BlogHer Food 2010: The Final Event, An Event Planner's Point of View

I live in a constant state of panic. It's exhausting. It's thrilling. It's nerve wracking.  It's exhilarating.  It's like a drug addiction [or so I've been told by concerned friends and family members]. 

I love Meeting and Event Planning. I love seeing months of work culminating into one event -  a visual confirmation of all your efforts.  I love the idea that one little mishap, one little screw up can upset the balance of the perfectly organized event and that tens [or hundreds] of thousands of dollars hang in the balance of anything that I may have forgotten to do.  Best. High. Ever.  It seriously makes me giddy.

Assisting three of the most high profile bloggers in the blogosphere is a whole new ballpark of crazed panic. You need to have your act together because if you don't, it's not just hundreds or thousands of people who know...it's MILLIONS.  Right.  "Jenny the F*!k Up" would be your new twitter handle...or at least it'd be mine.

Just between you and me, inside my own mind I'm huddled in a corner, rocking back and forth with my thumb in my mouth, chanting, "no, no, no...this isn't going to work" for weeks months leading up to an event.  Outwardly, I may say to Elise, Jaden and Ree that everything is fantastic and that things just couldn't be more swell but inside my brain is screaming, "LIAR, LIAR, YOUR PANTS ARE ON FIRE!!!"

Luckily, when you've got great partner sponsors and BlogHer making this party THE OFFICIAL party, things are almost guaranteed to be perfect. With the generous support of the piggy goodness of the Pork Board - moist tender bites perfectly seasoned with McCormick spices, how could we go wrong?  

The students and staff at California Culinary Academy/Le Cordon Bleu were so excited to have all the bloggers there that they went above and beyond to be so helpful to us.  Do you realize that they were there prepping from 7:00am??  Most of them left together at 11:30pm.  They wanted this event to be the fete of the year.  I heart everyone here. Chef Michael Weller took everything we threw at him and improved upon it in ways I could never have imagined.  The team recap at the end of the evening was so freaking inspirational that it had me crying off on the sidelines. I saw the  look of sheer exhaustion on each of the students faces, each of their faces beaming with pride at their success that evening. I was so inspired that I had to physically restrain myself from signing up for culinary school right then and there.

Chef Weller with his student [photo from the HP photo booth]

As with last year, we also had the generous support of HP with their awesomely fun photo booth.  I would've stayed there all night long but I didn't want to risk being talked about by all the bloggers who were waiting in line [you know, the fear of millions of people knowing that I hogged a photo booth All.Night.Long].  

Set up by HP

Chefs once again exceeded expectations with their marvelous goodie bags, topped off with their eye popping number of giveaway items. I have to admit, I was almost tempted beyond what I could handle - you could dump $10,000 in my lap and I can guarantee you that it'll still be there when you came back for it a year later.  You dump a Kitchen Aid Mixer there...well, you can kiss that thing a fare thee well.

Each of these suckers weighed TEN [10] pounds. They were packed SIX [6] to a box. You do the math.

Lori Luna, the [sane] planner for BlogHer, provided me with resources that I can only say kicked @$$.  I hope that you will drop her an email thanking her for her hard work!  She's the behind the scenes rockstar and she did a fantastic job managing all the small details that most people don't ever notice, unless it's not there...then there's hell to pay. What? You didn't notice anything? Right, because she's awesome. 

Throughout the weekend, I developed little celebrity foodie crushes - Aida Mollenkamp, Penny De Los Santos, Dorie Greenspan, and Michael Ruhlman.  Thanks to my photographer and longtime friend, Darrell Miho, who was quick on his feet and thought to get this photo [the only picture that I have of myself with one of my celeb crushes] with Michael Ruhlman. So here's my sadly giddy [and gratuitous] photo [don't be bitter kids]: 

But even better than my celebrity foodie crushes, I got to reconnect with my friends whom I've had the pleasure of getting to know over this past year and even make a few new ones.  There wasn't as much time as I would've liked to get to meet and greet but that's what is so great about technology...I will meet, greet, and interact with you all.  The food bloggers are a great, wonderful, supportive group of people and I feel so blessed to miraculously be grouped together with 'em. 

