Top 2011 Food Trends unveiled at San Francisco's sugar-filled Winter Fancy Food Show

Food and travel connect at Fancy Food Show

Imagine Willy Wonka stepping into his Chocolate Factory, suitcase or carry on bag in hand. I recently had my Willy Wonka moment as I sipped and sampled my way through 1,300 exhibitors presenting 80,00 food and beverages for me to taste in San Francisco, January 15-17, 2012 at the Fancy Food Show. Presented by the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade (NASFT) the winter show offered numerous opportunities for trendspotting food and wine journalists and bloggers to share their favorite food finds. As usual, I was looking for the food connection with travel.

Food that captures the traveler's imagination - Queen City Cookies

Foods that capture the traveler’s imagination

Travel back to Victorian times or travel on safari by elephant with Queen City Cookies owner Peggy Shannon. Peggy’s creative imagination, passion for baking and love of travel has led her to the kitchens of Cincinnati, Ohio’s Queen City Cookies where she and her cookie artists turn out shortbread cookies using one of Peggy’s 500+ cookie molds. The cookies feature equestrian packs for horse lovers, elephant shaped cookies for children and custom made cookies of all shapes, colors and sizes.

Upscale campers and those of us who like eating  s’mores in the comfort of our home will want to try Bissinger’s s’more caramels. These chocolate-covered delights are layered with graham cracker, vanilla caramel, marshmallow, milk chocolate and smoky sea salt. If only setting up the tent for camping was this easy.

Food to pack on your travel adventures

Who says necessity is the mother of invention better than Kate Schade? I caught up with Kate, the owner of Kate’s Real Food, to learn about the Tram Bar, her signature peanut butter, milk chocolate power bar that Kate created to carry her through a day of skiing at the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. Kate’s home made Tram Bar not only sustained her in the Tram line and on the ski slopes of Jackson Hole, they created a business opportunity for her. She continues to grow the Real Food product line one bar at a time and says they are her “go to” food in her backpack, in the car or traveling by plane.

I brought home several flavors to try, but my 16-year-old son swooped on them after returning from water polo practice. Needless to say, he thought they tasted great. Move over PowerBar. Looks like you’ve got some competition headed your way.

Closer to my northern California home, Jonathan Sebastiani has recently introduced Krave Jerky. The Sonoma wine country native says his jerky goes from “backpack to briefcase” and is a must-have for travelers on the go. The all natural jerky comes in eight flavors, including exotic flavors such as garlic chili and chili lime.

More than bourbon in Louisville, Kentucky

If you thought Louisville, Kentucky (the Napa Valley of the Bluegrass) was only home to bourbon and the Kentucky Derby horse race, I have a surprise in store for you. Matt Jamie of Bourbon Barrel Foods makes a Bluegrass Soy Sauce that is micro-brewed in small batches using Kentucky grown soybeans, red winter wheat and Kentucky spring water. The soy sauce is then aged in re-purposed bourbon barrels. The Louisville-based company offers tours so swing on by.

Food Trends

According to the editors at Foodspring, here are their picks for the top 20 most influential food events of 2011. Click on the image or title to learn about each event featured. 

USDA Introduces Choose My Plate

Last Supper
at elBulli

Airports & Cruise Lines Go Gourmet

The Chew Debuts

Girl Scouts Get a Locavore Badge

The Enigmatic
Ruth Bourdain

Dining Deals Feed Coupon Fans

Cheesemaking Arrives in Japan

Food Day Debuts

Colleges Swap Grub for Gourmet

Specialty Food Pioneer Passes

The Waiter of the Future is Here

Coffee’s Healthy Competition

Pop-ups Grab Permanent Fans

Halal Food Gets Attention

Farmers Markets Surge in Popularity

Bacon Gets the
Raw Treatment

Retailers Embrace Food Trucks

A Peanut Butter Pie Stirs a Movement

Waste-Free
Grocery Shopping

If You Go:

San Francisco Fancy Food Show, January 20-22, 2013

George Moscone Convention Center, San Francisco, CA

Social media enthusiasts may follow NASFT on Twitter and  Foodspring on Twitter.  You may also follow Nancy D. Brown on Twitter for the latest travel news. Article, YouTube video and photos courtesy of Travel Writer Nancy D. Brown.

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San Francisco

O izakaya Lounge in San Francisco's Japantown neighborhood

Welcome to the Neighborhood, A Series About San Francisco Neighborhoods
About the author. Dianne Admire is the co-owner of San Francisco company Carried Away. Carried Away offers private, custom, experiential tours of San Francisco and the Bay Area for up to 4 people. Dianne and her business partner Vikki Garrod (a.k.a. The Ladies of Carried Away) are known for their insider’s knowledge of the Bay Area, especially San Francisco and Marin. To book one of their sights, food, wine, or shopping outings you can contact them at www.CarriedAwaySF.com.

Save room for a Spruce cocktail in San Francisco's Presidio Heights neighborhood

Remember last month when we took you to one of our fave places to shop in a bunch of different San Francisco neighborhoods? Well this month we’re going to revisit those neighborhoods – but this time with your appetite in mind.  So put down your shopping bags and pull up a seat to enjoy a diverse range of cuisine throughout the city.

