FANCY FOOD SHOW WINTER, 2011: MY IMPRESSIONS

Today was the first day of the Winter Fancy Food Show. It is in San Francisco at Moscone Center for two more days, through Tuesday, January 18, 2011.

Harriet & I go just about every year. I go to get feeling for food trends for the coming year.



It's a great show, filling both the North and South Halls of Moscone. At just about every booth there is food to taste. Harriet and I just walk every aisle tasting and chatting at any booth that catches our fancy.

Many booths give samples of the foods they are featuring but attendees are not supposed to remove food from the exhibit halls. It seems that small packaged samples are not a problem and these are what I came home with.



While the booths are beautiful and filled with an abundance of food and food accessories, I noticed fewer packaged samples to take away, with some booths telling visitors that they could only take one piece of candy or a single tea bag. Not a problem for me but different from the past for sure.

We always start at the cheese section. At 10 a.m., I can't handle sweets, of which there are always many, but cheese, gives me energy and there are always unique cheeses to taste.



Sections of the exhibition halls are dedicated to foods from different states and countries.



A few of the booths that I thought photo-worthy include Soy Vay's



And Jelly Belly"s, who this year featured works of art made from Jelly Bellies. This is a Jelly Belly rendition of "Starry Night."



One exception on the lack of giveaways was Republic of Tea who was introducing a line of 14 loose teas. They gave a travel tea press to anyone who was willing to stand in line for one.




And in it, was your choice of tea which was freshly brewed. Of course, I waited in the line which moved pretty quickly and I know I will enjoy using it in my car where I often enjoy a cup of hot tea that I carry from home.

So what intrigued me at the show? These are just some of my observations:

• Horseradish and Wasabi are turning up in dips and salad dressings.

• There are more snack foods and they are getting healthier: nuts, whole grain munchies, and lots of savory popped snacks: popcorn, popped potatoes, and more popped foods. Many snack foods are in small, serving-sized packages. I even discovered squeezable Peanut Butter & Co. peanut butter in 1.15 oz. Squeeze Packages.

• Greek yogurt from many traditional yogurt companies.

• Sea Salt remains an accent ingredient in unexpected foods such as caramels and chocolate. Even such traditional candy makers such as Ghirardelli now have a Sea Salt Chocolate Bar called "Intense Dark Sea Salt Soirée."

• Flavored teas. For hot beverages, tea booths significantly outnumbered coffee booths. One of the most "amusing" teas I sampled was Trump Tea, a line of premium teas from none other than Donald Trump...some of the blends include "Union Square," "Park Avenue," "Westchester," and "Mar-A-Largo." What more can I say?

• Crackers...Just about all the Cheese booths are using 34° wafer crackers as a platform for their cheese samples. I discovered these crackers at Whole Foods last month and continue to enjoy them. They obviously are a hit. 34° has its own booth too. There was lots of lavash too, including flavored lavash.

• Fish Spreads. There were several made with Smoked Salmon, but the one I liked the best Was Ruby Bay Smoked Mahi-Mahi Spread from Acme Smoked Fish Corporation.

• Granola! Who'd have thought after all these years of eating granola that it would be turning into a "new" trendy food? Well, certainly the people exhibiting at the show! I must have passed by at least a dozen booths touting one or another form of "healthful" granola...not that there's anything wrong with it...

FOUR DAYS IN LAS VEGAS 2009: DAY TWO

Our second day in Las Vegas started with breakfast at the Buffet at the Bellagio. While neither of us is a big breakfast eater, we have discovered that even if we just have juice, fresh fruit, milk, bowl of cereal, and coffee or tea, the buffet price of $14.95 per person is less than what it would cost in the hotel to eat in one of its coffee shops and cafés. We have tried buffets at other nearby hotels and always find the one at the Bellagio to be the best. Of course, we always are tempted by the other offerings. Jim usually added smoked salmon and other smoked fish to his plate. And I enjoyed the muffins, cheese, steamed Asian vegetables, made to order omelets, and, best of all, Breakfast Pizzas!



Our plan for Day Two was to visit the Wynn Hotel. The Wynn is newer than the Bellagio and we've never seen it. Wandering through hotels is one of our favorite Las Vegas past times. Since the Wynn is about a mile away and the weather is hot, we decided to use public transit. Trying to keep our costs down on this visit, we thought that using public transit when we did not wish to walk, including to a show at the Venetian, would save us money over taking taxis that get expensive because there is a lot of wait time in the traffic on the Strip that rapidly runs up the meter.

