It’s not often okra will bring tears to your eyes. I mean, that kind of physical response to a foodstuff is usually the domain of chile peppers, raw onions and whatever type of lasagne your favorite Italian grandma used to make. But when you hear the little sing-song Mr. Okra calls out from his produce truck as he crawls the streets of New Orleans looking for customers — I have man-goes! I have strawberries, I have greens! I have ohhhhkra! — it’s a tug at the olde heartstrings.
Mr. Okra is one of three short films about food culture that George Motz, the NYC Food Film Festival director, will be showing on November 17th as part of a mini-film fest series with Edible Manhattan, the other two being including The Perfect Oyster, and Buttermilk: It Can Help. Because it can in fact help, buttermilk, along with okra and oysters, will be served family style alongside the movies. In fact it’ll be an all you can eat and drink 3-course family-style dinner at Inside Park at St. Bart’s. (Beers provided by Stella Artois, Leffe and Hoegaarden.)
Inside Park Chef Matthew Weingarten will be fixing wood-roasted oysters and an okra and housemade sausage jambalaya, plus veggies a plenty–in honor of Mr. Okra, naturally–and buttermilk dessert. Tickets are $55 per seat and include unlimited food and drink AND a one-year subscription to Edible Manhattan (a value of $35). Buy tickets and watch the trailer for Mr. Okra right here.
