Powerhouse Chefs Come Together For One-Night-Only Vegetarian Feast

From September 30 to October 3, nonprofit organizations EatDenver and the GrowHaus will host their seventeenth annual Harvest Week fundraiser at Ironton Distillery and Crafthouse. Like last year, tickets to this intimate and highly anticipated event have sold quickly, and some dinners are already fully booked.

But per the norm, vegetarian night still has several seats available — though by no means should it be overlooked. The dinner, on Tuesday, October 1, boasts an incredible lineup of local chefs including Penelope Wong of Yuan Wonton, which was recently featured in the NYT list of “America's Fifty Best Restaurants"; Peter McTiernan of Dio Mio, an eatery recommended in Colorado’s first and second Michelin guide editions; and Brendan Bailey of Root Down, which has participated in Harvest Week for many years.

“What makes Harvest Week truly special is the spirit of collaboration," says Bailey. "Chefs from different restaurants come together, not confined to their own stations but working side-by-side to plate each course” — which totals five per meal, each served family style.

During Harvest Week, all the dishes made by participating chefs must incorporate at least one Colorado-sourced ingredient. Kristen Rauch, executive director of EatDenver, explains, “The ethos of Harvest Week is rooted in supporting an intersectional community food system, inclusive of our vegetable producers and purveyors.”
While historically, vegetarian night has seen less demand than the event’s meat-inclusive dinners, Rauch believes it’s an important inclusion. “Vegetarian night allows inclusivity for those with plant-based diets or cultural considerations, but also helps elevate our seasonal bounty and agricultural product that is not federally subsidized or as celebrated as its meat counterparts.”

GrowHaus executive director Giselle Díaz Campagna adds, “Vegetarian night is a priority for us because it aligns perfectly with our mission of promoting healthy, accessible food choices and supporting sustainable agriculture.”

The vegetarian menu is also a special treat for guests. According to Rauch, “This night is often the most creative from a kitchen and culinary perspective, as chefs can rely less on robust flavors from beef or lamb. What does a main course look like when squash is center stage? The result, in this case, is khao soi wontons in a rich vegetable broth.”

This decadent third course will be made by Wong, a James Beard Award finalist and owner of Yuan Wonton. A strict vegetarian for more than eighteen years, Wong says that she’s always favored a plant-forward diet and loves to showcase that in her cooking — which at Yuan Wonton, also often emphasizes her Asian American upbringing.
“Khao soi is one of my favorite dishes that perfectly embodies my Chinese-Thai heritage," Wong notes. "We’ll be making a new vegan wonton using Black Futsu squash, kuri squash, Black Hubbard and honeynut from our friends at Minoru Farm.” Yuan Wonton also sourced spicy chile peppers from Minoru and Switch Gears Farm, which will be pickled and used to garnish the dish.

The Root Down team will oversee the evening’s second course. “We plan on serving a large family-style plate of beautifully grilled, roasted and preserved local produce drizzled with a briny charred scallion and caper salsa verde,”  says Bailey, adding that the vegetables will be sourced from Spin Farms and Edible Beats’ own Beatbox Farms. “I can't wait to see what our farmers drop for us next week, but I know there will be dragon tongue beans, heirloom tomatoes and some really tasty sweet Japanese chilies."

Chefs from the Plimoth, SAME Cafe and Gladys will also participate in vegetarian night. In total, 24 independently owned Colorado restaurants will be showcased during Harvest Week — as will twelve regional farms.

Tickets are priced at $178.85 per person and event revenue is equally shared between the two beneficiary organizations. Rauch explains that for EatDenver, proceeds fund its educational and collaborative programming, which is tailored to the regional independent food and beverage community. EatDenver also acts as a small business advocate, provides financial resources and promotes a more resilient and equitable local food system.
Similarly, on a bi-weekly basis, the GrowHaus provides regionally sourced and culturally relevant foods to 5,000 people across the metro Denver area. “The urgency of this work cannot be understated, as one in nine Coloradans are food insecure — and one in five Latino persons — as recently reported by Food Bank of the Rockies," notes Díaz Campagna. “The GrowHaus hires members of the community to lead food access and education programs to provide economic and wealth-building opportunities for neighbors to disrupt the root causes of food insecurity.”

Harvest Week also donates 1 percent of ticket sales to Zero Foodprint, which redistributes those funds into grants for regenerative agriculture and healthy soil initiatives. “Some of those regenerative farms, local to Colorado, are direct recipients of those grants and have ingredients that will be sourced at Harvest Week — the circular economy in action," says Rauch.

Tickets to Harvest Week can be purchased online via OpenTable. Each dinner begins at 6 p.m. at Ironton Distillery and Crafthouse, 3636 Chestnut Place.