TODAY · 10:00am
WilCo Farmers Market
Downtown Georgetown Square · Georgetown
TODAY · 6:00pm
Food for Thought 2026: Recipes for the Future
Thursday, October 29 at ACL Live at the Moody Theater, Austin
About this event
Food for Thought, Communities In Schools of Central Texas' signature fundraiser and Austin's premier tasting event, returns for its 30th anniversary on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, at ACL Live at the Moody Theater. This unforgettable evening brings together acclaimed local restaurants, live music and community champions to celebrate three decades of impact while raising critical funds to help students access mental health care, school supplies, academic support, and college and career guidance. With this year's theme, "Recipes for the Future," the event is both a celebration and a call to action to ensure every Central Texas student has the support they need to succeed. Participating Restaurants: Brodie's Worldwide Casa Fina Eberly Ember Kitchen Il Brutto La Popular Mama Betty's Tex Mex y Cantina Moonshine Patio Bar & Grill Parkside Serenade sway thai Swift’s Attic The Guest House Tumble 22 VERDAD True Modern Mexican Verbena Wu Chow
What to expect
A walk-around tasting where Austin restaurants and culinary programs serve bites, with live music and a live auction alongside. The restaurant list includes Wu Chow, Verbena, Swift's Attic, Il Brutto, Parkside, Casa Fina and VERDAD True Modern Mexican. The night also includes the first Culinary Community Impact Award, which goes to the hospitality company New Waterloo.
Why go
Money from the night goes to Communities In Schools, which places staff inside Central Texas schools. They connect students with mental health care, school supplies, academic help and college and career guidance. Thirty years in, it is one of the city's longest-running charity tastings, and many of the restaurants are ones Austin diners already know. ACL Live is a 2,750-capacity downtown theater with a music porch at the entrance, so the tasting happens in a room built for crowds.
Where
ACL Live at the Moody Theater · 310 W. 2nd Street · Austin TXDirections
