Welcome to November, everyone! We've got a lot of news and a bit of the holiday spirit settling in, so let's get down to it:
— Mike Braune of Secco Wine Bar fame is moving over to The Roosevelt to join Lee Gregory's team and we can't wait to see what he cooks up over there. (Style Weekly)
— Fire, Flour & Fork cooked up a storm last weekend with four days of food panels, demos, dinners and tastings. We spoke with some of our favorite out-of-town speakers about their favorite Virginia flavors. (Richmond magazine)
— Let's all cross our fingers for Michael C. Hild of Anderson's Neck Oyster Co., who's been tangled in red tape for two years to get his brewpub and oyster bar off the ground. The space in question, a building in Scott's Addition, is in both a bidding war and a bureaucratic cluster. (Richmond.com)
— Red Eye Cookie Co. might have some competition now that Campus Cookies, another late-night cookie delivery service, opened its brick-and-mortar location on West Grace Street this week. (Richmond BizSense)
— Meat eaters, rejoice! Harvest Grocery is adding a full-serving butchery case to its shop and though that won't be up and running until mid-January, you can sample some of the goods this weekend. (RVAnews)
— In other news, the Carytown Food & Wine Festival is canceled. Womp. (The Carytown Merchant's Association)
But don't worry, because we've got some great events this weekend!
— Head on out to the Children's Museum of Richmond tonight for Tricycle Gardens' 6th annual Harvest Celebration and Golden Trowel Awards, where Richmond magazine's associate publisher, Susan Winiecki, has been nominated in the "Focus on Community Needs" category. (Go Susan, go!) (Tricycle Gardens)
— On Saturday, scoot on over to Hardywood for the most wonderful time of the year: the Gingerbread Stout release party (though you could get in line tonight for a pre-release bottle if you're lucky). (Hardywood Park Craft Brewery)
— Richmond's first Graze on Grace event kicks off this Sunday with three blocks that will be jam-packed with samples from 25 of the city's best restaurants, all for $3 per plate. (Graze on Grace)
And now for a smattering of (inter)national food links:
— Here come the holidays! Take a deep breath and check out this modern guide to Thanksgiving etiquette, complete with playlist. (Bon Appetit)
— Cooking with expired goods is a thing of the past, but that doesn't mean it should be. Past-due ingredients can be used in a number of dishes, and could be just what your palate needed. (The New York Times)
— How much does it cost, on average, to feed a family? What about the average cost of feeding a family in every state in the country? There's an infographic for that, but you might not like the outcome; which is the cheapest state? Idaho. Which is the most expensive? Virginia. We're number one! We're number one! (First We Feast)
— The world's love of sushi is killing both marine life and the future sushi enjoyment of generations to come; we could very well be the last generation to consume quality sushi. (FoodBeast)
— A North Carolina man has eaten over 100 meals at Olive Garden in the last six weeks, all because of his $100 Never-Ending Pasta Pass. Salon's got an interview with the guy, who says "the consistency of the quality of food is fantastic." He is, truly, an American hero. (Salon)
— In more chain news, it was Drake's birthday recently and he celebrated at Dave and Busters. I don't get it, either. (Complex)
And with that, I'll virtually see you next week. Stay warm and stay hungry.