Eavesdropping on one employee talking to another at an Englewood business: “Just miles and miles of stupid in every direction the eye can see.”

The third annual Fill a Plate for Hunger benefiting We Don’t Waste takes place from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Wednesday at the Denver Botanic Gardens, 1007 York St. The fine dining event again will feature small plates and appetizers from the award-winning restaurants of Larimer Square and others.

A supporter of We Don’t Waste, Mayor Michael Hancock will serve as the event’s honorary chairman. City Councilman Charlie Brown, along with Dana Crawford, Jeff Hermanson, Walter Isenberg, Chad McWhinney, Mary Vostrejs, MD, Troy Guard and Cathy Cooney will serve as honorary chairs.

Event partner packages range from $850 to $15,000. Interested parties should contact We Don’t Waste executive director Arlan Preblud at 720-443-3668. Individual tickets to the event are $85, available at www.blacktie-colorado.com. CBS4 weather whiz Ed Greene will serve as the emcee with comedian Adam Cayton-Holland as the auctioneer.

Last year’s sold-out, inaugural event raised more than $85,000 for We Don’t Waste, the organization that systematically gathers what would otherwise be wasted perishable food, and delivers it to Metro Denver’s neediest charities. Since 2009, We Don’t Waste has collected donated food valued at more than $2,900,000, translating to more than 3,500,000 servings for Denver’s impoverished people in either acute or chronic conditions of hunger.

“Support from this event will help us expand our reach for more food, serve more agencies, and work to reduce food insecurity, while reducing food waste,” Preblud said. “The challenge of our organization is that our work is never done. There is more unused food going to waste every day, and there are so many individuals, families and children in need of a healthy meal.”

Denver Union Station, made up of Larimer Associates, McWhinney, REGen, LLC, Sage Hospitality and Urban Neighborhoods, is event’s presenting sponsor. Other event sponsors include Applejack Wine & Spirits, First American State Bank, The DiPasquale Family Foundation and First Bank.

For more information about Fill a Plate and We Don’t Waste, visit www.wedontwaste.org.

Denver chefs will prepare seasonally inspired dishes highlighting fruits and vegetables harvested from the gardens at Clayton Early Learning for the Second Annual Moonbeam Harvest, a culinary affair to raise funds and awareness for quality early childhood education.

The event, presented by Kiewit, will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday on the Clayton campus, 3801 Martin Luther King Blvd.

Moonbeam Harvest is an interactive event giving guests the opportunity to mingle with some of Denver’s top chefs while sipping handcrafted cocktails. The lineup of culinary talent includes: Duy Pham of Parker Garage; Clint Wangsnes, chef/owner of Chop House Casual Urban Eatery; Elise Wiggins, executive chef of Panzano and Melanie Lynn Minard, the new chef de cuisine at Watercourse Foods.

“Last year’s Moonbeam Harvest was a great success and we are thrilled to bring it back for our friends, neighbors and supporters,” said Charlotte Brantley, Clayton Early Learning president and CEO. “We are very grateful for the extremely talented chefs who are donating their time and talent to make the Second Annual Moonbeam Harvest even more successful.”

This year’s honorary event chairs are Governor John Hickenlooper and Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock. An exclusive VIP experience, sponsored by Comcast, will take place immediately prior the event, from 5 to 6 p.m.

Clayton Early Learning provides a quality educational experience to children of limited opportunity ages birth to five years old to prepare them for success in school and life.

Moonbeam Harvest tickets are $85 and can be purchased at www.claytonmoonbeam.org. Tickets for the VIP event are $150. Four or more VIP tickets purchased at once are $125 per ticket.

For more information about the Moonbeam Harvest or Clayton Early Learning, contact Denise Queen at 303-398-8569 or dqueen@claytonearlylearning.org.

On Friday, the Fifth Annual Flight to Luxury again will transform two of Denver’s private jet hangars at Centennial Airport – XJet and Signature Flight Support – into one of the city’s most prestigious charity events of the year. Put on by Cuvée Escapes, the event will directly benefit Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver.

“Last year $700,000 was raised and this year the goal is to raise $1 million,” said Larry Mueller, managing partner and founder of Cuvée Escapes. “This event is an opportunity to give back and make a true difference in the lives of thousands of Denver kids served by Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver.”

