Williams-Sonoma FREE Demonstrations

Fall has arrived and it is time to start thinking about all those delicious upcoming holiday dishes and treats! Get some new ideas (while watching your wallet) at your local Williams-Sonoma FREE demonstration classes throughout the month of October. Click here for schedule and call your local Williams-Sonoma store to RSVP.

Event: FREE dessert day!

Photo from my culinary school days
at L'Academie de Cuisine

Today only! Book your reservation through opentable at any of these participating restaurants and you'll receive a FREE Dessert! (with just a minimum purchase of 1 entree).

Event: Cooking Class at Ceiba

Ceiba Restaurant (one of my favorites!) is having a cooking class on Saturday, September 25th from 11am to 1pm ($75/pp). I've been to their classes before and they are great...entertaining, interesting dishes and they do all the work, so you can just sit back and enjoy their delicious dishes and their wine.

The Menu
Crab Meat Causa Rellena
Tiradito de Pescado
Aroz Con Pato
Picarones
(Includes Wine Pairing)
Can't attend? No worries, this time around they'll be featuring this menu during dinner service from September 25th to October 2nd.

To reserve your spot, contact Jillian Zins at 202.408.0201 or via email at jillian@passionfoodhospitality.com

Events: Restaurant Unleashed Week: March 1-7

The Restaurant Association of the Metropolitan Washington (RAMW) is running a "UNLEASHED" Restaurants! week - basically a week of discounted menu options at participating restaurants in the area (a.k.a., restaurant week).

The RAMW is advertising it under the guise that people are pent up, our desire for foodie camaraderie is runith over and we demand a fill-up (for a discount) at our local (RAMW member only) restaurant. According to the advertisement on the website:

“This will be a great way for patrons to ‘unleash’ the pent up dining passions that have been so constrained over this winter,” said Lynne Breaux, President of RAMW. “And it’s not just dining; this is also about social contact, conviviality, decompression and so much more that we tend not to think about until it is taken away. Think of our “Unleashed” week as an intense, really big, group therapy session.”

This could be true....there was a lot of snow for a while. But it could have something to do with low/poor restaurant sales in January and February. Normally bad months for restaurants, where made much, much worse by the snow.

So 'UNLEASH' your wallet and pick out some restaurants to visit from the participation list on opentable.

Event: Want to be a reality star?

WASHINGTON DC OPEN CALL FOR 24 HOUR RESTAURANT BATTLE

Date: Monday, February 22, 2010
Time: 10am – 3pm
Location: Zentan Restaurant/Donovan House Hotel, 1155 14th Street NW, Washington, DC

We are looking for:

• Two to five person teams with pre-existing relationships (brother and sister, mother and son, husband and wife, etc.) who would love the chance to prove that they can run a restaurant.
• A dynamic front of house and back of house duo. One person on the team will run the front of the house and the other person on the team will be the chef and run the kitchen.
• All levels of experience (culinary school trained to home cook, little or no restaurant experience to a lifelong career in restaurants) will be considered.
• Lots of energy and charisma! We're seeking personalities that pop.

If you have any questions or need further information, please feel free to contact (jemasa@cbsnews.com) or visit the shows website at http://www.24hourrestaurantbattle.com/.  

Events: Book Signing

Author Nancy Tringali Piho is exploring an interesting subject about children's eating habits, how they develop and what impact having 'foodies' as parents can make.

Studies have shown that children must taste something at least 10 times to be able to know if they 'like it' or not, specifically due to their ever developing palate between the ages of 1-3. This also leads to a battle for the parents, attempting to get their children to try it 10 times!

Nancy Tringali Piho book, My Two Year Old Eats Octopus is taking on this subject and Citronelle is hosting a book party for her (Feb 10th at 6:30pm) with a price-fixed-dinner for the adults ($95/pp) and their children ($37).

To read more about the book, this event and about the author, visit her website: http://www.mytwoyearoldeatsoctopus.com/

Events: DC Coasts Annual Guys Cooking Class

Want to surprise your lovely lady with those culinary skills that she (and perhaps you) didn't even know that you had? Sign up for DC Coasts annual cooking class for guys, which takes place about a week before V-Day, so you have a chance to see the chef in action and learn some new moves!

Update: Bistro Lafayette Shares Thanksgiving Menu

Can't go wrong with their pate or their bourguignon!

Events: Thanksgiving at Bistrot Lafayette

Don't feel like cooking on Thanksgiving? Want to go out? Its often hard to find a nice thanksgiving dinner at a restaurant that isn't a very pricing buffet spread.

No worries though, Bistrot Lafayette has you covered - they are offering a Thanksgiving 3-course menu (including turkey) for just $32/person from 12pm to 8pm on Thanksgiving day.

You might want to make reservations, as I didn't see this special occasion listed on the website.

