Jalapeño Girl

Dirty Words: Litquake's Tribute to SMUT!

I'm catering some naughty eats for Litquake on Sunday, August 3rd. Text below is directly from Litquake.
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Sexiness! Ribaldry! Corsets! Books! All for $25.00 with two drinks included!!!

Starring: *Daniel Handler * Ellen Sussman * Michelle Richmond * Helena Echlin * Stephen Elliot * Kirk Read + a fashion show featuring corsets from Stormy Leather and some naughty fun with the Twilight Vixen Review

****
Litquake season is coming up, and this is our last fundraiser of the year. So, we want you to come join us at CELLspace on August 3 for Dirty Words: Litquake’s Tribute to Smut.

It will be a giddy Sunday night homage to titillation and obscenity starring Daniel Handler (as himself rather than alter ego Lemony Snicket, reading from Watch Your Mouth, a dirty little comic novel), Ellen Sussman (editor of Dirty Words: A Literary Encyclopedia of Sex), Michelle Richmond (author of No One You Know), Kim Addonizio (My Dreams Out in the Street), Helena Echlin (charmer of snakes and author of Gone), and Stephen Elliot (author of My Girlfriend Comes to the City and Beats Me Up and editor of Sex for America).

Emcee Kirk Read (creator of performance piece This Is the Thing and author of How I Learned to Snap) will be on hand to keep things spicy. SOMA-based Stormy Leather will present a naughty fashion show with the buxom and beautiful gals from Twilight Vixen Review doing cabaret and burlesque.

What more do you need?

What: Dirty Words: Litquake’s Tribute to Smut
When: Sunday, August 3 – Doors open at 7 p.m.; readings and show begin at 8 p.m.
Where: CELLspace 2050 Bryant Street (between 18th and 19th streets), San Francisco
Tickets: $25.00 admission includes two drinks and light refreshments; in addition, alcohol will be available for purchase during the evening. Tickets available online at https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/38342. Tickets also available at the door. 21 and over.

Special support from Distillery No. 209, Vine Connections, and Flora Grubb Gardens.

Wine.Dine.Donate SF benefit on July 30

Not sure I'll be attending, but this sounds like a worthwhile cause. If you've got the coin.

--Help Feed Thousands By Attending Epicurious.com's Special Farm-To-Table Event--

Join Tanya Steel, editor-in-chief of Epicurious.com, celebrated chefs, and select local farmers and purveyors for an evening of fine wine, delicious farm-fresh creations, and the company of your fellow foodies. Your ticket price will help feed the hungry as proceeds from these events benefit America's Second Harvest, the nation's largest network of food banks.

Wednesday, July 30th
ACME Chophouse with Chef Traci Des Jardins and Citizen Cake's Elizabeth Falkner

Address: 24 Willie Mays Plaza
Time: 6:15 reception, 7:15 dinner
Price: $125

Go to Epicurious.com for more information and to buy tickets

Party Time: Meatpaper & Gastronomica present...

Meatpaper and Gastronomica, two independent-minded magazines exploring the intersections of food and culture, invite you to celebrate the publication of their summer issues with a lively evening of artistic food and food-centric art at Perbacco Restaurant in downtown San Francisco. This event will feature tastings from local chefs, as well as cocktails, an art exhibition, and live music.

WHEN:
Sunday, July 20th
6pm to 9pm

WHERE:
Perbacco Restaurant
230 California Street
San Francisco, CA 94111
tel: 415-955-0663

TICKETS:
$25 per person, may be purchased online via credit card or PayPal.
A limited number of tickets will be sold at the door.

FEATURED SPONSORS:
Chef Staffan Terje (Perbacco)
Chef Leif Hedendal
Chef Chris Kronner (Serpentine & Slow Club)
Chef Scott Youkilis (Maverick)
The Fatted Calf
Prather Ranch Meat Co.
Verge Syrah
La Fee Absinthe
Rhum Clement
Bluecoat Gin
Trumer Pils
and more

PHOTOGRAPHY BY:
Charlie Grosso

MUSIC:
Gaucho

ABOUT MEATPAPER:
Founded in 2007, Meatpaper is a quarterly print journal focused on art and ideas about meat. Inspired by the current "fleischgeist" that is sweeping the country, Meatpaper publishes lush visuals, provocative articles, and timely reporting. Neither pro nor con, Meatpaper's ambidextrous approach and innovative style have generated international press.
www.meatpaper.com

ABOUT GASTRONOMICA:
Since 2001 Gastronomica has been feeding readers' sensual and intellectual appetites by offering food-focused scholarship, fiction, poetry, humor, and exciting visual imagery. With its diverse voices and eclectic mix of articles, Gastronomica provokes discussion and encourages thoughtful reflection on the history, literature, representation, and cultural impact of food.
www.gastronomica.org

Forward this to a friend

illustration by Marco Marella © 2008

 

Asian Fusion Feast with author Min Jin Lee

I would attend this one if it weren't our wedding anniversary....