Brooke, FoodWoolf.com; Gaby, WhatsGabyCooking.com; Susan, TheUrbanBaker.blogspot.com; and yours truly

Lastly, no [wo]man is an island unto themselves.  Without the support of some of my BFF's flying up to SF and helping me carry 60 pound boxes, this event would never have been ready in time.  Thank you, Christy and Fuyumi, you guys are my heroes, i love you, love you, love yous!

Christy, me, Fuyumi [photo from HP photo booth]

Portugal: Sintra

Castelos de Mouros, The Moorish Castle.

Last November, I went to Lisbon and Barcelona on a quick trip out of he country.  What a wonderful trip that was!  After spending a couple of rainy days in Lisbon, we thought it'd be a great idea to check out Sintra, just outside of Lisbon, hoping to escape the rain.  No luck.

Our first stop was the Castelo de Mouros [Moorish Castle].  Charming, old, and scared the crap out of me. I've mentioned before that I have a hard time walking without spraining my ankle.  The cobblestones here were almost the death of me [not to mention my fear of heights].  I clutched onto the rocks as I walked through the castle.  

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I actually walked these steps. I cried with every rickety step, praying to Jesus that He wasn't ready to call me home.

But wait. What did I spy from the Castle but a colorful vision across the valley:

It looked pretty colorfully spectacular from where I was standing so I decided to take the bus onto the next location, Pena National Palace.

Pena National Palace was awash in colors and stunning, even in the dreary, rainy day.  The colors popped off of the otherwise grey background.  I was amazed at how many people were out in the rain. I tried to stay as dry as possible, but the kitten hiding in the drainage in the photo above is probably the smartest living thing in town.

One other thing that I noticed while walking around Sintra was the amazing detailed tile work that was done.  I can't fathom making each one of these things over and over, even WITH a form. I felt compelled to take it in and photograph it, especially since someone went through the trouble of creating it!

After we left the Palace, we started meandering through Sintra to find the train station. [that's Jen-ese for I got lost].  It didn't matter how long it took since every path was so charming, if a little wet.  [sorry to harp on this subject but I'm from LA...I don't know what those fat drops of water falling on me really are]

My favorite stop during my "meandering time" had to be the bakery.  Although I never took any photos of my favorite cookies, Broas de Mel, I still have the memory of it to tide me over until my next [non-rainy] visit.

Travel: BlogHer Food 2010, Getting to San Francisco from the Airport

Golden Gate Bridge

Traveling to San Fran for the first time? Unless you have a ton of luggage, I highly recommend the BART! Fast, easy and generally the best [and cheapest!] way to get into the city.

F Line Muni Streetcar from Embarcadero to Castro District; $2 for 90 minutes of travel. Enter from the front door & pay the driver with exact change.

SFO Arrivals:

Upon arrival into SFO, after collecting your luggage, follow the signs to BART, which is located in the International Terminal. You can take the free AirTrain to the BART station. Once you arrive at the BART Station, you will find the ticket machines directly in front of you after you get off the AirTrain.  You may use either Cash or Credit to purchase your tickets[see instructions below].  Proceed to the BART station entrance, slipping in your ticket into the designated slot.  Board the Pittsburgh/Bay Point train to San Francisco [NOT Millbrae]. 

OAK Arrivals:

If you are arriving into Oakland, you will need to take the AirBART bus to get to the Coliseum/Oakland Airport BART Station [travel time is approximately 15 minutes]. The AirBART bus departs every 10 minutes [fare is $3, EXACT change only].  Follow the directional signs to the AirBART [located between Terminal 1 and 2, 3rd curb from the terminal].  You can take either trains that travel to Daly City [make sure it's NOT headed towards Dublin/Pleasanton, Richmond or Fremont.]

