Foodie alert: Maine localvores gather

Hungering for a Maine culinary adventure? Craving a taste of Maine in fall? Make plans now to attend the Edible Island Conference and Fund-raising Dinner, on Oct. 9-10.

The program opens Oct. 9 with a spectacular five-course dinner with wine pairings, prepared by celebrity chefs.

Renowned chefs Jean-George Vongerichten (restaurants in London, Paris, Shanghai, and New York), Melissa Kelly (Primo, in Rockland), Michael Leviton (Lumiere, in West Newton, Mass., and Persephone, in Boston) and Lawrence Klang (Camden Harbour Inn, in Camden) will prepare a meal to remember in a private home in Deer Isle.

The evening begins with a pre-dinner champagne and hors d'oeuvres, then a five-course meal with wine pairings. Guests will have an opportunity to speak with the chefs. And the evening ends with an auction. Fee is $250, and seating is limited to 75. All proceeds benefit the programs of the Island Culinary and Ecological Center.

The Oct. 10 conference opens with an all-star program:

• Barbara Damrosch and Eliot Coleman, organic gardeners extraordinaire, of Four Season Farm.

• Ingrid Bengis-Palei, owner of Ingrid Bengis Seafood, which supplies some of the nation's to restaurants with local seafood, believes Stonington seafood is its own brand.

• Aaron Dority and Ginny Olsen: He's the director of the Downeast Groundfish Initiative Project for the Penobscot East Resource Center. She's a conservation activities who owns, with her husband Blaine, Oceanville Seafood in Stonington.

• Terry-Anya Hayes, writer, herbalist, and wild foods educator, will talk about the local edible landscape and share how to identify, gather, and use the bounty.

After a lunch comprising soup and a salad, afternoon options include:

• Diver Ed: A boating trip during which Diver Ed explores the mysteries of the deep and shares via video.

• Foraging Expeditions with Terry-Anya Hayes

• Visits to local producers, including Sunset Acres Farm, Nervous Nellie's, and Five Star Nursery