A Sincere Thanks to FoodBuzz

Man I had a great Saturday afternoon and owe it all to FoodBuzz. You've no doubt seen their icon on a number of food blogger sites.

Well earlier in the week they notified some of their blogging folks in Seattle of the Seattle Food and Wine Experience and offered to pay for the ticket if we would attend and write about it.

So I volunteered.

It was held at Qwest Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks.

So I strolled on up to the will call window and was given a small package. Inside? A ticket, a brochure for the event, and a credential that designated me as 'press'.....Which I thought was very cool, and turned out to be just that.

I was welcomed everywhere, free to take photos of whatever I wanted, was able to give out lots of Foodbuzz business cards, etc. I even, as I was going in, was waived around security and bag search because of the credential.

Anyway, the event was so much fun to attend. There were 7 executive chefs from fine restaurants around the Seattle area.


As you walk in, you pick up your wine glass, your VIP food tickets, a bag to carry the swag in, and begin roaming from booth to booth.


17 different restaurants in attendance at the booths offering gourmet appetizers, cheeses, soups, and desserts. And wine. As for the wine, there were over 1,000 different wines from Napa Valley, Washington/Oregon, California, Italy, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, France, and Germany!!!

Some of the other attractions.....

Cheese, cheese, and more cheese....


As a result of visiting the cheese display several times, I now have a new friend....


Oh this stuff is so good.....


KitchenAid display for cancer awareness. Their rep told me everytime they sell an appliance of this color they donate $50 to cancer research....


Chutneys, mustards, lemon curd etc........


And oh yeah, the pumpkin soup from a restaurant called The Herb Farm. This soup was incredible! Not just the best pumpkin soup I have had, but probably the best soup ever. Seriously, I couldn't get over how tangy with subtle hints of spice and smooth pumpkin flavor. The white sauce you see is NOT sour cream or anything like that, I'm not sure what it is frankly but it was delicious. (My foodie side showing through, I know) But, alas, the lady would NOT part with the recipe. No amount of bribing, or promising to cook for her, or publish photos of her on my blog would budge her. Darn it.....



The KitchenAid demonstration kitchen....


And I easily would have spent my 401k in this display.... What absolutely beautiful, well crafted cookware....




I work for Starbucks, so my stop at this booth was not all that wonderful.....The brewmaster, jokingly gave me a cup of coffee made from this contraption, but wouldn't tell me what type of coffee it was. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't Starbucks either. We had a lively conversation for 15 minutes.


In summary, like I said at the beginning, I had a great Saturday afternoon. Thank you Seattle Food and Wine Experience and thank you Food Buzz.

I note this was the inaugural event in Seattle. I think it was excellent and I'll see you next year, believe me.