Let’s be positive friends – one gift that Covid gave us is outdoor dining venues. Nothing says al fresco better than a farm to table dining experience in the great outdoors, read on for some not-to-miss spots.  The Illusionist in SF is an incredible show only here for a few more weeks, magically inviting!  Can we talk about iconic Tomatoes? The character of Mame has always been one we Tomatoes love and if you have never seen the show, now is your chance thanks to 42nd St. Moon theatre. Spend the day at the beach exclaiming over world class architectural sandcastles, a benefit for Leap arts in SF.

A New Kind of Fine Dining Experience

The trend of outdoor dining, which really took off in 2020 due to COVID, has continued to grow and evolve. Now, thanks to a slew of trailblazing farms, high-end resorts, and creative chefs, diners are kicking off their shoes and digging their feet (literally) into the dirt for a new kind of fine dining experience. The emphasis is on fresh and local ingredients to hurry and grab a seat before they close for the winter season.

Stanly Ranch

Located on the southern edge of Napa Valley and surrounded by rolling hills, is an impressive property sprawled across 700 pristine acres. Among its many amenities is a large chef’s garden where farm director Nick Runkle hosts the ranch’s series of harvest dinners—four ticketed dinners and 37 private garden meals in the past year. The menus are always inspired by what is growing and being harvested in the garden, which varies widely depending on the season. Themes have included edible flowers, where the dinner was carefully scheduled to coincide with the early days of summer when an abundance of calendula, marigolds, violas, and borage were in full bloom. The fall meal, coming up on November 5th, is all about squash. Diners will get to explore some lesser-known varieties such as red kuri, koginut, and honeynut. Every meal harkens back to nature, with twinkling garden lights, plates of vibrant veggies, and the rhythmic hum of crickets serenading in the background. aubergeresorts.com.

​Outstanding in the Field

A real culinary outlier, chef Jim Denevan founded Outstanding in the Field back in 1999 when he hosted a dinner on his brother’s farm. The company’s culinary caravan now stretches across all 50 states and 24 countries around the globe, with tables set in farms, beaches, vineyards, and meadows. Their aim is to connect diners to the origins of their food while celebrating those who work hard to provide such as chefs, farmers, fisherpeople, cheesemakers and vintners.

Upcoming dinners include locations and themes like Secret Cove in Pescadero, where diners will sit on the beach and munch on mussels with saffron aioli with crashing waves as a backdrop. If you’re more of a steak and potatoes person, you can saddle up for a meat and wine dinner in Sonoma at Richardson Ranch, a historic timber and cattle ranch that is rarely open to the public. outstandinginthefield.com.

McEvoy Ranch

Best known for the EVOO it produces on its 550-acre farm in Petaluma, McEvoy Ranch is also gaining a reputation for its farm-to-table dinners, which they host several times a year for more than 150 guests. This Saturday, McEvoy will team up with Hog Island Oyster Co. to celebrate the new cookbook, The Hog Island Book of Fish and Seafood, serving recipes from the book alongside McEvoy wines. Though the event is already sold out, you can try your luck by joining the waitlist.  Look out for 2024 events at McEvoy Ranch at mcevoyranch.com.

The Illusionist at the Palace Theater

Kevin Blake‘s dazzling live show, is a modern mind blowing magic and mind reading show guaranteed to impress the most skeptical adult audience. Guests enter through a secret passageway in Joe‘s Clock Shop and discover a phantasmagorical wonderland of magic and mystery inside a Prohibition era club. With a deft combination of performing arts, manic theatrics and impeccable sleight of hand, Kevin Blake transports the audience to an era of enchanting illusion, where close up magic and mind reading create a spellbinding experience that is both mystical and unforgettable. Now through November 19th. https://sanfranciscomagicshow.com

Nov. 2-19. MAME at Gateway Theatre

This show is a celebration of life – living with joy and optimism, no matter your situation. It’s also about found family: not always the people you’re closely related to, but the people who will always be with you, thick or thin. They share life’s joys and sorrows and adventures with you, and they’ll always be there for you. We love any show that celebrates Tomatoes? You’ll leave the theatre singing and smiling! With spirit, humor, class and wit, this version of MAME will leave you with a smile on your face and humming the well-known Jerry Herman tunes such as “Bosom Buddies”, and “We Need a Little Christmas”. Nov 2 – 19th  Gateway Theatre, SF. https://42ndstmoon.org/

 Oct. 28. Sandcastle Contest

Leap Arts in Education will take over Ocean Beach to host the largest sandcastle contest in Northern California; featuring team competition, food trucks, and live music all day. Everyone can join in the fun and experience the construction of dozens of jaw-dropping, supersized sand sculptures. This is a San Francisco tradition that raises funds for high-quality arts and architecture education for more than 8,500 Bay Area public school students who would otherwise go without.

Thousands flock to Ocean Beach to build giant sand sculptures with architecture, design, technology, engineering and construction companies in partnership with students from local schools. The 2023 Sandcastle Classic theme is Halloween Haunts, and teams will be including Halloween elements in their sandcastle design, t-shirt design, fundraising, and promotion. The public is invited to bring a blanket, grab a bite from the food trucks on site, participate in the competition, and spend a FREE day in the sun, all to support essential arts education. http://www.leaparts.org/sandcastle