Places to get your Crave on this June
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May 8: Cristal Champagne dinner presented by Best Buy Wine & Spirits of Camarillo, 6:30 p.m. at Eric's Restaurant in Newbury Park. 484-4343.
May 8: Tony Plana of "Ugly Betty" will be joined by restaurants ranging from Barney's Beanery to Zushi during the Pasadena YMCA's second annual restaurant fundraiser, 6 to 9 p.m. at the Pasadena Convention Center. 626-432-6839.
May 10: National Letter Carriers Food Drive Day. Donate by putting out bags of non-perishable food items with your mail on this day.
May 10: Organizational meeting for Eat Local One Year: Be the Change Ojai will take place 7 p.m. at the Ojai home of Kristofer and Joanne Young. The Youngs hope to inspire 100 people to join them in an "eat-local" project slated to begin in January 2008. Call 798-1858.
May 10: Santa Barbara Wine Futures event features 35 wineries pouring current and future-release vintages, 6:30 to 9 p.m. at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse, http://www.elementsrestaurantandbar.com.
May 10-11: Mother's Day-themed three-course dinner served at C-Street Restaurant in the Crowne Plaza Ventura Beach. 648-2100 or http://www.cpventura.com
May 11: Mother's Day Champagne brunch served in the penthouse ballroom at the Crowne Plaza Ventura Beach. 648-2100 or http://www.cpventura.com
May 11: Mother's Day celebrations include choice of regular or special three-course menus, 5 to 9:30 p.m. at Brooks in downtown Ventura, 652-7070 or http://www.restaurantbrooks.com
May 11: LearnAboutWine.com presents Sunday School: Excellence in Champagne, 3 to 5:15 p.m. in Los Angeles. 310-451-7600.
May 12: Farm dinner features Phil McGrath of McGrath Family Farms, 7 p.m. at Tierra Sur at Herzog Wine Cellars in Oxnard. 983-1560.
May 13: Rosenthal the Malibu Estate featured during a five-course winemaker dinner at Brooks in downtown Ventura, 652-7070 or http://www.restaurantbrooks.com
May 17: Free barbecue cooking class/workshop, 10:30 a.m. at Stuart's Barbecue & Fireplace Design Center in Oxnard, 485-0535.
May 16-18: Paso Robles Wine Festival, billed as California's largest outdoor wine tasting, is presented by the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance, http://www.pasowine.com.
May 18: Extreme Cult Cabernet event presented by LearnAboutWine.com features Harlan Estate, Opus One, Scarecrow, Screaming Eagle and others, 4 to 6 p.m. at STK LA. 310-451-7600.
May 18: "Chic & Easy" show starring Mary Nolan premieres on the Food Network. Check local listings for time and channel.
May 20: Members of the Santa Barbara chapter of the American Institute of Wine & Food meet at 6:30 p.m. in the library room of Ruth's Chris Steak House in Santa Barbara. Event includes dinner and two glasses of wine. 565-3013 or http://www.aiwf.org.
May 21: Farmer Dinner features Tomai Family Farms, 6:30 p.m. at The SideCar Restaurant in Ventura, http://www.thesidecarrestaurant.com.
May 21-25: Cooking classes, new menu items and an outdoor feast focus on the culture and cuisines of Thailand during special events at Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village, 818-575-3000.
May 26: "Top Chef Season 5" casting call takes place 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Cicada Restaurant in Los Angeles, http://www.bravotv.com/casting
May 30: Chefs, restaurateurs and designers join forces to present Tables for Ten: Dining for a Cause at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood. 310-289-2534.
JUNE 2008
June 1: Casa Pacifica Angels 15th annual Wine & Food Festival, 1 to 5 p.m. on the California State University at Channel Islands campus in Camarillo. http://www.cpwineandfoodfestival.com.
June 1: Zaca Mesa wines featured during a WINO (Wine Investigation for Novices and Oenophiles) dinner at Eric's in Newbury Park. 484-4196.
June 1: More than 40 Los Angeles chefs (and their restaurants) will offer samples during Share Our Strength Taste of the Nation, 1 to 4 p.m. at Media Park in Culver City. Pulitzer Prize-winning food writer Jonathan Gold will man a "Ask Mr. Gold" restaurant-suggestion booth during the fundraiser. 877-26-TASTE or http://www.tasteofthenation.org
June 1: "The Next Food Network Star" returns for its fourth season. Check local listings for time, channel.
June 4: The Wine Closet wine shop of Oxnard and Palmina Winery of Lompoc present a winemaker dinner, 6 p.m. at Capriccio Restaurant in downtown Oxnard. 746-5708.
June 6: Mupu Grill in Santa Paula serves special Sushi at the Mupu and Cruise Night menus in addition to regular menu. 525-9779.
June 7: Free barbecue cooking class/workshop, 10:30 a.m. at Stuart's Barbecue & Fireplace Design Center in Oxnard, 485-0535.
June 7: Organic wines made in Ojai by Casa Barranca will be poured during Celebrate Ojai! A Harvest Luncheon, 11 a.m. at the Lavender Inn in Ojai. Presented by Slow Food Ojai in conjunction with the Ojai Music Festival, the meal will be prepared by Jeri Oshima of Treasure Beach and Café of Ojai and Bobbi Corbin of Knead Bakery in Ventura. 646-2094 or http://www.ojaifestival.org.
June 8: Ojai Wine Festival presented by Rotary Club of Ojai West, 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Lake Casitas near Ojai. http://www.ojaiwinefestival.com
June 10: Fisher Vineyards of Santa Rosa featured during five-course winemaker dinner at Brooks in downtown Ventura, 652-7070 or http://www.restaurantbrooks.com
June 15: Notes from the Edge concert and wine tasting features string quartet covers of tunes by Radiohead, Pink Floyd and others, from 6 p.m. at Ford Amphitheatre in Hollywood. Presented by LearnAboutWine.com, 310-451-7600.
June 19: Free barbecue cooking class/workshop, 5:30 p.m. at Stuart's Barbecue & Fireplace Design Center in Oxnard, 485-0535.
June 22-27: San Diego Restaurant Week offers prix fixe menus, wine dinners and other events at more than 100 restaurants. http://www.sandiegorestaurantweek.com.
June 30: Deadline for entries in Barefoot Wine's Summer Dream Job, which pairs volunteers with the Surfrider Foundation for the Barefoot Wine Beach Rescue Project. Details: http://www.barefootwine.com/beachrescue.
JULY 2008
July 15: Registration deadline for the Oxnard Salsa Festivals amateur recipe contest taking place July 27. http://www.oxnardsalsafestival.com.
July 26-27: 15th annual Oxnard Salsa Festival, Plaza Park at Fifth and C streets, http://www.oxnardsalsafestival.com.
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