A Night in Spain at Swank Farm: Get tickets now for upcoming event

A treasured annual feature of South Florida’s fall foodie season is underway: Swank Specialty Produce in Loxahatchee has brought back its long-running Swank Table dinner series.

The 2023-2024 dinner series includes 10 dates through April 21 and attract a who’s-who list of more than 40 chefs with names you know and food you may have been anxious to try. Among them are Clay Conley (Buccan), Joe Bonavita (WET Miami), Carlos Garcia (Leku), Paula DaSilva (The Ritz-Carlton, Fort Lauderdale), Huy Hoang (Le Colonial), Dieter Samijn (Café Boulud) and Michael Hackman (Aioli). Chef Fabian Di Paolo from Shearwater Tavern in Carmel, Calif., formerly of Esme Miami Beach, also is on the list.

At once remote and a required stop for anyone interested in the full South Florida experience, Swank Farm, as it is known to friends, is a 20-acre property owned and operated for more than two decades by Jodi and Darrin Swank.

There, the Swanks grow more than 350 varieties of produce — 45 varieties of lettuce and more than 20 types of tomatoes, for instance — which quickly became prized by local chefs seeking to elevate a dish with a unique ingredient. Among them was their friend, acclaimed local chef Dean Max, who prepared a meal on the farm in 2011 that was such a hit, they kept going, with subsequent appearances by chefs including Jeremy Ford, Pushkar Marathe and Niven Patel.

Taking place under the embrace of the farm’s signature, 8,500-square-foot pole barn, Swank Table dinners are about more than a meal. The out-of-the-way agricultural locale seems to have a liberating effect on the chefs and guests, and when paired with local brewers and musicians, each gathering feels like a curation of a certain kind of engaged, outgoing South Florida lifestyle.

The dinners come with a theme — the disco-costumed ’70s night (Feb. 25) and the White Party (April 7) are among the most popular — and each evening is a fundraiser for a distinct local charity.

“I love when the chefs come out, they’re working in an open-air barn, and they have so much fire to work with. They’re not in their enclosed kitchens for one night, and they can have fun,” Jodi Swank says. “Then the guests, you know it’s such a production we put on, I see the guests and how they smile. It’s a mindblower for anybody that comes out there for the first time. They don’t know what to expect.”

If you just want to casually experience the Swanks’ unique environment, Swank Farmers Market is a good bet every Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., through May 25. The market includes items from the farm, but also from more than two dozen local vendors offering wildflowers, wine, beef, chicken, cheese, sweets and other delicacies (no arts and crafts) picked with a purpose by Swank.

Swank describes the dinners and the market as a thank-you to locals who helped them get started.

“It’s a way for the farm to give back after so many years of the community doing so much for Swank Farm. Back in the day, before there were so many other small farms out there, Swank was the only one for like 10 years and, boy, were we treated well,” she says.

Below, find details on the remaining 2023-2024 season’s Swank Table dinners, which cost $180 per person. Swank Specialty Produce is located at 14311 North Road, Loxahatchee. For tickets and more information, visit SwankSpecialtyProduce.com.

A Night in Spain

When: 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 21
Theme:Dishes from a country with one of the globe’s most eclectic cuisines.
Chefs:Fabian Di Paolo (executive chef, Shearwater Tavern, Carmel, Calif.); Michael Hackman (owner/chef, Aioli, West Palm Beach); Carlos Garcia (executive chef, Leku, Miami); Megan Lee Willard (executive pastry chef, Rose’s Daughter, Delray Beach)
Brewer:Tarpon River Brewing, Fort Lauderdale
Band:The Killbillies
Benefiting:The Dr. Gary Paul Swank Memorial Scholarship at the Foundation for Palm Beach State College

Club Carnival, Mardi Gras

When: 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 4
Theme: Bring a mask and wear something purple, green and gold for this Mardi Gras celebration.
Chefs: James E. Versfelt (executive chef, Residences by Armani Casa, Sunny Isles Beach); Blake Malatesta (executive chef, The Wine Room, Delray Beach); Jeff Tunks (executive chef, Corvina Seafood Grill, Boca Raton); Jessi Marchetti (pastry chef, Aioli, West Palm Beach)
Brewer:Mathews Brewing Co., Lake Worth Beach
Band: Niles Blaize and the Swamp Cats
Benefiting:Connections Education Center of the Palm Beaches

