New Amsterdam Market: November Edition

This past Sunday, we went back to the New Amsterdam Market and despite getting there just after it opened, it was even more crowded than the last time we were there!  We were actually happy to see more people enjoying the market - the more people out there supporting the vendors, the more likely the New Amsterdam Market will continue beyond December.

As it was last month, Luke's Lobster was the most popular booth with the longest line for their fresh lobster rolls.  We went straight for The Bent Spoon - after all, what's better than ice cream for breakfast?  We got a scoop of Bourbon Sea Salt Caramel ice cream (made with Hudson Valley Bourbon) with a scoop of Sweet Potato-Pecan ice cream.

Cheese please!  Ricotta, Cheddar, Mozzarella...

Beautiful mushrooms, pumpkin soup, bacon peanut brittle, and cucumber sandwiches.

One of the new vendors this month was Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea .  Based in Chicago, Intellisgentsia is known for some of the best coffee in the country.

At the market they were demonstrating their Celebration blend with each of the component beans (from Kenya and Ethiopia).  Though the Celebration blend was fresh, balanced, and fragrant, we ended up buying the Kenya beans for their stronger, richer flavor.






Stumptown Coffee was the other new popular vendor.  We have enjoyed their coffee before in the Ace Hotel and so we knew it was wonderful, rich coffee.  Many others did too, with one woman declaring Stumptown the best coffee in the world, while others waited patiently (despite being told there were already 10 people on the waiting list for cups of hot coffee) while individual coffees were being brewed.

As expected, there were lots of fresh produce, jellies, and dips.  The brussels sprouts on the stems were quickly sold out.

We ended our day at the market with a New York wine tasting.  One vineyard even provided the Riesling grapes that would be used in the wines. 

It was another fun outing to the market and hope to see it pop up again in the new year!  The next market is scheduled for Sunday, December 20th - just in time for Christmas!

Morning at the Ferry Plaza Marketplace - San Fran

It was Saturday morning in San Francisco and the only place to be was the Farmer's Market at the Ferry Plaza Marketplace.  Lots of fantastic foods (and vendors eager to let you sample) and of course, plenty of great photo ops! 

 

So many different types of mushrooms!

 

Tons of sweet treats from Miette

 

Who can resist salty pig parts (especially meat cones) from Boccalone? 

 

Olive oil and vinegar tastes from Stonehouse California Olive Oil Company.

Fine chocolates (and a hazelnut sample!) from Recchiuti Confections.

So many beautiful baked goods from Frog Hollow Farms.

 

You can't miss this place - just head towards the wonderful aroma from this counter.

Lots of colorful peppers...

 

Loved these cute flower animals!

 

These tiny radishes were beautiful.

 

More and more samples!

 

Lots of fresh greens...

 

Pomegranate seeds

 

Brussels Sprouts

 

Nothing like freshly cut wild flowers!

 

Fresh seafood from Hog Island Oyster Co.

 

Walking around the Ferry Plaza Marketplace brought back such fond memories for me.  The last time we both were in San Francisco, it was our honeymoon and we kept coming back here (even just before our flight home!)

Day 2 Speakers: Vinography's Alder Yarrow and some great California Sparkling Wine

Our second lecture was with Vinography's Alder Yarrow.  I love champagne and sparkling wine and think that they are great all-occasion wines because they can easily pair with most foods.

It was nice hearing that Alder agreed, saying that sparkling wines are perfect to pair with fried foods - French fries, popcorn, chicken fingers, etc.  I think I will need to pick up a few of these sparklers and have a fried food pairing in NYC!

I sat with Amie and Shoshana for this tasting.  We tried 4 sparkling wines, all from California.  I enjoyed Alder's presentation because in addition to tasting notes, he would tell us interesting backstories and anecdotes about the wineries.

 

Our first sparkling wine was a personal favorite:  Schramsberg Blanc de Blancs (2006).  It has 100% Chardonnay grapes. At $36 suggested retail price, it was the cheapest of the 4 wines.  It was also Amie and my favorite amongst the 4 wines.    

