Top New York chefs raise over $60,000 to feed hungry New Yorkers

Top New York chefs raise over $60,000 to feed hungry New Yorkers

Farm to TrayOn last Thursday, Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen – the largest emergency food program in New York City – hosted ‘From Farm to Tray’ a sustainable food benefit, to raise much needed funds. With the help of some of New York’s best loved culinary names, the soup kitchen attracted over 300 guests to the first time event, raising more than $60,000.

“The money raised will go a long way towards helping us through the summer, which is one of our busiest times of year,” says Executive Director, Rev. Glenn Chalmers. “Once schools are out, families and children join the line and we serve more than 1,000 meals every day, sometimes as many as 1,200.”

Guests at ‘From Farm to Tray’ enjoyed a diverse range of sumptuous and sustainable delights. From Norma Jean Darden’s signature fried catfish and collard greens, to Park Avenue Spring’s, Kevin Lasko’s spring vegetable garden and One If By Land, Two If By Sea’s, Colt Taylor’s Long Island razor clams, every menu item was in season and sourced locally, within 100 miles of the soup kitchen.

“We’re grateful to so many people for making From Farm to Tray such a success,” remarks Chalmers, “as well as the chefs, we had the support of Whole Foods who provided the ingredients, Starwood Hotels, who staffed the event and a huge range of local and artisan brands who offered delicious desserts and beverages. It was a real team effort.”

Food costs alone at the soup kitchen run to over $1,000 per day. Funds raised at From Farm to Tray will go directly towards providing direct soup kitchen services.

“The money raised from the night go directly to those who need it most,” says Chalmers. “It will cover about two months of food costs here at the soup kitchen. We’ve been serving meals for 30 years and it’s the first time we’ve ever raised that kind of money in only one night.”

To find out more visit www.farmtotray.org 

Dishcrawl Jersey City Ticket Giveaway

Dishcrawl Jersey City Ticket Giveaway

GiveawayI recapped my recent participation in Jersey City’s Dishcrawl and I’m happy to say I have FREE TICKETS to give away to the next event taking place on 6/12 at 7PM in the Hamilton Park area of Jersey City.

Hamilton Park is home to several unique and delicious restaurants. Dishcrawl is pulling out all the stops as it incorporates not only great restaurants, but also non-traditional food vendors as foodies explore four different eateries in the Hamilton Park neighborhood of Jersey City.

It’s a SECRET: All the participating vendors will be announced closer to the date of the event but follow Dishcrawl Jersey City on Twitter @DishcrawlJC and Facebook (Dishcrawl Jersey City) for hints along the way. All ticket holders will be notified of the meeting location via email, 48 hours prior to the event.

 How do you win 2 tickets to this event?

Option 1: Food and Wine Chickie on Facebook

Comment on what your favorite Jersey City restaurant is: “My favorite Jersey City restaurant is _________” and fill in the blank with your answer.

OR

Option 2: Food and Wine Chickie on Twitter

Tweet: “@foodwinechickie I heard great things about _____________, a restaurant in __________, NJ” and fill in the blank with the name of the restaurant and the city it’s located in.

OR

Option 3: Food and Wine Chickie Blog

Comment on this post with what Jersey City restaurant you’d like to try: “I’d love a chance to eat at _______________ in Jersey City” and fill in the blank with your answer.

The winner of the free ticket will be announced on 6/3!!!

Tickets are available here: http://dishcrawl.com/hamiltonpark/

About Dishcrawl: Food, Fun, and Exploration! We here at Dishcrawl aim to provide you with a premier culinary social experience by bringing together neighborhood restaurants, local chefs, regional food producers and fellow food enthusiasts. Join us if you’d like to embark on a one-of-a-kind gastronomic adventure!

Cheers,

Veronique

Bonne Fete des Meres – Happy Mother’s Day

Bonne Fete des Meres – Happy Mother’s Day

Josee & Daughters at Disney

Josee & Daughters at Disney

Today’s Mother’s Day and I want to celebrate two of the mothers in my life, my mom Diane and my sister Josee. Mom’s job was easy as she had me as a daughter and only had to worry about my sister (LOL). My sister has two gorgeous daughters who I’m proud to call my God-Daughters.

Mom & Me Circa 1994

Mom & Me Circa 1994

Both mom and my sister are great cooks and in the spirit of this being a food and wine blog, I’ll share a few recipes from their repertoires.

Mom:

Josee:

Happy Mother’s Day to all the special ladies out there!

