Slow Food Nation '08

Sunday, August 31

• Jardiniere and The HEAL Project

  Sunday, August 31 | Jardiniere | 300 Grove Street, San Francisco, CA | 5:30pm | $110.00 (gratuity not included)

  Jardiniere, one of San Francisco’s top restaurants, is hosting a dinner on behalf of The HEAL Project, a hands-on program that instills healthy lifestyle habits in elementary school children while inspiring agricultural and environmental awareness. The dinner menu includes: Dry Farmed Tomato and Watermelon Salad; Bellwether Farms Ricotta Crostini; Housemade Potato Gnocchi; Sugo of Liberty Farms Duck and Local Chanterelles; Prather Ranch Lamb with Brentwood Corn, Summer Squash and Sausalito Springs Watercress, Salsa Verde; Chefs Selection of Local Cheese; and for dessert: Mission Fig Baba, Pinenuts and Marshall’s Farm Honey Ice Cream. And, $25 of each ticket sold will go to HEAL to support their programs.

  Tickets required. As of 7/31/08, Jardiniere is selling tickets for additional seatings: 5:00pm, 6:00pm, 7:30pm, 8:00pm, and 8:30pm. Please call the restaurant, 415-861-5555, to purchase your ticket.

• Maverick and San Joaquin Foundation for Agriculture Education

  Sunday, August 31 | Maverick, American Eatery and Wine Bar | 3316 17th Street, San Francisco, CA | 7:00pm | $90.00 (with wine pairings) or $65.00 (without wine pairings)

  Maverick American Eatery and Wine Bar hosts the San Joaquin Foundation for Agriculture Education, an organization with the mission to promote agriculture as a career for our young people. The evening’s menu is a five course, “Whole Pig” Dinner. Pigs will be supplied by Long Ranch in Manteca. All produce for the dinner will be provided by local farmers from San Joaquin County. Wines will be beautifully paired and provided by wineries local to San Joaquin County. Menu to include: Apertif: Charlyn Melon Juice. First Course: BLT - Crispy belly, sliced purple cherokee tomatoes, butter lettuce, pig brain mayonnaise, levain toast. Second Course: Sausage and Peppers - Fresh sausage link, piquillo and gypsy peppers, caramelized torpedo onions, blistered cherry tomato sauce. Third Course: Pan Fried Pork Cakes - Pig’s head and trotter cakes with almond crust, chicory and sorrel salad, concord grape pork jus. Intermezzo: Sliced watermelon, basil, honey, crispy pig ears. Fourth Course, served Family Style: Roast Pork Loin with White lima beans, sweet corn and red bell pepper succotash, pork jus. Fifth course: Apple Walnut Bread Pudding with Sea salt caramel sauce, vanilla ice cream.

  Online ticket sales are complete. Please call the restaurant regarding reservations.
  415-863-3061

• New Delhi Restaurant & The Oakland Institute

  Sunday, August 31 | New Delhi Restaurant | 160 Ellis Street, San Francisco, CA | 6:00pm | $55.00 (gratuity not included)

  Enjoy a Traditional Indian Menu at New Delhi Restaurant, to benefit The Oakland Institute, a policy think tank whose mission is to increase public participation and promote fair debate on critical social, economic and environmental issues in both national and international forums. The Family-Style Menu includes: Hors d’oeuvres: Bari Pakora - Vegetable fritters and Hariyali Tikka - Chicken barbecued in a tangy mint and cilantro marinade with Mint and Tamarind Chutney. A New Delhi” Specialty Entrée: Murg Akbari - an exotic preparation of chicken with cashews and raisin simmered in a blend of mild spices, Karahai Gosht - a flavorful Lamb curry cooked in North Indian spices. Vegetarian Dishes- Paneer Makhani - housemade paneer cooked in tomato cream sauce and seasoned with fenugreek leaves, Alu Palak – spinach cooked with potatoes and seasoned with garlic, Kali Dal New Delhi – slow simmered black Lentils with Ginger and Tomatoes and Peas Pullao - saffron flavored Basmati rice with green peas. Dinner accompanied with Nan, Achar, Chutney, Kachumber Salad, Condiments and Raita. Dessert service includes: Chilled Rice Pudding with Alfanso Mango Float.

