A food fest in Newport on Tuesday evening combined the talents of local farmers and local chefs for one delectable event.

A sold-out crowd showed up to Castle Hill Inn & Resort for RI Local Food Fest 2010, where they enjoyed mouthwatering local fare, including cheeses, breads, honey, beer, wine and produce, while taking in breathtaking views of the Narragansett Bay. The event featured 24 Rhode Island farmers who teamed up with area chefs, all to create unique dishes that made eating local seem mighty tasty.

Newport's chefs were well represented. The Newport Restaurant Group offered Aquidneck Farms beef with Lydon Family tomato compote, while the talented team of Chef Jonathan Cambra of Castle Hill Inn & Resort offered samples of a pan-roasted striped bass with Sweet Berry Farm peaches.

A line formed for Blackbird Farms' mini-beef burgers, prepared by Chef Jake Rojas of Newport's Tallulah on Thames. Vanderbilt Hall's Chef Pete Lech presented Confreda Farms beet "caviar" sushi rolls. 

"It is essential for business," Newport Vineyards owner Paul Nunes said about why he participated in RI Local Food Fest. "People are realizing that the best food they can buy is often in their own backyard. They are realizing that nothing beats fresh food." 

Nunes said he believes that supporting local agriculture contributes to land conservation, puts money into the local economy, and ensures consumers' access to fresh, healthy food.

Tuesday's event did more than to just spread the word about local food. It also took what remained and put it back into Rhode Island soil. All waste from the event will be composted for use at Earth Care Farm in Charlestown.

Other Aquidneck groups participating included Newport Storm and the following farms: Aquidneck Honey, Bally Machree, Greenvale Vineyards and Simmons Farm.

The event was sponsored by Farm Fresh Rhode Island, a nonprofit that's committed to building a sustainable, local food system for people in the Ocean State. The organization runs and supports both summer and winter farmers markets throughout the state, while also maintaining FarmFresh.org, an online local food guide. Additional programs include their Harvest Kitchen program, where youth on probation learn how to prepare simple products from farm fresh ingredients, and Market Mobile, a delivery program that connects chefs, schools, grocers, and hospitals with local produce.