This Week In Gluttony

These are the 8 best food and drink events in Dallas this week

Skip the candy corn and sugar-spiked punches and instead spend your pre-Halloween week indulging in one (or all) of these tasty events. If you insist on dressing up, though, we included a couple where you can do that.

Tuesday, October 25

WhistlePig Whiskey Dinner at The Grape
As part of its 44th anniversary celebration, this iconic Greenville Avenue restaurant is collaborating with WhistlePig Farm in Vermont for a night of farm-to-table cuisine and whiskey. Hosted by Doug Ward of WhistlePig Whiskey, chef Brian Luscher will create four courses to complement this unique, aged spirit. Dinner is $95 a person and starts at 6:30 pm. Reservations can be made by calling 214-828-1981.

Thursday, October 27

Beats & Eats with Chef Chad Houser and Texas Gentlemen at Granada Theater
This new series showcases the talents of Dallas’ best chefs and musicians with dinner and a concert. Next up: chef Chad Houser of Cafe Momentum and the Texas Gentlemen, who blend their talents for a one-night collaboration. Courses include smoked carrot soup, pork osso buco with hominy hash, sweet potato pudding, and more. Tickets are $85, and the doors open at 7 pm. The show starts at 8.

Belgium-inspired Beer Dinner at Salum
For the first time, Abraham Salum is hosting a beer dinner in honor of his favorite European cooking styles and flavors. The evening features dishes and beer that celebrate Salum's time spent living in Belgium. Courses include mussels in blanche beers, boudin noir (blood sausage) and stoemp of Brussels sprouts, cocotte of pasture chicken in mustard sauce, carbonnade of beef à la glaze, and mousse au chocolate with homemade speculoos. Dinner is $65 a person and starts at 7 pm. Reservations can be made by calling 214-252-9604.

Shiner Beer Dinner at Stampede 66
Stephan Pyles hosts this Texas-centric evening and welcomes special guest and brewmaster Jimmy Mauric. Courses include fried frog legs, glazed pork belly, and rocky road coulant paired with Shiner White Wing, Shiner Ocktoberfest, and Shiner Black Lager. Dinner is $65 a person and starts with a reception at 6:30 pm. Reservations can be made by calling 214-550-6966.

Somm Wars at Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steakhouse
This is an all-out battle for bragging rights between three of Del Frisco's finest female sommeliers. This finale is the results of competitions in three cities and features finalists selecting wines to complement each dish of a fabulous four-course meal. You and a panelist of wine experts score each pairing and decide on a winner. This event is $225 a person and begins at 7 pm. Reservations can be made by calling 817-877-3999.

Friday, October 28

Halloween Family Night at Oak Highland Brewery
Suit up your family in their best costumes and head to Lake Highlands' favorite brewery for a little Halloween fun. Expect food trucks from Bella Trino's Neapolitan Pizzeria and Resident Taqueria, Hotel Transylvania playing on the projector, free house-made soda, beer, lawn games, face painting, and more. This event is free to attend and starts at 5 pm, however, beer tokens are $5.

Saturday, October 29

Steinfest at Downtown Plano
Head north for this Oktoberfest-style event that includes the finest beer, German-inspired cuisine, live music, an artist village of craftsman and makers, a wiener dog fashion show, keg bowling, a kid’s zone, and a VIP beer garden. Admission is free, but there is a $40 VIP option that gets you food and drink coupons, T-shirts, access to a private bar, and more. Events start at 10 am.

Monday, October 31

Halloween Party for a Cause at Victor Tangos
Victor Tangos is teaming up with Brian Floyd’s Barman’s Fund and 10 of the city’s best bartenders to raise money for Dallas CASA. In addition to guest bartenders, the evening features drink specials, half-off all food for industry members, DJ Bryan C, costume prizes, and more. Guest bartenders include Brian McCullough of the Standard Pour, Mate Hartai of Remedy/HG Supply Co., Zach Smigiel of Midnight Rambler, Corey Howe of Doublewide, and more. The fun kicks off at 7 pm.

Head to Victor Tangos on October 31 for costumes, drink specials, and appetizers benefiting Dallas CASA.

Photo courtesy of Victor Tangos

Head to Victor Tangos on October 31 for costumes, drink specials, and appetizers benefiting Dallas CASA.

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Farm News

Dallas farm-to-table champion Profound Farms closes produce operation

Profound

Profound Microfarms

A Dallas farm-to-table champion is pulling the plug: Profound Microfarms, the small farm in Lucas that provided locally-grown produce to chefs and the general public for nearly a decade, is shutting down its growing operation and discontinuing deliveries. Their final delivery and pickup day will be May 23.

According to cofounder Jeff Bednar, they were simply unable to keep the business afloat.

"It's always been tough for small farmers, and it's only getting harder," Bednar says. "I'd hate to count how many farmers and ranchers we've known in the last 10 years that have gone out of business. Honestly, I know very few farmers that could make it with out having off-farm income from a spouse or other sources."

Jeff and Lee Bednar first bought their 2.6-acre plot in Lucas in 2014, then spent three years learning hydroponic methods and building industry relationships. In May 2017, they began selling produce to Dallas-area chefs, helping to support DFW’s burgeoning farm-to-table restaurant scene, delivering to restaurants multiple times per week.

In 2018, Profound Foods received a USDA grant to create a local "food hub" — a business that helps small farmers grow by offering a combination of production, distribution, and marketing services. At their peak, by the end of 2019, they were serving 130 restaurants.

And then the pandemic arrived. They pivoted, expanding into retail sales in March 2020, offering weekly home delivery and pickup outpost options for home consumers.

Profound Microfarms lettuce Beautiful lettuces at Profound MicrofarmsProfound Microfarms

"Unfortunately, running a year-round food hub became tougher than we can sustain right now," he says. "It's disheartening we were not able to make it work after trying for 11 years. But we were able to raise our daughters the way we wanted to and we really had a great run. Profound impacted hundreds of Dallas chefs and thousands of families in our community and we'll continue to do that, just differently."

Over the years, Profound grew from harvesting greens to aggregating and delivering for other producers, then into community gathering spaces, commercial kitchens, and hands-on education.

"Profound has never been just a farm — it’s our commitment to connecting North Texans with local food, and that commitment will keep evolving even as the farm operations wind down," Bednar says.

So while the growing part has gone away, Profound will continue hosting cooking classes and other foodie events. In the interim, they'll also be listing their plants, hydroponic supplies, and greenhouses for sale.

Some of their stats:

Moved more than $4.5 million of truly local food into North Texas kitchens.
Sent 75 cents on every dollar to 185 farmers, ranchers, and producers in North Texas.
Delivered 34,000+ restaurant and home orders.
Donated over 90,000 lbs of fresh food to area charities and food banks.
Hosted dozens of interns and hundreds of volunteers for hands-on learning on our farm.
Helped over 22 companies launch food-based business in our incubator kitchen and hub.
Hosted tours for more than 15,000 people, schoolchildren, and aspiring farmers.

closings sustainability farmer-diaries

This Week In Gluttony

These are the 8 best food and drink events in Dallas this week

Head to Victor Tangos on October 31 for costumes, drink specials, and appetizers benefiting Dallas CASA.

Farm News

Dallas farm-to-table champion Profound Farms closes produce operation

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