Last fall, acclaimed British chef and offal expert Fergus Henderson visited the city in a three day whirlwind publicity blitz for his book Beyond Nose to Tail, culminating in a blow out feast at The Spotted Pig. The dinner was a who's who of the food industry, with every person who's ever written about food or been written about (Waters, Pasternack, Portale, Knowlton, Cutlets, to name a few) filling the upper two floors of the Pig.
Well be prepared, because Henderson is going to make this an annual event. Fergie is coming to town to cook for Bette Midler's annual charity event Hulaween—this year's is honoring Alice Waters—on October 31. And while he's in the city, he'll be holding a follow up event at the Pig, which owner Ken Friedman is now calling the annual FergusStock.
The event will take place on Sunday night (the 2nd), a typical chef's night off. Like last year, Henderson will come up with the menu, do all the shopping with chef April Bloomfield and her team, and direct the kitchen operations—though Bloomfield et al will be doing the cooking. The menu will be a la carte and consist of half Henderson specials and half of the Pig's standard items (so regulars can still get their burgers and gnudi).
But what of the regulars? Will they be able to get in? Take it away Ken: "We decided to make it not private. We never shut down for events, and we don't take reservations. People will just show up and they might have to wait longer. Having said that any chef in town can get a table. The event is mainly for cooks and restaurant people, so we'll have loose reservations for them."
Henderson and Bloomfield are still hashing out a menu and Friedman hints that there could be some additional events to FergusStock. Stick around to see what's in store here.
· Three Days of Offal: Fergus Henderson Comes to NY [~E~]For more stories from Eater, go to eater.com.