Special Event: An Asian Fusion Feast with the Author Min Jin Lee ($95)
Wednesday, April 30, 2008, 6:30 PM
Ponzu Restaurant, 401 Taylor Street, San Francisco, 94102

Naomi Epel Presents

Cosponsored by American Institute of Wine & Food
and Asia Society of Northern California
Min Jin Lee
(author of Free Food For Millionaires)
and an Asian Fusion Feast

April 30 • 6:30 pm • $95 per person/ $175 per couple (AIWF & Asia Society members receive a discounted rate of $90 per person or $170 per couple)
Includes an autographed book, tax, tip, & house wine. Feel free to bring your own wine, too--there will be no corkage fee.

Location: Ponzu Restaurant, 401 Taylor Street, San Francisco, 94102

For tickets: call 415-927-0960, ext. 239,
or click on the order button below.
 

Join us for an Asian fusion feast honoring Min Jin Lee, author of Free Food For Millionaires. With a sharp eye and articulate voice, Min Jin Lee deftly introduces a memorable cast of characters that are as colorful as they are troubled and as complex as they are familiar. “After 20 years as a literary escort, I find Min Jin Lee to be one of the novelists I most admire.” Naomi Epel, author of The Observation Deck and Writers Dreaming.

*****
Menu:
Small plates to share…      

Pajeon
Egg Pancake with Green Onions, Manila Clams, Soy Vinegar Dipping Sauce

      

Galbi
Pork Spareribs with Gochujang Glaze and Toasted Sesame

      

Bimbap
Ahi Tuna, Pickled Daikon and Bean Sprouts in Rice Rolls

      

Yukhoe
Beef Tartare with Soy, Sugar, Sesame, Green Onion, Topped with Quail Egg Yolk

      

Large Plates to Share…
Served with Kimchee Fried Rice

      

Jajangmeyon
Noodles in Spicy Black Bean Sauce with Seasonal Vegetables

      

Jeongol
Spicy Seafood Stew with Eggplant and Straw Mushrooms

      

Bulgogi
Flank Steak Marinated in Chlli with Wilted Mustard and Pickled Bean Sprouts

    

Accompanied by Chef’s Selection of Dessert Coffee, Tea, and House Wine

   

No corkage if you’d like to bring your own wine!

Dining Out For Life in SF

Dining Out for Life takes place April 24 at various San Francisco restaurants, during lunch and/or dinner. Twenty five per cent of the food sales go to the STOP AIDS project. Last year, over 200K was raised.

Chocolate Salon at Fort Mason this Sunday

Yum! The second annual San Francisco Chocolate Salon is here on Sunday. Tickets are $20 and include lots of chocolate and espresso samples. It's enjoyable and worth the trip for any chocolate fiend.

Dinner to Die For at Grandma Mary's Farm in El Cerrito

This event on Sunday April 12th, sounds interesting and tasty. It's neat that the organizers are using veggies that also have dyeing capabilities. That's something I do not think about, probably ever.

SOIL TO STUDIO
FARM TO TABLE

Join us for a very special evening at Grandma Mary's Farm in El Cerrito.

Sasha Duerr, founder of the Permacouture Institute ( www.permacouture.org), is going to conduct a plant-based dyes studio workshop. Following that, I am going to serve a five course vegetarian dinner using many of the same plants used to make the dyes.

April 12, 4pm-10pm

Address in El Cerrito will be included with your  RSVP confirmation
BYOB
Live music by Clark Meremeyer   ( www.myspace.com/meremeyer)

$70 - $120 sliding scale. This is a benefit for the permacouture institute.

