I spent the morning interviewing some of the Food Network’s
best before the activities of their
Atlantic City Food
& Wine Festival began. It was casual and fun, and I had a chance to get
to know Pat and Gina Nelly; Robert Irvine; and Sunny Anderson, as well as catch
up with Guy Fieri, who I’ve done stories on for a number of publications in the
past year*. (You can see my
Los Angeles
Confidential piece
here.)
I have to say there wasn’t an overinflated ego in the room as everyone talked
about the importance of getting kids to make healthier food choices.
After the interviews, my daughter Sam and I headed over to the
Robert Mondavi Grand Market. This
year they added an Italian Village section (not all Italian, but certainly full
of tasty booths) to spread it out a bit more. As always, there is more food and
drinks than you can possibly enjoy, so I suggest everyone allow for at least
two trips there.
This was my first visit during the 2011 festival and I navigated my way over to the New
Zealand Sauvignon Blanc from
The
Beach House, which is a wonderful and inexpensive find. Sam, who loves to
cook for her friends, was fascinated with the Roasted Garlic Express, and it produces
well. She also discovered some delicious food at the booth for
Harry’s Oyster Bar & Seafood,
and we enjoyed dipping and trying the Balsamic Vinegars and Olive Oils at
City 2 Shore. The Pecan Pie from
Potito’s was just the way I like it –
buttery and not too sweet -- but the sugar in
Pecan Jacks nuts was from Caribbean Rum, Amaretto
(my favorite) and Bourbon.
At
last
year’s Guy Fieri Cheesesteak Challenge, I discovered
2 Chicks with Chocolate. The
company has grown, but the quality has remained the same. There was plenty more
to satisfy my sweet tooth. Fortunately, I’ve learned to just take tasting bites
of:
Sand Dollar Crumb Cake,
moist and rich;
Daisy Cakes, the
carrot was incredible; and
Brix
Chocolate for Wine, good with or without the vino. I finished Saturday’s
Grand Market experience with a taste of
Thatcher’s Organic Artisan Elderflower
Liqueur, flavorful and not full of sugar, and spoke with Rocky Fino, who gave
me copies of his books
Will Cook For Sex: A Guy's Guide to Cooking
and
Will Mix for Sex: Twenty-One Classic Cocktails to Set the Mood,
both of which I’m
anxious to read.
We headed out to the Boardwalk and ran into the Cooking Channel Ice Cream Truck,
giving out cool treats in celebration of the channel’s one year anniversary.
Then it was on to Fire and Ice in the Courtyard just outside of Caesar’s. It
was one of my favorite events, with music playing as we enjoyed tastes of Latin
food and plenty of wine and spirits. Everything was great, but I especially loved
the Mango Habanero Guacamole from Chef Ivy Stark of
Dos Caminos.
Unfortunately, I was unable to get tickets to two great
events with Sunny Anderson, Sunset Sliders and Sweet & Stylish, but I used
the opportunity to chill for awhile in the
House
of Blues Studio Suite at Showboat before the Chef’s Party at The Foundation
Room. It was rather crowded and the chefs just made brief appearances with body
guards. As much as I love
The Foundation Room at the House of Blues (don’t go
to Atlantic City without stopping by for a drink or dinner), I think this event
would have been better in a larger location. By about 1:30 am, 2e headed back
to our suite (which was just down the hall) to get some rest before the final
day of the
Food
Network’s Atlantic City Food and Wine Festival.
*I will be doing
feature stories on all the chefs for a great new website I am working for, Travel,
Food & Drink.
(Sorry for the delay between Atlantic City blog posts, I was
on assignment for two weeks and it made blogging difficult. It’s something I
know to plan for in advance in the future.)
Photos by Samantha Frost
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