photos by Evelyn Goldstein
The 2025 Chefs for Farmers festival in Dallas felt like a living map of Texas flavor, a weekend-long celebration of farms, fire, and fearless cooking. Held October 29 through November 2 at Old City Park, the festival brought together hometown stars and returning culinary talents, each working directly with local farms to craft dishes that were as much about provenance as they were about technique. Two days of chef tastings kicked off the weekend, allowing early attendees to savor multi-course dishes in an intimate setting while easing crowd flow for the main event, giving the festival a sense of rhythm and letting diners linger over each bite.
Walking through the festival, diners were greeted with a choreographed chaos: smoke curling from wood-fired grills, the hiss of seared seafood, and the clatter of knives prepping the day’s offerings. At his dedicated tent, chef Peja drew early attention with smoked lamb burnt ends, deeply charred and lacquered with a careful glaze, and smoky oysters that delivered a briny punch with a hint of fire. Vegetables weren’t an afterthought—charred carrots glazed with sesame-miso, blistered heirloom tomatoes dressed simply with sunflower oil and basil, and delicate squash blossoms cradling fresh ricotta illustrated the power of minimal technique applied to the freshest ingredients. A foie macaron and chicken liver mousse offered rich, creamy interludes that showed how bold flavor could coexist with precision, while oysters appeared across tents in briny, smoky, or raw iterations.
One memorable moment: a chef moved fluidly through the crowd, shucking live oysters on the spot and offering them with a bold, punchy sauce. The interactive presentation turned a simple shellfish bite into a theatrical experience, drawing diners in to watch the knife work, inhale the briny aroma, and taste the bright, intense flavors straight from the chef’s hands. It was an unpredictable, playful touch amid the festival’s more formal tents, capturing the weekend’s spirit of spontaneity and farm-to-table connection.
The Mansion tent delivered a memorable scallop dish, delicate and seared, the subtle sweetness of the scallops enhanced with a bracing herb garnish that balanced the richness. Rockfish courses, catfish over live coals, and butter-poached bluefish all featured prominently, each paired with microgreens, pickled vegetables, and sauces drawn from the season’s peak produce. Every dish, from a simple charred carrot to a lavish multi-course centerpiece, reflected the meticulous sourcing and intimate knowledge chefs had of the farms that produced their ingredients.
Beyond the plates, the festival’s beating heart was the farmers themselves. Participating growers such as Rae Lili Farm, Holland Legacy Farms, and J&L Farms brought heirloom vegetables, pasture-raised meats, and specialty products like oysters to the event. Booths were arranged like family portraits, and growers enthusiastically shared stories of hail-damaged crops, carefully tended pastures, and the slow work that brings out the best in carrots, squash, and lamb. The festival gives chefs stipends to purchase directly from these farms, a system that both supports local agriculture and creates a direct link between the field and the plate. Visitors could meet farmers, learn about sustainable practices, and witness firsthand the labor that transforms soil, seed, and animal care into the vivid flavors presented by chefs over the weekend.
Technique played its part, too: low-and-slow methods, live fire, delicate searing, and quick pickling transformed raw ingredients into memorable experiences. Multi-course dinners like “Flavors on Fire” and garden feasts highlighted individual ingredients while showcasing the chefs’ creativity. For diners, each bite became an education: the heat, smoke, or acid of a dish was never just flavor, but the language of the land it came from.
By the final night, Chefs for Farmers 2025 had achieved more than full stomachs and satisfied palates. It left diners with a renewed appreciation for the care behind every ingredient, the skills of the chefs, and the dedication of the farmers whose work made the weekend possible.
