Burlesque in Hampden at 13.5% Wine Bar + Food

There is more to do on “the Avenue” than just dining, well at least on Thursday, October 1^st starting at 9:30 p.m. at 13.5% Wine Bar + Food when Ruby Rockafella presents a burlesque and variety show.  She will be breaking in the stage area that 13.5% Wine Bar + Food created in their recent renovations. This is just the beginning of late night entertainment to come to their stage --- musicians, comedians and other variety acts. 

Ruby is far from being shy, she exclaims, “I’m popping their burlesque and variety cherry with an amazing cast! Tribal fusion dance from Abby, burlesque and drag from Bambi Galore, burlesque from Bunny Vicious, hooping from Joule MissJoule, Femme-Cee Shortstaxx, stage kitten Kitty Bermuda, and more burlesque from me!” 

Watch the video and read the complete story at Examiner . com / Dining 

Get your ticket to Cochon's Heritage BBQ - Don't miss out.

BBQ lovers rejoice – Cochon 555 has just announced an all-star chef lineup for the second annual Heritage BBQ event in Washington, DC at Dock 5 Union Market on Sunday, October 4. Spotlighting BBQ grilling traditions and old world cooking techniques, Washington DC is one of their culinary stops in their five-city tour promoting heritage breed pigs and global flavors. 

This year’s competing chefs include Nicholas Stefanelli of Masseria, Will Morris of Vermillion, Jose Adorno of Graffiato, Sam Molavi of Compass Rose, and RJ Cooper of Gypsy Soul returns to the competition after being the first chef to win Cochon555 in Washington DC in 2009. Each chef will be given a 180 pound heritage breed pig to create six dishes for a crowd of pork-loving enthusiasts. Non-competing chefs will be cooking BBQ including Erik Bruner-Yang of Maketto, Scott Drewno of The Source by Wolfgang Puck, Zack Mills of Wit & Wisdom, Kyle Bailey of Birch & Bailey, Louis Goral of Rural Society Argentine Steakhouse, and Craig Hartman of The Barbeque Exchange.



Watch the slideshow and read the full story at Dining Examiner - Examiner . Com

New flavored white teas from The Republic of Tea

Personally, I don’t drink coffee. I used to drink colas, regular then on to diet but we know that they aren’t good for you for numerous reasons.  I’ve always liked tea, but in the past 12 years tea has really been my beverage of choice; black, red, green, oolong, hibiscus,  herbal – I like them all, even the delicate authentic white teas from China. Low in caffeine, the tender white buds are “hand-picked” just two days a year.  Since the white tea is the least processed of the teas it offers up more polyphenols, or in other words antioxidants. 

At the Summer Fancy Food Show I had an advanced taste of two of the new The Republic of Tea selections on their white tea blends: Honey Mango and Cucumber Mint.  The show had me on food and flavor overload, so the kind folks of  The Republic Tea recently sent canisters of these two white teas to brew. 

Watch the video and read the full story at Examiner . com / food

Firehouse Subs tests 6 new deli subs in new Baltimore locations

The Firehouse Subs public relations person reached out to me to help promote the new cold deli subs  now being test marketed in Baltimore. But in reality, it was only in the past six months that Baltimore was home to a Firehouse Sub, so everything is new.

Firehouse Subs were started by two former firefighters, brothers in fact, Chris and Robin Sorensen. I had  heard of the fast casual chain, although there was a lot I didn’t know: like since the 1992 inception they only sold hot subs, they raise money for local firehouses and charities ($14+ million donated to public safety organizations),  they were already using the fast casual concept way back when, that each Firehouse Subs franchisee had a custom painted mural depicting the local firehouse, all the meats are cut fresh each morning, they were the first chain to add Coca Cola freestyle which allows you 120 plus combinations of sodas, a plethora hot sauces choices coded for heat level, that the table tops are designed to replicate Dalmatian’s spots, you can choose from  optional 500 calorie sandwiches,  that you are welcomed when you enter and thanked when you leave.

Watch the video and slideshow along with the rest of the story at Examiner . Com / Dining   

Dining Dish is 10 years old - time flies when you are having fun.