How to use the ticket machine:

You will need to already know what your fare is before you actually get to the ticket machines.  Avoid wasting time asking around for what the fare should be - Look up fares HERE: BART Fare Calculator

To Powell from SFO: One way fees will be $8.10, Roundtrip at $16.20.

To Powell from OAK: One way fees will be $3.80, Roundtrip at $7.60.   

1.) Put in your form of payment - either Cash or Credit - in the appropriate slot.

2.) The default amount of the ticket is $20 which will appear on the screen.  Using the buttons A - D, add/subtract the amount needed to get to your destination.  [add $1 = A; subtract $1 = B; add $.05 = C; subtract $.05 = D].

3.) When you are done, hit "E" to print the ticket.

Arrival into Downtown San Francisco:

Powell Street BART station is probably the closest if you're staying at the Intercontinental.  Just two blocks Southeast from Powell Station, it's an easy walk [and thank goodness for "up" escalators to street level!] using the Hallidie Plaza exit.

Embarcadero Station

Event: Sushi 101

Rachael's amazing sushi rice.  I have to admit the Zojirushi rice came out spectacularly - there was no burn or browned spots that I normally get from my rice cooker.  The Induction Heating rice cooker did everything but dry my hair!!   I may actually breakdown & buy one...but please don't tell Rachael, or I'll have to hear her telling me that she told me so.

I was a spoiled brat.  When I was growing up, there was a period of several years where we had sushi Every. Single. Sunday.  Most people would be jealous of that fact. Being the Contrarian that I am, I would roll my eyes and sigh, "Sushi?? AGAIN??" 

How times have changed.  I actually PAY for sushi - something I never thought I would do!  I was so excited when Rachael first told me about Sushi 101.  I saved the date even before I was actually invited.  I love that Rachael brings Japanese cuisine to the people in a non-threatening/non-overwhelming way.  I was all in for her party.

Greg offered up his beautiful house for this event.  I wish I had taken a photo of his kitchen.  It's drool worthy, almost larger than my house.  Such a generous host, when I asked him for his sink & spare dishwasher, he just said, "yes."  Unfortunately, neither item fit into my small coupe.

Rachael, madwoman at large, had so many items on her menu - artisan tofu, sunomono [cucumber salad], shoga [marinated ginger], marinated daikon, temaki, makisushi, and miso soup.  Rachael's homemade tofu is actually how we became friends.  Her recipe is easy and amazing.  No store bought tofu can come close to it.  

I have found over the course of the year of our friendship, that I learn something new from her all the time.  As she presented each course, her confidence in her knowledge [along with random tidbits of information that I never knew] shined through!  Everyone had a blast and enjoyed each course of the meal. 

Discussion about seafood sustainability

I Love Blue Sea drove down from San Fran to bring down the sustainable seafood for the event.  The fish was so amazing - yellowtail tuna, albacore [the belly tasted like Avocados], Alaskan King Salmon [so sweet], and Dungeness Crab [my favorite!!!]. As Martin cut the fish, I was like a puppy dog waiting for scraps.  It was that good.  To top if off, they were so incredibly helpful offering up any assistance large or small, I just thought how proud their mommas must be of them.  I haven't informed my family yet but I've decided that we're ordering our New Year's Day seafood from these guys.  I can't sing enough of their praises - check them out when you get a chance.

Josie put together an amazing dessert bar.  A Fuji Apple ice cream, a matcha ice cream, and a Yuzu Plum Wine granita filled the wine glasses [yes, I had all three.  I was taste testing and acting as a Quality Control Officer.  It's my job] along with two types of macarons, one of my favorites being a spearmint and white chocolate macaron.

Everyone left stuffed and full...and the question, "when's the next party?"  I can't wait for the next one, either!

