By: Maryanne Salvat

 PHeast on South

The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society’s fall fundraising event, PHeaSt, moves outdoors this year for a delicious, moonlit celebration in the PHS Pop Up Garden at 15^th and South Streets on Friday, October 6, from 7 to 10 p.m. The new “PHeaSt on South” will offer exciting dishes and drinks created by some of the city’s most talented chefs and mixologists, and live musical entertainment in the beautiful garden setting. The exclusive VIP experience at 6 p.m. will feature the mixologists of the Aqua Vitae Institute, who will teach guests how to conjure a unique love potion – a captivating cocktail that blends sour and sweet and a little bitter. The VIP experience also includes reserved seating and free valet parking. Featured restaurants at PHeaSt on South will be Cantina Dos Segundos, Royal Tavern, Triangle Tavern, Khyber Pass Pub, Garces Trading Co., Blackfish, Sojourn Philly (Rex 1516, Jet Wine Bar, Café Ynez), Square 1682, Red Owl Tavern, Melograno, Campbell’s Place, and The Night Kitchen Bakery. Sips partners will be Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Hendrick’s Gin, and Constellation Brand imported beers, Modelo Especial and Cerveza Pacifico Clara. Coffee will be provided by Saxbys Coffee. The versatile Philadelphia String Quartet will set the mood at PHeaSt on South, with their fiery LED-lit violins rocking Bach to pop. And for mystical moonlit fun, tarot card readers will offer guests a glimpse into the season ahead. Each ticket to PHeaSt supports the impactful work of PHS, which connects people with horticulture and creates more beautiful, healthy and sustainable communities. VIP ticket price is $300. Regular admission at 7 p.m. is $150 per person. For information and tickets, click here.

Monument Lab and Mural Arts Philadelphia Present Promument

Join Monument Lab and Mural  Arts Philadelphia on October 6, for Promument at  PAFA’s beautiful Rotunda space. Explore the Monument Lab hub in PAFA’s downstairs exhibition space and enjoy a lineup of Philadelphia’s best DJs, great food and cocktails, live art and sign-making with Steve Powers, and tons of surprises. Sponsorship: Major support for Monument Lab projects staged in Philadelphia’s five squares has been provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage. An expanded artist roster and projects at five neighborhood sites have been made possible by a significant grant from the William Penn Foundation. Lead corporate sponsor is Bank of America. For a full list of sponsors and partners, visit monumentlab.muralarts.org.

Mad Rex Fishtown

Mad Rex, the world’s first post-apocalyptic entertainment venue, opens its doors this weekend with a grand opening celebration. Complete with virtual reality lounge (beverage of choice served up in a take-home IV bag), guests will enjoy fire breathers and live DJ’s.  With an extensive menu and craft cocktails, SURVIVORS can indulge as they create their own “interactive rites” while cooking up their choice of protein on a hot lava rock and salting their ice cream in beautiful Himalayan salt bowls.  

Mad Rex is located at 1000 Frankford Avenue in Fishtown. Street parking is available as well as neighboring lots; for more information visit: themadrex.com.

Miami Cares for Puerto Rico

Together with Haute Living, Michael Capponi, Global Empowerment Mission and Karla Dascal, wellness entrepreneur and founder of the Sacred Space Miami, are uniting the city with a “Miami Cares for Puerto Rico” fundraising event at The Sacred Space Miami on Thursday, October 5th, 2017. Celebrity guests Carlos Ponce and Jencarlos Canela will be in attendance, who have both been active proponents in helping Puerto Rico. The night will include a presentation of the efforts that have been and are currently going on in Puerto Rico.  GEM along Caribbean Resilience Systems and affiliated groups such as We Do Better and various groups have marshalled over 4 million pounds of aid.  100% of proceeds from this event will go to support logistics and shipping to Puerto Rico. Guests will also enjoy live music, entertainment, open bar where guests will sip on DON Q Puerto Rican Rum, passed bites courtesy of Grown, and a live auction at the end of the evening. Tickets are $100 each and will go straight to GEM to benefit Puerto Rico—guests are also encouraged to donate more money if they’d like, as every penny counts to help someone’s life in this time of need. For more information or to purchase tickets, please click here.

Miami New Times’ Iron Fork

For the last decade, Miami New Times’ blockbuster Iron Fork has drawn thousands to downtown Miami to enjoy some of the most interesting and exotic cuisine ever sampled in these parts. To celebrate our decade of decadence, Iron Fork partners with Sunshine Provisions and The Miami Rescue Mission with a special OFF THE MENU twist, experience the secret menu items that are not always available at our favorite local spots. The event, presented by The Miami New Times, was selected as one of the top 100 events in South Florida consecutively for the last Four years by Biz Bash. This year, on October 5, thousands of diners and food lovers from across Greater Miami will gather at The Hyatt Regency— the staple venue in downtown Miami — to watch our city’s finest chefs go pot-to- pot in a sizzling showdown for supremacy. Also, once again this year, one of the area’s most celebrated chefs and a member of the famed “Mango Gang,” Allen Susser, will oversee the competition.The winner will receive the prestigious Iron Fork Award, signifying the area’s top toque. Some of the past winners of Iron Fork include Chefs Todd Erickson, Giorgio Rapicavoli, Daniel Serfer, Timon Balloo, and tag team Sean Brasel and Dustin Ward in 2016.  For tickets visit: https://www.newtimesironfork.com/

Chefs 4 Neighbors

Join National Hotel’s Executive Chef Matthew McDonald and South Florida’s top chefs on Wednesday, October 11th, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. for Chefs 4 Neighbors, a culinary tasting event to help victims in communities affected by devastating back-to-back hurricanes.