Table Talk + This Week's Edible Events

There’s been an undeniable buzz in the food world, one created by an escalating conversation. The topic is food and every issue surrounding it: politics, origins, cost, safety. And it seems to be consuming our national attention.

But have you ever felt like you’re on the outside, just listening in?

Now’s your chance to take part in the conversation first hand. Let’s Talk About Food, a day long food event taking place on Saturday at the Museum of Science, is meant to bring you directly to the table. Founder and renowned local journalist Louisa Kasdon says the event is built specifically for folks who want to get in on the dialogue. “I believe that through conversations about food we can dramatically shift the way our American food system works today,” says Kasdon. “So, we have chefs in conversation with farmers, and moms cooking with nutritionists, political figures talking to scientists, kids chatting with cookbook authors, suburban moms engaging with inner city hunger organizations. Each one of us has a different ‘food issue’ and all are important. One table, endless conversations.”

Take a seat at the festival’s Endless Table, a 600-foot long table where guests and experts can commingle and gather new ideas. Or visit the Food Truck Food Court for a look at locally sourced food on the go. The Kitchen Conversation radio booth is open to all who want to share their food stories (potentially for broadcast on-air). And a number of activity booths will teach you how to cook or sharpen your kitchen knives, start an edible garden, or conduct your own food science experiment.

Notable local chefs will be on the Main Stage for demos: Rialto chef Jody Adams and Mayor Tom Menino are cooking up lobster; chefs Tiffani Faison and Mary Dumont will teach kids about summer fruits; and chef Keith Pooler shows off speed in the kitchen during his “5 Minute Chef” demo. (For a full schedule, visit the website.)

Kasdon is hopeful that the event will initiate similar programs at museums around the country, too. “We have representatives from over 40 science and technology museums and centers coming to observe the Festival, and several of the large science museums in the country have already inquired about hosting a festival of their own,” she says.

Meaning this is a conversation you want to be a part of.

Let’s Talk About Food takes places Saturday, 6/25, 10 am-5 pm at the Museum of Science on the Cambridge Parkway (along the banks of the Charles River). Admission is free. For a full schedule and more info, visit letstalkaboutfood.com.

This Week’s Edible Events

Tuesday 6/21 – Boston Public Market Association’s Strawberry Harvest Festival at Dewey Square
Pick up gardening tips, sample tasty strawberry desserts, and learn how to create delicious salads with the local fruit at this Dewey Square event. All proceeds will go to supporting the Dewey Square and City Hall markets. (Noon-2 pm. Dewey Square Farmer’s Market at the corners of Atlantic Avenue and Summer Street, bostonpublicmarket.org.)

Thursday 6/23 – The Blue Room’s Urban Farm Dinner
The Blue Room hosts this four-course dinner paired with organic wines on the patio in order to help raise money for the Breast Health Center at Tufts Medical Center. ($75 minimum donation, 6:30 pm. The Blue Room, 1 Kendall Sq., Cambridge. For reservations, call 617-494-9034.)

Friday 6/24 – Chefs In Shorts
Join 40 Boston chefs for this 14th annual summertime romp on the terrace of the Seaport World Trade Center. ($60, 7-9:30 pm. Seaport World Trade Center, 200 Seaport Blvd., South Boston. Tickets available online.)

Sunday 6/26 – Downtown Chef Showdown at Petite Robert Central
Chefs Marc Orfaly (Pigalle, Remick’s), Jason Santos (Blue, Inc.), and Marc Thompson (Stoddard’s) compete for judges Taniya Nayak, designer of Food Network’s Restaurant Impossible!, Chef Jacky Robert of Petit Robert Bistros and Jenny Johnson, co-host of NECN’s TV Diner. ($50, 5:30 pm. Petite Robert Central, 34 Summer St., Boston. Tickets available online.)