Veronique

Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens

Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens

Bellagio 2I find myself in Las Vegas constantly for business. For anyone who’s worked a tradeshow in Vegas, you know how tiring that can be. Although I often feel like simply hanging out at my hotel to relax after work, one thing I try never to pass up is a visit to the Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens.

While walking through the Bellagio lobby with its indescribably beautiful Dale Chihuly flowered ceiling is breathtaking, a stroll through the Conservatory & Botanical Gardens never ceases to amaze me.

Bellagio 1An astounding 140 professional horticulturists work to embellish gazebos, bridges, ponds and water features to reflect the season. My favorite is perhaps the spring theme with its thousands of tulips, hyacinths, daffodils and more. Other seasonal themes are the Chinese New Year, Summer Garden Party, Autumn Harvest and Winter Holiday.

A 20-minute walk around the space has such a soothing effect and makes me forget I’m in the desert with long hours behind and ahead of me.

The exhibit is free to the public and open around the clock. I highly recommend it.

Cheers,

Veronique

Montclair Food & Wine Festival Promo Code

Montclair Food & Wine Festival Promo Code

MFWF LogoWe are less than one month away from the first annual Montclair Food & Wine Festival!

Enter promo code “onemonth” for 20% off  VIP Prelude or General Admission ticket class at the Grand Tasting on Saturday, June 1, 2013.

Enter the same code, “onemonth” for 20% off the ticket price at the Gala Dinner on Sunday, June 2, 2013.

These codes will expire by 1:00 am, Monday, May 6, 2013.

For additional information or to purchase tickets, CLICK HERE.

Leave a comment if you plan to attend, I’d love to meet you!

Veronique

The Williams Selyem Evening

2007 Williams Selyem Pinot NoirEvery month, eight of us wine-minded friends visit a New Jersey BYOB restaurant for a wine-filled evening. It’s gotten to a point where each couple tries to outdo the others with not only top-notch wines, but also somewhat difficult-to-find bottles.

For last month’s dinner, I bought a bottle of 2007 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Central Coast from a reputable online wine seller. The wine came about 4 weeks prior to the scheduled dinner and it sat on my wine bar that whole time, staring at me, urging me to uncork it.

Well, I behaved and waited for the dinner party to uncork it, but was excited to show it off as Williams Selyem wines are top-rated, somewhat hard-to-buy wines that come close to perfection, in my opinion. After everyone sat at the table, my Twitter food and wine pal, Marty, and I unpacked our bottles at the same time and Marty had a 2011 Williams Selyem Papera Vineyard Zinfandel. What a coincidence, a very pleasant coincidence! We both laughed at our good fortune and truly enjoyed each bottle.

Here are my tasting notes for both bottles:

If you have an opportunity to sample any Williams Selyem wines, jump at the chance. Winemaker Bob Cabral is a genus.

Cheers,

Veronique

JERSEY BURGERS TO BENEFIT BOSTON MARATHON VICTIMS

New Jersey Smashburger

New Jersey Smashburger

The marathon bombing events in Boston are absolutely tragic and perhaps hit even closer to home to those of us in the New York metro area. I want to share a very worthy initiative set forth by Smashburger, my favorite chain burger, that benefits One Fund Boston.

Details: 

13 Smashburger locations to across New Jersey will change the name of the “New Jersey Burger” to “Boston Burger” from May 1 – May 3, 2013. Smashburger will donate $1.00 from every burger sold from May 1 – 3 to One Fund Boston.

Participating New Jersey locations: 

Clifton, East Brunswick, East Hanover, Florham Park, Hackensack, Montclair/Glen Ridge, Morris Plains, Newark Liberty International Airport (Terminal C), New Providence, North Brunswick, Paramus, Parsippany and Ramsey.

For more information on Smashburger, or to join its e-club for news, promotions and offers, visit www.smashburger.com.

About One Fund Boston:

Created by Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, One Fund Boston was created to raise money for those most affected by the tragic events that unfolded during The Boston Marathon. One Fund Boston seen an outpouring of support from philanthropists, businesses and individuals eager to help the more than and three who were killed, according to the organization’s website

If you’re in New Jersey, please do your part to help AND enjoy a great burger at the same time.

Veronique

POD 51 – Tiny on Space, Grand on Value and Cleanliness

POD 51 – Tiny on Space, Grand on Value and Cleanliness

Room 1Last week I attended a conference in Manhattan that had me looking for an affordable hotel room in the 50s. Most value-priced hotels in Midtown have spotty reputations for cleanliness, so when I came across POD 51 with its minimalistic, clean rooms, I decided to give the place a try.

