Mugs And (Mud)Bugs

Heaps of crawfish consumed in the name of charity...

Maudie Schmitt knows crawfish. Brandon Karn knows craft beer. Together, they hope to throw quite a party.

The two local business owners -- she of Cafe Rue Orleans, he of Jammin Java -- are teaming together for the first Ales & Tales event. The charity fundraiser takes place 5-9 p.m. Saturday at the Fayetteville Town Center.

FAQ

Ales & Tails

WHEN — 5-9 p.m. Saturday

WHERE — Fayetteville Town Center in Fayetteville

COST — $25 general admission; $45 VIP

INFO — alesandtails.org

Both Schmitt and Karn served on the Fayetteville Advertising & Promotion Commission for several years. They approved funding for several similar charitable events, but it struck them that two things seemed missing. First, there were no fundraisers benefitting the Northwest Arkansas chapter of the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Society. Second, there were no large-scale crawfish boils. Saturday's event fills both needs.

"It felt like something we needed to do," Karn says.

Schmitt and her cooking team will handle the crawfish duties. She plans to boil 600 pounds of Arkansas-raised crawfish sourced from the Delta Crawfish company, which is based in Paragould. It will take her crew all of Saturday to keep up with the demand. The 600 pounds of crawfish will feed the approximately 600 people she and Karn expect to attend the inaugural fundraiser.

Karn, meanwhile, already has already established a successful beer-oriented fundraiser. He's one of the chief organizers of FoamFest, which returns this year in early May. Through that event, he has established connections with beer distributors who will now also contribute to the Ales & Tails event. Several breweries will make their Northwest Arkansas debut, among them Bayou Teche Brewing of Arnaudville, La.

The tickets are divided into two categories. The first, for $25, comes with a pound of crawfish and access to several breweries. The higher-priced of the two options, at $45, comes with a pound of crawfish, a souvenir tasting mug and access to the interior of the Fayetteville Town Center, where several additional breweries will be located. Additionally, eight different Northwest Arkansas restaurants will serve up crawfish-based items inside the VIP area.

Schmitt says all money raised through the event will be used for patient services. Specifically, the ALS chapter works to provide quality-of-life items such as wheelchairs and specialized eating utensils that allow anyone with the condition to lead a better life.

NAN What's Up on 03/28/2014

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