Culinary calendar
Brown Bag Bonanza - Sample eight red wines, cheese and La Brea bread. Reservations and prepayment required. Friday. 7 p.m., Rocket Market, 726 E. 43rd Ave. $25, plus tax. (509) 343-2253.
Liver and Onions Dinner - Hosted by the Elks Lodge. Reservations required. Friday. 5:30-7 p.m., 2605 N. Robie Road. (509) 926-2328.
“Sip and Shop” - Sip some delicious wines with Shelley Maly from Girsaole Vineyards while shopping for your favorite jewels and handbags. Saturday. 2-5 p.m., Ferrante’s Marketplace Cafe, 4516 S. Regal St. (509) 443-6304.
Italian Dinner - By “The Barn on Trezzi Farm.” Fundraiser to enhance the Historical Grounds of the soon to be 100-year-old Green Bluff Grange. Saturday. 5:30-8:30 p.m., Green Bluff Grange, corner of Green Bluff and Day Mt. Spokane Roads. $10/adults, $6/children age 7-10; free/age 6 and younger. (509) 238-6237.
Spring Barbecue and Hot Rod Gathering - Hot rod show, Texas style barbecue, live music, pinstripers, beer garden, vendors. Camping available. Saturday. 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Main Street, Palouse. No spectator fee.
Compass Club Luncheon - A women’s club for introducing newcomers to the area. Menu Tuesday will include: Northwest chicken salad croissant, lemon bars, iced tea, coffee and a no-host bar. Registration/check-in at 11 a.m., meeting at 11:30. Reservations are due by Thursday. Doubletree Hotel, 322 N. Spokane Falls Court. $20/includes lunch and parking. (509) 465-4043.
Gay Spokane Awards Dinner and In-Town/Out-of-Town Show - Sponsored by The Imperial Sovereign Court of Spokane. Awards dinner at 6:30 p.m., line-up at 7, show at 8. June 6. 6:30 p.m., Dempsey’s Brass Rail, 909 W. First Ave. $12/dinner, $10/show, $20/both.
Grape and Grain 2008 - Spokane’s Premiere Wine and Beer Tasting event. Presented by the Spokane Advertising Federation, a nonprofit group that raises funds for advertising scholarships, fully supports and advises the Northwest District of Advertising College Students for the annual national competition, and sponsors a nationally recognized teenage drug awareness advertising contest T.A.S.C. in the Great Spokane area. Featuring more than 20 Northwest wineries and breweries, a silent auction and hors d’oeuvres. Tickets may be purchased at Vino! A Wineshop, Huckleberry’s, and at www.spokaneadfed.com. June 6. 7-10 p.m., Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute, 4000 W. Randolph Road. $30/advance, $40/door. (509) 325-0701.
Picks o’ the Month - Sample eight new wines, cheese and La Brea bread. Reservations and prepayment required. June 6. 7 p.m., Rocket Market, 726 E. 43rd Ave. $20, plus tax. (509) 343-2253.
Rhubarb Festival - Third annual event. June 7. 900 W. Fourth, Newport. (509) 447-9277.