— James Beard Foundation is bringing its Taste America tour to Austin in November with a bunch of notable chefs. First, there’s the dinner featuring Los Angeles chef Ludo Lefebvre, who will team up with Uchi’s Tyson Cole and Launderette’s Laura Sawicki on Friday, November 3, at the W Hotel. That will be preceded with passed appetizers from Franklin, Bryce Gilmore, Iliana De La Vega, and others. Tickets range from $225 to $3,600 (for VIP tables). Those who purchase VIP tickets will be able to attend Aaron Franklin’s barbecue and beer party evening the night before, which will include other Austin chefs like Callie Speer, Evan LeRoy, and Ben Runkle, on Thursday, November 2. Lefevbre and Cole will also conduct cooking demonstrations and sign cookbooks up in the Sur La Table in the Domain Northside on Saturday, November 4. This is the tour’s only Texas stop.

— Abel’s North is no longer a restaurant. Instead, the West Parmer Lane space has been operating as a private events venue since Tuesday, July 11. There are still two other Abel’s locations in Austin, Cain and Abel’s on West Campus and Abel’s on the Lake.

— Elizabeth Street Cafe is partnering with photographer Matt Crump for a limited edition macaron box with a photograph of the restaurant’s sign, shot in his candy minimal signature style. Pastry chef Ashley Ginsberg is baking up cotton candy macarons for the offering. Only 50 boxes will be available tomorrow, Saturday, July 15, but the sweets will be sold through Monday.

— Blue Bell Ice Cream’s newest flavor is the Sweet ‘n Salty Crunch, which is made with vanilla ice cream, chocolate-covered pretzel bites, chopped almonds, and chocolate pieces. The ice cream company went through voluntary recalls of its cookie dough products last year after fears that listeria contamination might have occurred again.