Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Straight from the Farm
184
Outstanding in the Field
Jim Denevan's Moveable Feast
Around the World
Talk about farm-to-table fresh: How about
a table-on-farm feast? When Jim Denevan
sets up his long white linen-draped table in
a farmer's field, shaded by huge white
parasols, the lucky guests know they are in
for an experience like no other. It's way
beyond a picnic—a high-end five-course al
fresco dinner cooked on-site by an invited
guest chef who uses only the most local
ingredients, most of them grown on the
ground right under the table.
Author of the cookbook
Outstanding in
the Field,
Denevan has been putting
together these moveable feasts since
1999. They begin around 4pm with a tour
of the host farm (or ranch, or vineyard),
then progress to a 3- or 4-hour dinner
served family style with paired wines. It's a
prix-fixe, set menu affair, with proper crys-
tal glasses and cutlery, linen napkins, cut
flowers in little vases, and a wonderful set
of mismatched vintage china. Later in the
year, when the sun sets earlier, there may
even be candlelight. The table seats 130
people, and the guest list always includes
local farmers, winemakers, and other pro-
ducers—the butcher, the baker, and per-
haps the goat-cheese maker whose food
you'll be eating. Menu? You'll just have to
trust the guest chef—it all depends on the
season, the local climate, and of course
what crops the host farmer decided to
plant this year.
What began as informal outdoor din-
ners on small organic farms around Dene-
van's hometown of Santa Cruz, California,
gradually morphed into a sophisticated
catering operation. At first, Denevan him-
self was the usual chef, but as the word
spread, more and more local chefs begged
for the chance to show off their chops.
(Guest chefs in the past have included
well-known cooks like Justin Severino,
Melissa Kelly, Gabrielle Hamilton, Dan
Barber, Traci des Jardins, Kathy Cary,
David Kinch, Eric Tucker, Paul Kahan, and
Bill Telepan—it makes a great day out
for a working restaurant chef.) Though
only 14 of these classy farm dinners
took place in 2007, by the 2008 season
Denevan's unique program had gained
word-of-mouth excitement, and 37 din-
ners were a sold-out success. All across
North America, the staff cruised from site
to site on a red-and-white 1950s-vintage
tour bus. Check the website for this sea-
son's schedule—they run from early
June into November, when the last crops
are available. Whether you're dining on
roast suckling pig, barbecued beef, fish
grilled right on the beach, tender aspara-
gus, flash-boiled corn on the cob, a salad
of heirloom tomatoes still sun-warmed
from the vine, or a cobber of fresh-picked
berries swimming in freshly churned
cream, it will be an evening you'll never
forget.
Outstanding in the Field,
P.O. Box
2413, Santa Cruz, CA 95063-2413 (www.
outstandinginthefield.com).
