Hi again, my friends ~ and welcome back!
Probably Philadelphia's best-known bite, the Cheese Steak is *everywhere* in the City of Brotherly Love. This sign greeted me just after I stepped off the plane...
With all the preparations for my book, Drink Wine With Dinner ~ A 100th Birthday Tribute to Julia Child, I’ve fallen behind, regrettably, on bringing you my “WineFoodBUZZ” newsletter.
Rather than delay any longer, I’ll just combine April and May to catch up.
So, you’ll fly with me on a couple of East Coast book-publicity trips. You’ll meet some of the first chefs/ winemakers (etc.) to provide content for my book. And as always, we’ll enjoy plenty of tasty treats along the way…
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“DRINK WINE WITH DINNER” TAKES PHILADELPHIA ~
First, as a “practice round” for the big “Meet The Media” publicity event (click for info) that I’d be attending in New York, I headed to Philadelphia for an intensive intro workshop with publisher (and expert media liaison) Steve Harrison.
Chowing down on a Philly Cheese Steak at the hotel's Sports Bar ~ and washing it down with local mainstay, Yuengling beer. Yum! (When in Rome...)
The workshop itself was all I’d hoped for. There was great info on meeting TV and radio producers face to face, and great suggestions for making yourself and your project as media-worthy as possible.
I stayed on in Philly for an extra day and a half after the workshop. It was my (*actual*) birthday (click *here* for more festivities), and to celebrate, my wonderful daughter Siri came down from New York. What a treat!
We managed to squeeze two luscious meals, along with a little sightseeing, into our short time together…
Bubbly and *popcorn*??? Sure! Salty foods bring out more bubbles in any carbonated drink. (Just think potato chips with soda or pretzels with beer.) The bubbles popping in your mouth give you extra blasts of flavor.
Siri surprises me with a fun, impromptu "birthday cake" made from an ice cream sandwich. 
Add popcorn from the sports bar, and room-service bubbly, for the best birthday dessert ever!
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A SPANISH FEAST, “IRON CHEF” STYLE, AT AMADA ~
Knowing that the renowned Jose Garces (a James Beard Award winner and TV “Iron Chef”) launched his family of restaurants here in Philadelphia, we decided to visit Amada, his popular flagship, for a leisurely evening of tapas.
From our comfy corner table, we had a great view of the whole hams (Jamon Serrano and the even more highly prized Jamon Iberico), hanging at the end of the bar. The young whiz in the photo kept up the blur of the slicing machine all evening long.
We must have tried over a dozen different dishes (plus a few replays), and there’s no way I could choose a favorite. The crisp flatbread, topped with artichokes, wild mushrooms, black truffles and Manchego cheese? The juicy lamb “albondigas” meatballs? The garlic shrimp, the sautéed scallops, the tender baby octopus, the grilled lobster? The succulent, sliced-to-order Serrano ham? (And I haven’t even touched on our last-minute picks!
We stuck to Spanish wine all evening, starting with a chilled bottle of cava (sparkling wine from the outskirts of Barcelona), then mixing it up with by-the-glass white, rosé and red for our melange of food. I’m always looking for great “geographic” food-and-wine pairings (as well as unexpected “daring pairings”), and it was really fun to figure out what combos tasted best to us.
Warm, crunchy flatbreads ~ a specialty of the house at Amada in Philadelphia. Great way to try *several* different wines!
Siri gets ready to enjoy some freshly sliced Serrano ham at Amada. Fantastic meal!
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“CHAMPAGNE” BRUNCH AT FORK IN PHILLY’S “OLD CITY” ~
Siri's good friend and fellow artisan Kayte (who used to live near Siri in Brooklyn, then moved to Philly) joined us for brunch.
The second of my two terrific meals with Siri in Philadelphia (no, I’m *not* counting the cheese steaks!) brought us into the “Old City” for Sunday brunch. I’d heard great things about FORK, a highly rated “New American Bistro” with glowing reviews from the likes of Gourmet, Food and Wine, and The New York Times.
Descriptions of FORK often include words like “chic,” “stylish” and “sophisticated.” But in all honesty, the place felt thoroughly welcoming, cozy and *very* down to earth.
fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~
My wine-judging buddy Ann and I (she's working with me on my DWWD project), sip house-specialty cocktails while we decide what to order.
We dove into the assorted baked goodies as if we hadn’t seen food in a week. Meanwhile, as we sipped our artisan cocktails, we sampled some house-made paté and pondered our main-dish choices. So far, so good!
I hadn’t had a plate of Eggs Benedict in years ~ and I figured that that had been long enough. Ann ordered the crispy-skin black bass; Kayte went for a three-egg omelet; and Siri, who hadn’t yet worked up an appetite, enjoyed a bowl of house-made granola with yogurt and fruit.
