Events

Food writer and blogger Tara Austen Weaver shares her uproarious, firsthand account of what happens when a lifelong vegetarian enters the mysterious world of Chateaubriands, London Broils, and osso buco style cuts... and the men who spend their days working with them.   Growing up in a family that kept jars of bean sprouts on its windowsill before such things were desirable or hip, Weaver never thought she'd stray from vegetarianism. But as an adult, she found herself in poor health, and, having tried cures of every kind, a doctor finally ordered her to eat meat. Warily, she ventured into the butcher shop, and as the man behind the counter wrapped up her first-ever chicken, she found herself charmed. Eventually, he dared her to cook her way through his meat counter. As Tara navigates through this new world -- grass-fed beef vs. grain-fed beef; finding chickens that are truly free-range --  she's tempted to give up and go back to eating tempeh. The more she learns about meat and how it's produced, and the effects eating it has on the human body and the planet, the less she feels she knows. She embarks upon a sometimes hilarious, sometimes frightening whirlwind tour that takes her from slaughterhouse to chef's table, from urban farm to the hearthside of cow wranglers. Along the way, she meets an unforgettable cast of characters who all seem to take a vested interest in whether she opts for turnips or T-bones. Tara Austen Weaver is an award-winning writer whose work focuses on the themes of food, travel, art, and adventure. Her writing has been published in Edible San Francisco, on Chow.com, and in numerous anthologies. Her food blog, Tea and Cookies, was selected by the Times of London as one of the top food blogs in the world.