 

We enjoyed this beverage at The French Laundry during our honeymoon, so it's a sentimental favorite.  It was Schramsberg's first wine (1965) and in 1972 the 1969 vintage was the wine former President Richard Nixon had at the "Toast to Peace" in Beijing with Premier Chou Enlai.  Since then, Schramsberg wines have been served by every subsequent presidential administration.

 

Sparkler #2:  Iron Horse (Brut 2002):  This sparkling wine, along with the Schramsberg, were the crowd's favorites.  At $85, it was also the most expensive.  (This was Shoshana's favorite, and she chose it before hearing the pricepoint!) Made with 50/50 blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes, I found that it had a toastier taste than the Schramsberg.

 

Our third wine was L'Ermitage by Roderer Estates (Brut 2002).  Though this wine also had a 50/50 blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes, it tasted much sweeter than the others.  This wine had a $45 price point and must have been popular as Alder managed to get the last 10 bottles from the winery just for this tasting.

Our final wine was the Handley (Brut Rose 2003).  This $40 rose was light and crisp, but also sweet (the bouquet was also sweet). 

I really enjoyed trying these wines out with Amie and Shoshana.  I'm looking forward to having a few of these wines...maybe with some fried chicken.

Foodbuzz Festival Day 1 in San Francisco

Half of our High/Low duo flew down to San Francisco for the 1st Annual Foodbuzz festival.

It was a weekend packed with food enthusiasts all clamoring to take the best photos and to figure out the faces behind the websites we all enjoy.

So, for the next few days, we'll spend re-capping our weekend in SF vs NYC.

Our long journey from NYC to SF felt shorter thanks to onboard WiFi on Virgin America...

Here's the swag bag...with many more edible goodies and cooking tools to come!

The festival started off with Happy Hour overlooking the Ferry Building.  How could anyone pass up free champagne?

The 2 Skyy Spirits bars were buzzing with thirsty food bloggers!

Then it was over to the Ferry Building for a street truck dinner.  What better way to start off dinner than with dessert!  These mini cupcakes were from Mission Minis and featured flavors including Ruby Red Velvet, Pumpkin Spice, Swiss Almond Coconut, Pink Lemonade, and Aztec Chocolate.

Lots of cold Speakeasy Beer from Thirsty Bear being poured from the taps.

The guys from Roli Roti (sporting "I love Crispy Skin" t-shirts) were serving up delicious sustainably-farmed

meats and organic produce.

Their food truck, the country's first mobile rotisserie, is one of the most popular sites at the Saturday Farmer's Market outside the Ferry Building.

The porchetta sandwich was juicy and the rosemary roasted potatoes were nice and crisp!

My idea of heaven would include tons of freshly shucked oysters!  I first enjoyed Hog Island oysters during my honeymoon in Napa and so I was so excited to just stand right by this mountain of fresh oysters, happily slurping away.

Chorizo potato taco from  Tacolicious - Can't go wrong with sausage and potatoes!

mmm...Chicharrones from 4505 Meats.  Cooked with rice bran oil, these were made with natural pork, sea salt, cane sugar, and chilies to make a subtle sweet, salty, and very crunchy snack.

Wish I could have this wood-burning oven outside our apartment for thin crust pizzas!

The thin-crust pizza from Pizza Politana had eggplant, dry-cured olives, feta, and parsley.  The light seasoning let the fresh ingredients shine through.

Leek and Mushroom Pie from the Pie Truck - they smelled so good and looked nice and flaky.

And to end the night, I had to have the Coffee and Vanilla bean ice creams from Straus Family Creamery, the Bay area's popular family-owned organic dairy farm.  The ice creams were both rich and creamy.

It was as great night meeting wonderful people (who you'll see in future posts!) including Mardi from eat,live,travel,write, Meghan from Travel Eat Love, and Christina from The Wayward Chef.