News
Congratulations to Rock Town Distillery, which continues piling up both national and international awards for its products. The latest winner is its Arkansas Rye Whiskey, which won the gold medal at the 2016 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. All of the rye and corn in this award-winning whiskey is grown right here in Arkansas. Arkansas Rye Whiskey won bronze medal in San Francisco last year.
After coming close to selling their business, the owners of Wee Betty’s Café in Jacksonville have decided to keep the restaurant and grocery store running. Wee Betty’s specializes in British and Irish cuisine, including pasties, clotted cream, and the classic fish and chips. Wee Betty’s also offers frozen take-home items, like scones and sausage rolls.
The rain last week delayed Arkansas strawberry season, but now the water is gone and the berries are coming into restaurants around the city. That of course includes Trio’s, which yesterday put its famous strawberry shortcake and strawberry banana delight desserts back on the menu. Trio’s is also gearing up its menu for the rest of the produce in Arkansas to start coming in, selling both hot and cold soup specials every day and getting ready for some of its traditional vegetarian courses.
The Riverdale area is welcoming a little more crawfish. Loca Luna and Red Door are adding crawfish boils on Thursday nights for the remainder of the crawfish season. Their boil joins the Faded Rose’s already famed boils on Wednesday nights. Owner Mark Abernathy will be including corn, potatoes, and sausage to the crawfish platters to go along with $4 Abita drafts.
Considering the excellent new beer garden and expanded taproom, it was only a matter of time before Stone’s Throw Brewing added to its hours of operation. The microbrewery is now open on Tuesdays from 4 p.m. until 9 p.m. What’s more, Stone’s Throw is using the night for a good cause. One dollar from every pint purchased on Tuesday nights will be donated to a great local charity that will rotate monthly. For April, the proceeds will go to the Center for Artistic Revolution’s Diverse Youth for Social Change program.
BASH Burger Co. has completed its transition from food truck to restaurant. The burger joint is now open for lunch and dinner on Bowman Road where Bruno’s Italian Bistro used to be. To celebrate, BASH is offering 50-cent wings every Tuesday. These are some of the best wings I’ve ever eaten, and getting them this cheap is a steal.
If you missed it, Fayetteville-based Chunky Dunk owner Sara Slimp is coming to Little Rock to work with The Root and Loblolly Creamery. Our Becca Bona has the details on the transition.
Spring has arrived, and so have fresh new cocktails at Big Orange. I got a taste and some pictures of the updated cocktail menu earlier this week.
Little Rock’s newest juice bar will open in the next couple of days. Get a First Look at Juice Leaf here.
Events
April 7–10 Fantastic Cinema and Craft Beer Festival – This festival celebrates independently made genre films and craft beer from Arkansas and beyond. The event is at Riverdale 10 Cinemas. Tickets and VIP passes are on sale here.
April 9th West Little Rock Food Truck Festival – Come to the Chenal Pointe apartments from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. for this festival featuring some of Little Rock’s best food truck, live music and more.
April 10th 2016 Jewish Food and Cultural Festival – This annual celebration of Jewish food and culture will be held at War Memorial Stadium. Admission is free. This is a great event for families.
April 13 St. Supéry Estate Wine Tasting at O’Looney’s – St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery is a 100% Estate Grown, Napa Valley sustainably farmed winery. Located in the renowned Rutherford growing region in the heart of Napa Valley. O’Looney’s will have a wine tasting of their latests wines from 5-7
April 16th Any Excuse to Party at Kent Walker Artisan Cheese – The folks at Kent Walker Artisan Cheese wanted to throw a party, no reason needed. The party features Bob Livingston playing some sweet tunes, food from The Southern Gourmasian, Hot Rod Wieners, Katmandu MoMo, & Loblolly Creamery, and a number of local craft beers.
April 16th Traditional Pie Bake-Off – It’s the second annual edition of this pie competition at The Root Cafe. Last year, 16 contestants competed, with Ken Dempsey coming out as the winner. Pre-registration is suggested but not required.
April 21st Diamond Chef Arkansas Recut – The popular culinary competition returns to Pulaski Tech’s culinary school, pitting six local chefs and culinary instructors against one another in an Iron Chef-style competition. Attendees will be treated to hors d’oeuvres and cocktails while watching the action. Tickets for the event are on sale now.
April 21st Rock City Food Truck Meet – This new monthly event will meet every third Thursday at First United Methodist Church in Bryant. If you own a food truck and want to participate, please contact us at the link in the menu.
April 23rd International Food Festival – Get a taste of food from around the world at this special event at the Islamic Center of Little Rock. Admission to the event is free. In addition to the food, there will be activities for children and other entertainment.
April 28th Table 28 Surf-n-Turf Wine Dinner – This four-course wine dinner promises to show off some of chef Scott Rains’ talent in presenting some unique dishes. Tickets are $90 per person, and reservations are strongly recommended. Call (501) 224-2828 to reserve your seats.
April 30th Wild Wines Festival – This massive fundraiser for the Arkansas Zoological Foundation will feature food from 50 restaurants and more than 200 bottles of wine to sample from O’Looney’s Wine & Liquor. Tickets start at $75, and all attendees must be 21 years of age or older. Get your tickets today.
Specials
Yellow Rocket Concepts has released its specials for the month of April:
- Vietnamese Spring Burger, Freeman’s Cinnamon Roll Cake at Big Orange and Big Orange Midtown
- Black Cherry S’Mores Tart, Chicken-Poblano-Spinach Quesadilla at Local Lime
- Arkansas Spring Salad with watermelon and Easter radishes at ZAZA
Girl Scout cookie milkshakes are still being sold at Big Orange and Big Orange Midtown
