We're hitting the road, Southern-style, this week, traveling from Charleston to Atlanta to NOLA to Mississippi for some exciting events. This weekend (Oct. 21-23), we're cooking for the VIP tables at the Southern Ground Music & Food Festival in Charleston, featured the Zac Brown Band, My Morning Jacket, Warren Haynes and a host of other impressive acts. We'll be making our "Butter Pea Pasta e Fagioli," which made it's debut at the Lowcountry Field Feast October 2, one of our favorite events of the year!
Next up, we're headed to Atlanta to join other Southern chefs at Sunday Supper South, a family-style Friends of James Beard Benefit dinner hosted by our friends Anne Quatrano and Clifford Harrison on Sunday, October 23.
On Monday, October 24, Chefs Collaborative hosts it's National Summit in New Orleans, and Mike is up for a big-time chef award at the Sustainability Awards. The "Sustainer Award" recognizes a chef who has been both a great mentor and is a model to the culinary community through his/her purchases of seasonal, sustainable ingredients and the transformation of these ingredients into delicious food. Good luck Mike!
Finally, we will cap it all off at the Southern Foodways Alliance Symposium in Oxford, MS. We are so excited about this weekend--the SFA always knows how to throw a great party! Mike will be cooking for 300 foodies, writers and SFA members at a special dinner during the symposium.
Whew...it's a whirlwind but we wouldn't have it any other way! See you on the road.
We hosted our FIG Dine Around as part of the 2011 BB&T Charleston Wine & Food Festival a few weeks ago and wanted to share some of the behind-the-scenes kitchen pics with you. The photos were taken by our good friend Angie Moiser of Placemat Productions and the Southern Foodways Alliance. Chefs Kevin Gillespie of Woodfire Grill in Atlanta, Frank Stitt of Highlands Grill in Birmingham, Steven Satterfield of Miller Union in Atlanta, and wine pro Jasmine Hirsch of Hirsch Vineyards joined us for what turned out to be an incredible dinner with longtime FIG friends and new faces. Thanks to Le Creuset for sponsoring the dinner and for providing the guests with take-home mini-cocettes in their new signature color, Gullah Blue.
Next weekend, we're headed to the beautiful Palmetto Bluff down the road in Bluffton, SC to take part in a weekend put on by Charleston magazine. Mike will join Palmetto Bluff Chef Kirk Gilbert for an oyster roast and BBQ block party on Saturday afternoon (January 29), which Charleston magazine will be photographing for an upcoming issue. This weekend serves as a kick off for the Palmetto Bluff Music to your Mouth Festival, scheduled for fall 2011.
We've had one hell of a week here at FIG! We had two major national media premieres back-to-back, starting on Sunday, when Mike battled it out on the Food Network's Iron Chef America. Mike went up against the newest Iron Chef, Jose Garces, and was presented with a next to impossible ingredient to work with: sparkling wine (FN chose this ingredient because this show marked the beginning of their holiday season line-up). Throughout the intense 1 hour battle, Mike and sous chefs Jason Stanhope and Matt Bolus, stayed calm, smiling, laughing and generally having a blast. They ended up putting out 8 incredible looking dishes, all of which were praised by the judges (Andrea Robinson, Steve Olson, Debi Mazar, and Simon Doonan). Alas, in the end, Mike was bested by Garces, who only won by a slim margin. Team FIG came out way ahead in the taste scoring, but lost a few points to Garces for originality.
We had a blast watching the show live at Taco Boy downtown, surrounded by a rowdy crowd and the guests of honor, Mike, Jason + Matt.
On Tuesday night, we tuned in to ABC to watch Mike's segment on Nightline's Platelist. He talked about growing up, his first food memories, why he decided to become a chef, and why he still thinks he has the best job in the world. We also got to see him prepare a beautiful swordfish dish as well as those famous pork trotters with a sunny side egg. See the full interview by clicking below.
Thanks for all your support this week and always. We love what we do!
Chef Lata is heading to Atlanta this Halloween for "Sunday Supper South," an event modeled after the James Beard Foundation's famed Sunday Suppers at Chelsea Market. On October 31, Mike will join other JBF award-winning chefs from throughout the South for a family-style supper. The event is hosted by Anne Quantrano and Clifford Harrison of Star Provisions and will take place at the promenade in the Westside Provisions District (1170 Howell Mill Rd, Atlanta). Tickets are $175 and proceeds benefit the James Beard Foundation Scholarship Program. More info is available here.
We hope you will join us this year for the Lowcountry Field Feast at Rosebank Farm, Sunday, November 14. Last year the event was at Keegan Filion Farm in Walterboro and it was one of our favorite events of the year. Click here to purchase tickets! Proceeds benefit our friends at Lowcountry Local First.
On Sunday, August 8, Chef Lata is joining 26 other top chefs from the Southeast for the 2nd Annual "Attack of the Killer Tomato Festival" at JCT. Kitchen in Atlanta, which is a benefit for Georgia Organics. Mike will be partnered with a local Georgia farmer to prepare a summer tomato dish, which will be judged by a panel that includes Kate Krader (Food & Wine) and Andrew Knowlton (Bon Appetit). The winner will be crowned "Tomato King or Queen" and will have bragging rights until next year's event.
If you've tasted the tomato tart-tatin on FIG's menu right now, you will agree that he has a good shot at the competition. And if you haven't tasted it yet, get yourself to FIG as soon as possible, while the Johns Island tomatoes are fire-engine red and bursting with flavor--you don't want to miss this dish!
The event takes place from 1 to 5 p.m. and ticketsare $45 for GO members and $50 for the public. To buy tickets or for more info, visit www.georgiaorganics.com.
