Thursday, November 11, 2010

Foodbuzz Fest: Day 2

Day 2 of Foodbuzz Blogger Fest in San Francisco was a busy one! We crammed quite a bit into our day. Saturday morning, Debby and I walked across the street for breakfast at Sears' Fine Foods. They're known for their small Swedish pancakes and they're just as tasty as they are cute -served with butter and lingonberries.

Back at the hotel we went to a photography workshop. I was hoping to learn more about the camera and the settings, but it was more about how to make things pretty with placement and dishes. We then got to take pictures of food in different light settings. Not really sure what the purpose was, but the pictures turned out nicely.

The second breakout session I went to was sponsored by Fresh Express. I wasn't too thrilled about taking a class on bagged salad greens, but I was told that that Chef Todd Fisher would be there and that he was funny as well as being Debby's friend. So I was in. He also wears funky red clogs and I like that :-)

The salad that he made was a recipe from Ashley from The Edible Perspective. It was mixed greens, with roasted butternut squash, the creamiest goat cheese I've ever eaten and caramelized onions. It was very pretty and it smelled great.

Breakout session 3 was about writing and trying to avoid cliche words like "yummy", "delicious" and "creamy" to describe foods. I wrote about the luscious strawberry you see here.

Midday, we went to the Tasting Pavilion at the Metreon. It was full of vendors offering tastings, coupons and freebies for the taking. Here is Julie (on the left) from Willow Bird Baking showing off her winning Nature's Pride recipe. How cute is she?

It was a mad house at the Tasting Pavilion! And there was major food paparazzi going on in there. The lines were long and I was getting grumpy, so Debby and I took off to discover the city, but not before we had cupcakes from Mission Minis. The ones I had are Cinnamon Horchata, Pink Lemonade and Aztec Chocolate.

And because I have no self control I had a Ghirardelli S'more!

We needed some fresh air, so we headed to The Palace of Fine Arts. And let me tell you, it is grandiose and detailed beyond belief. I was in awe of this structure. My photos don't do it justice. If you're ever in the area, pack your camera and a picnic lunch and head over there. It's gorgeous.

Another magnificent sight- I'm talking about myself, not The Golden Gate Bridge. ha ha!

This is a view of San Francisco from Vista Point. A lovely place to be standing. Except for the fact that is smelled like urine. ewww!

I could look at this view all day long.

I know it may sound silly, but I had to make a trip to Trader Joe's! We don't have them in Texas so it was on my list of things to do. Gratefully, Debby was happy to fulfill that request. I got a couple things but there was only so much I could take back with me. I LOVED their orange juice though and we enjoyed that back in our room for a few days!

As the night fell, we headed to the gala dinner at The Ferry Building. We had passed hors d' oeuvres and free flowing wine. I had a Coke :-)

It was quite elegant and classy and I showed up in jeans! I know! But at least my shirt matched the table linens. ha!

The dinner was sponsored by The Cooking Channel and featured 4 courses along with wine pairings. The first course was a Golden Beet Tart, second course was seared scallops, third course was lamb chops with butternut squash puree and mushrooms and we wrapped it up with an almond cake.

Dinner was good but it ran way later than expected and we were tired beyond belief. We had to get some rest to start a new day. Day 3 of Foodbuzz fest is coming soon!

Thanks for following my Foodbuzz Fest journey!

If you missed it, here's Foodbuzz Fest: Day 1.

23 comments:

Unknown said...

This looks like so much fun! I've only been to San Francisco once, in high school (we won't say how long ago that was). How did I miss those s'mores? Thanks for sharing the adventure.

Astrid said...

I wanted to go to the Trader Joe's! We don't have them in Texas, and I really wish that we did. I made a mess out of myself with those smores right in front of the guy pouring my beer. It was embarassing!

Foodiewife said...

it's so fun to see your perspective on our weekend in San Francisco. I was delighted to drive you across the Golden Gate Bridge, though I was white-knuckling it with the wind! I hope I didn't scare you too much as we navigated our way through the streets of San Francisco!