RSVP to sashaduerr@gmail.com

Menu:

Mache, orach, upland cress, watermelon radish, kumquat, walnut, and andante chevre

Soup of princess laratte potato, golden turnip, knoll green garlic, star route baby favas, saffron, and berkswell

Knoll rapinis, dandelion, various kales, black trumpets

Dirty girl chioggas with puree of stinging nettles

Riverdog asparagus with gold nugget mandarin and Strauss brown butter

Rancho Gordo tepary beans with red cabbage, avocado, fennel, coriander, sesame, ginger, and hemp

Strawberry, young coconut, lemongrass, blossom bluff dried stonefruit confit, Cowgirl Creamery creme fraiche,  maple, tonka bean

Taste of the Nation next Sunday

Taste of the Nation

Experience the Premier Culinary Event

Taste of the Nation San Francisco
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Acme Chophouse
24 Willie Mays Plaza
San Francisco, CA 94107

Buy your ticket to the hottest food and wine event of 2008 and help fight hunger at the same time.

Share Our Strength remains one of my favorite charities because they have great food events and are fiscally responsible. I am volunteering the day of the event, and have been on the event committee in past years. Share Our Strength's Taste of the Nation^® presented by American Express is the nation's largest and finest culinary benefit, featuring top chefs and mixologists -- all of whom will come together this spring to donate their time, talent and passion to end childhood hunger in America. Get your tickets here.

Iron Chef Michael Symon will be joined by three competitors from Food Network’s “The Next Iron Chef”, including Gavin Kaysen (NYC's Café Boulud), as well as San Francisco’s own Chris Cosentino (Incanto/Boccalone) and Traci Des Jardins (Jardinière/Acme Chophouse/ Mijita). Finishing with the dessert course again this year is Elizabeth Falkner of Citizen Cake fame and soon-to-open Orson.

Min Jin Lee appears in San Francisco

Naomi Epel Invites You To
 An Asian Fusion Feast
with Author Min Jin Lee

 Wednesday, April 30, 2008, 6:30 pm
Ponzu Restaurant, 401 Taylor Street, San Francisco

Order Tickets Now!

Join us for an Asian fusion feast honoring Min Jin Lee, author of Free Food For Millionaires. With a sharp eye and articulate voice, Min Jin Lee deftly introduces a memorable cast of characters that are as colorful as they are troubled and as complex as they are familiar. “After 20 years as a literary escort, I find Min Jin Lee to be one of the novelists I most admire.” Naomi Epel, author of The Observation Deck and Writers Dreaming.

"I read a terrific debut novel this week. It’s always heartening to find a good new writer, but what’s especially delightful about Min Jin Lee and her new novel, called Free Food For Millionaires, is that she’s taken up the expansive form of the nineteenth century novel and its concerns about money, marriage, and duty, to create a kind of Korean-American riff on all those sagas, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Middlemarch, where the principled heroine sometimes behaves like a downright fool.” – Maureen Corrigan, NPR FRESH AIR

“Top 10 Books of 2007” - USA TODAY
“Year’s Best Books” - NPR’s FRESH AIR
“Favorite Fiction of 2007” - CHICAGO TRIBUNE
“Favorite Books of the Year” - CHICAGO SUN TIMES
“Notable Books of 2007” - SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
“Best Novels of the Year” and “The Times Christmas Choice” - THE TIMES (London)

When:
6:30 pm on Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Where:
Ponzu Restaurant
401 Taylor Street
San Francisco, CA 94102

Cost:
$95 per person or $175 per couple
AIWF & Asia Society members receive a discounted rate of $90 per person or $170 per couple
(includes tax, tip & an autographed copy of Free Food For Millionaires)

Sign up online here,
or call Book Passage at 415-927-0960, x1.

Ponzu Restaurant:
(415) 775-7979
www.ponzurestaurant.com

Hot Stuff Chocolate Happenings

More chocolate fun!

Chocolate Documentary Screening

My Dad rolled his eyes when I said I was going to see a "chocumentary" next month. His loss! There are two screenings to choose from, and the film runs almost half an hour. Check out the website, which is colorful and appealing.

IN SEARCH OF THE HEART OF CHOCOLATE- a filmmaker, a
chocolate shop, assorted chocoholics, and lots and
lots of chocolate

FEBRUARY 12th, DELANCEY STREET 6:30 & 7:30 PM
600 Embarcadero Street San Francisco, CA 94107

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Bay Area filmmaker
Sarah Feinbloom is screening her new chocumentary
featuring the Bay Area’s own Jack  Epstein of Chocolate
Covered in Noe Valley, and his customers, Richard
Anderson, Suzanne McKee, and many others at the
Delancey Street Screening Room, in San Francisco on
February 12th, 2008. Featuring chocolate from Charles
Chocolates and Noe Valley Bakery, art by Liz Mamorsky,
sound by Robert Berke Sound and animation by Kaitlin
Chong,  and editing by Anne Flatté, this melt in your
mouth experience celebrates the Bay Area’s finest. A
perfect evening for anyone who loves chocolate and
film, followed by a delicious chocolate reception by
Joshua Charles Catering.

