We’re celebrating history this week with a quartet of fun events to consider adding to your culinary-adjacent calendar. Set the Wayback Machine, Sherman!
Les Dames d’Escoffier Nashville has offered some entertaining educational seminars over the past few years, and now they are setting their sights on some important issues with regard to diversity, equity and inclusion. The organization has announced a series of three upcoming symposia on the topic Desegregating Nashville’s Food Scene. Funded in part by a grant from the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee, these presentations support Les Dames’ mission to provide an inclusive culture within the hospitality industry.
The three in-person symposia are:
Saturday, March 26: Noon-2 p.m. — Nashville's Food History: How Race Played and Continues to Play a Role
Saturday, April 23: Noon-2 p.m. — Integrating Your Business: Bringing Inclusion to the Front and the Back of the House
Saturday, May 21: Noon-2 p.m. — Practice Radical Hospitality: Welcoming Black and Brown People into White Businesses and White People into Black and Brown Businesses
Events include brunch, a brunch cocktail, presentation, mini-workshop and takeaway materials.
All the events will take place at Yay Yay's on Jefferson at 1821 Jefferson St., and you can buy tickets for the whole series or just individual seminars at the event’s Eventbrite page.
Not nearly as serious is Von Elrod’s Beer Hall and Kitchen’s annual holiday mashup, Von Patrick’s Day, coming up on Thursday, March 17, from 2 to 10 p.m. The party will feature steins of green beer, eight bars scattered across the campus, drink specials, food trucks, a best-dressed contest and music from the Spazmatics and DJ Guy Fell.
Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 day of the show. No refunds. No re-entry.
This is a 21+ event. You will need a valid ID for entry. It's also a cash-free event, so bring your card for payment. Buy an extra beer with the five bucks you save by getting your tickets in advance.
The Listening Room Cafe is celebrating its own personal history — specifically its sweet 16th anniversary — with a full day and night of free live shows beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 19. Its current home at 618 Fourth Ave. S. is actually the third location the peripatetic listening room has had over the years, starting out in Cummins Station before moving to a spot just off Broadway in SoBro before settling in at the corner of Fourth and Elm.
The free celebration will take place both inside the venue and outdoors on the patio all afternoon until regular ticketed public shows resume at 6 and 8 p.m. In addition to their regular menu offerings, the venue will be serving up special St. Patrick’s Day-inspired dishes and $25 bottomless drafts. That must be one big mug!
While the history of Andrew Jackson’s home, The Hermitage, is ... let’s just say complicated, the grounds are a lovely place to host an event. On Saturday, April 9, from 2 until 5 p.m., The Hermitage will team up with the Tennessee Whiskey Trail for A Sip of History, an afternoon of whiskey, wine and beer samples on the grounds of The Hermitage. Each ticket includes access to the 1,120 acres of the grounds, including a historic garden, wildlife, walking paths, historical markers and more. Well-behaved pups are also welcome at this dog-friendly event.
Participating distilleries include:
Jack Daniel’s
Old Forge Distillery
Old Glory Distilling
Nashville Craft Distillery
Ole Smoky
Tennessee Legend
King’s Family Distillery
George Dickel
Post Modern Spirits
Nelson’s Greenbrier Distillery
Uncle Nearest
Pennington Distilling Co.
Old Dominick
Chattanooga Whiskey
Leiper’s Fork Distillery
Corsair Distillery
Gate Eleven Distillery
Short Mountain Distillery
Prichard’s Distillery
Big Machine Distillery
Old Tennessee Distilling Co.
Knox Whiskey Works
Nashville Barrel Company
Sugarlands Distilling Co.
Company Distilling
Lost State Distilling
B.R. Distilling Company
Tickets are $60 for Hermitage members and $70 for non-members and are available at the Hermitage website.
