More Americans are starting small farms, sometimes called 'hobby' or 'lifestyle' farms, which provide much of the food found at the nation's farmers' markets and roadside stands.
Le Bernardin reservations out of your reach? Chef Eric Ripert launched a wine club, giving the average Joe access to his vino-expertise and recipe pairings to use at home.
Can't make it to this weekend's Food Network's New York City Wine & Food Festival? Convinced that Slashfood can get a better peek at Guy Fieri's frosted tips and potential Paula Deen pants mishaps than you can?
Follow our every nibble, sip and celeb chef sighting via the handy widget above -- starting with tonight's Chelsea Market After Dark all the way through the Grand Tasting and Burger Bash to Sunday night's Meatball Madness with Giada De Laurentiis, or just follow us on Twitter as @slashfood.
There are loads of meat-this/meat-that festivals, but in honor of World Vegetarian Day, Slashfood would like to highlight international veggie gatherings.
Day Without Meat, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Oct. 3-4: To raise awareness for the benefits of a vegetarian/vegan diet, the Brazilian Vegetarian Society in partnership with Greenpeace,Instituto Nina Rosa and others will provide information on vegetarianism, screen films, hold workshops and offer food and wine tastings.
Oktoberfests are ubiquitous this month. For those not interested in the chug-a-thons and oompah bands, check out this list of alternative options.
Dixon Lambtown USA, Dixon, Calif., Oct. 3: Break out the mint jelly! Attendees can participate in such culinary slugfests as the National Lamb Ribs Eating Contest and Barbecue Cook-Off, not to mention a shearing competition and sheepdog trials. For the kiddies, there's Mutton Bustin' -- a buckin' bronco bruising of the woolly kind. The Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival, New York, Oct. 8-11: Hosted by and benefiting the Food Bank for New York City and Share Our Strength, this festival brings the toque and the home cook together. Everyone from sous chefs to casserole queens can attend wine seminars, recipe-creation panels and cooking demonstrations. For the kiddie cook, check out the Kids Get Cooking! series. Your favorite celebrity TV chefs will be there, en masse, including Ming Tsai, Paula Deen, Rachael Ray and Anthony Bourdain, as well as culinary heavyweights such as Sue Torres, Marcus Samuelsson, Odette Fada, Daniel Boulud and David Chang.
September might be halfway over and autumn imminent, but that doesn't mean the fall food fun has to end. Here's a selection of September food fests across the country.
Nappanee Apple Festival, Nappanee, Ind., Sept. 17-20: Apple season is upon us. Many are headed to pick-your-own orchards. This festival includes an apple-peeling contest, apple bake-off, pie-eating contest and the world's largest baked apple pie, weighing in at 600 pounds and a whopping 7 feet across. There's a daily lumberjack show, too.
The Houston Hot Sauce Festival, Houston, Sept. 19-20: Hot sauce festivals are on fire! Nationwide, they're popular, chilehead blow-outs. Attendees can sample and purchase a plethora of sauces, chiles and dry rubs. Don't forget to vote in the People's Choice for the Hottest Hot Sauce at this ninth annual festival.
Perhaps you couldn't get to NYC for the 55th Summer Fancy Food Show or maybe you're plotting the most delicious path through the 250,000 edible products on display at the Javits Center. Consider Slashfood your eyes, ears and mouth on the scene.
We'll be Twittering our most fabulous finds as @slashfood from the moment doors open on Sunday, until they roll us on out Tuesday night. Just sit back and watch Slashfood's real time reactions via the widget below and after the jump, see Twitters from folks all over the food world.
As promised, we're beginning our recap of the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party this past weekend, featuring 15 of the best pitmasters from around the USA. After you take a dip in the barbecue sauce fountain, courtesy of Mike Mills and Amy Mills of 17th Street Bar & Grill, click on the post to see our photos. "Peace, Love & Barbecue," everyone!
If you're going to be in NYC this Sunday, plan your weekend accordingly. Head down to the Lower East Side to check out Pickle Day. I went to this pickle festival last year and thoroughly enjoyed tasting Guss' famous crunchy juicy bright green pickles and Rick's sweet and mildly spicy pickle spears in a cumin and lime brine. If you enjoy pickled vegetables, it's well worth your Sunday.
Some festivities to expect this year include: cooking and home canning demonstrations, music, neighborhood walks, and activities for children. There will also be an interactive showcase with pickle recipes. And, of course, what would a trip to the Lower East Side be without a showing of the movie Crossing Delancey. The movie starts at 3 PM.