Chocolate Chip Rice Crispy Cookie

I worked in a bakery in high school, with occasional appearances in college.  I never baked anything [I would've burned that place down] but worked the counters selling stuff. Even though I have the worst sweet tooth, I have a hard time going into any bakery because of its cloyingly sweet smell.  Oh, the dilemma - The need for sweet vs the smell of a bakery.  That's probably why I started baking so much more on my own.

There was one cookie that I loved above all the cookies they had that would still cause me to return to the bakery every so often.  The Chocolate Chip Rice Crispy Cookie.  Throughout the years, I'd try to re-create the cookie using recipes that I found or basic chocolate chip cookie recipes - none of it was quite right.  It was always a little too fluffy, too sweet, too bland.  I don't know why it took me so long to figure out what I was doing wrong [brown sugar...less flour, etc] but finally it hit me like a ton of bricks.  The perfect Chocolate Chip Rice Crispy Cookie.  It's not exact but with the Sucanat sugar, it's got this whole new dimension of rich flavor...I think I like it even more!

Chocolate Chip Rice Crispy Cookie
Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cups sucanat sugar [or brown sugar]
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

2 cups puffed rice cereal [or cocoa crispies]
6 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips

Method:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Cream together butter, sugar, egg and vanilla extract until well combined.  Add flour to mixture.  Fold in puffed rice cereal gently so as not to break up the puffs.  Incorporate chocolate chips.

Bake for 10 - 15 minutes.

Portland: Food, Drinks, and more Food!

I know I must have mentioned that I'm a kuishinbo a dozen times.  I love to eat.  I had a list of places where I wanted to eat that was a mile long.  I only had at most 12 meals that I could play around with and that's if I was able to keep my game face on.  I'm good, but I'm a gal who needs some recovery time in between - some longer than others.

I broke it down into several categories: Off the Beaten Path, Drinks, and Lovely Meals.

OFF THE BEATEN PATH:

During my trip around Mount Hood, I was on a quest for Huckleberry Pie.  Unfortunately, I was a day too early and missed the Huckleberry Festival at Apple Valley Country Store, the only one of its kind in the area. 

As I walked into the store, the smell of barbecue nearly overwhelmed me and caused me to pass out.  It was at least 3 hours since my last meal and I was hungry.  First thing first, though.  Huckleberry Pie.

I nearly started to cry when I was told that there were no more Huckleberry pies as they were all being saved for the following day.  The did tell us that we could purchase fresh huckleberries. But since I was still on the road and didn't have a cooler, all I could do was stare, take photos and sigh over these beautiful berries.  On a positive note, I was able to purchase some huckleberry jam made at this store.  The choices were numerous but I decided to be a purist and buy the plain ol' huckleberry.

Ravenous from the smell of the barbecue [which was for the festival the following day] I desperately asked this nice young lady behind the register if she had any suggestions for lunch in the area. 

She recommended Michoacan in Odell. As I was getting directions for the Mexican Restaurant that she claimed had award winning carnitas and homemade tortillas [I swear she smacked her lips when she mentioned the tortillas], I saw this bumper sticker just over her shoulder.  I almost gave in to some primal urge to hurt someone as the sticker mocked me.

The only thing that saved this young girl was her lunch referral...and the fact that I had no desire to spend my vacation in jail.  

Her vague directions of "head towards Odell, it's right on the main street" had us circling around for just a bit until we realized she said "Main St." Michoacan was located on a long street that only had a few shops which included a grocery store, an auto repair shop, and another Mexican restaurant.

I ordered the carnitas, one of my favorite dishes that I repeatedly order when I go to Mexican restaurants.  Before I committed, I made sure it was deep fried, just the way I liked it.  It was.

I realized as I bit into the tortillas that the girl behind the counter at Apple Valley Country Store did, in fact, smack her lips when she talked about the homemade tortillas.  They were to die for.  Just slightly sweet and flavorful corn, thick enough to hold my food, I continued to eat them even though I couldn't eat another bite of carnitas.  They were that good. 

