FOOD & BEER (TIMES TWO)Salt & Smoke is the enterprising attempt of Acme’s Kevin Callaghan to wrestle two of the state’s most identifiable flavorsraw oysters and barbecue cooked for twelve hoursinto one experience. On Saturday, Callaghan takes Salt & Smoke on the road for the first time, moving from Acme in Carrboro to Ponysaurus in Durham. The mix of beer, food, and bluegrass runs from 4 p.m. and will run you $40–$45. If you’re still hungry on Sunday (or if all that shelling and smoking sounds like too much), the fourth Bull City Food & Beer Experience takes over DPAC Sunday night. Some thirty-five restaurants link with thirty-five breweries for a wide range of pairings, with an eighty-dollar ticket giving you access to it all. www.saltandsmokefest.com & www.bullcityexperience.com
EAT YOUR FLOWERS (TWO TIMES)
The North Carolina Museum of Art’s four-day Art in Bloom show explores the majesty of flora, with flower installations that interpret works in the collection and an abundance of tours and talks that explore nature’s visual feats. It’s N.C. State professor Julieta Sherk, though, who presents one of the most intriguing programs with “Edible Landscapes, Your Backyard Buffet.” The landscape architect and horticulturalist will discuss the intersection of beautiful and edible flowers, even showing guests which buds in the NCMA’s own gardens are made for eating. Tickets for the Friday morning talk run $20–$25. On Saturday, at Raleigh City Farm, the foraging forces of Piedmont Picnic Project lead a $15–$20 class about turning flowers into jellies and syrups. www.ncartmuseum.org & www.piedmontpicnic.com