BoysGrow stokes their program’s blaze into a “Controlled Burn” at their South KC farm
Guests gather at the “On the Pond” hearth, overlooking the pond and bonfire. Photo by Katie Frankenbach
Amante Domingo—chef and owner of The Russell, Noka, and Le Champion—grew up as a farm boy. During his youth, his father passed away and his mother remarried. Despite the challenges life brought his way, he says his family’s farm business taught him how to be a man and learn.
“It’s an organization I absolutely love. A simple starting point—starting from a seed and then growing. Those small principles can really shape who you are,” Domingo says. “Sometimes, you don’t have a starting point and you don’t know how to move forward, and that’s why this means so much to me.”
The once St. Joseph farm boy who sold produce at the Kansas City Farmers Market has become a fixture in the city’s food scene. He’s now giving back through the transformative organization BoysGrow, which hosted an immersive open-fire dining fundraiser titled “Controlled Burn” this past Sunday on its farm.
BoysGrows, founded in 2010, is a nonprofit aimed at mentoring youth between the ages 14 and 16 from the inner city through their 10-acre farm. This two-year paid internship of agricultural entrepreneurship exposes and teaches young men not only skills such as construction, marketing, and culinary arts but also how to be confident, build discipline, and form an identity for themselves through this program.
Domingo, present with hundreds of supporters of the BoysGrow mission, was one of the few chefs who participated in the inaugural event. Five live-fire hearths—a part of the event’s design—were tended to by Kansas City culinary talent including Michael Corvino (Corvino Supper Club & Tasting Room, Songbird), Vaughn Good (Fox and Pearl), Adam Jones (Clay & Fire) and Tia Throckmorton (Corvino Supper Club).
The hearths laid the groundwork for this initiative’s vision.
Marketed as an experience, the event is catered to “redefine how Kansas City comes together at the table and on the land.” This sentiment rang true, as the farm turned into a “living canvas of fire and imagination” taking three separate groups of guests along a “deeply personal” journey across their land.
Photo by Collyn Robinson
The call of a horn notified guests when to rotate hearths. This part of the experience was meant to not only mark the “journey through fire,” but to serve as a reminder that “fire is not fixed but carried, tended, and passed on.”
In the Farm Kitchen
This hearth, an intimate introduction for VIP guests, was tended by Ciesiel, Corvino, and Domingo with welcome cocktails each crafted with special ingredients like salted arugula foam and charred prairie hay. The small eats of this section of the night featured coal seared wagyu beef nigiri with a sweet soy sauce, seaweed donuts with trout roe and cream, and other flavorful dishes.
In the Field
On the vast land that BoysGrow occupies, a clearing opens into a field that becomes a picturesque backdrop for a long table covered with a white cloth, where guests can connect and fellowship. Domingo was also responsible for this hearth, preparing a Tuscan white bean soup with grilled pork tenderloin and grilled bread. This meal was paired with a TerraVox 2021 Vignoles.
The Pitch spoke with Domingo about his choice of soup for this hearth. He explained that he was driven by meeting the uncertainty of what people generally enjoy and find comfort in eating and working backward from there.
“I wanted something humble,” Domingo says.
As guests savored their meals and mingled, a guitarist strummed familiar tunes, adding a subtle soundtrack and creative, immersive touches to the evening.
Behind the Tunnel
Chef Vaughn Good served roast leg of lamb, linguiça sausage, coal roasted squash, and stewed field peas, accompanied by chimichurri for this hearth. Its warming, smoky flavors greatly aligned with the experiential goals of the event. This fire-kissed feast was the heftiest and most filling leg of the journey.
On the Pond
Jujeh chicken kabob, lamb kebabeh sikhi, roasted vegetable kabob, lebne, mixed pickles, and beet pkhali from Adam Jones anchored this hearth experience.
Its colorful presentation was complemented by a cocktail donning the name “Snake of the Divine”—a mix of Iranian blood orange infused vodka, clove, lemon juice, cinnamon and cardamom syrup, Aperol, and grapefruit soda. There was also a non-alcoholic house cider with rosemary, cinnamon, blood orange, ginger, and bitters available. Across the pond, a steelpan performance and fire dance took place for guests to enjoy.
By The Bonfire
The evening came to a close, bringing everyone together, with Throckmorton’s pear upside down cake, smoked hay and blackberry cream puff, and s’mores brownie.
As the event’s kicker, Director of BoysGrow, John Gordon Jr., gave remarks about how this fundraiser came to fruition. He gave shoutouts to the chefs, particularly noting how they contribute to the uplifting of the nonprofit sector, along with a special thank you to Kasmin Hardaway and Katie Frankenbach, co-organizers for “Controlled Burn,” without whom the occasion wouldn’t be possible.
But Gordon Jr. was also quick to point out that these events and BoysGrow in general rely on community support, explaining that the money donated goes to roughly 50 youth paychecks and helps them sustain the farm as a “healing place.”
Gordon Jr. passed the mic to second-year BoysGrow student Caleb, who is a part of the farm and hydroponics team, not only to showcase the public speaking skills the program teaches, but also to let him share with the guests about his path to the organization and how it has shaped his life.
Caleb shared how he didn’t fit in growing up—a musician diagnosed with autism at age 11, he once felt his interests were “weird,” but that wasn’t the case on the farm.
“BoysGrow welcomes me with open arms,” Caleb says. He further spoke about how he appreciates the sense of brotherhood gained from the program. “Everything here is of value.”
Hairy asters bloom along the edge of a BoysGrow Farm field during a prescribed burn. Photo by Katie Frankenbach
Three items integrated into the experience were included in a live auction: the event’s grand finale. Funds from the items sold—chef knife kit, a 15-person experience with Chef Vaughn, and a KC Hardscapes smokeless firepit—will go to ensuring a young man can earn a wage over the summer and throughout the year.
The event seemed to leave a lasting impression on some of the attendees, having come in to find peace on the grounds, yet leaving full of good food and high hopes for the future of sustainable farm life around the area.
“We didn’t have any expectations that we wanted to meet,” attendee Megan Hodges says. “We just wanted to come out and have a great evening on the farm. I’m leaving here full of joy. It was a beautiful night. The food was incredible.”
The BoysGrow “Controlled Burn” opened up the organization’s urban farm to the community, offering a glimpse into some of the work that these young adults partake in at the South KC location. While the four highly-acclaimed chefs’ commodity contributions served as an incentive for community members to take the hike, guests left with more than just a stomach full of high-quality chow; they departed with a better understanding of what it means to be a teenage boy working to maintain a thriving urban farm.
