Chef Fest Gets Cooking Sept. 26

Chef Fest is Sunday, Sept. 26, and not only is there still time to secure tickets to the annual farmhouse feast, but we also have an update on all of the festivities.

Tickets are available online for the event taking place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Harvest Green Village Farm, 8939 Harlem Road. Tickets are $95 for adults and $20 for children and can be purchased online. Prices include unlimited bites, five drink tickets and interactive experiences.

Once you arrive, you’ll be treated to gourmet bites like Autumn Root Vegetable Gratin, Charred Okra and Peppa Pot Stew with Cow Pea Relish, Crowder Pea Stew, Late Summer Vegetables with Catalan Chickpeas and Herbs, and Taco de Farmed Vegetables with Recado Negro prepared by top Houston chefs.

The line-up now includes Steven Ripley, chef and director of operations for Barrel Of Monkeys Hospitality Group (BOM Hospitality). Foodies might have dined at popular hotspot Monkey’s Tail. BOM also will be opening a new restaurant, Grease Monkey.  

Chef Ripley will be serving up Aguachile, featuring shrimp and whitefish paired with farm-fresh goodies and piled high on house-made tortilla chips. He is joining chefs Bandon Silva, Chris Williams, Dawn Burrell, EJ Miller, Emmanuel Chávez, Jessica DeSham Timmons, Keisha Griggs, Lindsey Fuquen and Sasha Grumman.

BOM is also lending Chef Fest their stellar bar team led by Lainey Collum. They will be shaking things up at two chef Fest main bars. At the Monkey’s Tail + Buffalo Trace Bar, the team will be putting a new spin on the classic highball with a concoction featuring Buffalo Trace bourbon, Giffard Pamplemousse liqueur and Grapefruit Rambler. A “Fall Sour” will include Buffalo Trace bourbon, butternut squash basil syrup, and lemon. We’re sold!

The Grease Monkey Zero-proof Bar will serve up mocktails showcasing farm-to-bar goodness. The “Coconaut” blends butternut squash, tiki spices, coco cream, lemon, basil and hibiscus tea. A “Northside Cooler” features Armenian cucumber, Texas tarragon, mint, lime, Firewater bitters and a Rambler Sparkling Water.

St. Arnold is on tap again this year. Messina Hof will be showcasing their Beau and Rose (canned), as well as Vitality (white) and Abounding (red) wines. Frankly Organic Vodka, a U.S.-based vodka made from organic ingredients and free of GMOs and pesticides will be  sampling five  of their flavored vodkas. They will be paired with Rambler Sparkling Water as a “Frankly Seltzer,” as well as their signature “Bloody Mary” made with Frankly Organic Vodka and their zesty Bloody Mary Mix. 

We may have mentioned a few interactive experiences you can “add-on” to your tickets for an additional fee. You can learn to brew the perfect cup of coffee with  Young Hustler Coffee. Your kids can get cooking with Chef Jane Wild. And now, a select number of guests can be among the first to try creamy (and creative) farm-inspired soft serve ice cream flavors at a soft serve station.

Underground Creamery, Houston’s speak-easy of ice cream and 2021 CultureMap Tastemaker winner for Best Pop-up/Startup, has teamed up with five chefs and one Harvest Green Farm Educator to create custom flavors using nature’s bounty. We’re a little concerned about the Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Farm Herbs, but it should all be delicious. The cost is $10. Spaces are limited and advance online purchasing is encouraged.

Think that’s all? How about an opportunity to win a focaccia pizza party for 10 at your very own home? That’s just one of the prizes you can bid on during our silent auction. Proceeds from the auction will benefit Houston Food System Collaborative (HFSC), a non-profit dedicated to facilitating the growth of a sustainable regional food system through its focus areas of food access and food enterprise development.

Other items up for bid include a seven-course dinner for four inside the Tatemó Production Space, a picnic basket curated by Chef Jess DeSham and Tasos Katsaounis, a morning dove hunt on the Bar W Ranch for five including lunch in the field and a grow your own cocktail basket. All items will be available on event day. You must be present at Chef Fest in order to bid. 

The cherry on the top of this very big Sunday is live music presented by Newmark Homes. Kicking things off will be Sean Heyl followed by Sam Turner & the Cactus Cats.

Parking for Chef Fest 2021 is located at the adjacent Travis High School, 11111 Harlem Rd, Richmond TX 77406, and complimentary bus service will deliver attendees to the Village Farm.