� House + Earth (1214 W. Sixth #120) hosts a party for Toys for Tots. Food from Manuel’s, drinks by Thirsty Planet Brewing Company and Grey Goose Vodka. Thursday, Dec. 9, 6-9pm.

� Black Star Co-op (7020 Easy Wind #100, 452-BEER,
www.blackstar.coop) celebrates its grand opening with activities including a family-friendly beer social (Friday, 6-9pm), a Texas Craft Brewers Mini-Festival (Saturday, 2-5pm), and a traditional Sunday roast (Sunday, noon-4pm) with a members-only photo opportunity (begins at 4pm).
Friday-Sunday, Dec. 10-12.

� Le Cordon Bleu (3110 Esperanza Crossing #100, 837-2665) holds its 10th annual Holiday Open House & Gingerbread Competi­tion with cooking demos, cookie-decorating seminars, photos with Chef Santa, and refreshments.
Call the school office for contest rules and details.
Saturday, Dec. 11, 10am-3pm.

� Spamarama fans will want to attend a reunion with a live set by the Secedars and a screening of clips from Spamarama: The Movie at the Alamo Ritz
(320 E. Sixth). Saturday, Dec. 11, 1pm.

� Petite Pêche & Co. owner Danika Boyle continues her salon-style dinner series inspired by the French Romantic era at Church House Studios (1161 Nickols). Make necessary reservations at
www.petitepecheandco.com. $70 per
person, BYOB. Saturday, Dec. 11, 7-10pm.

� Hosteria Verde Supper Club invites folks 21 and older to participate in Lunch Break at Aviary Lounge (2110 S. Lamar): juice-box cocktails and a cafeteria line of old-school favorites. $55-75; make reservations at www.hosteriaverde.com. Sunday, Dec. 12, 5pm.

� As part of the Folk and Fork History of Texas Foods series, Slow Food Austin hosts Chron­icle contributor Claudia Alarcón‘s presentation of A Brief History of Tamales followed by a sampling of local tamales at the Habitat Suites (500 E. High­land Mall Blvd.). RSVP to anneh@slowfoodaustin.org. Monday, Dec. 13, 7-9pm.

� Locavores Elizabeth Winslow and James Holmes invite you to a happy hour featuring local foods from Farmhouse Delivery (www.farmhousedelivery.com) on the patio at Olivia (2043 S. Lamar, 804-2700). Wednesday, Dec. 15, 5-7pm.

This article appears in December 10 • 2010.

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