FOODMATTERS

Chickens, recycled garden beds at Austin City Limits

Plus: News from the Highball, Texas Cuban, Lion & Rose, Go Texan Chef Showdown, Fall Fest, Oktoberfest and more

Pickin', Grinnin' and cluckin' at ACL

Chickens will be at the Austin City Limits Festival this year. No, that isn't the name of some newfangled band playing at the three-day event at Zilker Park starting Friday. Chickens of the feathered, clucking variety from Austin's Rain Lily Farm will be part of a display of creative ways to reuse materials to landscape your yard and grow food. As part of a project with Farmhouse Delivery, Rain Lily owners Kim Beal and Stephanie Scherzer have been putting together an array of container gardens made of tires, a vertical garden made out of old exercise equipment, a worm bin made out of an industrial spool and a moveable chicken trailer from bamboo and old bicycle wheels. Beal says the project is meant to inspire ACL festivalgoers to find new uses for materials headed for the landfill, like 2-liter soda bottles that they've used as planters for herbs. To get people started, they'll be giving away seeds that Scherzer has collected in the years since starting their East Austin farm.

— Addie Broyles

Alamo owners take spin into club scene

Alamo Drafthouse owners Tim and Karrie League seem to have struck entertainment gold yet again with their soon-to-open the HighBall: part bowling alley, part diner and part karaoke bar — a high-end Chuck E. Cheese for hip adults. After throwing a few parties in the old Salvation Army space at 1142 S. Lamar Blvd., the Leagues knew the building would be perfect for an entertainment venue. Tim League had purchased vintage bowling equipment from the legendary Rock 'N' Bowl in New Orleans, letting the equipment's style influence the Joel Mozersky-designed club that features classic Skee-Ball, an upscale retro diner (lamb tips with rice, Dr Pepper-glazed ribs, fried chicken and the like), a bar, a ballroom and private karaoke rooms. The HighBall has already hosted a couple of private parties, and a public opening is expected in October.

— Matthew Odam

What's in season

Sweet and hot peppers, pears, persimmons, shelled peas and butter beans, green beans, basil, zucchini, yellow squash, tomatoes, okra, squash blossoms, eggplant, arugula, year-round lettuce, mixed Asian greens, chard, kale, baby turnips and beets, green garlic, cucumbers, shallots, sweet potatoes, pumpkins and butternut, spaghetti and acorn squash. Warted gourds for holiday decorations. Information about local produce that is in season is from the Sustainable Food Center, www.sustainablefoodcenter.org.

— A.B.

These wrecks take the cakes

If you thought the first birthday cake you made for your mom when you were a kid looked goofy, check out the disasters posted on Cake Wrecks (cakewrecks.blogspot.com), a photo blog of cakes gone awry. Jen Yates, founder of the site, just published a collection of the worst of the worst, "Cake Wrecks: When Professional Cakes Go Hilariously Wrong," and will host a talk and cake contest at 3 p.m. on Oct. 4 at BookPeople, 603 N. Lamar Blvd. To enter the contest, bring in a "wreckplica" of a cake gone wrong on a cupcake. RSVP for the event at bit.ly/cakewreck.

— A.B.

Openings, closings and coming soon

• Open: District 301, a nightclub and lounge with DJs and a hammered-copper bar at 301 W. Sixth St.

• Open: The Texas Cuban, a trailer selling Cuban-style pressed sandwiches and sides at 1700 S. Lamar Blvd. (www.texascuban.com).

Closed: Tèo, the Tech Ridge location of the locally owned gelato and espresso shop at 500 W. Canyon Ridge Road.

• In the works: The Lion & Rose British Restaurant & Pub is working on a location in the West Lake Hills shopping center that houses the H-E-B Westlake Market and a Barnes & Noble. The space at 701 S. Capital of Texas Highway (Loop 360), Building M, used to house Ruggles Grill (and a few other places before that). The Lion & Rose is a San Antonio operation with four locations there, serving English pub food (bangers and mash, fish and chips, Scotch eggs, shepherd's pie) and a menu of steaks, salads and sandwiches. And where the Lion roams, the European draft beer will follow. No word on when the Lion & Rose will open in West Lake Hills, but at the pace the remodeling is going and how focused the general contractor seems, early November isn't out of the question. www.thelionandrose.com.

