Food & Drink: Ridgefield’s table set for farm-fresh feast
By Rachel Pinsky
Published: August 9, 2019, 6:02am
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Diners take over South Main Avenue in Ridgefield one night a year for the Farm to Table event. Contributed by Ridgefield Farm to Table
Ridgefield’s Overlook Park, perched above the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge and Lake River, is the perfect place for a summer farm-to-table dinner.
That’s exactly what Jessica Kipp, community relations specialist for the city of Ridgefield, and Jessica Turpeinen, owner of A Merry Heart Events, thought while attending an event there many years ago. Kipp’s boss loved the idea and Ridgefield’s annual Farm to Table dinner was born. This year — its fifth — the dinner takes place Aug. 17.
The city recently added an amphitheater and a brick plaza to Overlook Park, where Ridgefield’s farmers market convenes in the summer. It’s the ideal gathering place to celebrate the city’s natural bounty.
“There’s a lot of new people coming to Ridgefield,” Kipp said. “This event brings them downtown so they can meet their neighbors, make new friends and build community.”
The evening begins at 6 p.m. in the plaza with live music provided by local favorite, Faisal and Mitch. Mayor Don Stose will give a brief speech thanking everyone for attending this community event.
Crave Catering’s Mark Lopez attended last year’s Farm to Table dinner and was so impressed that he asked Kipp if he could cater the next one.
In order to win the bid to cater this event, a chef must propose a menu that showcases locally grown produce. Lopez built his menu around produce from his farm in Ridgefield (Gather and Feast), Red Truck Farm (also in Ridgefield) and Flat Tack Farm on the Heathen Estate in Brush Prairie.
Admission comes with one free glass of wine or beer. The wine flows from local wineries such as Gouger, 3 Brothers, Bethany, Confluence and Koi Pond. Trap Door Brewing, which just broke ground on a tap room in Ridgefield’s Pioneer Village, will sell pints of beer. Strawberry mint water, lemonade and iced tea are free.
After hors d’oeuvres and happy hour, guests are seated at long, communal tables covered in white tablecloths with a vibrant line of fresh flowers running down the middle.
A five-course family style dinner begins at 7 p.m. with refreshing gazpacho shots and a green salad with heirloom tomatoes, quick pickled cucumbers and marinated Walla Walla onions in a roasted garlic vinaigrette.
Next up are seasonal vegetables with romesco dip, grilled short ribs with an Oregon blackberry chimichurri and crispy onions, and a vegetarian summer squash frikadellar (the Danish version of a fritter).
Dessert is a honey spiced cake with goat cheese frosting, Oregon berry chutney and bourbon caramel sauce served with coffee and hot tea.
If You Go
What: Ridgefield Farm to Table.
When: 6 to 10 p.m. Aug. 17.
Where: Overlook Park, South Main Avenue and Pioneer Street, Ridgefield.
Admission: Tickets for this 21-and-over event are $75 per person and are available through eventbrite.com.
After dinner, guests can wander around the plaza lit with the golden glow of firefly-like Edison lights while gazing at the stars and listening to the music of Faisal and Mitch.
The generosity of volunteers makes the event possible. Clark College’s softball team will be assisting the city’s two staff members this year. Bring sunglasses and a sweater or coat, Kipp said, because Overlook Park gets a bit chilly and windy as the sun sets.
Rachel Pinsky can be emailed at couveeats@gmail.com. You can follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram @couveeats.
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