11.20.08

Foodie roadtrip!

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , , , at 12:14 pm by Anne

From Hoopla:

The Celebrity Food & Wine Expo features celebrity chef appearances by Sandra Lee (of the Food Network’s Semi-Homemade Cooking), Jamie Gwen (Home Shopping Network), Curtis Stone (of Discovery Networks TLC’s Take Home Chef), Guy Fieri (of the Food Network’s Diners Drive-Ins and Dives and Ultimate Recipe Showdown), and Andrew Zimmern (of Travel Channel’s Bizarre
Foods).This three-day event will be a melting pot for culinary enthusiasts throughout the Midwest, offering the opportunity to discover the latest cooking techniques from celebrity chefs, as well as those at the local and regional level.

When: Friday, Saturday, Sunday (Nov. 21, 22, 23)

Where: Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines

Cost:  $25 in advance or $30 at the door, Children 6 and under are admitted into the show FREE of charge. VIP Tickets are priced at $60. Tickets will be available at the Wells Fargo Arena ticket office, all area Dahl’s Foods locations, online at dahlstickets.com, or charge by phone at 866-55-DAHLS.

More info: www.cfwexpo.com

Anybody from E Iowa planning to go?

10.27.08

Celebrate Benz’s return with tasting events

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , , , , , , , , at 9:53 am by Anne

Have you been back to Benz yet? If not, this is the week to welcome back downtown Cedar Rapids’ wine, beer, spirits and gourmet food store. They’re filling this week with grand opening events, starting with a re-grand opening beer tasting from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday: 

“While we were recovering from the flood, we were able to help bring in some great new brews to the state of Iowa. Come sample from the selection of our favorite new arrivals. We will pair these new beer arrivals with some of our new cheeses and delicious snacks from Benz.”

Admission is $10/person, and includes a coupon for 10 percent off any food items or beer tasted during the tasting.

The re-grand opening celebration will continue through Sunday with daily wine tastings and food samples. Here is the schedule:

  • Wine Tastings, Thursday and Friday 2 to 5 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday 2 to 4 p.m.
  • Artisan and International Cheese Tasting, 3 to 4:30 p.m. Friday*
  • European Breads & Olive Oil Tasting, 2 to 3:30 p.m. Saturday
  • Artisan and International Cheese Tasting, 3 to 4 p.m. Sunday*

*Featuring Different Cheeses and Meats Friday and Sunday

Other news from flood-affected food businesses:

  • The Peking Buffet in Coralville plans to reopen — in a new building — next year. See story.
  • The Sav-A-Lot Food store on J St. SW in Cedar Rapids has reopened. See story.

10.16.08

Vive le French food!

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , at 8:15 am by Anne

Croissant du Jour

Croissant du Jour

 

Hello Hoopla readers! Since the premiere issue of Eastern Iowa’s young adult publication featured a review of one of my favorite CR spots, Croissant du Jour, I wanted to let you in on a secret: The cafe also serves dinner. But only once a month. To get in, you have to make a reservation… and schedule your dinner plans around their serving times. But it’s so worth it. (Plus, you get to BYO wine.)

Croissant du Jour’s dinners are prix fixe dinners, meaning you get a pre-set multi-course meal for a fixed price. There, usually about $40 to $50. (Plus, $5 corking fee if you bring a beverage.)

If you’ve been for breakfast or lunch — or even if you haven’t — I’d encourage you to splurge on one of the cafe’s dinners. This month’s menu sounds so good I’ve been kicking myself for having already made other plans for Oct. 25.

See the menu and get more details at www.croissantdujour.biz (To find the menu, go to the home page, and scroll down to the bottom of the page.)

10.15.08

blend is back! (soon)

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , , at 2:28 pm by Anne

Just got this news in an e-mail: Downtown CR’s blend is re-opening next weekend:

blend is reopening! 
  
Help us celebrate Saturday, October 25th, 2008! 
Join us for complimentary appetizers and wine tasting. 
Doors open to the public at 6:00 p.m. 
Live Jazz entertainment from 8:00 – 11:00 p.m. and drink specials all night! 
  
Dinner service will not be available.   
Regular Lunch and Dinner service will begin on Monday, October 27th, 2008. 

08.06.08

Food-on-a-stick season

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , , at 3:11 pm by Anne

image from ahhyeah on flickr

image from ahhyeah on flickr

If you’re looking for a free meal tomorrow morning — and don’t mind a bit of an nontraditional breakfast — take a trip to Des Moines for the opening of the Iowa State Fair.

State fair organizers are holding a Corn Dog Chomp — which is exactly what it sounds like — at 8:45 a.m. Thursday. The goal: To set a record for the most people eating corn dogs at one time. Organizers are preparing for a crowd — they’ll have 8,000 (free!) corn dogs ready. And they’re offering free admission to the fair to anyone who arrives before 8:30 a.m.

I’m planning to start my day tomorrow at the Corn Dog Chomp, then wander the fair looking for other treats to sample. New foods this year include a salad on a stick (iceberg lettuce wedge with carrots and tomato served kabob-style with dressing), pineapple on a stick (fresh pineapple dipped in funnel cake batter and deep-fried), mini cinnamon rolls, a London broil steak sandwich and Cajun food including shrimp on a stick and a crawfish-and-vegetable stew

What else should I try to sample during my day at the fair?

