Summary

If a cookbook could throw a dinner party, it might look a lot like what’s happening at The Crescent Hotel Fort Worth on May 17. That night, The Blue Room — tucked behind velvet curtains and known for its upscale atmosphere — will host a one-night-only, multi-course dinner featuring some of the city’s most beloved chefs.

On May 17, The Crescent Hotel’s Blue Room hosts a unique, chef-driven experience inspired by Celestina Blok’s new cookbook, celebrating the flavors of Fort Worth.

If a cookbook could throw a dinner party, it might look a lot like what’s happening at The Crescent Hotel Fort Worth on May 17. That night, The Blue Room — tucked behind velvet curtains and known for its upscale atmosphere — will host a one-night-only, multi-course dinner featuring some of the city’s most beloved chefs.

The event, curated and hosted by local food writer Celestina Blok, is a celebration of “Cowtown Comfort,” her new cookbook that pays tribute to the recipes and personalities shaping Fort Worth’s dining identity. With more than 50 recipes and stories from 25 chefs, restaurateurs, and food folks, the book reads like a love letter to the city — and this dinner brings its pages to life.

Each course will be presented by the chefs themselves, offering guests not just a seat at the table, but a front-row view into the kitchens and minds that define Cowtown cuisine.

Among the lineup:

• Chef Blaine Staniford, the force behind Grace, 61 Osteria, and Little Red Wasp, will serve his take on Toad in a Hole — Grace’s buttery brioche version, made indulgent with a white truffle vinaigrette.
• Chef Preston Paine, of Emilia’s and The Blue Room, will offer fresh pasta topped with a vibrant sungold tomato sauce made from blistered cherry tomatoes, white wine, garlic, and shallots — finished with lemon zest and basil.
• Kari Crowe-Seher, founder of Melt Ice Creams, is turning the classic Baked Alaska into a local showstopper with “Howdy, Peach!”— her signature peach ice cream on a crisp tart shell, wrapped in meringue and torched until golden.
• Markus Kypreos, of Blackland Distillery, will round out the evening with a salted pecan Old Fashioned, a Fort Worth spin on the bourbon classic that blends brown sugar and rye with toasted pecans and just a pinch of salt.

The evening opens with remarks from Blok, who will share the backstory of “Cowtown Comfort” — from family Sunday meals to iconic neighborhood dishes — and introduce the chefs whose recipes bring that story to life.

Tickets are $175 and include the chef-led dinner, a signed copy of “Cowtown Comfort,” and one-on-one access to the chefs and author. For $50 more, guests can add a curated beverage pairing designed to complement each course.

At its heart, this is more than just a meal. It’s a celebration of Fort Worth’s food culture —warm, nostalgic, and full of soul. And in The Blue Room, where the ambiance is as rich as the courses being served, that spirit will be on full display.