Good morning, Columbia – Miranda here. It’s hard to believe how incredibly lucky we are to have a plethora of restaurants and talented chefs in our section of the state. One of the best parts of our city’s growing food industry is the opportunity for people of all backgrounds to experience unique, up-scale dining – and that’s exactly what Sarah Simmons of CITY GRIT has envisioned with her FEED the CITY initiative.

FEED the CITY is a culinary celebration, to be held Fri., April 26- Mon., April 29, dedicated to ending poverty, increasing food access + providing opportunity to those most in need here in Columbia.

CITY GRIT Hospitality Group team, which includes smallSUGAR, the cafe at Richland Library, + 1649 Catering & Wholesale, along with UofSC’s College of Hospitality, Retail, & Sports Management + local chefs Mike Davis & Kristian Neimi will host a number of nationally recognized chefs from along the east coast for a weekend of dinners, tastings, and book signings.

📆 Sat., April 27
⏰ 2:30-4:30 p.m.

📍The cafe at Richland Library
The weekend kicks off with Books & Bites – a book signing, meet and greet + tasting with former Top Chef Contestant (and a 2019 James Beard Foundation Rising Star Finalist) Kwame Onwuachi.

In an effort to be as inclusive as possible, the CITY GRIT team has reserved a select number of tickets for the Books & Bites event for those who might be inspired by hearing from a young, black chef – but may be excluded due to economic barriers. For anyone interested in purchasing a ticket for a young adult in the community to attend, or if you know of anyone who would want to attend but can't due to the price of the ticket, please email feedthecity@citygritnyc.com to learn more.

📆 Sun., April 28
⏰ 6:30-10:30 p.m.
📍 Terra Restaurant
Kwame will be cooking with chefs Mike Davis, Claire Robinson, Erik Bruner-Yang, + Lauren Resler for the annual Chefs' Feast benefiting Transitions Homeless Center.

While this dinner is sold out, those interested in being added to the waiting list can email feedthecity@citygritnyc.com.

📆 Mon., April 29
⏰ 7-9 p.m.

📍 smallSUGAR
The smallSUGAR team will host Kugels & Collards for their first ‘Dinner in the Alley’ event, exploring Jewish culinary traditions + the stories of their intersection – the same topic covered on the Kugels & Collards food blog born out of the Columbia Jewish Heritage Initiative of Historic Columbia.

Aligning with the theme of the blog, this multi-course dinner will feature the cuisine of Hillary Sterling + Fany Gerson – two Jewish chefs from New York City – and Lissadell Cohen-Serrins + Kristian Neimi – two chefs who found their culinary voice through southern cuisine.

In between culinary events, the visiting chefs will have opportunities to visit some of Columbia's coolest spots - Riverbanks Zoo, EdVenture, Soda City Market, the Columbia Museum of Art, Richland Library, the Midlands Art Conservatory Charter School, as well as tour the facilities or spend time with the members of the community impacted by the FEED the CITY initiative.

Proceeds from the various events will benefit Transitions Homeless Center, the Midlands Arts Conservatory, Historic Columbia’s Jewish Heritage Initiative, Richland Library, and the CITY GRIT Hospitality Workforce Development Program.