This month's Slow Food Glades to Coast dinner, on Thursday January 15, focuses on our local waters with a meal hosted by Chef Dean James Max at 3030 Ocean in Fort Lauderdale. Max, as we know, has a masterly way with anything that sports fins, scales, or claws, and his menu for the event includes Whitewater clams, Key West shrimp, and local wahoo -- all of it sustainable, politically correct, and delicious -- sea creatures you can eat and fish for without guilt. Our local waters are being depleted of edible sea life to the point that your grandkids might never taste a fried grouper sandwich, so projects like "Slow Fish" are important to promote awareness. Let's hope other local chefs will catch on and stop serving endangered seafood; Max has been setting a good example for as long as we can remember.

The night kicks off with a champagne reception at 6:30. $25 of your $125 all-inclusive tab goes to support local Slow Food projects. Reserve your place by calling Nicole or Corey at 954-765-3129.

As an added bonus, you'll get to sample the work of chef de cuisine Paula de Silva, who's a contestant on this season's Hell's Kitchen! The show airs this month.