  Online ticket sales are complete. Please call the restaurant regarding reservations.
  415-397-8470

• Millennium Restaurant and SaveNature.org

  Sunday, August 31 | Millennium Restaurant | 580 Geary Street, San Francisco, CA | 5:30 – 9:30 pm | $70

  A collaboration between Executive Chef Eric Tucker of Millennium Restaurant, dedicated to supporting the essential earthly concepts of organic food production, small farms, sustainable agriculture, recycling and composting and SaveNature.org, a conservation organization dedicated to inspiring children and adults to save rainforests and coral reefs around the world; supporting sustainable and economic development among local communities and fighting global climate change. Millennium cooks with fresh produce delivered every day, and choose organic whenever possible creating a gourmet dining experience out of vegetarian, healthy, and environmentally friendly foods.

  The dinner will feature the produce of Eat well Farms, Maraquita Farms, Animalitos Farms, Happy Boy Farms and Blossom Bluff Orchards. The cuisine is influenced by the flavors and styles of many cultures and all of our dishes are completely animal-free and completely free of genetically modified foods. This dinner is a fundraiser for SaveNature.org celebrating their 20th year of saving nature.

  For reservations, please visit OpenTable.com or call Millennium Restaurant at 415-345-3900.

• Pappo and Alameda Point Collaborative

  Sunday, August 31 | Pappo | 2320 Central Avenue, Alameda, CA | 6:00 pm | $55 (includes wine)

  A collaboration between Pappo and the Alameda Point Collaborative. The evening’s three-course menu includes: First Course: Carrot Soup, Herbed Crostini or Little Gem Lettuces with Cucumber, Tomatoes and Creamy Mint Dressing. Second Course: Stuffed Bell Pepper, Eggplant, Fennel, Chard, Onion, Oregano and Goat Cheese Polenta or Grilled Sonoma Lamb with Roasted Potatoes, Chard and Rosemary or Pan Seared Ling Cod with Carrot Puree, Caramelized Fennel and Baby Arugula. Third Course: Basil Ice Cream with Honey and Candied Lemon Peel or Peach Gallette with Fresh Cream.

  Online ticket sales are complete. Please call the restaurant regarding reservations.
  510-337-9100

• Camino and People’s Grocery

  Sunday, August 31 | Camino 3917 Grand Avenue, Oakland, CA | 6:00 pm | $125 wine included

  People’s Grocery is a community-based nonprofit organization that addresses health problems in the inner city community of West Oakland stemming from a lack of access to and knowledge of healthy, fresh foods. Camino is a new restaurant in Oakland that uses carefully sourced ingredients cooked in a large open fireplace. Join People’s Grocery and Camino as they celebrate a long, luxurious summer feast at Camino’s communal tables. The five-course meal with wine will feature homemade sausages and paella cooked in the fireplace and vegetables from the People’s Grocery farm in Sunol. There will be one seating at 6:00pm so guests can enjoy the entire evening together. $25 of the ticket price will go directly to People’s Grocery.

  Online ticket sales are complete. Please call the restaurant regarding reservations.
  510-547-5035

• Laiola and Alemany Farm

  Sunday, August 31 | Laiola | 2031 Chestnut Street, San Francisco, CA | All Night | Price Varies

  Laiola and Alemany Farm invite you to join us for a dinner celebrating local food systems. Laiola is San Francisco’s little Spanish darling: A 50-seat taverna with fire colored walls, a long copper bar and high top leather banquettes housed in a Spanish revival building in the Marina. Three star reviews from both The Chronicle and The Examiner prove Laiola’s 100 Spanish label wine list and best of season menu by Chez Panisse alum, Mark Denham, are sure to please.

  Alemany Farm, a 4.5-acre organic fruit and vegetable operation, is San Francisco’s largest food production site. Through our teen apprenticeship program, we give low-income youth meaningful job skills in the budding green economy. Through our participation in the Bayview-Hunters Point farmers market and our free senior citizen food distribution program, we help ensure that all communities — regardless of ethnicity or income — have access to quality organic food. Our weekend community workdays give residents from across San Francisco the chance to learn how to grow their own food.

  Alemany Farm produce including lettuces, basil, beets, carrots, and tomatoes will be served at the dinners. Ten percent of proceeds from the dinners will benefit Alemany Farm.

  Please call Laiola at 415.346.5641 for reservations.