Try the o izakaya pork belly in San Francisco's Japantown neighborhood

Japantown Izakaya is having its moment in San Francisco and a good place to get your Izakaya on in Japantown is the O Izakaya Lounge. The Izakaya concept is an import from Japan – a place to get together with your friends to have a few drinks and share some plates of food. O Izakaya’s lounge offers a Cali take on the trend i.e. fresh/organic. And the best part? Happy hour from 5-7, Tuesday-Saturday. Get the pork belly, the omocchi (fried rice balls) and if you like it spicy, the togarashi fries. While there is a long list of wines & cocktails, we encourage you to sample one of the 20+ sakes on the menu.

Try the umami burger in San Francisco's Cow Hollow neighborhood

Cow Hollow It’s hard for people in the San Francisco Bay Area to admit that L.A. has anything to offer us culinarily. But we have to give credit where credit is due – well done, Umami Burger. The most anticipated San Francisco burger spot opening since In-N-Out, Umami Burger opened a few months ago. What’s with the name? Well umami is your “fifth taste”, which can be best described as savoriness. It goes without saying that you should order the namesake burger which has portobello & shitake mushrooms, a parmesan crisp, caramelized onions, roasted tomato and umami ketchup. It’s like umami squared and then squared again. Add the tempura onion rings and you are set.

Try the Tacolicious tuna tostada on Valencia Street in San Francisco's Mission neighborhood

The Mission Mmmm, Tacolicious has opened in the Mission on Valencia Street. We’ve always been fans of the location on Chestnut Street and are so happy to have the Tacolicious option on the South side of town. You might be asking yourself, “does the Mission need another taco spot?” Well if they serve an albacore tuna tostada like Tacolicious does, the answer is yes. Get an order of that to start and then a plate of delicious, fresh, not-your-usual tacos as your main. While you’re there, enjoy the Paul Madonna mural.

Chef Gerard Buulong creates these peasant pies in this San Francisco Noe Valley neighborhood

Noe Valley Peasant Pies is our go-to for a quick, casual, and of course delish snack destination in Noe Valley. Cordon Bleu-trained Chef Gerard Buulong brought this little specialty to San Francisco from Southern France after seeing the fishermen in Sete enjoying this “hand held meal”. We like the Basque Beef and the Chicken Potato pies, but if you’re into sweets Peasant pies has lots of options in that category too. Enjoy your pie and then get on with your shopping!

Presidio Heights No article from the Ladies of Carried Away is complete without a cocktail destination, and here is one the best in a town filled with artisanal/hand-crafted/farm-to-table/you-name-it cocktails: Spruce on Sacramento Street. Those cocktail geniuses behind the bar elevate the cocktail to a new and beautiful level. The Classic Cocktails are great – the House Specialties are even more so. And the setting is just perfect at the end of a day of exploring the city. Arrive when they open for dinner at 5pm so that you can claim your space at the cozy and elegant bar. Hint: ask for the Violet Beauregarde, if she’s on the menu, she’s worth the splurge.

Don’t you love dining in San Francisco? What are your favorite dining spots in San Francisco neighborhoods?

Top and third photos courtesy of O izakaya Lounge. Cocktail photo courtesy of Spruce Facebook page. Photo courtesy of Umami Burger. Photo of tuna tostada courtesy of Tacolicious. Photo of peasant pies courtesy of Peasant Pies Facebook page.

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Duff Goldman Ace of Cakes at the 2011 Fancy Food Show

San Francisco Fancy Food Show

Now in its 37th year, the Winter Fancy Food Show is the largest marketplace devoted exclusively to specialty foods and beverages on the West Coast. It is strategically held in January when buyers are looking to stock up for the new year, and to plan way ahead for the important holiday season. The show has a strong presence of buyers and exhibitors from the Pacific Rim, and the trend-setting West Coast.

Fancy Food Show highlights include:

• 80,000 products
• 1,300 exhibitors from 35+ countries and regions
• 17,000 attendees
• First-time pavilions from Japan, China, Poland, Morocco and Chile
• Pavilion featuring 30 emerging food entrepreneurs in special NASFT program
• 130 companies making their Fancy Food Show debut
• 20+ seminars, including Top 10 Mistakes Beginning Manufacturers Make
• Trio of tastings: American Artisan Cheeses; New World Olive Oil; Salt & Pepper
• Tweet Up: Event to share show finds and network (follow @nasft for info.)
• Major food donation to Bay Area anti-hunger programs

The Fancy Food Show is an exclusive event for the specialty food trade and is closed to the general public – sorry guys.

Celebrity Chef Cat Cora introduces her product line at 2011 Fancy Food Show with Gaea Chief Executive Aris Kefalogiannis.

If You Go:

San Francisco Fancy Food Show, January 15-17, 2012

George Moscone Convention Center, San Francisco, CA

Social media enthusiasts may follow NASFT on Twitter and  Foodspring on Twitter.  You may also follow Nancy D. Brown on Twitter for the latest travel news. Article, YouTube video and photos courtesy of Travel Writer Nancy D. Brown.

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