Farm to Table dining event highlights importance of locally sourced foods
Farm to Table diners were seat at a long table in the middle of East Flaget to enjoy a seven-course meal highlighting locally sourced foods. Photo courtesy Bardstown Main Street.
By SYLVIA HORLANDER
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio
Friday, June 30, 2017 — A new dining event in Bardstown was a unique and appetizing hit that placed guests in the middle of East Flaget Avenue on Saturday evening June 24th.
Lisanna Byrd, executive director of Bardstown Main Street, talks about the inaugural Farm to Table event while intern Kelsey Lyon, looks on. Photo by Sylvia Horlander.
Tickets were $75 per person, and the proceeds go to help fund activities of the Bardstown Main Street program. Lisanna Byrd, Bardstown Main Street executive director, said that Farm to Table will be an annual event.
“Next year’s event is going to be bigger and better,” she said. “We didn’t want to bite off more than we could chew, because this is our first year for the event. We want to make sure we did the first year right and that everyone enjoys themselves.”
Byrd said preparing for the new event was an interesting process.
“It’s been a learning process, and it’s been wonderful,” she said.
The dinner was a collaborative effort with Bardstown Main Street’s board of directors, its committee members, sponsoring downtown businesses, local farmers, vendors, and volunteers.
The idea for the Farm to Table event was brought to the promotion committee for several years, according to Byrd. “We are excited that it’s finally happened,” she said.
Giants Across the Water performed during the Farm to Table event. From left, Nathan Bowman, Hannah Bowman and Katie Hardin. Photo courtesy Bardstown Main Street.
For next year’s event, Byrd said she wants to increase the number of tickets, as well as partner with more local restaurants and farmers in the community.
“I think it’s really important to give back to the farmers who grow the food that we eat.”
Kelsey Lyon, an intern working with the Main Street program, assisted in coordinating the dinner and worked with vendors.
Farm to Table celebrates locally sourced food, all of which was prepared by Chef Tom Mackinnon of The Old Talbott Tavern. Mackinnon has worked across the United States and overseas in Europe.
Dinner was served with a glass of wine from McIntyre’s Winery. The menu was filled with seven courses, including: Beef Tenderloin with Raspberry Vinaigrette, Turnip Puree and Chive; Fennel Pork Sausage with Bacon Marmalade, Smoked Hock Collard Greens and Yellow Pepper; Lettuce Wrapped in English Cucumber with Curried Deviled Egg, Pickled Beet and Green Tomato; Pork Belly Wellington with Cranberry Demi and Vegetables; Smoked Gouda Grits with Saute Red Pepper and Onion topped with Shaved Country Ham; Fig & Apple Stuffed Pork Loin with Potato Rosette flavored with Cinnamon Fire Sauce; and for dessert, Blueberry Strudel Tart topped with Salted Bourbon Caramel Sauce. *The beef, pork and vegetables were provided by Reid Farms. A family farm, the Reid family conversed with diners—explaining the benefits and importance of local foods and farms.
Before guests sat down to the prepared seven-course meal, they mingled under the Bardstown Farmer’s Market Pavillion during cocktail hour, with the option to take an unlimited amount of pictures at a photo booth.
Diners could also feast their eyes on a picture of the dinner painted by local watercolor artist Jon Walker. To add to the ambiance, the event was accompanied with music from The Giants Across the Waters during the cocktail hour and the dinner.
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