Dinner With Amy Pennington, Lamb Jam, Oyster New Year and More Hot Foodie Dates

!–paging_filter–pspanThe journey from farm to table doesn’t get much tighter than this./span/p
pSeasoned cookbook author and the host of KCTS’ popular a href=”http://kcts9.org/check-please/““Check, Please”/a Amy Pennington partners with Volunteer Park Café’s Ericka Burke for the final installment of this season’s Chef + Gardener dinner series on Oct. 22. The pair will collaborate on making the most from the last bounty of the Café’s garden out back, a thriving green space tended by the ever-busy Pennington. (Who will be talking about her latest book, emApples: From Harvest to Table/em at a href=”http://www.booklarder.com/events/info/apples-from-harvest-to-table“Book Larder at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 23/a. Copies of all her books will be available during the event at Volunteer Park Café.)/p
pDiners will sip on an herbal fizz while touring the garden before sitting down at the communal table to four courses served family style: a chicory salad dressed in a warm bacon vinaigrette and topped with a poached egg, lovage-cured salmon, braised pork accompanied by charred green tomatoes and, for dessert, a poached pear with honey-thyme ice cream. It’s $45, plus tax, tip and beverages. For reservations, call 206.328.3155./p
pspana href=”http://seattletimes.com/seattlerestaurantweek/“Seattle Restaurant Week/a rolls on, though shouldn’t it be called Seattle Restaurant Week(s) as these deals on meals are spread out over two weeks, Sunday through Thursdays at more than 160 eateries around the region. a href=”http://dinearoundseattle.org/“Dine Around Seattle/a is on deck for November. What’s your bargain-dining strategy?/span/p
pspanWhile stores have been pushing Halloween since August, we want to salute the spots that are more timely in their spooky celebrations. So, here’s a big hooray to Café Flora for putting on a free pumpkin carving event for the kiddos on Oct. 26. The vegetarian/vegan dining destination in Madison Valley is getting pumpkins from Oxbow Farm with art supplies and guidance from Thrive Art School. There will be harvest-y theme goodies such as pumpkin bread, spiced cider from Rockridge Orchards and the little ones are encouraged to get dressed up in their costumes. The fun runs from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m./span/p
pspanEven though it’s got absolutely nothing to do with food, can I get an awww-men for a href=”http://coladog.org/dogoween“Dog-O-Ween/a? OK, well, there will be snacks for sale at this costume contest for your four-legged friends at the off-leash area of Genese Park starting at 10:30 on Oct. 26. This event is a fundraiser for Seattle area dog parks./span/p
pspanRing-a-ding-ding in a href=”http://www.elliottsoysterhouse.com/ony/“Oyster New Year/a on Nov. 2, the ultimate slurp fest for bivalve lovers. Growers from around the Puget Sound pop open piles of succulent shellfish during this amazing bash under a grand tent at Elliott’s on Pier 66. It’s billed as the biggest oyster party on the West Coast and after attending the last few years, I’m going go a couple steps beyond that to praise one of the most entertaining people watching experiences on the planet. They really should set up a live cam of the hilarious oyster luge!/span/p
pVIP tickets are already sold out, and while there are some remaining general admission entries available, don’t procrastinate. It sells out every year./p
pspanIt’s baaaa-ck! a href=”http://seattle.fansoflamb.com/lamb-jam-seattle/ “Lamb Jam/a returns to Seattle Nov. 3, this time featuring 16 top chefs showing off their chops, cooking all sorts of interesting dishes using American-raised lamb. There will also be tons of wine, beer and fun demos to catch in between all the bites. Fans can belly up to the VIP pre-funk at 1 p.m. or come on in with the rest of the gang for the free-for-all at 2 p.m. at The Foundry in SODO, a space formerly known as Urban Enoteca. a href=”//www.americanlamb.com/store/products/category/events/“VIP tickets/a are $75 while general admission is $60./span/p