If you’re planning to attend the 16th annual Berkshire Grown Harvest Supper on Monday, September 15 at Butternut, you’d better make your reservation now. The event routinely sells out, but there are still a few tickets available.
About 300 paid guests attend the Harvest Supper, a number much more easily accommodated now that the event has moved to more spacious quarters at Butternut Ski Basin in Great Barrington. The sold-out event was held at Eastover in Lenox for 14 years, but as more and more people discovered this buoyant feeding frenzy on the third Monday of September, larger quarters were needed.
Close to 30 chefs representing restaurants from all over Berkshire County strut their stuff at the Harvest Supper. The theme, obviously enough, is “local and seasonal,” so dishes with tomatoes, corn, autumnal squash, and a large variety of greens show up frequently.
The feel of the Harvest Supper, with its focus on food and farmers, is unique. “Know Your Farmer” is the primary message, but “Thank You Chef” is close behind. In short, the dinner celebrates the connections between farmers and chefs, with eaters as the grateful beneficiaries. Most of the participants are restaurants, but Williams College and Guido’s are there, too.
Berkshire Grown is the pioneer in this type of dinner, just as it is a pioneer in the farm-to-table movement. When the event started in 1999, it was unique. Today, many organizations put on such a show, but Berkshire Grown’s is the longest running.
Peter Platt, chef-owner of The Old Inn on the Green in New Marlborough, has been an active member of Berkshire Grown “since before it was called Berkshire Grown,” as he reports. Along with Amy Cotler, the first director of Berkshire Grown, Platt “invented” the Harvest Festival. “We talked about inviting a bunch of restaurants,: and that’s how it started.”
Once again, Platt will serve his signature mushroom risotto at the Harvest Dinner. “It’s fun to be out there serving our regular customers, having the chance to interact with them one-on-one in that casual setting, something we can’t do at the restaurant,” says Platt.
Having the event in September is ideal because it allows farmers and chefs to celebrate the autumn harvest. As Daire Rooney, chef at Allium in Great Barrington, says: “The Harvest Supper represents community and strengthens the bonds between chefs and farmers who have just finished a hard and rewarding season together.”
The Harvest Festival is not just about showcasing farmers and chefs. About a quarter of Berkshire Grown’s annual budget comes from the underwriting of the event, and ticket sales. Tickets are $70 for Berkshire Grown members, and $80 for non-members. As Berkshire Grown director Barbara Zheutlin points out, though, “the cost of the evening is no more than the cost of a meal from a restaurant,” if you factor in beverages and gratuities for the latter.
Laura Meister is a filmmaker who became a farmer in Sheffield. Long before she joined the Berkshire Grown board, she enjoyed attending the Harvest Supper. She succinctly sums up the attraction of the evening with this comment: “It is such an inspiring assembly of enormously talented food-lovers, tastes, colors, and wonderful company. I think this is one of our best events for people to taste what Berkshire Grown is all about, and I’m very proud to be part of this Berkshire showpiece.” Amen.
