autumn is the time for substance.
It’s also a time for harvesting: Literally, as in the inaugural Sustainable Food Center Chef Series: Autumn Harvest, which pays tribute to locally grown organic food with a multi-course tasting menu prepared by chefs from La Condesa (400-A W. Second St., 499-0300), Uchi (801 S. Lamar Blvd., 916-4808), Trio (98 San Jacinto Blvd., 685-8300), Parkside (301 E. Sixth St., 474-9898), and Dai Due Supper Club using only what they find at the Austin Farmers’ Market. But also figuratively speaking, as in the cash the Texas Hill Country Food And Wine Festival will be “harvesting” at the November Night To Remember fundraiser, where gourmet chef Jon Gelman will provide a four-course meal paired with wines that should help turn it into a November Night You Sort-Of Remember Spending $100 Per Person On. But then, it’s all for a good cause: saving up for April’s big event by splurging now—and more importantly, redeeming a year of caution with a season of indulgence. That’s what autumn is all about.
Fatsometer: 8. There’s really no such thing as a slimming autumn harvest. Otherwise it would be called an “autumn strict and sensible gathering”—and who wants to eat that?
