So many restaurants throughout the community are stepping up to offer support for victims of Hurricane Katrina that it is impossible to recognize them all. Some are offering free or discounted meals to evacuees or donating food to church and civic organizations. Other restaurants are offering employment to colleagues from New Orleans.
Restaurants that want to continue support can sign up for Dine for America, a nationwide event slated for October 5th to benefit the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. The National Restaurant Association held a similar event after 9/11 and raised $22 million. Participating restaurants will donate a percentage of sales from that day to the relief fund and accept monetary donations from customers. Bol a Pasta owner Frank Grisanti, who is also a board member of the NRA, was the first in Memphis to sign up his restaurant for the event. In addition, Bol a Pasta customers are being offered free soft drinks if they donate $1 to the Red Cross.
Visit DineforAmerica.org.
The Southern Foodways Alliance is asking the restaurant community nationwide to promote fund-raising events and to help displaced restaurant employees find work. The organization, a nonprofit alliance of chefs, authors, and educators dedicated to preserving and cultivating the food cultures of the South, has partnered with the Council of Independent Restaurants and the James Beard Foundation to build a job bank for displaced restaurant workers.
Approximately 40 people from the Southern Foodways Alliance are asking each Beard Foundation member restaurant to offer at least one job to displaced workers. Job offers must also include temporary housing along with relocation funds.
Visit SouthernFoodways.com.
One week, three festivals: On Saturday, September 17th, Greekfest will be held from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at St. George Greek Orthodox Church, located at 6984 Highway 70 in Bartlett. Traditional Greek meals, served until 7 p.m., will be $12 per plate for adults and $6 for children 10 and younger. The 44th annual event also features live music, dancing, and a sanctuary tour.
For more information, call 388-5910.
The 18th annual Cooper-Young Festival kicks off Thursday, September 15th, and culminates Saturday, September 17th, with music performances and more than 300 food and merchandise vendors.
Visit CooperYoungFestival.com or call 276-7222.
And in Collierville, more than 20 area restaurants will participate in the 13th Annual Partners in Preservation Party & Taste of the Town on Collierville’s Town Square from 7 to 10 p.m. Tickets are $40 per person or $375 for a table of 10 and are available at the Main Street Collierville office located at 125 N. Rowlett Street in the Historic Train Depot.
Contact Main Street Collierville at 853-1666 or visit www.collierville.com/mainstreet.
In other food news, Brontë Bistro, the restaurant located inside Davis-Kidd Booksellers, 387 Perkins Extended, will host “Girls’ Night Out with Chanel” on Tuesday, September 20th. In addition to wine, appetizers, and desserts, guest will be able to preview Chanel’s new fragrance, Allure Sensuelle, compliments of Macy’s. The cost is $30 per person.
Call 683-9801.
Whitman Cellars and the Madison Hotel will team up to host a wine dinner Wednesday, September 21st at 7 p.m. at Grill 83 in the hotel, which is located at 79 Madison Avenue. The five-course, prix fixe menu will be paired with an array of Walla Walla Valley wines. The cost is $80 per person plus tax and gratuities.
Call 333-1354 for reservations.
