Food Briefs: Bacon & Brussels, Carne Diem, Buy For Less and more

Food Briefs: Bacon & Brussels, Carne Diem, Buy For Less and more
Quit Nguyen

Bacon & Brussels

Oklahoma City’s bacon-wrapped party 6 Degrees of Bacon has wrapped its run. The event lives on with a new name and a concept that promises to be more inclusive.

Bacon & Brussels, 7-9 p.m. Oct. 13 at 1114 N. Harvey Ave., includes the cured pork bellies guests love and adds a greener dimension with Brussels sprouts.

Though 6 Degrees of Bacon sold out each of its first four years, organizers wanted to add something for vegetable lovers, too, said Downtown OKC, Inc. vice president Jill DeLozier. The event raises money for Midtown District amenities, marketing and programming while providing foodies with a sampling of bacon- and Brussels sprout-inspired food from local restaurants.

This year’s participants are 1492 New World Latin Cuisine, Brown’s Bakery, Dekora! (formerly In the Raw Sushi), Elemental Coffee Roasters, Fassler Hall and Dust Bowl Lanes & Lounge, Gigglez Bar & Grill, Jerky.com, James E. McNellie’s Public House, Native Meat Co., Packard’s New American Kitchen, Park Avenue Grill, Prairie Thunder Baking Company, The R&J Lounge and Supper Club, Room 222 and Viceroy Grille.

Bacon & Brussels is a 21-and-older event. Tickets are $35-$55 and are available at downtownokc.com/bacon-and-brussels.

Chili out

Whatever the weather outside, there will be chili inside at VI Marketing and Branding’s 14th annual Carne Diem chili cook-off 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Oct. 21 at its 125 Park Ave. office. VI shuts down Park Avenue between Broadway and Robinson avenues for the competition.

More than 50 amateur and professional chefs descend on downtown OKC with giant stockpots of chicken, pork, beef, venison, seafood and vegetarian chilis as Wise Guys play a live show. Tickets are $10 at the event check-in tent and include three bowls of chili. Visitors can buy a commemorative mug for $10 more.

Carne Diem proceeds benefit United Way of Central Oklahoma.

Bye, Buy

Grocery shoppers have two fewer options as Buy For Less closes two metro locations.

The locally owned-and-operated grocery chain shut down its original store, 2121 W. Hefner Road, Sept. 24. The 2500 N. Pennsylvania Ave. location closes Friday.

Closing the Hefner Road location was long in the works, said Buy For Less CEO and founder Hank Binkowski. The business opened an Uptown Grocery Co.-branded store in February at 9515 N. May Ave., less than two miles from its original shop.

The Pennsylvania Avenue store closing comes after Buy For Less could not reach an agreement with the property owner to allow for what Binkowski said were necessary building improvements.

Pie Piper

After more than 20 years absent from the local market, Arizona-based Peter Piper Pizza returned to the metro Oct. 3.

The new store, 4701 SE 15th St., in Del City joins locations in southern California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico and is what chief marketing officer Jason Greenwood said is the first step toward relaunching the eatery as a national franchise.

Greenwood said the company’s updated aim is to be a food-first pizzeria with family- and parent-friendly amenities.

The Del City location features a game room in the back that’s separated from the dining room. It also serves wine and beer, including COOP Ale Works F5 IPA, Greenwood said.

“The open kitchen design lets our customers see that there’s real food preparation going on here,” he said. “We’re training dough masters. We hand-chop the vegetables. It puts the food front and center.”

The company is considering several sites for additional stores in Oklahoma City, which Greenwood said is “ground zero for a national expansion.”

To celebrate the opening, Peter Piper Pizza hosts a Throwback Thursday event 5-8 p.m. Thursday.

Customers who come dressed in ’80s or ’90s attire receive a buy one, get one free card and other giveaways.

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