I read this plaque below and asked our server about the ingredients, was it REALLY all made from scratch?? He told me that the tortilla chips weren't but everything else they made on their own.  The guacamole was excellent.  Nice rich and creamy. 

Another favorite meal was in Lafayatte in the Willamette Valley, Martha's Tacos.  Very unassuming, we were referred to this location from a couple of ladies at the Oregon Wine Bar in Portland.  If not for the Garmin GPS system, we would've driven right by it.

I walked up to the counter and asked her what kinds of tacos they had.  Beef, Chicken, and Pork was the bored automatic response.  Yawn.  I asked her if they had any Cabeza [head] or Lengua [tongue].  She perked up and said that while they didn't have Cabeza, they did have Lengua.  I smiled and ordered 3 tacos, even though Carrie and I had decided to eat light because we didn't want to ruin our appetite for dinner.

Three juicy, tender tacos, one tastier than the next.  My favorite is still the lengua but the carnitas and carne wasn't bad at all!  I couldn't stop eating the chips and she did say that they made their own chips as well as their carrots onion jalapeno pickles, which I ate by the handful.

Pine State Biscuits was at the top of of the list for breakfasts which had a booth at the Saturday Farmer's Market at PSU.  I didn't actually see the sign until AFTER we paid for our breakfast but all I had to do to find the booth was to look for the longest line.  I was told by a kind lady in back of us that this line wasn't long at all.

I looked with some confusion at the menu.  Once again, the kind lady in back of us said that she normally just ordered a buttered and jammed biscuit but her husband ordered this monster of a sandwich called The Reggie.  Fried chicken, bacon, cheese, smothered with gravy, with an fried egg to top it off.  Hmmmm...that is MUCH more my speed.  Although I don't like gravy, so I ordered it sans gravy, eggs...and cheese because it doesn't like me.

I saw the first sandwich being snugly wrapped up to go.  I hoped that one would be enough.  I had a big day ahead of me and I didn't want to go hungry...

I felt better once I saw my sandwich of deliciousness.The fried chicken was moist on the inside with a crisp battered shell.  I love that my bacon was a thick cut so had some nice chew on it.  The biscuit...was perfect.  not light and flaky really but more dense, sweet and thick. 

Another great breakfast was at Kenny and Zuke's. I had tweeted in hesitation whether or not one could have pastrami for breakfast in all good conscience. I still don't know the answer to that but I really didn't feel too bad/guilty after having consumed it for breakfast at Kenny and Zuke's.  I don't even like rye bread but some how it tasted magical with this sandwich.  I loved the thick cuts of pastrami with gooey cheese [that still hated me].

Pambiche is a Cuban restaurant located across the river on the way back to the airport.  I lost interest when I saw where it was located until the 2 for 1 breakfast from 7:00am - 8:00am was pointed out to me.  I'm a sucker for food, but even more so for a good deal.

Delicious pastry basket filled with tastiness like this made the early morning wake up totally worth it. 

I had a big day ahead of me with a walk up to Multnomah Falls so I knew I had to fuel up. This plate was so full that they had to bring my scrambled eggs on a separate plate.  I love black beans and rice but this was too much even for me.  The Plantanos with sweet onions were just too much of a sweet mash for me.

DRINKS:

I arrived a little early for one of my tours so I decided to grab a drink from the bar.  Generally speaking, I usually wait until evening to get my drink on.  But I was thirsty and it couldn't be helped. Especially when the bartender at the Heathman Hotel told me about the wondrous vodka based pear and sage concoction that he made.  I had to have it.  I was glad I did.  

Best alcoholic beverages by far was served at Yakuza by this bartender in the background.  I'm pretty adventurous when it comes to eating and drinking.  So long as it doesn't kill me, I'll try almost anything once.  Having said that, I think Gin is my least favorite alcohol.  I want to like it, I try to like it.  Every time my friend orders her Gin and Tonic, I always take a sip to see if its grown on me.  It never has...