Events: Hooked on Mad Men

Hook Restaurant in georgetown is looking to bring you in to their restaurant - even if it means you don't eat the food, just drink and watch tv.

Event: Watch the season finale of Mad Men
Date: Tonite
Time: 8pm to closing (tvs in the bar will be turned to watch Mad Men at 10pm)
Showcasing: Serving appetizers and showcasing the drinks on the show (side cars, manhattans, etc.)

I enjoy Mad Men, but I am just into season 1 on netflicks, so I don't want to spoil it.

This event does seems slightly ironic in that a restaurant so clearly coming from a sustainable 'point of view' showcases a television show where an important basis of character development comes from red meat and smoking.

Events: Farm to Table Month in Arlington

From September 15th-October 14th several restaurants in the Arlington area will be featuring a special one-night-only all local menu featuring local farmers for a special price. This is in celebration of Farm to Table Month in Arlington to celebrate local farms and local chefs.

The VA Cooperative Extension (the outfit running it) is also showing some movies about the farming and food industry. The True Cost of Food; The Garden; FRESH

Restaurant participating that you might want to take advantage of: Liberty Tavern and Williow.

Visit Virginia Cooperative Extension for a list of event times: Farm to Table Month in Arlington

 

Williams-Sonoma Culinary Demos

During these slow economy times, we look for ways to save money - especially when it comes to entertainment.

Williams-Sonoma has released its September schedule for cooking demos. They used to make you rsvp, but now they are now FREE and open to public.

You can call your local store to find out the times or stop by to see the staff in action - you just might learn a new culinary trick - and get to taste its treat!

Click here to see the schedule.

 

Appetite Stimulus Plan: November 17th thru 21st

Only in DC would restaurants jump on the stimulus plan bandwagon!

Opentable is doing 2xs the points on special 'restaurant week style' 3-course menus at participating restaurants (Lunch=$24; Dinner=$34) between November 17th and November 21st.

Products: Zagat T-Shirts

Buy the t-shirt and you too can be Zagat rated!

Visit their website to purchase

Only $15 if you are a Zagat subscriber ($17 for non-subscribers) - you can even get a zagat logo chef jacket or apron.

Events: 2941 - Halloween Inspired Menu

It's good know that a fine-dining restaurant can still have a little fun with their menu. Starting Saturday through halloween, you can order a 'eye scream dessert' that looks like scary eye-balls, but is really made of white chocolate, pistachio mousse and raspberry-lychee coulis.

On another note, they are advertising a 4-course fall wine dinner for $395/person.

I don't believe it is part of their 'scary' halloween celebration - but that sure send a chill up my spine!

Events: Wolfgang Puck Dinner at the Source

This sounds pretty good - too bad it is more expensive than the Inn at Little Washington, rivals City Zen and (even with the exchange rate) is just slightly under a meal at El Bulli. If you have been to the Source and had their $60 filet choice (which is I think is the highest in town) the price won't surprise you.

But the menu sound pretty good....and you get to see Wolfgang Puck, right? I've heard the restaurant has gone down hill since the opening staff left - so if you haven't been yet, you might want to go when Chef Puck is in the kitchen.

____________

Wolfgang Puck to Host Grgich Hills Estate Wine Dinner at The Source

Wine and dine with Wolfgang Puck at The Source, the Master Chefs fine dining restaurant located at the Newseum. The celebrity chef and restaurant will host a special five-course dinner on Wednesday, November 12th at 6:30 pm paired with the exceptional organic and biodynamic wines of Napa Valley's Grgich Hills Estate. In addition to Chef Puck, Mike Grgich, founder of Grgich Hills Estate, also will attend the dinner.

Priced at $220 per person (inclusive of tax and tip), Chef Puck, along with The Source's Executive Chef Scott Drewno, will offer guests a range of Asian-inspired dishes including Shanghai lobster risotto with ginger and crispy spinach and Grilled Mongolian lamb chops with stir-fried eggplant and a mint-cilantro vinaigrette. Guests will start the dinner with an extensive selection of hors doeuvres such as Tuna Tartare in sesame-miso cones, Steak Tartare on crostini as well as Pucks famed Smoked Salmon Pizza. Ending the meal will be the signature Ginger Crhme Brulee with apricot marmalade and spice-caramel ice cream.
For the wine pairings, guests will enjoy eight exceptional vintages from the Grgich Hills Estate.

To make reservations for the wine dinner, call The Source at (202) 637-6100. Charges will be added to credit cards the day of the dinner.

The Source by Wolfgang Puck is located at:

575 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202.637.6100
Fax: 202.261.6101

For more information (dress code, parking, map, etc.) or to make reservations at The Source by Wolfgang Puck: http://www.opentable.com/restaurant_profile.asp?ID=14461&restref=14461

Events: Morton's Argentinean Wine Dinner

A four course wine dinner featuring classic American dishes from Morton’s The Steakhouse paired alongside fine wines from Argentina. Salud!

