WestFest calling: WestFest, the annual festival that takes over Haywood Road in West Asheville with merriment, music and good eats, is seeking food and craft vendors for this year’s celebration, which will run from noon-7 p.m. on Saturday, April 3. For a registration form, visit www.ashevillewestfest.org or www.onhaywood.com, or stop by one of two Haywood Road businesses, Deluxe Retro-Modern or Burgermeister’s Kitchen and Tap.
Helping hand for food entrepreneurs: Blue Ridge Food Ventures, an initiative of AdvantageWest and the N.C. Department of Agriculture, is offering a state-of-the-art commercial food-processing center for use by caterers, bakers, farmers and other food entrepreneurs. The permitted kitchen offers convection ovens, juice pasteurizers, packaging and labeling equipment, ample refrigerator space and much more. For more information, contact BRFV director Mary Lou Surgi at 713-5722, or mlsurgi@awnc.org.
Grow your own: Tom Magruder, a specialist in growing organic food year-round, is hosting hands-on workshops that teach participants how to grow shiitake mushrooms in their own basements or backyards. The class will meet on two upcoming Saturdays, March 19 and April 2, from 9 a.m.-1 p.m., at the Synergy Center at 6 E. Lookout Road in Asheville. The cost per class is $65 in advance, $75 at the door, and includes a free shiitake mushroom log. For more information, call 296-1121, or e-mail Magruder at gourmetmushrooms@bellsouth.net.
A taste of Kenya: La Cuisine de l’Afrique catering company will host a new installment of its ongoing series of events featuring African cuisine, arts and culture. The event takes place at 5 p.m. on Sunday, March 20, at the Westville Pub in West Asheville, and will feature special guest Chef Faith Samuel of Kenya. For more information, call 225-9782.
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