• Nopa and Community Alliance with Family Farmers

  Sunday, August 31 | 560 Divisadero Street, San Francisco, CA | $40 (average meal price) plus donation

  Nopa and the Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF) have joined forces during Slow Food Nation to increase awareness of Nopa’s dedicated local food procurement practices and the spectacular work of CAFF and their Buy Fresh Buy Local campaign. Savor a delicious, seasonally inspired meal and donate to CAFF in their efforts to preserve sustainable, family-owned farms.

  This dinner is an all weekend promotion. Please call Nopa for the usual reservations. 415-864-8643

• Frantoio Ristorante & Bar and the California Olive Oil Council

  Sunday, August 31 | Frantoio Ristorante | 152 Shoreline Highway, Mill Valley, CA | 7:00pm | $79 (includes wine pairings, but excludes gratuity and tax)

  Five-Course Italian feast prepared by Duilio Valenti, Executive Chef at Frantoio Ristorante. The dinner will include heirloom tomato and cucumber bruschetta, Frantoio’s own award-winning olive oil marinated heirloom eggplant and house made mozzarella rollatini, house-cured bresola with fresh lemon and Frantoio olive oil, Marin Roots Farm’s little gems and aged grana, house-made ravioli filled with black cod, Sausalito Springs’ watercress pesto, and olive oil cured black olives, Bill’s Bolinas boer goat (wood oven roasted and served with Annabelle’s local chicory and a balsamic sauce), topped off with Vin Santo gelato and Fairfax wild fennel pollen biscotti. The dinner will include fine wines, including Pey-Marin Vineyard 2007 Riesling “The Shell Mound” (Marin County), and Barham Mendelsohn 2004 organically grown Russian River Pinot Noir (Sonoma County). A portion of the proceeds of this dinner will benefit The California Olive Oil Council.

  Dan Flynn, Executive Director of the UC Davis Olive Oil Center, Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science, and Roberto Zecca, former President of the California Olive Oil Council and owner of Frantoio, will both be on hand to speak.

  Call Frantoio Ristorante at 415-289-5777 to reserve your seat at this exceptional feast!

• Woodward’s Garden and Animal Welfare Approved

  Sunday, August 31 | Woodward’s Garden | 1700 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA | Opening Reception: 5:30 – 6:30pm; Dinner: 6:30pm | $50 (Reception only); $125 (Dinner)

  Join us for a collaboration between Woodward’s Garden, a San Francisco gem known for its intimate hospitality and expert preparation, and Animal Welfare Approved a non-profit program and food label working to promote the well-being of animals and the sustainability of humane family farms.

  This dinner-from-the-field will feature award-winning pork from Niman Ranch, the first farmer network to receive Animal Welfare Approved accreditation. The evening provides the opportunity to hear directly from Animal Welfare Approved’s outstanding farmers, including Niman Ranch’s own Paul Willis (founder and manager of Niman Ranch pork division and free-range pig farmer) and Will Harris (White Oak Pastures; fifth generation grass-fed cattle farmer). These stewards of the land will share their experiences in practicing humane husbandry, and explain how tradition and innovation have shaped their farming practices today. The reception and dinner will feature wine donated by Beringer, a California winery known for its commitment to sustainable agriculture, and will also include light hors d’œuvres. 15% of every ticket sold will benefit the Animal Welfare Approved program.

  Tickets for the Reception and Slow Dinner are purchased separately. To purchase tickets for the Reception ($50.00) or The Slow Dinner ($125.00) please contact Julie Munk at (703) 836-4300.

• Poggio Restaurant

  Sunday, August 31 | Poggio Restaurant | 777 Bridgeway, Sausalito, CA | All Evening | A la carte

  Poggio is a classic Italian trattoria with comfortable neighborhood charm and destination-caliber cuisine just steps away from the Golden Gate Bridge overlooking the Sausalito harbor. Residents and city dwellers flock to their outdoor sidewalk tables to enjoy Chef Peter McNee’s daily changing menu featuring inspired classics of Northern Italy, simply and earnestly prepared including: pizzas fresh from the wood burning oven, home made pastas, house cured salamis, sausages, and other meats; and this time of year heirloom tomatoes with fresh mozzarella cheese made three times a day so it is incomparably soft and creamy. The restaurant is at once quintessentially Italian and at ease in its Northern California locale. This year the restaurant has just released their own wine in partnership with winemaker Brian Graham from Ramian Estates.

