Food Community Helps Second Bar + Kitchen Chef

Austin Food + Wine Festival fire pit deets, drink.well's anniversary menu, and more afternoon bites.

The Austin restaurant community is pulling together to help a Second Bar + Kitchen chef and her family recoup after they lost their home and belongings in a February fire. This Saturday (Feb. 27) between noon-6pm, reps from 25 local eateries will be teaming up for a bake sale under the former Restaurant Congress awning located by Caffe Medici. Participating chefs and restaurateurs include Second’s Michelle Arcilla Hall and Maggie Dickerson, Parkside Project’s Erica Waksmunski, Emmer & Rye’s Tavel Bristol-Joseph, Travaasa Spa’s Blanca Zesati and Ben Baker, Isla’s Roman Murphy, Wyeth Patisserie’s Caitlin Wyeth, Boiler Nine Bar + Grill’s Jason Stude and Emily Maddy, Dulcina’s Monica Paredes, Crave Chocolate’s Krystal Craig, Sweetish Hill Bakery’s Chrissy Eason, Apis Restaurant & Apiary's Mike St. Germain, Callie Speer of Geraldine’s, Yard Bar's John Workman, Elizabeth St. Cafe's Sara Berger, Natalie Gazaui of Perla’s and Clark's Oyster Bar, JW Marriott's Howard Porter, Cedar Door's Will Eason, Wu Chow's C.K. Chin, Love Bird Sweets' Elaine Schiff and Denise Nuernberger, Ramen TatsuYa's Takuya Matsumoto, and perennial favorite Philip Speer. Reos from Hotel Granduca, Launderette, Olamaie, Jeffrey's, and Josephine House will also be participating. This who cannot make it to the sale can donate through the GoFundMe page.

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Austin’s commitment to upgrading the convenience store continues with the opening of Graceland Grocery at 8600 Highway 290. The store/ bar/ event space is from FBR Management (Mean Eyed Cat, Rattle Inn, The Wheel) and Mike Farr of Nutty Brown Cafe. Temptations include Stubb's BBQ breakfast tacos, pastries, and barbecue (natch), a draft selection of 20 beers, two playscapes, corn hole, and a volleyball court. A dog park is planned for later in the year. To celebrate the opening, guests can enjoy $2 pulled pork sandwiches tomorrow, Feb. 25.

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The Austin Food + Wine Festival has announced a few more details for their fifth annual foodapalooza. This year’s fire pit schedule has been set with Ned Elliot (Foreign and Domestic), Jack Gilmore (Jack Allen’s Kitchen), Paul Qui (qui), and Blaine Staniford (Grace, Little Red Wasp) manning the pits on the first day, Saturday, Apr. 23. On Sunday, Brian Moses (Contigo), Bryce Gilmore (Barley Swine, Odd Duck), and Kent Rathbun (Abacus, Hickory, Jasper’s) will be on fire, with Jack Gilmore returning to his station. As an extra treat, Jackson Family Estates, Charles Smith Winery, and other guests will be on hand to pour pairings.

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To celebrate their fourth anniversary, drink.well will be revisiting previous menus for a week. Favorites like Royale with Ease (from their opening 2012 menu), Slow & Unsteady (Winter 2015), and Scotman’s Holiday (Summer 2013) will be offered as a daily treat from Tuesday, March 1- Saturday, March 5, leading up to an all night happy hour of throwbacks on Sunday, March 6. Birthday cake Twinkies will, of course, be served all week.

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Veracruz All Natural is in the running for food truck taco of the year from industry site MobileCuisine.com, competing against taco trucks in places like Pittsburgh and Boston that probably substitute tortillas for hoagie rolls. Vote until Friday, March 4 here.