07.28.08

Reading about food

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , , , , at 1:05 pm by Anne

image from Steve Rhodes on flickr

image from Steve Rhodes on flickr

 

Every month, we (as in The Gazette) print a calendar of local culinary classes and events. You can find it in the Accent section on the last Tuesday of each month (i.e: tomorrow), or go to www.GazetteOnline.com/food for daily listings.

As I was putting together the August listings, one event stood out from the usual crop of wine tastings, culinary classes and food contests: a foodie book club. The club is being organized by Mary Pat Esch, who coordinates the cooking classes at the Edgewood Road Hy-Vee in Cedar Rapids. She tells me the group will focus exclusively on books about food — historical food books, cookbooks, memoirs, books about chefs and anything else that highlights a passion for food. And, of course, each meeting will feature food — likely recipes pulled from or inspired by the books being discussed.

If you’re interested in the book club, stop by the organizational meeting at 6 p.m. Aug. 25. (But first call the store’s customer service desk to let them know you’re coming: (319) 378-0762.)

And in the meantime, leave a comment here about food writing you enjoy. A couple of my favorites include “Garlic and Sapphires,” Ruth Reichl’s funny and insightful memoir about her years as a food critic at the New York Times, and “Candy and Me,” a memoir organized around the author’s obsession with all things sweet. What about you?

06.02.08

Farmers Market Cooking Classes

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , , , , at 4:05 pm by Anne

Gazette file photo. Downtown Farmers Market, June 2007.

One of my favorite Cedar Rapids summer events kicks off this weekend: The Downtown Farmers Market.

I love the way organizers transform my hometown’s downtown into a festival with food and craft vendors, wine tastings, live music and other entertainment. One of highlight, of course, is cooking demonstrations from local chefs. The demos are a great way to learn new tips and techniques for preparing the items available at the market, and a chance to meet and talk with local chefs.

All demos will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Mays Island. Here is the line-up:

  • June 7: Chefs from My Personal Chef of Cedar Rapids
  • June 21: Chefs from Zins in Cedar Rapids
  • July 5: TBA
  • Aug. 2: Chefs from CR Chophouse in Cedar Rapids
  • Aug. 16: Chefs from Daniel Arthur’s in Cedar Rapids
  • Sept. 6: TBA
  • Oct. 4: Kirkwood Community College Culinary Arts Program

The Iowa City Farmers Market is also featuring cooking demonstrations on the first Saturday of every month. Demonstrations start at 9:30 a.m. under the College Street Bridge in the Chaunce Swan Parking Ramp (located across from City Hall on E. Washington St.)

  • June 7: Ben Halperin, chef at Augusta Restaurant in Oxford
  • July 5: Kurt Michael Friese, co-owner of Devotay in Iowa City
  • Aug. 2: Kim Zesiger, chef/owner of Redhead in Solon
  • Sept and October chefs to be announced

6/18 Update: The Cedar Rapids Downtown Farmers Market has been cancelled for June 21 and July 5

02.21.08

Restaurant news: Cafe del Sol’s grand opening

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , , at 2:56 pm by Anne

Coralville-based Cafe del Sol Roasting has been roasting coffee beans and selling them to local grocers, restaurants and coffee shops since 1990. According to their web site, devoted customers include acclaimed restaurants like Devotay and Lincoln Cafe.

Now you can try their gourmet organic fair-trade blends by stopping by their new coffee shop, Cafe Del Sol Coffee & Tea, at the corner of 12th Ave and Oakdale Blvd. in Coralville. The shop will hold a grand opening celebration from 6:30 a.m. to noon Friday (free coffee!) and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday (free pastries and mini-sandwiches!)

Learn more about Cafe del Sol in the business section of tomorrow’s Gazette.

2/22 Update: Click here to read the story.

Get down(town) Monday night.

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , , at 12:03 pm by Anne

I do a lot of my dining downtown. That’s partly because I work downtown – so the coffeeshops, cafes and restaurants here are an easy walk from the office and perfect for a quick break during the day. But it’s also because the burgeoning restaurant and nightlife scene make it a great place to grab a drink with friends, go out to dinner or make a smoothie pit-stop while biking on the Cedar River Trail (you know, when it’s not covered with snow).

Still, I was surprised when Quinn Pettifer, the new marketing director of the Downtown District told me that there are currently 37 restaurants in downtown Cedar Rapids. 37! There’s a surprising amount of diversity in those establishments (in both cuisine and atmosphere) and, even better, most of them are locally owned.

The Downtown District is celebrating that food scene on Monday night as Zins holds a grand opening. From 5 to 9 p.m. Zins will offer restaurant tours, samples of signature menu items and a staff meet-and-great. Admission is $20, and that includes valet parking, red and white wine, beer and heavy hors douvers.

The downtown district folks will also be there with their 2008 calendar of events and information about downtown restaurants and happy hours. They do request that those interested in attending RSVP to Quinn by e-mailing quinn@downtowncr.org or call 319.398.0449.

Want to know more about downtown dining? Check out this handout from the Downtown District: It lists every downtown restaurant along with it’s location, phone number, hours and type of food served:  Downtown CR restaurant list