Bourbon, BBQ and Blues

When: 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 18
Theme:Meat meets whiskey. Any questions?
Chefs:Joe Bonavita (executive chef; formerly of WET Miami and 50 Ocean, Delray Beach); Josie Smith Malave (owner/chef Bubbles and Pearls, Wilton Manors); Lauren and Chuck Lupo (owner/bakers, Key Lime to Happiness, West Palm Beach)
Brewer, band: TBD
Benefiting: Loxahatchee Groves Landowners Association Scholarship Fund

Throwback to the ’70s

When: 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 25
Theme: Think bell-bottoms, hippie dresses, ’70s wigs and boogie shoes.
Chefs:Jonathan Merry (chef/owner, River House, Damariscotta, Maine); Chef Moon (Sushi by Bou, Boca Raton); Johnny Demartini (executive chef, Ravish Kitchen, Lantana; MJ Jaramillo (pastry chef, The Ben Hotel, West Palm Beach)
Brewer:Funky Buddha Brewery, Oakland Park
Band:DJ Jessica Who
Benefiting:Cancer Alliance of Help & Hope

Street Food, Cultures of Asia

When: 5 p.m. Sunday, March 10
Theme:Like it sounds, the evening offers a survey of Asian street-style dining, including Korean, Vietnamese and Japanese.
Chefs: Huy Hoang (executive chef, Le Colonial, Delray Beach); Eric Baker (owner/chef, Alley Cat, Boca Raton); Chom “Sunny” Kaminski (consulting chef, inspiration for daughters’ 2 Korean Girls, Miami/Fort Lauderdale; Mitsu Nozaki (executive pastry chef, The Seagate, Delray Beach)
Brewer:Cove Brewery, Deerfield Beach
Band:Fuse
Benefiting:Hanley Foundation

She Feasts

When: 5 p.m. Sunday, March 24
Theme:A celebration of top women chefs in South Florida.
Chefs:Adrienne Grenier (chef de cuisine, Burlock Coast at The Ritz-Carlton, Fort Lauderdale); Suzanne Perrotto (owner/chef, Rose’s Daughter and Brulé Bistro, Delray Beach); Jen Knox (director of culinary operations, Damn Good Hospitality and Warren, Delray Beach); Paula DaSilva (director of culinary and beverage, The Ritz-Carlton, Fort Lauderdale); Allegra Angelo (sommelier, Vinya, Miami); Carissa DaSilva (pastry chef, 3030 Ocean, Fort Lauderdale)
Brewer:Orchestrated Minds Brewing, Fort Lauderdale
Band: Tayla Davis
Benefiting: Spring of Hope

13th Annual Vêtu de Blanc

When: 5 p.m. Sunday, April 7
Theme:Swank’s White Party, inspired by the famed Parisian fete, comes with a request that guests dress in white and bring their own candlesticks, candelabras and votives.
Chefs:Dieter Samijn (executive chef, Café Boulud, Palm Beach); Antonio Bachour (owner/chef, Bachour Restaurants, Miami); Clay Conley (owner/chef, Buccan, Palm Beach); William Crandall (executive chef, Tablé by Antonio Bachour, Miami); Julie Franceschini (executive pastry chef, Café Boulud, Palm Beach)
Brewer:Prosperity Brewers, Boca Raton
Band: Mitch Herrick and The Homegrown Sinners
Benefiting:West Palm Beach Library Foundation

Cooking with Cannabis

When: 5 p.m. Sunday, April 21
Theme:Swank Farm, a Florida-licensed hemp grower, will harvest some of their CBD flowers for use in the evening’s food and drink.
Chefs:Tara Abrams (executive chef, Crazy Uncle Mike’s, Boca Raton); Joseph Pagel (executive chef, Meat Market, Palm Beach); Glenn Rogers (chef de cuisine, The Seagate, Delray Beach); Natasha Kortabani (owner/baker, Tasha’s Table, Delray Beach)
Brewer: Civil Society Brewing Co., West Palm Beach and Jupiter
Band: Spred The Dub
Benefiting:Path to College

Staff writer Ben Crandell can be reached at bcrandell@sunsentinel.com. Follow on Instagram @BenCrandell and Twitter @BenCrandell.