Ten years ago blogging was at its infancy. There were no conventions for bloggers, who knew the term social media – no Instagram, Reddit, 4-Square, Twitter, and Facebook was in its infancy.  It was a whole new world and the start for a handful of Baltimore bloggers.  The Baltimore food bloggers were a small group – in fact, we would get together for blogger parties at each other’s homes. The snapshot above is probably a good eight years old, a panel of the Baltimore Food Bloggers I assemble for a food and wine show here in Baltimore.  

Today, less than a handful of us remain. We’ve all grown and expanded what we were doing into extended careers.  Two of my favorites, good acquaintances have celebrated the 10 year anniversary recently.

Mango and Ginger by Kit Pollard  celebrates her 10^th anniversary today, September 8^th.  Kit has written nearly 1900 posts.  Kit is writing for the Baltimore Sun, featured articles and restaurant reviews and other Maryland publications. The question now, will she take over the permanent position as the Baltimore Sun’s food columnist and reviewer. 

Minxeats by Kathy Patterson celebrated her 10^th anniversary August 14^th. Food reviews, her honest take whether positive or negative have been the heart of Minxeats. Kathy has shared recipes as well as her dining experiences.  Minxeats and her other blogs on perfume, Top Chef have led to opportunities for her and her husband, Neal, to write two books on regional food and restaurants Baltimore Chef’s Table and Food Lovers’ Guide to Baltimore. Come June 1, 2016 their 3^rd book, Maryland’s Chesapeake: How the Bay and its Bounty Shaped a Cuisine will be hitting the shelves. 

Dining Dish turned 10 years old September 1^st – a mishmash of stories on food: reviews, raves, rants, recipes and reminiscences of the days of yore. Personally, I have written over 1500 posts.  The past 10 years saw me leave the comfort of a corporate marketing job, create my own public relations and marketing company, Dara Does It – Creative Solutions for the Food Industry, a business that would be my cushion in my retirement years.  

My extracurricular activities over the past 10 years have been amazing; mentoring high school culinary students for competition, organizing the kitchen stage at the Food and Wine Festival at National Harbor with talent like Elizabeth Falkner, Sara Moulton, Nathalie Dupree and other notables, Steven Raichlen’s personal assistant during the filming of the first Primal Grill series for PBS, co-authoring with Jeffrey Spear, Yum-Tasty Recipes from Culinary Greats that benefited the Kidney Foundation, and much more. 

Eventually, I took the path of writing regularly for Examiner.com both a food and a dining column, and currently I’m the Baltimore restaurant reviewer for www.Gayot.com. I am well entrenched with the national organization of Women Chefs and Restaurateurs as well as managing their Facebook and Twitter pages.  I’ve rubbed shoulders and dined with my culinary heroes that 10 years ago I wouldn’t have believed possible. Let me know forget my Dining Dish podcasts on Baltimore Internet Radio.

Prior to blogging, I organized cooking classes in the restaurant kitchens, before there was the Food Network and members of  my Epicurean Club of Maryland vied for the limited slots to see the behind the scenes of Baltimore’s top restaurant kitchens.  I had a newsletter, it was old format – typing it, copying it, folding it, labeling it and putting on postage. It evolved to e-newsletter which evolved to the Dining Dish blog.     

It has been an amazing 10 years for all three of us and I only see better things yet to come.  Well at my age, where will I be in 10 years at 78 – hopefully, above ground and still able to enjoy a great meal with friends and family?

Thank you to all who have followed, commented and spread our good food words.

Support Moveable Feast by Dining Our For Life

On the 20th anniversary of the inception of Dining Out For Life I had the opportunity to interview their spokesperson The Food Network’s James Beard award winning host of Chopped, Ted Allen.  Ted Allen shared time to chat with Examiner.com about his commitment to Dining Out for Life, how Queer Eye for the Straight Guy evolved, Top Chef, Iron Chef America and more.

There are 50 restaurants giving varying percentage of this one day fundraiser to Moveable Feast – Donating 50% of their proceeds are three very special and unique Baltimore restaurants – 13.5% Wine Bar + Food – Chef Cyrus Keefer,  Gertrude’s  - Chef John Shields and Woodberry Kitchen – Chef Spike Gjerde. Chefs and restaurateurs are the backbone to fundraising for so many charities – I am in awe of their generosity.  

Moveable Feast, a non-profit which offers meal delivery programs to homebound people living with HIV/AIDS and breast cancer, transportation and in addition, a culinary training program. See how your one meal on Thursday, September 17^thcan feed many. Feed people, Fight disease and Foster hope.