After a tiresome day at my conference, I walked down to POD 51 and immediately, the place put a smile on my face. Young, trendy guests lounge around in the room adjacent to the lobby and onto the outdoor terrace. These two areas are called The Café and it offers a communal space for guests to congregate, grab breakfast from the restaurant (home-baked goods and homemade yogurt anyone?) or an adult libation in the evening. Many of the guests hang out listening to music on their iPhones/MP3s, watching shows from their various tablets or simply reading a book. Very cool space.

Room 2Now, the room. I selected the “Single Pod” since I was traveling alone and it was super. There’s a comfortable single bed, an open closet, a sleek work desk and a spotless bathroom. Well, it’s not exactly a “bath”room, it’s a shower and a toilet, but it’s absolutely spotless and features a high-end rain showerhead. Everything has a European, modern, simplistic vibe that I loved. The room has a flat screen TV and offers WiFi. The place has a sense of humor – check out this sing on the back of the room door.

ShowerPOD hotels offer several other types of rooms including a room with bunk beds and one with called the “Townhouse” with a queen bed, walk-in closet, bathtub and walk-in closet.

I didn’t make it to the rooftop lounge but understand it provides gorgeous views of Manhattan. Will catch it on my next visit.

There’s a second POD New York location at 39th and Lexington that’s just as perfectly-located.

Address: 230 E 51st St, New York, NY 10022

Phone: (212) 355-0300

Happy travels,

Veronique

Malbec World Day

Malbec World Day

Online-Wine-Tasting-300x217Tomorrow, April 17th, is Malbec World Day. This special day offers a neat platform for Malbec lovers to compare wines of this varietal, share their feedback about them on Facebook and Twitter, see what other Malbec fans have to say and add new wines to their must-try list.

For those of you who are new to online wine tastings, this is what the concept entails:

  1. Buy a bottle of the wine varietal being featured, in this case, Malbec.
  2. Invite friends to come over to share the experience with you, or snuggle in your pajamas in front of the computer.
  3. Sip and share your wine feedback with other tasters globally!

What I’ll be uncorking for the big day:

  • 2010 Graffigna Centenario Malbec, an affordable ($12) little number from Argentina.

Twitter users, remember to use hashtag #MalbecDay to participate (are we connected on Twitter? I’m @foodwinechickie) or share your tasting notes on the Wines of Argentina Facebook page.

About Malbec:  Malbec is medium to full-bodied wine that offers ripe fruit flavors of plums and blackberry with vanilla, spice and tobacco notes.

Typical Malbec Food Pairings:  Red meats are the perfect pairing for Malbec, but it can also stand up to spicy Mexican, Cajun, Indian or Italian foods.  BBQ is a super match for Malbec.

Salud!

Veronique

Laura Secord Easter Cream Eggs

Laura Secord Easter Cream Eggs

Cream EggWhen I was a small kid growing up in eastern Quebec, a tradition in my family and many others was to get a Laura Secord Cream Egg for Easter. Laura Secord is Canada’s largest and best known chocolatier.

Yellow BoxThe dark chocolate-coated egg with its white and yolk-yellow creamy center was a special treat. The pale yellow box with its cute bunny on the front and paper ‘straw’ inside was always a joy to open (think Charlie unwrapping the Wonka bar with its golden ticket).

Everyone I knew had a technique for eating the egg. Mine was to place the egg in the fridge then cut slices of it with a steak knife. This method yielded a solid egg white and yolk with chocolate cold enough to snap under the tooth. Pure heaven.

Opened BoxI don’t make it back to Quebec for Easter very often and haven’t in at least 15 years. This has meant reliving my Laura Secord Cream Egg memories in my head versus my mouth. That is, until this year. When I realized my mom was coming to New Jersey for Easter, I quickly tasked her with bringing me my treat.

BasketI was so excited to have her bring me the egg that I couldn’t keep myself from Tweeting and Facebooking about it. To my complete pleasure, on Good Friday, I received a huge Easter basket from the kind folks at Laura Secord in Canada. The basket was full of delectable treats including:

This year, Laura Secord celebrates its 100th anniversary. How neat is that!? With 1,000+ employees, more than 115 stores in 7 Canadian provinces and over 400 products, Laura Secord has come a long way from the tiny storefront it opened in Toronto in 1913. Yes, they even ship to the Unites States.

For my part, I’ll create an exclusive treat using the tasty Laura Secord chocolate chips to help celebrate the centennial anniversary. It’s a small token of my appreciation for over 35 years of chocolate memories I’ve been able to forge along with the old gal.

Here’s to you Laura Secord!

Veronique