VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

Join Rienzi in celebrating English Taste: The Art of Dining in the Eighteenth Century at December´s culinary-themed Twilight Talk: A Conversation with the Foodies from Feast Restaurant. Tour Rienzi´s splendid European decorative arts collection, socialize over wine and bites, and enjoy a provocative conversation with Richard Knight, James Silk, and Meagan Silk, the trio that runs one of Houston´s most notable restaurants, Feast.

This conversation will feature a brief introduction to 18th-century English foodways—in which meals were sourced locally and nothing was wasted—by Christine Gervais, MFAH associate curator of Decorative Arts and Rienzi, followed by a conversation with the minds behind Feast and their thoughts on eating locally and seasonally, the nose-to-tail palate, as well as the "farm-to-table" movement.

The evening begins with a social hour—guests are treated to wine, light bites, and tours of Rienzi—followed by a conversation with the "Feast Family" at 7 pm in Rienzi´s intimate Gallery.

About the Speakers:  Richard and James grew up together on the south coast of England and have been eating, drinking and cooking together for their entire lives. Meagan, born and raised in Massachusetts and Arizona, joined the group and the Feast Family was born.

Their work together has repeatedly, and rightly, been described as a ´labor of love´ and it is their unique style of hearty, passionate, European-style eating that they now bring into downtown Houston. The menu at Feast comprises traditional British fare such as Pork Belly and Fish Pie along with dishes dictated by the seasons and the Feast Family's own adventurous palates. The meats served at Feast are never factory farmed nor intensively raised; all food items are sourced locally.

Images: "English Taste: The Art of Dining in the Eighteenth Century" Thomas R. DuBrock. RG38-031. MFAH Archives Photography Collection.