Chefs for Equality at the National Building Museum
401 F St., NW
More than 150 DC chefs and food professionals gather at the Penn Quarter museum on Monday, October 30 to raise funds for the Human Rights Campaign, the country’s largest LGBTQ+ advocacy group. The sprawling event includes 40 tasting stations from new and established DC eateries, 20 individual cocktail bars, and 13 tables which are each overseen by its own group of high-profile chefs (including Oyster Oyster’s Rub Rubba, pastry chef Paola Velez, and Albi’s Michael Rafidi). Crazy Aunt Helen’s will put on a drag performance and a “speed diner” version of its popular weekend drag brunch. Tickets for the 6 PM event start at $325 and are available here.
Georgetown Wine & Dine at the Four Seasons
2800 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
For the second year in a row, California-based chef Michael Mina is hosting this weekend food-and-wine event at the Georgetown hotel that is home to his DC restaurant Bourbon Steak. The high-end event runs from Thursday, November 2 to Friday, November 3 and features master classes, “vinotherapy,” and an eight-course tasting menu at Bourbon Steak with dishes from guest chefs. Tickets start at $295, and a portion of the proceeds go toward cancer research at Sibley Memorial Hospital.
Jeremy Scheck at Politics and Prose
5015 Connecticut Ave., NW
Food TikToker and recipe writer Jeremy Scheck appears at the Forest Hills bookstore on Sunday, November 5 to discuss his new food-science-based cookbook ScheckEats. The 3 PM reading is free, with first come seating.
Sohla El-Waylly at Lincoln Theatre
1215 U St., NW
Chef and food personality Sohla El-Waylly will discuss her new book, Start Here: Instructions for Becoming a Better Cook, on Wednesday, November 8. El-Waylly, who gained recognition as on YouTube with Bon Appetit and Binging with Babish, structures each chapter around a basic culinary technique. Tickets are $30 and the event starts at 7:30 PM.
Capital Food Fight at the Anthem
901 Wharf St., SW
The 19th annual iteration of this Iron Chef-like fundraiser, hosted by José Andrés, takes place at the Anthem on Thursday, November 9. Tickets for the event, which benefits DC Central Kitchen, start at $325. Dozens of participating restaurants will set up tasting tables, while local chefs Rachel Bindel (Gravitas), Carlos Camacho (dLena), Ria Montes (Estuary), and Ed Reavis (Money Muscle Barbecue) compete using set ingredients. Judges include Top Chef‘s Tom Colicchio, New York chef Rocco DiSpirito, and former Nationals player Ryan Zimmerman. Doors open at 6 PM.
Fuschia Dunlop at Bold Fork Books
3064 Mount Pleasant St., NW
Fuschia Dunlop—author of some of the foremost English-language books on Chinese cooking—will discuss her latest, Invitation to a Banquet, at this Mount Pleasant cookbook shop on Thursday, November 9 at 7 PM. The book explores distinctive aspects of Chinese cooking through 30 banquet dishes, and Dunlop’s talk will be accompanied with bites from 50 Hertz Tingly Foods, a local Sichuan-pepper product company. Tickets start at $6.
Rock the Core at Hook Hall
3400 Georgia Ave., NW
On Saturday, November 11, taste more than 30 ciders and craft beers at this autumnal cider festival held at the roomy Park View bar. Tickets, starting at $24.99, buy you two and a half hours of unlimited cider sampling, plus live music. The event runs from 2 to 4:30 PM.
Mark Kurlansky at Politics and Prose
On Sunday, November 12, James Beard Award-winning author Mark Kurlansky, known for celebrated books on foodstuffs like salt and cod, will read from his latest work, The Core of an Onion: Peeling the Rarest Common Food, which includes more than 100 onion-y recipes. The 5 PM reading is free with first come seating.
Jon Bonné via Smithsonian Associates
Wine writer Jon Bonné has a new two-volume book on rule-breaking winemakers in France, The New French Wine: Redefining the World’s Greatest Wine Culture. Bonné will host an online seminar on Tuesday, November 14 to discuss the country’s changing wine culture. It runs from 6:45 to 8 PM and tickets are $20 for Smithsonian members and $25 for non-members. Politics & Prose is offering discounted copies of the book to ticket holders.
Maydan Cookbook Signing at Salt & Sundry
1625 14th St., NW
Rose Previte’s highly anticipated first cookbook draws on the cooking at Maydan, her acclaimed DC restaurant that incorporates flavors from North Africa, the Middle East, and the Caucasus. Next month, Previte takes the book on tour. There are several local events, including a book signing at this 14th Street boutique from 6 to 8 PM on Thursday, November 16.
Oyster Riot at Old Ebbitt Grill
675 15th St., NW
This wine-and-oyster-fest, always held the weekend before Thanksgiving, has become nearly as much of an institution as the 167-year-old restaurant that hosts it. At this year’s event, held on Friday, November 17 and Saturday, November 18, guests can sample more than two dozen oyster varieties, plus sip chablis, and hear a yacht rock tribute band. All-inclusive tickets go for $200, and sell out quickly. The party runs from 7 to 10 PM both nights; on Saturday, a “matinee” version runs from 1 to 4 PM.
