The Return Of Y’all Dinner
For three nights only, we transformed FUTURE FRONT into a pop-up restaurant for our fourth birthday fundraiser.
The menu included everything from fermented tomato martinis (thanks, Tito’s Handmade Vodka and Topo Chico!) to carrot mac & cheese kolache and Texas peach icebox cake. Hand-selected by the annual dinner’s hosts, chef Deepa Shridhar and Future Front Executive Director Jane Hervey, each dish was curated with coastal blends of Texas BBQ, South Indian flavors and Lone Star heritage in mind.
As always, all proceeds from Y’ALL DINNER supported the evenings’ talent, as well as Future Front’s free public arts and culture programs.
bask in the VISUAL recap.
PHOTOS BY YVONNE UWAH
MEET THE DINNER’S ANNUAL HOSTS.
Deepa Shridhar (she/her) is a chef, writer, podcaster and TV & Digital personality residing in Austin. Shridhar has started her professional cooking career working at some of the best restaurants in Texas, including her own award winning food trailer, Puli-Ra, and supper club, specializing in South Indian Texan cuisine, her own brand of Third Culture Cuisine.
She is the founder of Thali Omakase; a private monthly dinner experience with a completely custom menu, complimentary beverage program and playlist.
Currently, Shridhar collaborates on supper clubs and pop ups with like minded businesses across the country that include award winning restaurants and food businesses alike. She’s a contributing writer for Serious Eats and has been featured in many national publications along with multiple appearances on the Food Network including Chopped, as a runner up.
Chef Deepa has a substack under the moniker: Sicc Palette. Sicc Palette is a digital platform that houses her podcast, newsletter and a variety of video content that focuses on personal narratives, the definitions of fine dining, immigrant, third culture cuisine and recipes flavored by her South Indian Texan perspective.
Photo by Nitya Jain
Jane Hervey (she/her) is a community and brand development director, award-winning curator, creative producer and accidental nonprofit founder. Over the last decade, she has led teams and programs for 25+ creative companies and start-ups, arts and entertainment organizations and public spaces across the US. Designing thoughtfully curated experiences, brand identities and storytelling projects, her client list reflects independent creatives and nonprofits, cities and local government, as well as lifestyle and tech brands like The LINE Hotel, Bumble and Waymo.
Currently, she directs Future Front, a 501c3 cultural space she founded in 2021, alongside her own consultancy, group work. Through these projects, her community-designed festivals and fairs have distributed more than $1M in commissions and support to Texas-based independent artists, musicians, filmmakers, craftspeople, curators, cultural workers and multidisciplinary creatives since 2015. This pioneering work in public and private programming, creative direction and brand strategy has been recognized for its undeniable impact on Texas culture—from the underground to public parks—by ADWEEK, Texas Monthly, The National Endowment for the Arts and the City of Austin’s Women’s Hall of Fame. As a keynote speaker and curator for organizations like SXSW, Austin FC, Fusebox Festival, The Contemporary Austin Museum and Soho House, Jane has become a known advocate for stronger Texan cities, cultural justice and community practices in creative leadership, too.
Jane has also composed records and music as an independent recording artist for global projects since 2012. Originally from the South Texas border, Hervey now lives and works in Austin, Texas. Learn more at janeclairehervey.com.