Public transit on the Strip is pretty limited. Before our arrival, I had decided that the Monorail that runs from the MGM to the Convention Center, with stops in between, would be our best bet. On our first day there, after dinner at Mon Ami Gabi in Paris, we decided to check out the Paris/Bally's Monorail station; its entrance is right on the Strip. So, in we walked, and after walking and riding escalators for quite awhile, we found ourselves in Bally's lobby. We kept walking and walking and walking...through Bally's shopping section and further and then we finally stopped and turned back, noting that we had to have walked further trying to find the Monorail station entrance than we would have walked if we stayed on the sidewalk and just walked directly from our hotel to the Wynn. From later talking with locals about the Monorail, we learned that it is something of a joke because of its inconvenient stations and its limited coverage.

The best bet for public transit is the bus system and The Deuce, a double decker bus, runs frequently along the Strip and is always packed...but well air conditioned. At $3 a ride, or $7 for all day, The Deuce is a deal.




So, on Day Two, we caught the Deuce in front of Planet Hollywood across the street and were at the Wynn in minutes.

Despite the Wynn's "ritzy" appearance and its own in-house Ferrari dealer by the main entrance, we loved the inside of the Wynn. Steve Wynn, who has built many of the Las Vegas hotels, including the Bellagio, has outdone himself with the Wynn's cheerful interior which includes fanicful floral ceilings and carpets, colorful parasols, and a lake with waterfalls. Many of the Wynn's restaurants overlook the lake; several have outdoor lakeside seating.


















The Wynn's sister hotel, the Encore next door, is connected inside. The Wynn and the Encore share an onsite golf course, among their amenities. Just as Bellagio has its Chihuly glass ceiling and Botanical Garden, the Wynn also has an expansive floral display off its lobby.



Our friend Mort told me about Bartolotta, a seafood restaurant in the Wynn that features fresh seafood which is flown in daily from the Mediterranean. The menu is tempting; here's a view of the restaurant, which is one of many at the Wynn.



We exited the Wynn from their shopping "street" and wound up just a walkway away from the Palazzo, the Venetian's newest hotel, adjacent to the Venetian. Since the Strip is not easy to cross (there are overcrossing periodically), we decided to wander through the Palazzo and Venetian.



We had just arrived in St. Mark's Square in the Venetian right when one of their free shows was about to start. So, we found a good vantage spot and enjoyed the 15 or so minute show.





This led to further wanderings and eventuallly to walking all the way back to the Bellagio.

We crossed the Strip in front of the Venetian and wandered through the Mirage. By now, we were hungry for lunch but did not want a huge meal. We spotted the Carnegie Deli and went in and shared an enormous Corned Beef Sandwich. We were conservative in our ordering, but those around us were certainly not.



The couple at the next table had ordered a BLT/Chicken Salad Combination and a Corned Beef/Turkey Combination sandwiches. They were kind enough to allow me to take pictures of their lunches.





Next stop was the Forum Shops at Caesar's. Entering on the street level nearest to the Mirage, I spotted a Taryn Rose shoe store.


Taryn Rose shoes are special comfortable shoes designed by Taryn Rose, who originally started her career as an orthopaedist. When she discovered that supportive women's shoes were mostly ugly and fashionable women's shoes did not give her the kind of foot support she needed for work days on her feet, she started designing women's shoes that have both style and built-in orthotics for support. Taryn Rose shoes are expensive, so I only splurge on them every few years. This day in Las Vegas was splurge day and I came out with a pair of gold metallic sandals.

Finally, we got back to the Bellagio in time to get dressed for an early dinner before seeing Blue Man Group, back at the Venetian. This time, since I didn't want to walk or bus in my dress shoes, we did take a taxi.

Our dinner at Canaletto, an Italian restaurant overlooking St. Mark's Square on one side and the Grand Canal and Gondolas on the other, was lovely.







We shared their interesting version of a Caesar Salad.



I had the Sea Bass.



And, Jim chose the Shrimp, Crab and Artichoke Risotto, Risotto Erasmo.



We looked longingly at the gelato at their gelato shop but, with a 7 p.m. curtain time for our show, we did not have time to indulge...and we were pretty full from our dinner.




And the Blue Man Group show was unbelievable. I had no idea what to expect; it has been on Jim's to-see list for a long time. I was surprised and delighted...it was fun, funny, creative, and ever-surprising.



After the show, the entire cast...Blue Men and their backups...were in the lobby where they graciouslly posed for photos with audience members and "signed" tickets and programs with a blue fingerprint or kiss.






Another lovely day in Las Vegas.