September 2023 Danielle Myers found two books while on her morning run in BedStuy. Thumbing through the pages, she realized they were chef notes and recipes. Arriving in Nashville, she found a phone number in one of the books and sent a text detailing a concept for a publication, Recipes From A Stranger. From that initial idea, the project bloomed into a dinner and program. 

 

Recipes From A Stranger is a curated publication based on forty sauce and accoutrement recipes from the the mind of Chef Austen Orrell.

 

June 2025 Austen Orrell traveled to Nashville to discuss the project’s story, why he was in NY, and how the books were found. Three local chefs, Lokelani Alabanza, Keshia Hay, and Marcus Rhodes, were given three unique sauce recipes. Each chef selected one recipe to incorporate into a new dish. The three courses were served to 145 guests. Each guest received a copy of the publication. In addition to the three courses, we served “Streets Disciple” a long centerpiece featuring cheeses, jams, fruits, breads, crackers, and pickles and three “Interludes” featuring herbs and flowers from Sow and Harvest Farms, a local micro-greenery. 

 

Recipes From A Stranger was a free, ticketed event held at the Frist Art Museum on June 5, 2025 with only one rule: each guest had to sit across from a stranger.

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Iterations:

Recipes From A Stranger: Frist Art Museum, 2025