Bradenton to debut ‘long table’ at MCAT Transit Station in October

Those driving or bicycling through downtown Bradenton on a night this October may wonder why fashionably attired people are dining on a 260-foot table right smack in the downtown bus station.

The answer could be that the diners all wanted to contribute to a cause while being part of Manatee County’s first “long table.”

Popular in nearby cities such as St. Petersburg, a “long table” or “longest table” event usually invites several hundred diners to partake of haute cuisine on a long table set up in a unique venue with their tab going to a cause or charity.

The Bradenton event, officially called, “Long Table at the Station,” has been created for 250 diners who will sit from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Oct. 15 and dine on creations by six local chefs at the Bradenton Transit Station, according to Johnette Isham, executive director of Realize Bradenton.

The station fits the unique venue requirement, not only because buses will be going by, but the station walls feature a large, vivid tile mural by Chicago artist DZine.

“He captured the surrounding area, water, sky, green, in an abstract form,” said Jeremy Piper of Realize Bradenton, which partnered with the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, Mattison’s City Grill Bradenton Riverwalk, Edible Sarasota, Bradenton Area Economical Development Corp., Manatee County Area Transit and Sunz Insurance.

The six local chefs were picked because they own Manatee restaurants. Each chef will prepare one course in a six-course meal paired with fine wines and local craft beer.

The cost is $175 per person with proceeds going to the Bradenton Farmers Market for the 2017-18 season, Isham said.

“I think it is very cool to mix a great meal with a totally unexpected venue,” said Chef Paul Mattison of Mattison’s City Grille Bradenton Riverwalk.

“It’s just fun to be in an atypical place and have dinner with good friends,” Mattison added.

Sunz Insurance is loaning out its patio near the bus station for the first course.

“I think it is showing people that Bradenton is ready for bigger and better things,” said Meridith Mambelli, who works alongside one of the long table chefs, her husband, Chef Remo Mambelli, at Arte Caffe, at 930 12th St. W., Bradenton.

For the third course, Chef Mambelli will be handcrafting borsellini, which is purses of pasta stuffed with mixed cheese and white truffle in a sauce of light cream and onion topped with fresh, locally grown arugula.

“It’s the bus station!” Chef Mambelli said. “Can’t be anything more fun than that. Come on!”

The MCAT buses will run as normal on the evening of Oct. 15 and will be rerouted not to disrupt service.

The dress for the night will be “comfortably elegant,” Isham said.

“It’s comfortable with a level of dress up,” Isham said.

Chef Dave Shiplett of Birdrock Taco Shack will tackle the first course, with a Florida Avocado Smash and grilled Florida rock shrimp tacos. Chef Gaetano “Guy” Cannata of Ortygia will prepare stuffed baby bell peppers for the second course. After Mambelli does his third course, Chef Jim Copening of Arts & Eats Restaurant will create a Japanese-inspired grouper dish for the fourth course.

Mattison will offer High Plains bison short rib for the fifth course, which will be paired with boniato potatoes and sauteed rapini.

The sixth course belongs to Chef Dana Johnson of Sugar Cubed Pastry Lab who has promised guava brulee, organic guava from Island Grove Wine Company with Dakin Dairy vanilla bean custard.

Sixty tickets have already been sold, said Isham. Tickets can be purchased at BradentonLongTable.com. Information: 941-447-9494.

This story was originally published June 27, 2017 at 4:57 PM with the headline "Bradenton to debut ‘long table’ at MCAT Transit Station in October."