Chef Dinners & Truck Takeovers
We all know what happens if you give a mouse a cookie. But what happens when you
give a chef a farm? Well, we're all here to find out.
Turnbuckle approaches our farm dinners in a way which transforms the farm into a
dynamic venue and a blank canvas for the talented chefs and artisans in our
community. We invite area chefs to express their craft against the backdrop of our
beautiful, urban farm. In this way, each dinner is different, as the courses, beverages,
and format is up to the vision of the chef for each given dining experience. You might
find tickets for small, intimate, multi-course meals with intentional wine pairings,
tickets to raucous, free-flowing, family-style extravaganzas, or you may find your favorite chef churning out a-la-carte creations in our food truck—all depending on the vision,
style, and whimsy of the chef.
Farm to Table Dinner
w/
Travis McConnell
November 1st or 2nd
Celebrating the pig and the Fall harvest
Our Turnbuckle fall dinner is a celebration of the seasons, the changes of moving into cooler
weather, and cooking with great local foods. We have developed a menu that focuses on the
seasons produce, and cooking based on whole animal butchery. We have sourced a pig from
Bansley’s Berkshire farm, we’re gathering all the great Turnbuckle produce, and these will all
come together over fire to form a great meal for us all to break bread and enjoy.
A Bit About Travis McConnell
Travis received formal training at the New England Culinary Institute in Montpelier, VT. Before moving to Northwest Ark and working as a Chef with the Ropeswing Hospitality group he worked at well-known establishments around the country. These include the renowned Higgins bar & grill under Chef Greg Higgins, in Portland, OR, Boccalone Salumeria, in San Francisco’s ferry building owned by Chef Chris Cosentino, Revival Bar + Kitchen in Berkely, CA and the famed Capital Hotel in Little Rock.
It was at each of these businesses that he developed a love for cooking with the seasons, working with small family farms, and the craft of whole animal butchery & old-world meat curing. Chef Travis also developed his own whole animal - based business, Butcher & Public, which was developed with sustainability, supporting AR farmers and seasonal menus in mind. Having lived on both coasts and many locations in between, he was excited to settle in Bentonville, recognizing the vast potential for growth within the hospitality industry as well as a great platform to support local farms.
Travis has recently transitioned to the role of lead butchery instructor with the Brightwater culinary school and is working towards the launching of an Artisan Butchery Program that will open a retail shop based in working with local family farms, whole animal butchery and educating the future with craft butchery and charcuterie.
This is a truly unique dinner that you won't want to miss!
FAQs
Why should I come to a Chef Dinner? You'll get to try something new. You're still
going to receive the, "service" of someone harvesting, cooking, serving, and cleaning. It
takes the guesswork out of deciding, "what to order" it's already set. Allow yourself to
try something new with your dollars that supports locals directly. You're going to spend
the same amount of money on a dinner at the farm as you would on any other night out.
Who are the chefs? We work with a consortium of chefs in the area. Think of your
favorite local chef (and maybe mention them, too) from your favorite area restaurant.
We’ve worked with James Beard nominees, hometown heroes, butchers, bakers, and
up-and-comers who are eager to show off their talents. Our goal is to support chefs in
their growth, ambitions, and aspirations, by giving them a platform which allows them to
connect directly with their ingredients and their guests.
Are all the dinners similar in format? Absolutely not. Say you attend a Chef Dinner
and it’s not your favorite. That’s okay, if you don't like that dinner, or that time of year,
that's okay–try a new chef, a new season. This type of dining allows the chef to remove
the filter of their restaurant. You get this really direct voice from the chef, so it becomes
very personal. You also get unfettered access to the chef, you get to ask, and talk, and
converse, so you can understand more about their inspiration, and how their menu
came to life.
Where do these events take place on the farm? Anywhere! Our space holds
multitudes. You might find yourself in our open-air barn, gathered by our food truck,
tucked into a greenhouse, or parked by the creek which runs alongside the farm. The
location is dictated equally by input from the chef, and the seasons. (It’s also good to
keep in mind, these events take place on an operating farm–bring your farm shoes, and
appropriate attire.)
What will the chefs be cooking at one of these Chef Dinners? Whatever they want!
At the farm, chefs are free to play and express themselves to their fullest. What we love
about hosting chefs, is by taking them out of their typical surroundings, we find they
tend to tap into a freer creativity, allowing guests who may be familiar with their food, to
experience it in a new light.
Do you host Chef Dinners all year round? Yes! Though the seasons typically
influence the menus, we also work to preserve various ingredients from each season,
allowing the chefs to tap into more than one season for their menu. The beauty of this,
is even if you’ve attended an event on the farm with a chef, their next dinner will be
completely different, because the venue itself changes and evolves with the seasons.
Are all the ingredients for Chef Dinners grown on the farm? Typically, we work with
our chefs to use as much from our farm as possible. Beyond that, we also work to
ensure as many ingredients as possible are sourced locally.
Can I host a dinner at Turnbuckle? Absolutely! If you’re a chef interested in hosting a
dinner, or taking over our food truck, please email us at farmer@turnbuckle-farm.com.
Do you host corporate or private events? Yes! If you’re interested in hosting a
private event on the Farm, we can work with you to help find a chef to cook for you and
your guests. If you have an idea for a different type of event, we’d love to hear it. Please
email us at farmer@turnbuckle-farm.com.
​
Parking:
​