Reception: Petite Lamb Chops & Tenderloin on Crostini, Luigi Bosca Reserva, Merlot
First Course: Spinach Salad with Grilled Shrimp, Goat Cheese & Olive Oil, Bodega 900, White Blend
Second Course: Sliced Whole Tenderloin with Caramelized Onions and Sautéed Garlic Green Beans, Viña Alicia Paso de Piedra, Cabernet Sauvignon
Third Course: Mixed Seasonal Berries with Sabayon Sauce, Luigi Bosca, Late Harvest Gewürztraminer

Where: Morton's The Steakhouse, Crystal City 1750 Crystal Drive Arlington, VA 22202

When: Friday, November 7, 2008, 6:30 pm Reception 7:00 pm Dinner

Price: $130 per person (inclusive of tax and gratuity)

RSVP: Required – Call Karleen Kourkel at (703) 418-1444 or cm.mar@mortons.com

Great Deal: Farrah Olivia by Marou

$39 - 3-Course Dinner with Complimentary Wine Pairings

Farrah Olivia Restaurant is a great new fine dining restaurant in Old Town Alexandria. The food is 'downtown' style interesting, modern and tastes good. Therefore is always great to have good food at a great price - and you can sit out on their patio and evening the summer evenings!

Farrah Olivia Restaurant
600 Franklin St.(Corner of Washington and Franklin - just inside Balducci's)
Alexandria, VA, 22314
703.778.2233

Upcoming WCR Local Events: A Cheese Primer

A Cheese Primer

Monday, June 25, 2007
2:00pm - 4:00pm
Cheesetique2403 Mt. Vernon Avenue
Alexandria, VA 22301

To register: http://www.womenchefs.org/cde.cfm?event=170720

Cheesetique will open its doors on Monday, June 25 to WCR members for a tasting & seminar on specialty cheeses. Owner and new WCR member, Jill Erber, better known as the Cheese Lady, states that Cheesetique’s mission is “to encourage and expand the appreciation of specialty cheeses through education, experimentation, and excellent service…”

Join Jill for a description of cheese-making techniques and a guided tasting of some artisanal cheeses.

Located in the DelRay section of Alexandria, Cheesetique has been serving the cheese-loving community at large for 3 years and has received numerous awards including being named “Best Cheese Shop in Washington, DC” by WUSA 9 and “Alexandria’s Retail Business of the Year” (both in 2006).

Of particular interest to WCR members will be the Chefs’ Program Jill offers. This program is designed for area restaurants, caterers & personal chefs to provide them with specialty cheeses to enhance their businesses. Professional discounts and delivery are available.

Seating at this event is very limited and will be on a ‘first come, first served basis.’ So don’t hesitate, register today!

Please visit http://www.cheesetique.com/ for driving directions.

Event: The Southern Food and Beverage Museum Benefit

I will be definetly be attending this. Not only is it an interesting idea to have a food based museum - I believe it will be buffet and passed hor d'oeuvres - so they might as well put 'ALL YOU CAN EAT BUFFET & BAR' on the invitation as I don't plan on eating the entire day beforehand.

The only issue is that since their is a disclosure at the bottom of the invitation "All proceeds go directly to the museum..." that means no chef is making any money - so you can bet that the dishes won't be that 'expensive' to the chefs and may be things that they already offer on their restaurant menus - to keep their costs down.

INVITATION TO THE SOUTHERN TABLE


Jeff Tunks, Gus DiMillo and David Wizenberg of Passion Food Hospitality invite you to join them:

Sunday, June 10, 2007 - 6pm until 9 pm
ACADIANA RESTAURANT (901 New York Avenue)

Washington, DC is the First City to Host a Much Celebrated Fundraiser to Help Benefit the Opening of THE SOUTHERN FOOD AND BEVERAGE MUSEUM in New Orleans, Louisiana Representing the Cuisine and Culture of Sixteen Southern States

Participating Restaurants & Chefs:
Acadiana Restaurant, Washington, DC - Jeff Tunks, David Guas
Cashion's Eat Place and Johnny's Half Shell, Washington, DC - Ann Cashion
Louis at Pawley's, Pawley's Island, South Carolina - Louis Osteen
Restaurant Eugene, Atlanta, Georgia - Linton Hopkins
Vidalia, Washington, DC - Jeff Buben

$100 per person(Minimum donation)- A Selection of Southern Dishes, Open Bar and Signature Southern Drinks

For reservations or information:202. 222. 0987 or sofab@acadianarestaurant.com
For Reservations or Donations On-Line:www.acadianarestaurant.com/sofab.htm

All proceeds from this June 10, 2007, event will go directly to the Museum, whose New Orleans home is scheduled to open this fall.