  To make reservations, please call 415.332.7771.

• Slow Club and Three Stone Hearth – SOLD OUT

  Sunday, August 31 | Slow Club | 2501 Mariposa Street, San Francisco, CA | 6:30pm | $80.00 (gratuity not included)

  A collaboration between Slow Club, a restaurant renowned for using produce and meat from farms and ranches that practice ecologically sound agriculture, and Three Stone Hearth, an organization that is dedicated to healing our community, our planet and ourselves by building a sustainable model for community-scale food preparation and processing that honors culinary traditions and provides nutrient-dense foods for local households and beyond. This 4-course family-style dinner will feature wine from Sutton Cellars. First Course: Liberty Farms Duck Rillettes; Heirloom Melon with Chili Salt and Truffled Honey. Second Course: Wild Arugula Salad with Sweet 100’s, Mint, and Aged Balsamic Vinaigrette; Grilled Nectarines with Prosciutto and Mache. Third Course: Lindner Bison Briciole with Spigariello or other Greens and Tomato Relish/Chutney; Roasted Mary’s Chicken on Anson Mills Polenta with Wild Mushroom Jus; Fourth Course: Scharffen Berger Chocolate Pot de Crème; Peach Cobbler with Bi-Rite Creamery Vanilla Ice Cream. Various items on the menu come directly from Three Stone Hearth, including: Corn Relish, Dilly Beans (Garden Beans), Ginger Mermaid Sauerkraut (Sea Beans, Ginger, etc.), Green Veg. Sauerkraut (Kale, etc.), Pink Panther (Beet and Fruit Relish); and Lacto-Fermented Coolers: Antique Rose Cooler (Rose w/ Hibiscus), Lavender Cooler (Lavender w/ Grape Juice) and Douglas Fir Cooler (Douglas Fir Essence w/ Lemon).

  This dinner is sold out.

• Americano Restaurant & Bar and Golden Gate
  National Parks Conservancy – SOLD OUT

  Sunday, August 31 | Americano Restaurant & Bar | 8 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA | 6:00pm reception, 7:00pm dinner | $85.00 (gratuity not included)

  Join Americano Chef Paul Arenstam for the Slow Food Starlight Supper benefiting the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy. Established in 1981, the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy is the nonprofit partner that supports and assists the Golden Gate National Parks in research, interpretation, and conservation programs. This al fresco reception and dinner on the heated Americano/Hotel Vitale patio, overlooking the Ferry Building and the Bay Bridge, will feature a menu of ingredients from our farmers and partners including Hearst Ranch, Anson Mills Polenta, Gioia Burrata, Acme Bread, Brentwood Corn and Yolo County Tomatoes and Wine Forest Mushrooms. The dinner will include local and biodynamic wines including Paul’s own 2005 Dreamer Syrah from Thompson Vineyard, Los Alamos Hills, Santa Barbara County. $25 of every ticket will go directly to the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy.

  6:00pm Reception
  Artisan Salumi, Grilled Fig with Aged Balsamico and Ricotta Bruschetta, Neapolitan Style Pizza

  7:00pm Dinner
  Yolo County Tomato Salad with Gioia Burrata and Basil, Sicilian Fisherman’s Stew with Grilled Acme Bread and Roasted Garlic, Grilled Hearst Ranch Skirt Steak with Anson Mills Polenta and Broccoli de Ciccio, Late Summer Berry Pudding with Mascarpone

  This dinner is sold out.

• Serpentine and the Center for Land-Based Learning – SOLD OUT

  Sunday, August 31 | Serpentine | 2495 Third Street, San Francisco, CA | 7:30pm | $110.00 (gratuity not included)

