I love food festivals because they help me conquer my food fears. I'm an adventurous eater when it comes to bite-size portions, but I'm afraid to order things like ceviche, pork belly and oxtail off a restaurant's menu. I mean what if I order something that I don't like? I'm stuck with an entire plate of it and a serious case of diner's remorse.
At last night's Toast of the Town, a food and wine festival, I tasted several small items that I wouldn't ordinarily have tried.
Here were my favorites:
Duck confit with pickled ginger and sweet plum sauce (Green Island Country Club)
Florida hoppers (shrimp) with jumbo asparagus, wild watercress and lemon vinaigrette (Hot and Hot Fish Club)
Lobster-scallop ceviche with lime, garlic and jicama (C'Sons)
Red pepper champagne bisque with basil chiffonade (C'Sons)
Oxtail ravioli with contemporary succotash (RiverMill Event Centre)
Deviled quail eggs with lobster, Georgia caviar and blood-orange vinaigrette. (The Basil Leaf)
Unfortunately, I was too busy racing around tasting food and sipping wine to take any photos, but the presentation of some of these dishes was photo-worthy. A curried crawfish was scooped in a tiny ice cream cone and duck confit was served in a small partially hallowed-out breadstick. The ceviche was set in a tiny martini glass. They were almost too cute to eat. Almost.
2 comments:
Don't you usually just convince someone else at your table to order whatever it is you are to scared of ordering... You know like the time you had your unsuspecting sister order that entree with a tree growing out of it!
too funny!
That is my favorite trick. Unfortunately, some people — unsuspecting sister included — have realized this trick and are now suspicious of my motives and won't order what I request. No such an unsuspecting sister, after all. Boo! And that tree was rosemary, which you learned to love. Remember?
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