Ellwoood Thompson’s Local Market wants to take you on a grand tour of the surrounding countryside. On Saturday, June 17, from 11 a.m.-6 p.m., you can take a drive to Broadfork Farm where a shuttle will be waiting for you to whisk you away for its second annual Farm Tour Cookout. First up is Tricycle Urban Ag, the former Tricycle Gardens, at Bainbridge and West Ninth streets. Milk mustaches will abound at Avery Branch Farms, where dairy cows, beef cattle, pigs and chickens live out their farmland dreams on its pastures. At Casselmonte Farm, the next stop, the organic abundance of its fruits and vegetables will give you a preview of the cookout to come back at Broadfork, prepared by Heritage and Southbound’s Joe Sparatta, Mike Ledesma of Richmond Restaurant Group and Ellwood Thompson’s chef Todd Johnson. reallocalrva.com/event/2nd-annual-farm-tour-cookout.
On Saturday, June 17, from noon-8 p.m., Ardent Craft Ales will be whooping it up at its third annual Block Party that gets bigger every year. Ardent shuts down the street and you can expect live music, food trucks and, naturally, boatloads of beer. ardentcraftales.com.
There’s plenty going on for Father’s Day — just ask your dad. They keep saying the bacon trend is on its way out and yet every year it stands its ground. Why? Because it’s bacon, people — it’s the stuff known to make even vegetarians break down and cry. The 17th Street Farmers’ Market will double down on our favorite part of the pig at the Richmond Bacon Festival on Sunday, June 18, from noon-5 p.m. and prove even bacon is better with bacon. $1 suggested donation. enrichmond.org/events/bacon-festival.
If you want to take your dad somewhere new, you can shoot over to Hardywood Park Craft Brewery for its Father’s Day Keg ‘n’ Oyster Fest on Sunday, June 18, from noon-6 p.m. Rappahannock Oyster Co. will provide bivalves from the Chesapeake Bay — raw and fried — along with its signature crab cakes held together only with Duke’s mayonnaise, along with food trucks and Hardywood’s signature Oyster Stout. hardywood.com.
Does your father perhaps gravitate to a casual yet upscale experience? Has he been to Quirk Hotel yet? He can get a new perspective, plus plenty of beer and seafood at Maple & Pine’s Father’s Day Rooftop Boil and Brew. It’s a 360-degree view of the city, plus food and brews for $25. facebook.com/mapleandpine.
Some people just aren’t that into seafood. If this is the case, Center of the Universe Brewing Co. in Ashland has got you covered. It’s the third time around for the brewery, and it’s got this event down. The Annual Dad’s Day Pig Out starts at noon on Father’s Day and, along with its own brews, Firehouse BBQ will roast whole pigs on site. Tickets include a Dad’s Day Pig Out mug filled with beer and a brimming plateful of pork from Firehouse BBQ. $20. cotubrewing.com.
Look, you know and I know that we’ve waiting for this all year. Yes, this very publication sponsors RVA Burger Week, but that in no way diminishes its importance from June 19-25. Richmond restaurants will pull out the stops, and you can try burgers such as the recently opened Eleven Months’ El Once with queso fresco, smoked tomato bacon jam (bacon!) and romaine or the Savory burger made with Black Angus chuck roast, brisket and short ribs, with Gouda cheese and smoked tomato aioli at the Savory Grain. New trend: smoked tomatoes as a condiment? rvaburgerweek.com.
