Skyscrapers, sports facilities, and now wineries--there is no end to the hipness of LEED certification. HALL's St. Helena Winery in Napa has gone green in a big way by being named a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certification recipient for outstanding chutzpah in the environmental department.
Continue reading "First LEED Gold Certified Winery on Best Coast" »
Apparently, there's trouble in my old Brooklyn 'hood. Somewhere in Kensington, someone has done unspeakable things to a Lady Liberty statue belonging to cafe and neighborhood soapbox Vox Pop.
Intriguingly traumatized by the situation, den mother Debi Ryan announced yesterday that notable Manhattan restaurant One If By Land, Two If By Sea extended a secondhand Liberty from its 17 Barrow Street location and Vox Pop accepted.
Continue reading "Village Eatery Spots Targeted Brooklyn Cafe a Liberty Statue" »
Not just for frat boys and football, beer is coming into its own and being recognized as part of the fine culinary landscape by an increasingly savvy America. A steward in bridging the gap between wine studies and beer studies in the professional culinary community and returning beer to its proper place at the American table, The Civilization of Beer president Samuel Merritt will be named New York's first certified Cicerone™ beer sommelier tomorrow during a brief ceremony and open house for area beer importers, brewers, distributors and retailers.
The brainchild of former Brewers Association board member Ray Daniels—author of The Brewers Association's Guide to Starting Your Own Brewery and Designing Great Beers: The Ultimate Guide to Brewing Classic Beer Styles—the program is the first of its kind to be based on objective, independent skills assessment, including tasting skill, knowledge of proper service and storage, and demonstrated expertise in beer culture—including its historic and cultural aspects.
Merritt's nationwide beer tasting events are legend in the craft beer community, and as a “Cicerone,” Merritt is designated a beer expert certified to guide consumers in high-quality experiences with craft beer.
“An educated beer seller is a better beer seller,” he says, which is a mantra of The Civilization of Beer. The company has been featured on The Martha Stewart Show and Martha Stewart Living Radio on Sirius XM, helped Chef Daniel Boulud launch his new East Village craft beer-focused DBGB Kitchen & Bar, as well as regularly contributing to CHOW.com's CHOW Tips video program.
Follow Civ of Beer on Twitter: @CivofBeer and ping Mr. Merritt at samuel@civilizationofbeer.com.
What girl doesn't love Girls' Night Out? I'm at New York's Mercury Bar at 9th Avenue and 46th Street for the Fabulous Emily Ryan's (@HpnotiqEmily) Hpnotiq girls' night out event.
If you don't know Hpnotiq, it's a delish liqueur as blue as the summer sky. And speaking of summer, I plan on sipping these cocktails on tiki decks across the Eastern Seaboard for the next three months as the sun browns my shoulders and I gaze out at sea.
Come on down--cuties in Hpnotiq blue-skirted schoolgirl outfits are handing out Hpnotiq Roq Candy (garnished with blue sticks of rock candy!) and Blue Breeze cocktails to sample. BTW, Hpnotiq's Twitter campaign is pretty impressive--way to go @HpnotiqEmily!
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With more than eight percent of the population unemployed during what economic forecaster Joseph Kasputys has already called “The Great Recession”, restaurateurs are making savvy marketing moves in order to fill seats in their dining rooms. While existing foodies are likely to rationalize spending on a night of gastronomic bliss, restaurateurs—like all smart business owners—must continuously stuff the pipeline in terms of garnering new clients. Across the nation, food blogs are springing up, social media like Facebook and Twitter is being utilized, and new generations of food lovers are being born. A few chefs and owners are ahead of the curve.
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Sam's Chowder House proprietor Paul Shenkman in San Francisco, celebrated chef and restaurateur Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and Tom Douglas of Seattle’s Lola are all blogging about their experience. From dreaming up specials to opening a small window into the world of running a restaurant, these blogs are another way to connect to guests.
Continue reading "Restaurant Marketing Goes 2.0 in Downturn" »
When I walk through New York's Times Square, I think things like, "I really hope the owners of those signs are involved with renewable energy credits," so the charms of a gigantc, digital M&M might be lost on me.
Further up Midtown, I do love Rockefeller Center and all its accoutrements, but generally my intense dislike of being jostled keeps me away, which is why it's surprising to some that I brave the journey to Brasserie Maison at 53rd and 7th. I love moules frites that much.
The heavy, white bowls brimming with shells that stand like attentive skipping stones, the white wine and herbs sopped up with a sizzling spear of potato, the plump mollusks waiting to be plucked by tiny forks...bliss. It's too bad that I now have one less reason to go to Midtown, but I've been converted. A friend recently introduced me to Cafe Bruxelles, whose Chef Francis Cheru must be a kindly elf dusting the world with mussels, curry and smiles.
Not one shell in my Moules au Curry was lacking a juicy knot of meat and more bobbed like enticing, little buoys in a heavenly sea of curry, coconut milk and white wine. The crisp frites were enough to share after opening with a frisee and bacon salad.
Moules a L’ardennaise, with bacon, onion, mushroom, white wine and cream; Moules au Roquefort, luscious with bacon, bleu cheese and beer; mussels with green and black olives; mussels with basil, coriander, cream and white wine; Moules Casino...I could go there every night.
Granted, celebrity chefs may have more glamorous lives than shipping dispatchers or engineers, but M. Shanken's Food Arts still leads by example as a business pub that engages its audience with an event. The title recently celebrated its 20th anniversary with a gala at New York's iconic The Plaza Hotel. Founders Michael and Ariane Batterberry hosted the elegant event that was peppered with stars, including Emeril Lagasse and Anthony Bourdain (both Food Arts Silver Spoon Award recipients)...more
