John Currence of Oxford, Miss. City Grocery is Gunshow Hired Gun July 15-16

For a sizzling summer read, digest the bio for chef John Currence of City Grocery in Oxford, Miss. Reading like a five-star recipe, the story crams in so many tempting ingredients you can't wait to see where it leads. On Tuesday, July 15 and Wednesday, July 16, find Currence stepping into the kitchen at Gunshow as a visiting chef for Kevin Gillespie's Hired Guns Southern chef series. Among Currence's Hired Guns offerings: gumbo z'herbes, German sweet potato salad, mushroom tamales, and Szechuan catfish with stir-fried rice and summer vegetables. Currence, a New Orleans son, grew up in a family that loved to cook and was inspired by Louisiana living and global travels. Tugboat galley cooking in the Gulf of Mexico, diving into foodie jobs such as baking bread and butchering while a UNC student and working his way up through Chapel Hill's Crook's Corner -- the food life fascinated him. He heeded the call and returned to his N.O.L.A. roots to work at Gautreau's and with the Brennan restaurant family before moving to Oxford and opening City Grocery in 1992. City Grocery Restaurant Group now has numerous offspring, and Currence has been honored with many accolades, including the James Beard Foundation award for Best Chef South. The Garden & Gun magazine contributing editor is exploring Deep South food spots for the "Adventures of the Big Bad Chef" video series. Last year, he completed his first cookbook -- "Pickles, Pigs & Whiskey: Recipes from My Three Favorite Food Groups and Then Some" -- and will be selling copies at Gunshow during his Hired Guns stint. Want to whet your appetite for more? Catch Hired Gun Currence at Gunshow in Glenwood Park. Reservations: 404-380-1886.

...World of vodka, that is, be it from the domestic distilleries of Oregon, Texas and Kentucky or the global outreaches of Kazakhstan, Poland and France. The new vodka passport program takes flight at 10th & Piedmont this Thursday, July 17, and it's sure to become a hub for Atlantans (and visitors) interested in broadening their familiarity with an extensive variety of vodkas. National Wine & Spirits representatives will be at the 6:30 p.m. launch party to offer complimentary vodka tastings, and the Midtown restaurant will provide complimentary snacks and a 10 percent discount for guests who stay on for dinner that night. Procure a passport with your name, phone number and email address and sip your way through 25 varieties of vodkas, earning a stamp for each vodka you try. Max out your passport with a stamp in each square (you don't have to do it all on one night) and receive a complimentary dinner for two (maximum value $50).