Archives: Events

Carmel Valley is a beautiful place. Quiet and laid back, a world apart from the storybook lanes of its namesake town on the ocean but only about ten miles from the coast. After a transformative experience working the harvest in New Zealand, Greg and Sydney returned home to California’s Central Coast determined to start their own winery. Tira Nanza is the realization of that dream. Work in their vineyards is healthy and hands-on. Owls and hawks provide natural pest control; cows graze between the vine rows to chomp down weeds and improve soil health; organic and biodynamic sprays keep the fruit healthy and untainted. This is a beautiful place for a long table dinner, complemented with a meal from guest chef Ben Spungin. Ben has worked up and down the West coast at esteemed establishments like Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur and The French Laundry in Napa before starting Alta Group in Monterey, which includes Alta Bakery and his newest venture, Cella. Ben’s cooking highlights locally grown seasonal ingredients and bright flavors. An ideal match for Tira Nanza’s distinctive estate-grown wines like Viognier and Malbec Rosé.

A table in the clouds, high above the fog and surrounded by undulating grasslands exploding with wildflowers and some very happy grazing cows. This majestic ranch in Big Sur is perhaps our most extraordinary site to date — which is why we’re setting the table five times here this year. Our inaugural event comes with a meal from our good friend Matt Millea. An extraordinary site deserves an extraordinary chef, after all. Matt’s a Big Sur local who’s spent time in several celebrated kitchens including Post Ranch Inn and Big Sur Bakery. He’s also toured with us around the world as both an expeditor and chef, including two prior events at this secret locale. We can’t wait to see what he brings to the ocean bluffs this year.

Our second of five events this year at this majestic ranch along the towering cliffs of Big Sur — where rolling hills meet panoramic views of the Pacific and a particularly stunning sunset over the sea. On night two, we’ll have guest chef Clark Staub cooking in the clouds with us. He’s cooked nearly ten events with us over the years, including some of our most adventurous dinners. Clark is deeply committed to sourcing high-quality produce from local farmers and fisherpeople, so expect a menu rich with early summer produce and seafood, plus plenty of pastured beef from the ranch. Perhaps he’ll even cart his pizza oven up the cliffs.

The ‘Secret Sea Cove’ is a name guaranteed to provoke curiosity. What is the secret? You may be tempted to consult Google. Don’t do it! It’s good to be surprised. We’ve set the table in Bay Area sea coves nearly fifty times over the years, from Santa Cruz to San Francisco. We first came to this particular beach, near the town of Pescadero, last year. As always, Hans the fisherman will be there to point out all the different types of fresh-caught fish on the plate along with some tantalizing tales from his life at sea. And this time, the lauded chef in the beach kitchen is Rogelio Garcia. Rogelio was born in Mexico City and grew up between Los Angeles and Napa, where he started working in kitchens at the age of 15. He’s since worked at some of the Bay Area’s best restaurants, including The French Laundry, Calistoga Ranch, and Spruce, on top of competing on Bravo’s Top Chef. Now he’s the chef at Luce, the award-winning fine-dining restaurant in the InterContinental SF hotel. Expect a fish-forward feast of contemporary California cuisine with some European and Latin American flare. At the table, feel free to flip off your shoes and dig your toes into the sand — or you can always wear your bathing suit and take a dip between courses.

Belden Barns is outstandingly beautiful: thirty acres of organic vines, vegetables and fruit trees including stone fruit, citrus and cider apples. There’s also a live oak wishing tree at the center of the property where guests can hang wishes, hopes and dreams. Our host vintners craft an array of delicious wines with their estate-grown fruit, including Pinot Noir, Syrah and Sauvignon Blanc. We’ll sip several varieties alongside our meal from guest chef Jammir Gray. Jammir is a Northern California native who cooked at acclaimed restaurants across the country before joining the team at Compline, a Napa Valley wine bar and restaurant featuring locally sourced Mediterranean small plates — the perfect pairing for Belden Barns’ award-winning wines.

This olive ranch in Petaluma is about as stunning a spot for a table as they come. Between the rolling green hills, blossoming olive groves, and sweeping views of nearby vineyards, you might think you’re in Tuscany. Especially when you’re tasting through McEvoy’s award-winning single-varietal olive oils made in their on-site frantoio: a gigantic stone mill used to cold-press the olives. We will tour the property before we sit down among the olive trees for a feast from guest chef Yosuke Machida.  tour of the property before we sit down among the olive trees for a feast from guest chef Yosuke Machida. He’s the Executive Chef at A16, one of San Francisco’s most beloved Southern Italian restaurants and one we’ve worked with since 2006. Yosuke was born and raised in Tokyo and moved to the states in 2009 to pursue a career as a chef — working in some of the most celebrated kitchens in the Bay Area, including Ame and Leo’s Oyster Bar, before joining the team at A16 earlier this year. He’ll be joined by pastry chef Charlie Guyard in the field kitchen for a delectable meal featuring plenty of McEvoy Ranch olive oil, peak season vegetables and fruits, and locally reared meat and fish. A16’s owner Shelley Lindgren also happens to be one of the most respected voices on Italian wine in the country. Expect some fantastic pairings with the food!

We return for the third time to this acclaimed vineyard and winery in the heart of Napa Valley, where 200 acres of Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc, Zinfandel, Merlot, Muscat and other grape varieties are planted on sloping hills in the foreground of the Vaca Mountains. Not to mention olives, fruits and nuts. Robert Sinskey takes a soil-first approach to growing grapes, using regenerative organic farming practices that boost the health of their soil and the flavor of their fruit. A low intervention approach in the cellar means that all of these careful farming practices are reflected in the wines. We’ll dine between the vines with a meal from old friend Kim Alter of Nightbird. Chef Kim cooked her first OITF feast ten years ago at the Secret Sea Cove. Since then, she’s collected quite a few culinary accolades, including a James Beard nomination and a Top 100 Restaurants allocation from the Chronicle. She’ll cook up an extraordinary meal to pair with some extraordinary wine.

Markegard’s acres of golden pasture along the San Mateo coast come sprinkled with grazing cows and the faint sound of the Pacific ebbing below towering cliffs. Not to mention sweeping ocean views, a panoramic sunset, and a friendly bunch of chickens, pigs and lambs. The Markegards are very passionate ranchers who use regenerative grazing practices to boost the health of both their soil and their meat. And host ranchers Erik and Doniga will tell us all about it on our tour around the ranch. Then we’ll settle into an Indonesian-inspired meal from guest chef Siska Silitonga, a passionate ambassador for Indonesian cuisine. She is known for quite a few culinary ventures including a Michelin-recommended Indonesian restaurant, a slew of wildly popular pop-ups, a food truck at Google, and an award-winning jarred sambal hot sauce brand. She’ll cook us a flavorful feast featuring plenty of pastured meat from the ranch.