Tomato tasting, HomeGrown Festival and Septemberfest make for a complete local food weekend

Some of the heirloom tomatoes at Project Grow's tomato tasting in August. Late season tomatoes will be on hand at the HomeGrown Festival on Sept. 11.

Monica Milla | Contributor

There are three great events this weekend for tasting local food: Project Grow's fall tomato tasting and the HomeGrown Festival on Saturday and Septemberfest at Kempf House on Sunday.

I enjoyed Project Grow's heirloom tomato tasting at the Ann Arbor Farmers Market on Aug. 21 and am looking forward to the group's late-season tomato tasting on Saturday. The event is free and takes place at the Farmers Market from 6 to 9 p.m. as part of the HomeGrown Festival.

The HomeGrown Festival itself is an even bigger venue for tasting locally-grown food. The festival takes place at the Farmers Market from 6 to 11 p.m. on Saturday. The event and music are free, with vendors charging for their fares.

In its third year, the festival celebrates good food and local business with many activities for all ages. The festival also aims to raise awareness about the importance and benefits of community food security.

Attendees can taste food grown by area farmers and cooked by local chefs, as well as sample Michigan beer and wine. Bands (including Los Gatos, Royal Garden Trio, Jeff Grand & The Grandmasters, and Third Coast Kings) will provide the day's soundtrack and could possibly lead to dancing.

A farm stand will feature a slide show and information about local farmers and farmers markets. There will also be chef demos and activities for children.

On Sunday from 4 to 7 p.m., the Kempf House at 312 S. Division St. hosts Septemberfest, a fundraiser for restoring the historic home's garden. Think of the event as an early Octoberfest with local beer from Arbor Brewing Co., grilled bratwursts and ice cream sundaes from the Washtenaw Dairy. There will also be tours of the house and garden and music. Tickets are available at the door for those 21 and older and cost $25 for Kempf House members and $35 for non-members.

I've been volunteering in the Kempf House garden all season, so this cause is dear to my heart. Everyone working on the garden is a volunteer, donating their time and effort, including Garden Director Deborah Burling. She is masterminding the restoration of the Victorian garden into what it would likely have looked like between 1890-1920.

Monica Milla, the Garden Faerie, is a master gardener volunteer, garden speaker, garden coach and author of "Fun with Winter Seed Sowing."