From Chefs Up Front to the Denver Flea, Twelve Tasty Events on the Culinary Calendar This Weekend

The Urban Farm at Stapleton needs your help this weekend. The farm is in the running for a Seeds of Change Grant, and an opportunity to win one big money — there are two $20,000 grants, five $10,000 grants and ten $1,000 grants — and all you need to do is visit seedsofchangegrant.com and vote for the Urban Farm at Stapleton. You can vote once a day, until voting ends on Sunday. After you've done that good deed, get out of the house and enjoy some of the food festivities this weekend, including the start of flea season, Bistro Vendome's celebration of Vincent Price and much more. Here's a taste of what's on the culinary calendar.

Friday, April 17  

The Denver Spring Flea is back and throwing a kick-off party from 6 to 11 p.m. tonight. The event is an all-you-can-eat-and-drink preview that will showcase some of the Flea's changes, starting with its new location at the Bindery on Blake. The Flea will feature more than 100 vendors, ten food trucks and Fleak Out!, a collaborative beer made by New Belgium. The official Spring Flea runs from noon to 7 p.m. For more, click here.  
  
Part of an ongoing "Cooking with Cannabis" series, Green Labs will host another sushi- and joint-rolling class today from 3 to 6 p.m. Just don't mix up the weed and wasabi. The class is limited to twenty guest; reserve your spot for $65 by clicking here.

Saturday, April 18

Co-owners Kate Kavanaugh and Josh Curtiss of Western Daughters Butcher Shoppe will be at the first Spring Flea of the season today, when they will be butchering a whole hog in a live demo. The duo will be breaking down a Cottonwood Creek Farms pig and giving out slices of helpful information on butchering starting at 4:30 p.m. at the Western Daughters booth.  All freshly-butchered meat will be available to buy after the demo. For more information on the Spring Flea, click here. 

Everybody Gets Leucky!, a benefit for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, will take place tonight at Mile High Spirits from 3 p.m. to 2 a.m. The benefit will feature live music, drink specials, dancing, giveaways, a corn hole tournament with a cash prize and more. If you can't make the event, you can still support the cause by making donations here.  

Head to Green Labs Denver to learn how to wake and bake properly today. The Coffee and Cannabis class will teach you to pair your morning—or anytime—coffee with the right strain. The two-hour class gets rolling at 10 a.m. this morning. The course is $40; you can register here. 

Lou's Food Bar is teaming up with Vindication Brewing Company for a weekend of beer brunches. Today and tomorrow they will be serving up a three-course meal with beer pairings for $30. The beer brunches at Lou's will continue with a different brewery on one select weekend each month. For more information, visit lousfoodbar.com. 

Cherokee Ranch and Castle will host a Farm-to-Table Dinner featuring food creations from Colorado local-food purveyors, a paired mixology menu by Bear Creek, bread from Colorado Bread Company, fresh produce from Daily Harvest Aquaponics and Venetucci Farm, and other locally sourced foods. Dinner will be served from 5 to 8 p.m. and reservations are $65; for more info, go to cherokeeranch.org.

Pubcrawls.com is holding a #YesWeCannabis PubCrawl today. With 4/20 festivities in full swing around Denver this weekend, this 4/20-inspired pub crawl will give fellow stoners a chance to mingle and explore Denver while enjoying a few libations. Participants must register at 1515 Restaurant between 3 and 10 p.m. today, then can enjoy drink specials at eight LoDo watering holes until 2 a.m. Admission is $4.20 in advance online or $10 the day of the event; for information and tickets, visit pubcrawls.com. 

Sunday, April 19 


Make sure your pre-4/20 brunch will keep you lifted into Monday: Green Labs Denver is holding a Hash and Hash Browns stoner brunch today starting at 10 a.m. During this two-hour class, students can sip mimosas and snack on breakfast items while learning about the different types of extractions. The brunch is $50; register here.

Taste of Pearl will be offering samples from some of Boulder's best restaurant's today from 2 to 6 p.m. Each participating restaurant will prepare a small sample plate, which will be paired with a Colorado winery, and each tasting will be offered at a downtown Boulder boutique or gallery. You'll receive a map at check-in that will guide you on the food-filled foray. Tickets are $75; get them, and more information, here.

James Beard award-winning pastry chef Johnny Iuzzini and emcee Keegan Gerhard will take the helm at this years Chefs Up Front, an annual fundraiser for Cooking Matters, a program of Share Our Strength, which strives to eliminate child hunger through its No Kid Hungry campaign. The event will feature several prominent speakers, a raw bar from Seattle Fish Co., a pig-intensive charcuterie spread and a multi-course meal prepared by thirty of Colorado's top chefs. Things get cooking starting at 5:30 p.m. at the Colorado Convention Center. Tickets are $300 per person; get yours here.

Bistro Vendome will be hosting a special Vincent Price Dinner tonight at 6:30 p.m. This five-course meal, prepared by chefs Adam Branz and Joe Pothier, is inspired by Price’s 1965 cookbook, A Treasury of Great Recipes. Price's daughter Victoria will be in attendance and signing copies of the book. The dinner is $95 or $125 for with wine pairings. For reservations, call 303-825-3232.    

For information on dozens of culinary events around town, visit our online Food & Drink listings — and if you have information for a culinary event you'd like included in our online calendar, send it to [email protected].

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