6:30 PM & 7:30 PM SCREENINGS, followed by a chocolate
reception. Please reserve seats by emailing
info@chocumentary.com
Tickets are $10, and DVD’s will be available for
purchase

In Search of The Heart of Chocolate is a delicious
romp through the rich and creamy, melt in your mouth,
passionate world of chocolate. Follow filmmaker  Sarah
Feinbloom as she searches for the origins of her
chocolate obsession, interviewing chocolate
enthusiasts along the way, delving into chocolate
cake, art, fantasy, chocolate croissants,
spirituality, sex, love and hot fudge, and journeying
into the past to uncover chocolate’s special place in
our hearts.

Sarah Feinbloom is an award-winning Bay Area filmmaker
whose work includes documentaries, dramatic narrative,
and fundraising videos. Her film on the religious
lives of teenagers, What Do You Believe? was featured
on the cover of the San Francisco Chronicle Date Book,
and screened at the Mill Valley Film Festival, on PBS,
and at festivals nationally and internationally.
Recently she completed a documentary on child
trafficking in Thailand called Daughters and Sons that
was featured on NPR and won the Best Short Film on
Child Advocacy at the Artivist Film Festival. Sarah
thoroughly enjoyed making her latest  film, a
chocumentary-In Search of The Heart of Chocolate,
which involved lots of taste-testing and sampling.

www.chocumentary.com

Lunch with Ellie Krieger

Tomorrow I'm attending a Luscious Lunch with the Food Network's Ellie Krieger, at Garibaldi's Restaurant in San Francisco. Her new cookbook is called Foods You Crave, and the menu will be from recipes in the book. I have to give Barbara Lane of the JCCSF a shout out for inviting me. Barbara is the JCCSF's Director of Lectures & Literature, and will be "in conversation" with Krieger.

Join us by calling 415.292.1233. Cheers.

Where I'll Be: Dinner with Bourdain & co.

 An SOLD OUT Evening with Anthony Bourdain- World Famous Chef and Author to benefit AIWF- Norcal Scholarship

Saturday, November 17, 2007 - AIWF NorCal (CA)
Time:	06:00 pm
Member Price:	$150.00
Guest Price:	$150.00
Venue:	E&O Trading Company
Email:	www.greenapplebooks.com

      

AIWF – NORCAL AFFILIATED EVENT

      

Saturday November, 17th

      

Green Apple Books and Naomi Epel

      

Present

      

 

      

An Evening with

      

Anthony Bourdain

      

celebrating his new book

      

“No Reservations”

      

 to benefit

      

The American Institute of Wine and Food Scholarship Fund

      

 

      

   Dinner prepared by celebrated chefs:

      

 

      

Chris Cosentino of Incanto Restaurant

      

        Alex Ong of Betelnut Restaurant

      

        Tim Luym of Poleng Lounge

      

        Sharon Nahm of E&O Trading Company

      

        Dessert Chef to be determined

      

 

      

including

      

Hangar One Vodka and St George Whiskey

      

and fabulous wines

      

 

      

Place:  E&O Trading Company conveniently located next to the Sutter Stockton Garage.

      

           314 Sutter Street

      

           San Francisco, CA 94131

      

 

      

Time:   7 - 10 pm

      

 

      

Cost SOLD OUT: 

      

$150 including food, drink, tip, tax & an autographed copy of No Reservations

      

$200 includes the above plus a 6 pm VIP reception w Tony & the chefs (limited to 50 people)

      

 

      

SOLD OUT

Tickets will go quickly for this stellar event for a worthwhile cause - a portion of the proceeds will benefit The American Institute of Wine and Food Scholarship Fund

CHOW's Cocktail Square Off Finals September 25th

There's a fun cocktail event coming up at the Ferry Building in San Francisco on September 25, presented by the folks at CHOW. Tickets are $10 each and can be had here.