  A collaboration between San Francisco’s Serpentine and the Center for Land-Based Learning, an organization with the mission to engage youth in learning experiences on the land that foster respect for the critical interplay of agriculture, nature and society. This dinner will endeavor to use produce from a farmer that leases land run by the Center for Land-Based Learning: Free Spirit Farms. It will also feature walnuts grown by Craig McNamara, Founder and President of the Center for Land-Based Learning. The family-style, four-course meal includes wine from Honig. The courses are as follows: First Course: Toasted Tartine country bread and Clover Farmstead Butter; Charcuterie of Marin Sun Farms Pork Rillettes Pate, Brawn Strawberries and Shallots Escabeche, Marinated Pole Beans - Roasted Gypsy Peppers, Whole Grain Mustard, Grilled Levain. Second Course: Salad of Wild Arugula, English Peas, Nectarines, Walnut Pesto, Salad of Avocado, Baby Chioggia Beets, Cherry Tomatoes, Peppercress. Third Course: Roasted Mary’s Chicken, Valencia Orange Bread Salsa, Sweet Corn Puree, Haricots Verts, Red Pearl Onions; Grilled Prather Ranch Beef, Austrian Crescent Potatoes, Roasted Heirloom, Tomatoes, Betty Garland’s North Carolina Black Truffles. Fourth Course: Scharffen Berger Chocolate and Walnut Tart, Fresh Strawberries and Bi-Rite Creamery Vanilla Ice Cream. $50 from each ticket will go directly to Center for Land-Based Learning.

  This dinner is sold out.

• Pisco Latin Lounge/Destino and The Center for Environmental
  Health and The Center for Food Safety – SOLD OUT

  Sunday, August 31 | Destino | 1815 Market Street, San Francisco, CA | Cocktails: 5:30 – 7:30 pm; Dinner: 7:30 pm | $65 (cocktails only); $130 (cocktails & dinner)

  Pisco Latin Lounge, San Francisco’s hottest new cocktail and tapas lounge (and the first pisco bar in the country), is pairing with its neighboring restaurant, Destino, to host a joint fundraiser for The Center for Environmental Health, an organization that works to eliminate the threat that industrial chemicals pose to children, families and communities and the Center for Food Safety, which has initiated landmark legal actions to preserve the integrity of the food from technological techniques such as cloning and genetic engineering. Just as there are two locations and two benefiting non-profits, there are two levels of experience offered:

  Level One – A vibrant cocktail party at Pisco featuring the recently rediscovered “Original Recipe Pisco Punch,” San Francisco’s legendary cocktail described by Rudyard Kipling as being made from “the wings of cherubs.” A full range of Latin and traditional cocktails, plus wines from Spain and Argentina will also complement the flavorful passed hors d’oeuvres such as a Spicy Pisco Flavored Roll Of Yellowtail Tuna, Marinated Prawns With Pineapple Salsa and Fried Quinoa Risotto Balls With Shitake Mushrooms and Romesco Salsa that take their lead from contemporary clubs in Barcelona, Buenos Aires, and Lima. A contribution of $25 from each ticket will go directly to the partner charities.

  Cocktail Party. 5:30-7:30pm - $65 includes complimentary hors d’oeuvres and two drink tickets.

  Level Two – Enjoy the cocktail party described above and then head next door for a four-course chef’s tasting dinner with paired wines at Destino, San Francisco’s premier Peruvian restaurant. Specialty wines from Spain and Argentina will be paired with each course. Vandana Shiva and Andrew Kimbrell will join you for this wonderful meal. A contribution of $45 from each ticket will go directly to the partner charities.

  Four Course Dinner with Wine Pairing. 7:30pm - $130 includes cocktail party (with complimentary hors d’oeuvres and two drink tickets) plus dinner and wine.

  This dinner is sold out.

• Boulevard and Greenbelt Alliance – SOLD OUT

  Sunday, August 31 | Private Room at Boulevard Restaurant| 1 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA | 7:00pm | $150.00 (includes wine pairings, gratuity and tax)

  The multi-course dinner prepared by the Boulevard chefs will highlight the bounty of the season and their world famous creativity and talent. Dinner will be paired with fine organic wines by Handley cellars (Anderson Valley) and Skylark Wine Company, a collaboration between Boulevard Wine Directors John Lancaster and Robert Perkins. Please note that the exact menu will depend on the freshest available ingredients on the day of the dinner and will most likely include seafood, meats and dairy. Substitutions will not be feasible for this special dinner, so persons with dietary restrictions or food allergies should not attend. A portion of the proceeds of this dinner will benefit Greenbelt Alliance. Greenbelt Alliance is the Bay Area’s advocate for Open Spaces and Vibrant Places, and has been for 50 years! Come celebrate with us!

  This dinner is sold out.