Back to the drink of choice...I told this bartender to surprise me, but I don't like Gin.  He served me his Gin specialty.  Much to my shock, I loved it.  I asked him to continue.  He made me a carrot drink, vodka based. He made Carrie a fantastic beet drink because he had just run out of his Sugar Snap Pea drink.  

Stumptown Coffee.  The Legend.  I've heard so much about it and even had a chance to taste it at White on Rice Couple's party.  [It was excellent but I'm convinced that everything tastes better when you're at their house.]  I had to see for myself if Stumptown was all that it was cracked up to be.  I ordered a regular Americano style, made the same way I get it in France, espresso added to hot water.  I love my French espresso so I had doubts that it would be as good.  I don't normally have my coffee black [I need cream and sugar to cover the bitter/burnt taste of the coffee I drink] but I had to see if it was really that good.

It was.  I mean, not Paris good [what really is??], but it was good.  If they had the roasters here in LA, I'd pick it up on a semi regular basis. 

LOVELY MEALS

I was fortunate enough not to have a bad meal the entire trip.

One of the most memorable meals was Beast.  Unfortunately, I had just come from Yakuza next door where I partook in many, many delicious bevvies.  It made me very, very sleepy.

Beast runs as a pre-fixe dinner with 2 seatings in the evenings.  We secured the 8:30pm seating since we were running around Mount Hood River area that day [and partook in the very large portions of Michoacan's carnitas].  I love pre-fixe since I don't have to make a decision.  Sweet and savory mouthfuls of deliciousness is just presented to me - the best from the kitchen.  Oddly enough, my favorite part of the dinner was the green salad. It was the organic corn from Groundworks that had me digging through my salad to make sure I ate every tasty morsel.  If I didn't think that Carrie would stab me with her fork, I'd have gone through hers as well.

Pok Pok was recommended to us repeatedly and we didn't think it'd be wise of us to miss it.  When we finally arrived we were told that we would have to wait about 45 minutes, but that there was a bar across the street, Whiskey Soda Lounge, a sister restaurant where we could grab a drink.

When we were finally seated, we discovered that Pok Pok was very different from our other culinary feasts. Ethnic, extremely flavorful...and spicy.  I should've known when our waiter brought us mustard leaves buried in ice and said, "this is to help cut the spiciness. you're going to need it."

We really did need that, along with the ice and the Thai iced tea.  The mango sticky rice really rounded up the meal for me.  Did you note that each of us had a dessert and we didn't share??  Yeah, we don't share. 

After all that eating and drinking, I'm good for the next few weeks until my next trip somewhere to explore and enjoy its culinary delights.  Unfortunately, I suspect it won't be as delicious as Portland...
 

Apple Valley Country Store
2363 Tucker Rd
Hood River, OR  97031
(541)386-1971

Beast

5425 NE 30th Ave, 
Portland, Oregon 97211
(503)841-6968


Heathman Hotel
1001 SW Broadway
Portland, OR 97205
(503)790-7752

Kenny and Zuke's
1038 Southwest Stark Street
Portland, OR 97205-2610
(503) 222-3354

Martha's Tacos & More
440 3RD St
Lafayette, OR 97127
(503) 864-3304

Michoacan
3405 Odell HWY
Hood River, OR 97031
(541) 354-2900
 
Pambiche 2811 Northeast Glisan Street
Portland, OR 97232-2433
(503) 233-0511

Pine State Biscuits [or at PSU Farmer's Markets on Saturdays]
3640 SE Belmont St
Portland, OR 97214  
(503) 236-3346

PokPok
3226 SE Division St,
Portland, OR 97202
(503)232-1387

Yakuza Japanese Pub
5411 NE 30th Avenue
Portland, OR  97211
(503)450-0893