Slow Food Charleston's Snail Awards

Event Details

All tickets for the Snail Awards are $75, available now at snailawardschs.com

The event will be comprised of two parts. The first, a VIP Meet-and-Greet with snacks by Air Casebier’s FEAST, a specialty cocktail by the team at Fish and High Wire Distilling, and an educational Presentation of Finalists. Due to the capacity of the American Theater auditorium, this portion of the evening will be limited to the Snail Award Finalists, Slow Food Supporters, and fifty ticket buyers who secure designated All-Access VIP tickets at snailawardschs.com. After the Presentation of Finalists, where we'll learn how individuals and businesses are impacting our community and propagating the mission of Slow Food, the event will move into the ballroom and William Aiken carriage house courtyard. Doors will be opened for all attendees to celebrate the Lowcountry’s Slow Food advocates with casual food stations, passed snacks, plenty to drink, and music by Charleston’s lively V-Tones. Winners for the The SnailBlazer, The Activist, The Provider, The Artist in Food, The Artist in Beverage, and The Place will be announced on stage at the party and awarded a Le Creuset Dutch Oven with custom snail handle by artist Robert Thomas. Nathalie Dupree will be recognized as the 2017 Legend and awarded the Carolina Gold trophy, forged by Thomas in the slow craft of ironwork.

This event is made possible by the generosity and support of Patrick Property Hospitality Group, Limehouse Produce, The Culinary Institute of Charleston, Ooh! Events, Charleston Magazine, Le Creuset, Anson Mills, and High Wire Distilling.



The Snail Awards

Slow Food Charleston has divided the Snail Awards into the categories below. Semi-finalists in each category, other than the preselected Legend awardee, will be reviewed by a panel of judges in March. Finalists will be notified by the end of March and invited as a guest of honor to the American Theater on April 13.

The Legend - The Legend is preselected and will lead our esteemed panel of judges in deciding the awardees of the categories below. This individual is a person of importance and familiarity who has set a path for success in their field, is a role model for others, and has a proven record of actions congruent with the philosophies of Slow Food. The Legend is the honoree of the Snail Awards reception and recipient of the forged iron Carolina Gold trophy

The Snailblazer - The only publicly nominated category and the only category with a cash award ($1000). This SnailBlazer Micro-Grant will be awarded to someone who is making strides to positively impact the Charleston community. Applications are available online now at slowfoodcharleston.org and at snailawardschs.com. Application Deadline is March 10. The grant is to be applied towards an existing or proposed project that champions Slow Food.

The Activist - Whatever the scope of their efforts, these nominees are action-oriented in the pursuit of better, cleaner, fairer food for all. Here an advocate of food justice, preservation of foodways, biodiversity, land conservation, education, community building or other social and political issues will be recognized for their beliefs and efforts.

The Provider - A producer or provider of food, largely unmanipulated by process or a provider of unique or speciality product. Nominees include farmers, fishers, cheesemongers, importers/distributors and others who meet the community’s needs, while operating sustainably within the tenets of Slow Food.

The Artist - These nominees use refined skill to prepare the best ingredients and provide a ‘value-added’ product. This will be divided into Food and Beverage categories. Sustainability, sourcing, business culture, education, and innovation are all evaluated criteria.

The Place - A business or group of businesses that model Slow Food’s principles, practices, and philosophies. These nominees may be operating within any part of the community.

2016 Snail Award Winners:
The Legend: Chef Mike Lata of FIG and The Ordinary
The SnailBlazer: Germaine Jenkins of Fresh Future Farm
The Activist: Charleston County Green Waste Program
The Provider: Celeste Albers of Green Grocer Farm
The Artist in Food: Craig Deihl of AMS and Cypress
The Artist in Beverage: High Wire Distilling
The Place: Grow Food Carolina

For more information about Slow Food Charleston, please visit www.slowfoodcharleston.org.