Visit California Sets 'The Grateful Table' to Help Wine Country Community Recovery Efforts

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Nov. 10, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Visit California, in partnership with Outstanding in the Field and Chef Tyler Florence, will host "The Grateful Table"  on Tuesday, Nov. 21 – a fundraising benefit in support of Northern Californians whose homes and businesses were impacted by the Wine Country Fires.

"Wine Country is a resilient and passionate community of individuals, families and business owners," said Visit California President & CEO Caroline Beteta. "Together, we're collaborating with our incredible partners for The Grateful Table Benefit to celebrate and support the Wine Country community, as well as showcase that this region is on the road to recovery."

In addition to buying a ticket to join the dinner, "Share the Love" tickets can be purchased so first responders and community members affected by the fire will be able to attend the event. 100 percent of ticket sales are being donated to four community groups working on fire recovery efforts, split among the Napa Valley Community Disaster Relief Fund, Sonoma County Resilience Fund, Mendocino County Disaster Fund and the California Restaurant Association Foundation.

Visit California is working with the pioneers of pop-up dinners, Outstanding in the Field, to create a truly unique and memorable setting for this special meal. The benefit will take place in a vineyard that straddles the Napa/Sonoma County line and will feature a single, long table where guests will celebrate the true spirit of Wine Country with California wine and cuisine prepared by Food Network chef Tyler Florence.

"Outstanding in the Field is about setting our long table in celebration of community and connection, where we hear and taste the story of the people and places that nourish and sustain us," said Outstanding in the Field founding chef/artist Jim Denevan. "Our table set in a field is a scene of celebration, and it is also a portrait of resilience. We are grateful to the Wine Country farmers, vintners and food artisans we have worked with over the years, and we are grateful to those who helped protect what we hold dear. At the Grateful Table, we will gather and show and share what we feel."

"As a chef who calls Northern California home, I am honored and excited to partner with Visit California for The Grateful Table," Florence said. "The Grateful Table will bring our friends, neighbors, winemakers and chef community together as we stand strong as Californians during this crisis. We are California strong."

The Grateful Table is graciously sponsored by California Grown, California Restaurant Association Foundation, California Wine Institute, Outstanding in the Field, Pure Luxury Transportation, the California Cut Flower Commission, Sonoma County Tourism, Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau, Visit Mendocino County, Visit Napa Valley and Visit Santa Rosa.

Tickets are available and can be purchased at http://www.visitcalifornia.com/gratefultable.  For more information on how to support those impacted by the Wine Country fires and to make a donation in support of those affected, visit www.visitcalifornia.com/support-wine-country.

People are also encouraged to visit the region as tourism is a $3.7 billion business in Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino counties. The money that visitors spend directly supports 40,400 jobs and contributes $315 million in state and local tax revenues to fund vital local services. Many businesses and residents, even those not directly impacted by the fires, lost weeks of work as fires forced evacuations and road closures. 

"The best way to show California love and help them rebuild the region is to come celebrate: sip, savor and support our friends in Wine Country," Beteta said.

About Visit California
Visit California is a nonprofit organization with a mission to develop and maintain marketing programs – in partnership with the state's travel industry – that keep California top-of-mind as a premier travel destination. According to Visit California, spending by travelers totaled $126.3 billion in 2016 in California, generating 1,096,000 jobs in the state and $10.3 billion in state and local tax revenues. For more information about Visit California and for a free California Official State Visitor's Guide, go to www.VisitCalifornia.com. For story ideas, media information, downloadable images, video and more, go to www.media.visitcalifornia.com.

About Outstanding in The Field

Outstanding in the Field is the pioneer of hyper-local communal dinners set between the earth and sky in the places where the food on the plate was grown. OITF's mission is to honor the farmers and food artisans who provide the ingredients for the menu. From a handful of events in 1999, the roaming restaurant without walls now stages 100+ multi-course feasts every year from coast to coast across North America and around the world, partnering with top regional chefs at each stop. Outstanding in the Field has hosted #TabletoFarm events in all 50 states across the US and 15 countries around the world, welcoming more than 120,000 people to its long table set in vegetable fields and grasslands; fruit orchards, olive groves and vineyards; on seashores and mountaintops.

SOURCE Visit California

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http://www.visitcalifornia.com