Photo: Flickr/modomatic
LOCAL TREATS
Tea Time
Finale Desserterie and Bakery invites you to their November Tasting Event of Exotic Teas by MEM Imports, Nov. 2, 6:30-8pm. Choose from a variety of teas to sip on while savoring a paired dessert. To reserve your spot, call 617-423-3184 or visit Finale’s site for more information.
A Thrill/Chill Fiesta
Celebrate this Halloween in full spirit by coming out to ONCE de Los Muertos: a locavore Day of the Dead Fiesta being held Wednesday, Nov. 2, 6:30-9:30pm, at the Somerville Center for Arts at the Armory. Cuisine en Locale, Taza Chocolate, Cambridge Brewing Co. and Toscanini are sponsoring. The meal will include bountiful Mexican-inspired dishes such as pulled pork verde, chicken mole, agua fresca, and more, plus music and door prizes to the first 100 tickets sold. Get ‘em here.
Gather ‘Round
On Nov. 7 at 7pm, gather a group of your 10 favorite peeps, pool your money and support the Boston Public Market Association. The BPMA is working to make a year-round public market a reality, and needs your help at their Harvest Dinner Party fundraiser to do so. Purchase a table for 10 at one of the 20 participating Boston restaurants and feast upon a multi-course meal prepared with fresh seasonal ingredients and paired with wine. The meal will also come with a specialty cocktail designed exclusively for your table using spirits from Bully Boy Distillers. For more information and to purchase a table — each is $2500 — call 617-510-3796.
Books & Cooks
Pick up some holiday baking tips as KitchenWares by Blackstones hosts a book-signing event with local chef/authors Joanne Chang (Flour) and Amy Traverso (The Apple Lover’s Cookbook), Nov. 9, 7-9pm. Delicious holiday treats will be served, and for each book sold $2 will be donated to Community Servings’ wonderful ‘Pie in the Sky‘ program. Shoot an email over to KitchenWare to RSVP.
Horsing Around
Gallup over to support BiNA Farms with their 2nd annual gala, “Horsing Around at the Ritz”, Nov. 12, 6:30pm, at the Ritz Carlton in Boston. BiNA Farm is a non-profit organization providing Equine Assisted Activities & Therapies and integrated activities to children with severe medical challenges. The fundraising evening will include remarks by Honorary Chair Keith Lockhart of The Boston Pops, a presentation by children from The BiNA Farm’s program, with special video messages from Cam Neely of the Boston Bruins and Senator Scott Brown, and a silent auction. Read more and purchase your ticket here.
Trading Up
Jody Adams of Rialto and Top Chef Masters introduced her newest endeavor yesterday with the opening of Trade on Boston’s Waterfront with a menu inspired by New England traditions and world travels. Sean Griffing, former General Manager of Rialto, and Eric Papachristos, Boston restaurateur, are partners; Executive Chef Andrew Hebert, former Executive Sous Chef at Rialto, is running the kitchen. Hebert and Adams will bring to the Waterfront menu their longstanding relationship with farms such as Sparrow Arc, Sienna and Blue Heron.
Beer & Bourbon
5 Napkin Burgers is excited to begin their new Beer and Bourbon Dinner Series, Nov. 17, 6:30. Mingle with local brewers over cocktails and appetizers before partaking in a two-course dinner paired with four different types of beers. Chef Andy D’Amico and the participating breweries will please your palate.
NATIONAL BITES
Trick or Treat
Looking to become extremely popular this Halloween season? If so, you’re in luck! This week, HuffPost Food has compiled a list of the 20 Best & Worst Halloween Candies. While some choices might be up for debate, dolling out pencils and raisins is something, I think, Debbie Downer might applaud, not kids.
An Unlikely Friendship
It feels almost wrong even mentioning Coca-Cola after seeing it on the Top 10 Worst Aspects of American Food List. Yet this sugary drink is making headlines this week as the cans lose their signature red color and are traded in for a whiter hue — in honor of the world’s polar bears and the World Wildlife Fund. This partnership, while curious, is of course nothing new: we’re already aware of how much polar bears love a nice bottle of Coke.
GLOBAL TASTINGS
Blast From the Past
The newest food trend could become the world’s oldest foods. The Wall Street Journal describes how chefs are now turning to ancient Roman texts, Renaissance manuscripts and 19th-century American cookbooks to revamp outdated meals,invigorating jaded foodies. While tempting, I’m not positive I’ll ever indulge in veal brains, the ancient herb hyssop or “preboggin” (garden weeds) . . .