— M.S.

Food and drink briefs

• The Go Texan Restaurant Round-Up — with chefs across the state cooking special menus featuring Lone Star meat, produce and wine — continues through Friday (restaurant list at www.gotexan.org/restaurantroundup). As part of the event, chefs from the Driskill Grill, SWB at the Hyatt and Trio at the Four Seasons will compete in a Go Texan Chef Showdown at 7 p.m. today at the Hyatt Regency Austin, 208 Barton Springs Road. For $80, guests will dine on a Southwestern-style appetizer and main course prepared by each team (six courses in all), with wine pairings and a dessert and coffee bar. Judges include American-Statesman food writer Addie Broyles, plus editors and writers from Austin Monthly, the Austin Chronicle, Edible Austin and more. Reservations at 480-2035.

• Want a little history with your lunch today? At noon at the George Washington Carver Museum & Cultural Center, 1165 Angelina St., Angela Shelf Medearis, aka The Kitchen Diva, will present a three-course lunch based on recipes from the Gullah people of South Carolina and Georgia to go with an exhibit at the museum. $15. RSVP at 444-3482.

• The fifth annual Fall Fest is taking place Friday through Sunday at several Hill Country locations. On Friday, sample food and wine from restaurants and winemakers at the Sunset Stroll at the Lakeside Pavilion in Marble Falls ($40). The wine auction on Saturday night ($95) at Spicewood Vineyards features a three-course dinner from III Forks chef Jamie Gutierrez, and on Sunday, the festival moves to Fall Creek Vineyards in Tow for the Farm to Table Wine Fair from noon to 4 p.m. ($15 in advance, $20 at the door) with food, wine, vendors and demonstrations. Weekend passes cost $140, and proceeds will benefit the Hill Country Children's Advocacy Center and help fund wine research, says founder Susan Auler. Tickets and details at www.texasfallfest.com.

Max's Wine Dive (207 San Jacinto Blvd. 904-0105, www.maxswinedive.com) has added lunch service from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

Perry's Steakhouse & Grille (114 W. Seventh St., 474-6300, www.perryssteak house.com) has expanded its 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday lunch service to include Mondays through Fridays.

Café Josie will host a six-course chile-themed dinner with wine pairings from 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday. $65. Reservations required, at 322-9226 or winemedineme@cafejosie.com.

• Welcome October with bratwurst, beer and polka at Oktoberfest in Fredericksburg from Friday through Sunday. Now in its 29th year, the event features bands on three stages, more than 30 imported and domestic beers and a variety of German foods. Kids can enjoy a climbing wall and jump castle while parents browse arts and crafts from local vendors. 6 p.m. to midnight Friday, 10 a.m. to midnight Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. $6 ($1 for children ages 6-12, free for kids 5 years old and younger). www.oktoberfestinfbg.com.

• Hollandaze Gourmet kitchen store in Georgetown, 4701 Williams Drive, is celebrating its fifth birthday Saturday with a traditional Hawaiian luau, which owner Laurie Holland says is a two-part class with chef instructor Jerry Pizzitola, who on the night before the dinner will host a class showing how to dig a pit and prepare the pigs. The class and dinner, which include piña coladas, cost $40, but you can help celebrate the store's birthday with a hula-hoop contest and other activities from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Information and tickets for the class at 512-864-0076, www.hollandaze gourmet.com.

• From 8 to 11 p.m. on Oct. 8, Parkside is hosting a Pink Party fundraiser for the Susan G. Komen Foundation. For $50, enjoy food from chef Shawn Cirkiel and pink cocktails along with music from DJ Jeff Strange. Tickets at www.parkside-austin.com.

• Austin wine expert Jeremy Parzen will begin a six-session class on Italian wines at 7 p.m. Tuesday with Italian Wine 101. $25, includes tastings (prices for other sessions vary.) The Austin Wine Merchant, 512 W. Sixth St. Reservations at 499-0512.

— A.B., Mike Sutter