This week in gluttony

These are the 6 best food and drink events in Fort Worth this week

Feast of the Seven Fishes is a holiday-time tradition.

Photo by Chuck Cook

The Feast of the Seven Fishes is an Italian dinner tradition that typically takes place on Christmas Eve, but you don’t have to travel to Italy to experience it. A handful of Fort Worth restaurants are hosting their own versions this week, but reservations are going quick. Also on the list: a chance to knock out wrapping presents with some added holiday cheer, and a cooking class that will bring a taste of Thai home for Christmas.

Tuesday, December 20

Holiday Wraps & Taps at The Rabbit Hole Pub
Need a little inspiration to get going on wrapping presents? This popular watering hole will provide all supplies needed (first-come, first-serve) along with $4 Texas beers and liquors and samples of Crown Apple and Shiner Cheer. Wear your favorite Christmas sweater to get in the holiday spirit. Party starts at 4 pm.

A Vegan Christmas Curry Class at The Table Market & Culinary Studio
Catch one of the last cooking classes at The Table, which recently announced it’s closing for good on January 1. Class participants will learn how to make both red and green Thai curry paste using herbs, spices, and coconut milk along with choice of vegetable or protein. They’ll be plenty left to take home, too. Class is $50 and begins at 6 pm.

Feast of Seven Fishes at Grace
The downtown fine dining establishment has long hosted its annual Feast of Seven Fishes dinner, which always includes seven courses of fish dishes plus dessert perfectly paired with wines. Menu items range from Maine diver scallop carpaccio to pistachio-crusted bronzini. Dinner is $185, plus tax and gratuity. Arrive at 6:30 pm for passed canapes and bubbly followed by dinner at 7 pm.

Wednesday, December 21

Feast of the Seven Fishes at Clay Pigeon & Drink
This particular Feast of the Seven Fishes celebration will indeed offer seven courses. Menu highlights include grilled octopus, grilled prawns, octopus ragu, cioppino, and king crab rolls. Dinner is $130, plus tax and gratuity, and there’s an optional wine pairing available for $50 more. Reservations start at 5 pm.

Saturday, December 24

Feast of the Seven Fishes at il Modo
The Italian restaurant located inside The Kimpton Harper hotel downtown will offer a prix-fixe menu to celebrate the Feast of Seven Fishes. Indulge in lobster and crab salad, shrimp scampi linguini, and pistachio panne cotta. The prix-fixe menu starts at $68, plus tax and gratuity, and reservations begin at 5 pm.

Christmas Eve & Christmas Day dining
Christmas will be a two-day dining extravaganza, with celebratory meals served from Christmas Eve through Christmas night. Check this list for restaurants serving brunches and dinners both days, along with some to-go options for at-home celebrations. Looking for restaurants to take out-of-town guests throughout the week? Find some great options here.

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Scones News

Fort Worth baker pops up around town with fresh baked scones

Sunrise Scones

Scones from Sunrise Scones

Fort Worth has a pop-up baker dedicated entirely to the wonderful world of scones: Called Sunrise Scones, it's a mobile bakery that pops up twice a week, selling scones ready to eat or take home and bake.

Sunrise is from baker Gretchen Seegel, who has been baking and selling scones since 2021. Fans seek out out every Saturday at Clearfork Farmers Market at 4801 Edwards Ranch Rd. And during September, she's been popping-up every Wednesday from 10 am-2 pm at Sweet Lucy’s Pies, inside Bluebonnet Circle Park at 3520 Blue Bonnet Cir.

Her signature item is her blueberry lemon scone, a golden-brown pastry featuring whole blueberries and lemon zest. Other flavors include double chocolate, vanilla cream, and s’mores topped with graham cracker crumbles and a chocolate square.

She also does savory flavors such as parmesan pesto that almost resembles focaccia, with its topping of dusted herbs and melted cheese.

Single scones like a pie-shaped wedge, a couple inches high, and most of her flavors come with icing or sprinkled toppings which add to their visual appeal. A single scone is $5, although the more popular order is a four-pack for $20. Orders can be made during markets or through preorder on the site.

In addition to already baked, she also offers a take-and-bake — "so people can buy frozen scones, bring them home, and bake them when they want a fresh scone," she says.

Seegel began baking scones because she could never find ones she liked.

“I love bakeries but more often than not, I was disappointed in the scone,” Seegel says. “They were either overworked, over-mixed, or super sweet.”

Scones were a fun pivot for Seegel, a creative soul who previously designed and sewed children's clothes under her brand called Beatrice Tuley, which she closed when she launched her baking business.

The biggest challenges in the scones operation have been finding quality ingredients while keeping prices reasonable, but she loves the process of creating flavors, with an eye towards seasonality. She's already working on apples and pumpkin for the fall.

"I just think about what would pair well with other flavors and try to find some unique pairings," she says.