Flight to Luxury will spotlight elements of luxurious travel – Cuvée’s couture villas around the world, private jets by Jet Linx and Mayo Aviation, and high performance automobiles by Ferrari of Denver and Sill-TerHar Motors. The event includes music courtesy of Maestro Hughes, a fashion show featuring local Denver boutiques, delectable cuisine from our Mile High City’s eateries, beverages sponsored by Patron, and live and silent auctions.

Flight to Luxury will introduce Art Takes Flight featuring artwork by Andy Warhol, Nadaleena Mirat Brettman, Sherri Mignonne and Linda Israel, which will be available as part of the live auction.

Reaching the fundraising goal of $1 million at this event will translate to one full year of programs for 2,000 Boys & Girls Club members. Sponsorship opportunities are still available and can be viewed at www.flighttoluxury.com/sponsors. Individual tickets are $185 and can be purchased at www.flighttoluxury.com/tickets.

Cheryl Strayed, the author of the No. 1 “New York Times” bestseller “Wild,” the New York Times bestseller “Tiny Beautiful Things” and the novel “Torch,” will speak of her solo adventures on the Pacific Trail at 8 p.m. Sept. 19 at the Paramount Theater, 1621 Glenarm Place.

“Wild,” which was chosen by Oprah Winfrey as her first selection for Oprah’s Book Club 2.0, will be released as a major motion picture starring Reese Witherspoon in December.

The evening at the Paramount includes a question-and-answer session and book signing with her books provided by The Tattered Cover for sale on site. Tickets are available at www.altitudetickets.com/event/cheryl-strayed-1513/.

(Joni Kabana photo)

Thrillist.com, the hipster website that has a love of lists, has included The Sink, 1165 13th St. in Boulder, as one of The 31 Best College Burgers in America.

This is equivalent to kicking the extra point through the Thrillist goal posts because the list folks previously included The Sink as one of the best college bars in the country.

Here’s what Thrillist said: “… The Sink’s burgers are absolutely legendary among the CU community. Sure, there are other solid burgers in the area (Dark Horse being one of them), but The Sink stands out for its cosmically fat burgers topped with stuff like veritable bales of Texas onion straws, and the fact that students have made their indelible marks on its low ceiling, scrawling their names after downing a few drinks. Hell, we can even recommend the turkey burger here in good conscience. Now that’s a great college spot all-around.”

To see the rest of the list, go to www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/best-college-burgers-in-america?utm_content=feature&utm_term=Denver&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=9.7.14%20WKNDR:%20Thrillist%20Weekend%20Digest.

It’s been nearly a year since the floods swept across the Front Range, inundating so many communities. The waters leveled and swamped houses and businesses, destroyed roads, and turned fields full of vegetables into rivers and lakes. Farmers were especially hard-hit and continue to struggle.

In remembrance of the events of one year past, Cured, Boulder’s cheese, charcuterie, wine and artisanal provisions market, is joining with local businesses to help raise awareness and money through – what else? – food.

During the month of September, Cured, 1825 B. Pearl St., will be selling a special $10 sandwich called the PLT. All of the ingredients come from Colorado companies – Tender Belly ham in a house made porchetta, Cure farm egg aioli, Avalanche Cheese Company’s cabra blanca cheese, BonaVida Growers’ tomatoes, and Oxford Gardens’ summer lettuce mix.

Ten percent of the sale price of every sandwich purchased is returned to Oxford Gardens and BonaVida Growers. The floods hit both farms extensively, and both were part of Cured’s Flooded With Wine Fundraiser in 2013.

For more information, visit www.curedboulder.com.

Pro golfers Rory McElroy and Phil Mickelson stayed at the JW Marriott Denver Cherry Creek during the BMW Championship, the FedEx Cup playoff event that took place over the weekend at Cherry Hills Country Club.

Mickelson, who withdrew from the tournament on Saturday, and McElroy were greeted at the JW by a lobby made over with photos of pro golfers and other memorabilia.

After finishing eighth in Sunday’s tourney, McElroy took in the Broncos-Colts game from a luxury box.

Eavesdropping on two women at Denver Food and Wine: “I didn’t like that Pinot Noir, I threw it out.”

“That’s alcohol abuse!”