Description:

VOTE http://www.chow.com/contests/squareoff/entries

PARTY $10/person - Iron Chef-style finals including competition cocktails + food from Bacar. Cocktail aficionados around the country eagerly await the inaugural Square Off cocktail competition co-hosted by CHOW.com and Om Organics this fall. On September 25th from 5:30pm to 7:30pm at the Ferry Building in San Francisco, two of the nations foremost cocktailians will vie to create the most delicious culinary cocktail from seasonal, organic ingredients. After the bustle of CUESA's famed Tuesday Farmers Market, one avid amateur mixologist and one top professional bartender will square off in a contest of individual mixing talent and vision  and a tribute to the country's flourishing interest in sustainability and organic culinary drinks culture.

CHOW has selected Square One Organic Vodka as the featured spirit for its Square Off. It invites amateur and professional liquid chefs to submit their recipes on CHOW.com using Square One and other organic ingredients. A stellar panel of judges from the spirits world will single out the most mouthwatering concoctions. The two contenders will then come to San Francisco for a showdown before a fervent public audience and an expert committee of food and wine authorities. The contestants first challenge will be to create an original recipe for a pitcher cocktail using Square One Organic Vodka and at least 75% organic ingredients. They will send in this recipe to CHOW.com and the two chosen cocktails will be served at the event and judged by both the panel and the gathered audience in a peoples choice category.

For the actual Square Off, two additional cocktails will be created onsite: 1) a cocktail using ingredients culled from the Farmers Market at the Ferry Building that day; and 2) a cocktail based on a mystery seasonal, organic ingredient  to be picked by the judges on that day from the Farmers Market. The judges verdicts on these three drinks will determine the winner. The Square Offs five-person judging panel will feature prominent food and drinks writers, renowned trade figures and one lucky consumer (to be chosen locally). In addition, as part of an ongoing effort to forge ties with likeminded companies within the eco community, the competition will bring together an exciting mix of innovators from the green space and beyond. Ticket proceeds from the final event will benefit the non-profit groups Om Organics and CUESA and their mission to promote organic and local foods. CHOW will also make a further announcement on judges and sponsors later in the summer.

For more information, please visit: http://www.chow.com/contests/squareoff http://www.squareonevodka.com http://www.omorganics.org

SF's Top Women Chefs cook up a storm for James Beard Foundation events

Food is our common ground, a universal experience.” -James Beard

We would like to invite you to save a space on your calendar for the gastronomic event of the season on September 28^th featuring “Women Chefs of San Francisco Celebrating 20 Years of James Beard.”

The culinary extravaganza is crowned by a gala dinner featuring Beard Award winners including special guest chef extraordinaire Gale Gand, Executive Pastry Chef of Tru in Chicago; Traci des Jardins of Jardiniere, the 2007 California winner; and Nancy Oakes of Boulevard. Fellow Award winners author-chef Joanne Weir and Cindy Pawlcyn of Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen will also headline the benefit on Friday, September 28^th at St. Regis San Francisco.

The evening will be presided over by Joey Altman, local food luminary and host of KRON's Bay Cafe. Highlights will include special guest Susan Ungaro, the president of the James Beard Foundation toasting the chefs and dinner guests during a dessert reception featuring mouth-watering confections, wine pairings by women winemakers, and followed by a silent auction benefiting the James Beard Foundation.

The celebration will continue on Saturday, September 29^th with an in-store Williams Sonoma Festival Day saluting founder Chuck Williams, at the Union Square flagship store. The Festival will include cooking demonstrations, cookbook signings, artisanal tastings and children’s activities.

In addition to benefiting the James Beard Foundation, a portion of the proceeds from the dinner will also be donated to the San Francisco Food Bank.

St. Regis Hotel, On the Terrace
125 Third Street, San Francisco

Reception at 6:30pm
Dinner at 7:30pm
Dessert Buffet at 9:30pm
Silent auction at 10:00pm

Tickets: $250

Phone: Andrew Freeman & Co. 415-781-5701
Email: tasteamerica@andrewfreemanandco.com
Online: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/19128

We hope to see you there!

Andrew Freeman and Kimberly Charles

Event Co-Chairs

Event Committee

Carolynn Atherton
Laiko Bahrs
Celia Barbaccia
Vanessa Bortnick
Kelly Chamberlin
Sara Deseran
Kayu Lam
Susie McCormick
Kait Muhlfelder
Joel Riddell
Rick Riess
Jared Rivera
Scott Rodrick
Leslie Sbrocco
Julie Tucker
Nancy Uber
Amelia Weir
 

For more details on “The James Beard Foundation’s Taste America™” please visit http://www.jbftasteamerica.com