Pickle Day is hosted by the Lower East Side Business Improvement District and the NY Food Museum. It's going to take place on Orchard Street between Broome and Grand and in the parking lot on the corner of Ludlow and Broome. To find out more information, call The NY Food Museum at (212) 966-0191.
The article was entertaining and informative. It piqued my curiosity: I think I really do want to go to the Road Kill Cook-off in West Virginia (even though they don't allow actual road kill). However, you can keep the Chitlin' Strut (South Carolina) and the Bugfest (North Carolina). Anyone up for the Gilroy Garlic Festival (California)?
We're back in business this weekend, with food festivals from coast to coast (actually just on both coasts). And since it's finally beautiful outside, there's no excuse to shy away from amazing opportunities to consume ridiculous amounts of strawberries, artichokes and (as always) alcohol.
Savor: An American Craft Beer and Food Experience (May 16-17, 2008) - Don't be turned off by the pretentious name -- instead embrace the chance to attend a reception-style sampling (it's Washington, D.C., what did you expect?) of over 35 appetizers and 96 craft beers. The pairings look amazing, with duos like Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing's Dread stout beer with pan-seared pilsener sirloin tips with shiitake blue-cheese sauce. I'm salivating. Tickets must be purchased in advance.
The Food and Wine Festival at National Harbor (May 17-18, 2008) - And while you're in the nation's capital, check out the tons and tons of exciting foodie events down on the Potomac River. Attend lectures, panels, tastings and shows, and I definitely wouldn't miss the Maine-style clam bake either. With an emphasis on foods from across the globe (food will be divided by continent in the main tasting pavilion), this definitely seems like an all-hit, no-miss opportunity. And there are more!
I look at this picture, and I swear I start to smell the charcoal burning and the chicken charring. It gets me excited for a season of outdoor festivals, street fairs and the occasional grilling session in my cousin's backyard. You can see other images from this event here. Thanks, Ohad, for adding your image to the Slashfood Flickr pool.
A Brisbane fashion show has two high school students displaying some stunning clothes inspired by alcoholic drinks.
The Ambiwerra Festival is all about food, wine and has a jazz theme all of which have melded into these dresses. The two designers Melinda Toomey and Sarah Kalwy, are both too young to legally drink but they certianly know how to pin a couple of sheets of fabric and some baubles together. Their creations will be on display dyring the Sunday fashion awards.
The festival itself offers a great oppotunity to sample the delights of more than a dozen of Brisbane's best restaurants. Each will be offering entree-sized (starter) portions at attractive prices making them 'easy to stroll around with, and also makes it easy to save room for lots of all-day sampling'.
The local food revolution continues across the UK with several food festivals
that highlight local produce and local restaurants.
9th Lancashire Food Festival 1st/2nd April - plenty of local produce in Accrington,
Lancashire [website]
Henley Food Festival 28th/29th April - my home town with plenty to buy and taste.
Restaurants including the Fat Duck and Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons are to attend. Champagne tent and a wine bar too. [website]
Norwich Food Festival 13th-23nd October - a little way in the future but a
wide selection of activities during the week, including sausage making competition and wine tastings, mnakes it
worthwhile planning ahead. [details]
Traveling during spring can be challenging. There are often dramatic shifts in weather, alternating
balmy, sunlit skies with freezing snow flurries, not to mention that there is usually a lot of rain. But the rain brings
about things that make travel worth it for a foodie, like the first crops of the year for many varieties of seasonal
fruits and vegetables. Eating well prepared, seasonal specialties is a treat, especially when so many restaurants serve
supermarket fare.
While some restaurants will add a seasonal special or two to their menus, there are a handful of restaurants that
specialize in specials. These seasonal
restaurants are open for only a few weeks each year. They're not open during the summer tourist season, only when
their special ingredients are at their peak in the spring. They can be hard to find, usually known only to the locals
in the area, but according to the New York Times, it's worth tracking them down.
We're back in business this weekend, with food festivals from coast to coast (actually just on both coasts). And since it's finally beautiful outside, there's no excuse to shy away from amazing opportunities to consume ridiculous amounts of strawberries, artichokes and (as always) alcohol. 
A Brisbane fashion show has two high school students displaying some stunning clothes inspired by alcoholic drinks. 
The local food revolution continues across the UK with several food festivals
that highlight local produce and local restaurants.
Traveling during spring can be challenging. There are often dramatic shifts in weather, alternating
balmy, sunlit skies with freezing snow flurries, not to mention that there is usually a lot of rain. But the rain brings
about things that make travel worth it for a foodie, like the first crops of the year for many varieties of seasonal
fruits and vegetables. Eating well prepared, seasonal specialties is a treat, especially when so many restaurants serve
supermarket fare.
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