Princess of Everything (and then some) said...

I am a Texas girl too. Trader Joes is on my bucket list.

mr. pineapple man said...

looks like so much fun!! nice to meet ur blog!

Faith said...

Luckily it seems like Trader Joes is moving into the midwest so maybe Texas is next!!! *fingers crossed* I know alot of people who would love having it!!!!

Julie @ Willow Bird Baking said...

You got some AMAZING photos! I love the ones from Vista Point and the Ferry Building (and that cute girl in the red doing a French toast demo... ahem). ;)

CANNOT BELIEVE we didn't walk over and get pancakes at any point, btw. How did we miss it?!?!

Leslie Harris said...

Horchata cupcakes? Mmmmmm!

I'm loving your posts. It makes me feel like I was there.

Sorry the photography workshop wasn't what you expected. Maybe you should write a post or two on how to make our pictures prettier with placement and dishes, because you my friend are an expert at it! :)

Natasha @ Saved by the Egg Timer said...

Looks like you had so much fun. Can't wait to go someday! I am just now joining FoodBuzz this ast wk. That is so funny, I would have totally went to Trader Joe's too, we have a few but about an hour away. Whenever I am up near one, I go...hahah.

Anonymous said...

Fun!! I'd love to know how that pink lemonade cupcake tasted.

haha, I love that you went to Trader Joe's! There are none near New Orleans (where I'm from), either, but I'm spending a month in Portland, Maine, and one opened less than a mile from my place here right before I arrived! I haven't been yet... letting the excitement build, haha!

~mel said...

Good food, good friends ~ spells FUN!!

Healthy and Homemade said...

These pictures are insane!! Looks like such a blast. Omg all that yummy food!

Katie said...

Another fantastic foodie filled day! Can't wait to see what day 3 brought. I'd have gone shopping for food supplies too

Monica H said...

Astrid- It was all over my face too!

Leslie- Thank you!

Miss Freckle Head- Of the cupcakes I tasted (and ther were many) the pink lemonade was the least impressive. It was just a lemon cupcake with pink frosting- lacking in flavor...but it was pretty! The cinnamon and chocolate were great though!

~Monica H

FOODalogue said...

Great job recapping the first 2 days. It's so interesting to read everyone's perspective. BTW I love your photography!

oneordinaryday said...

I would have totally gone to Trader Joe's too. We don't have them anywhere around here either. I feel like that about Whole Foods too. :)

Melanie said...

ooh I love Sears Fine Foods! I think SF is one of the most fun cities to visit and it looks like Foodbuzz was so much fun! I have emailed Trader Joe's MANY times asking them to please, please open stores in Texas, I think Texans would love it.

Debbie said...

Looks like you had a great time and the pictures are so nice. I love lingonberries.....especially on crepes or pancakes. SOOOOOO good!

Julia said...

I love the Golden Gate Bridge - weird about the pee smell -ick!

It was wonderful to meet you as well, thanks for the comment. I'm excited to keep up with your amazing recipes!

Sue said...

So you were doing this while I was at Epcot at the Food and Wine Festival. I guess we know what our priorities are:) This looks like fun and that s'more...oh my goodness. I'm trying to lose a few pounds now that I'm home and if it isn't chicken or vegetable, I'm not eating it for a few weeks (except for Thanksgiving Day)!

Darlene said...

Sounds like you had a fantastic time in San Francisco! I'm a sucker for going to regional grocery stores that we don't get here in San Diego. I seemed to have taken much of the same break out sessions as you but in a different order. And it's hard to resist using any of the taboo words they specifically told us *not to use*. Sigh.

Although we didn't have much to time to talk, it was a pleasure to meet you and I look forward to reading your blog. Happy eating!

Ingrid_3Bs said...

I'm going to start a movement to get the next one in Florida!!
~ingrid

Unknown said...

Julie!!!! She's totally cute!

Man oh man I'm so jealous! Everything looks so "yummy"! LOL!

I would love to go to one of these some day...

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