What: The Brooklyn Roots Experiment
Where: Invisible Dog Gallery, Cobble Hill, Brooklyn
When: Sunday, September 12th, 2010, 12-3p.m.
Why: When Farm City Fair contacted Theo Peck and Nick Suarez, the Brooklyn based cookoff gurus, to do a competition it was a great opportunity to marry their portable food experiments with FCF’s explorative agricultural mission. As part of the French Institute Alliance Française-organized Crossing the Line Festival, FCF opening weekend this year will bring the Brooklyn Roots Experiment.
“The theme for this cookoff is a great one because it allows the culinary freedom to really make anything—many things can represent Brooklyn cuisine. That’s why Brooklyn is so essential to the culinary world in NYC,” said Peck. Competing dishes can use locally grown ingredients or they can create a dish that speaks to Brooklyn’s culinary past. Suarez let us in on some of the dishes including beet ice cream, pizza, pierogies and perhaps even a foie gras mousse Twinkie. Some ingredients are from the Brooklyn Brewery and Salvatore Ricotta while other presentations will reflect the areas of Greenpoint, Coney Island and Sunset Park.
For chef-testants looking for advice on how to win over the palates of 250 lunchtime guests and a culinary judging panel: “It comes down to execution, proper seasoning, and words like creamy, crispy, velvety, crunchy, layered and complex,” said Peck.
Stay tuned for Brooklyn’s next Top “Cook-off” Chef!
Cost: $25 Advance ($5 off for FIAF members) A portion of ticket sales will help support Ovarian Cancer Research. Expect prizes and local cameos from businesses like P&H Soda, Roman’s, and Brooklyn Brewery.
How to get there: Take the F train to Brooklyn. Exit Bergen near Smith Street. Walk West on Bergen to the address. (Invisible Dog Gallery, 51 Bergen Street– 3rd Fl. 51 Bergen St., Brooklyn, 646.270.2550, thefoodexperiments.com)
Sarah Knapp is a Brooklyn based entrepreneur whose love for the outdoors and community building led her to the October 2013 creation of OutdoorFest. She has a BA in History, is a Wilderness First Responder and a NY state hiking, camp and boating guide. Her proudest achievement to date is reading the Aeneid in Latin. 
Allison was one of our first top writers and Chief Editor but is no longer working with offMetro. Allison is a native New Yorker, who has lived in Rome, Tuscany, Melbourne, Toronto and Los Angeles. She frequently contributed travel pieces to Family Travel Forum, using her own children as guinea pigs as they travel the globe. She never missed a chance to sample local delicacies, as her love for travel goes hand-in-hand with her love for food and wine. 
Josh Laskin is a freelance travel writer and photographer based in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. When he is not at work or on the road, you can find him in the mountains snowboarding, climbing, hiking, fly fishing, mountain biking, and eating bagel bites.
Annie is a travel writer, environmentalist, and surfer based in Venice, CA. She heads up our West Coast team, keeps our grammatical errors in check, and makes sure our California writers always have a plan for their next adventure. Follow Annie’s travels @annelisemcb.
Carly Pifer is a freelance writer who has been known to follow whims inspired by romantic movie scenes or colorful street style shots to India, Japan, Tunisia and Argentina. After stints living in Seoul, Boston, Paris and Los Angeles, writing and searching for something intangible, she landed somewhat steadily in Brooklyn and has begun to find inspiration in her more immediate surroundings. 
Kate E. O’Hara is a New York based freelance writer and photographer who loves all things food—especially the people who make it and market it. Her writing aims to capture the essence of the food experience; the stories that go well beyond a plate of ingredients. In addition to her love of food, Kate is also known to have a hankering for red wine and craft beer. You can also find Kate on Instagram