With our entrées, a bottle of bubbly was definitely in order. (Still celebrating, of course!) And the reason that I put quote marks around the word “Champagne” is that our bubbly of choice actually was Prosecco, the delightfully fruity, highly “brunchable” sparkling wine from northeastern Italy.
Siri's healthy "bowla granola."
Siri and Kayte check out the Prosecco.
fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~fork~
A tableside visit from Ellen Yin, FORK's gracious co-owner.
Ellen's book, FORKlore. (What a cool title!)
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“DRINK WINE WITH DINNER” TAKES MANHATTAN ~
I'm with Steve Harrison, whose National Publicity Summit brings more than 100 members of the media together with about 100 authors. Fantastic opportunity!
The workshop in Philadelphia gave me all the tools I needed to get ready for The Big Time ~ namely, Steve Harrison’s National Publicity Summit in New York ~ a few weeks later.
You can see more about the Summit *here* (just click for the full story).
In that post, I promised to share an absolutely *superb* meal with you ~ dinner with Siri at Lidia Bastianich‘s esteemed restaurant, Felidia.
But there’s so much to tell you and show you about the food, the wine, and the whole magical experience, that I need a separate post to do it justice. (Just click *here* to join Siri and me at Felidia for an absolutely unforgettable meal…)
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CHEFS, WINEMAKERS AND MORE JOIN THE “DWWD” PROJECT!
I also promised to introduce you to some of the many culinary professionals ~ including chefs, winemakers and cookbook authors ~ who are providing recipes, commentary, Julia Child reminiscences and other unique content for my Drink Wine With Dinner ~ A 100th Birthday Tribute to Julia Child book project.
I’ll start with three of my first contributors, then update frequently for you…
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***JEFFREY SAAD***
If you’re glued to the TV whenever Next Food Network Star airs, as I am, you’ll remember Jeffrey Saad‘s infectious smile, and his flair for combining flavors and cuisines. He recently competed again, on “Chopped,” finishing second only to culinary giant Marcus Samuelsson.
Jeffrey's wonderful new cookbook, which focuses on flavors from around the globe. Delicious recipes; beautifully written!
Jeffrey's passion for flavors keeps his viewers (and now his readers) enthralled.
Jeffrey now hosts the hit Cooking Channel show, “United Tastes of America,” and has just released his first cookbook (which I *love*), titled Jeffrey Saad’s Global Kitchen: Recipes Without Borders.
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***MILLA HANDLEY***
I first met Milla Handley a few years after she opened her eponymous winery, Handley Cellars, in 1982. At the time, Milla was one of only a handful of winery pioneers in the Anderson Valley of Mendocino County.
Milla Handley's winery, Handley Cellars, has been a mainstay of the Anderson Valley since 1982. (Happy 30th, Milla!)
Milla pours me one of several Pinot Noir "barrel samples" in the Handley Cellars tasting room.
Milla helped establish the practice of planting grape varietals that thrive in cool climates ~ for example Pinot Noir and Riesling ~ and her wines have become benchmarks of their type. I was recently privileged to attend Handley Cellars’ 30th Anniversary retrospective, featuring a “vertical tasting” of over a dozen different vintages of Milla’s Pinot Noir.
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***ASHLEY BARTNER***
I’ve come to know Ashley Bartner fairly recently, through the modern magic of Social Media. An American expat in Italy, Ashley, along with her chef husband Jason, owns and operates La Tavola Marche ~ a cooking school, inn and organic farm ~ in the east-central Le Marche region.
Ashley writes about food, wine and travel for many publications, including a monthly column, “Field to Fork,” for Taste Italia. She also “wears many hats” at La Tavola Marche (reportedly including “free-range chicken wrangler”!), and pens a wonderful blog with mouthwatering Italian-inspired recipes.
Ashley Bartner, who owns and operates La Tavola Marche with her husband Jason.
A small taste of the offerings at La Tavola Marche, a combination cooking school, inn and organic farm in east-central Italy.
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ROSINA MEETS THE MEDIA!
In an upcoming post, I’ll fill you in on all the media invitations I’ve received, to talk about my Drink Wine With Dinner project and Julia Child’s 100th birthday on TV and radio.
In fact, I’ve already been a guest on “The Todd and Shannon Show” on WROK in the Chicago area. It was a bit wacky, and tons of fun! (They’re sending an mp3 of our segment, which I’ll post for you as soon as it comes.)
Meanwhile, here’s another video to help fill in more details for you. I’d love your feedback!
As always,
Cheers, my friends ~
Rosina
PS ~ If you aren’t already a “WineFoodBuzz” subscriber, you can go to the “Sign Up Now” box, pop in your name and email address, and voila ~ you’ll receive my upcoming (free) wine eBook, membership in my Tasting Tribe, and a few surprises as well as my newsletter. Thanks ~ I’ll see you “on the inside”!
