The big news out of Montclair surrounds the long-awaited Montclair Food & Wine Festival. The two-day event is now confirmed for May 4th and 5th, 2013 at the historic Woman’s Club of Upper Montclair.
Here are the specs of the festival: On the evening of May 4th, guests will gather for the Grand Tasting, where they will sample the culinary offerings of many of the state’s finest restaurants. Gary’s Wine & Marketplace (Bernardsville, Madison, Wayne) will be presenting wines from around the world and Halcyon’s Seafood Brasserie will be offering outstanding spirits. On day two — May 5th, 2013 — guests will experience a tour-de-force of collaborative culinary wizardry: Michael Carrino of the soon-to-open Pig & Prince in Lackawanna Plaza; Ariane Duarte of CulinAriane; Ryan DePersio of Fascino, Bar Cara and NICO Kitchen + Bar; Mitchell Altholz of Highlawn Pavilion; Francesco Palmieri of the Orange Squirrel; and Zod Arifai of Blu, Next Door, and daryl, will all join forces on an extraordinary dinner for attendees. Montclair’s Amanti Vino will be pairing/coordinating the wines and proprietor Sharon Sevrens will give explanations on the particular wines paired.
But back to dining – as any food writer knows, it’s always more fun to dine with “food geeks.” But it’s especially fulfilling when those fellow gastronomes happen to be Rosie Saferstein and Jason Perlow, two pillars of the NJ food writing community, whose collective knowledge of cuisine is as broad as the globe itself. We dined together at Gourmet Chopsticks in Fairfield, NJ. Really? Not Ninety Acres? Not Elements? Not daryl? No – Gourmet Chopsticks, formerly Hunan Cottage. The restaurant came highly recommended from Rosie, and if she says it good – I’m going to give it a go! Gourmet Chopsticks serves Taiwanese and Shanghai style cuisine. Read all about our meal on Hot From The Kettle.
I’ve eaten my fair share of Indian cuisine over the years – Northern, southern, British-style curry, you name it. But my latest dinner with Jason Perlow at Mausam Indian Cuisine Bar and Banquet in Secaucus taught me that India has more than good food – they’ve got good beer – damn good beer! Read about the Live Chaat and Northern Indian cuisine on Hot From The Kettle.
HFTK contributor, Elizabeth Palmer Starnes, recently enjoyed dinner at Luce in Caldwell. Here’s a taste of her evening:
I knew I’d taste amazing pasta at Luce, and I was not disappointed. The homemade pappardelle pasta tossed with wild boar was tender and savory, and the ricotta gnocchi gnudi were like fluffy pillows, light as air and swathed in a buttery tomato sauce. The rock shrimp arrabiatta came crispy and light, in a kicky sauce spiked with chili flakes and roasted garlic, and the roasted garlic crostini with a white bean puree hit all the right notes. Read all about her eclectic Italian dining experience on Hot From The Kettle.
We wrap up Hot From The Kettle’s Buzz with a little urban legend from Nutley, NJ.
Back in April, John Lee visited Mark Conca co-owner and managing partner at the Old Canal Inn, and learned all about legend and lure of the Death Seat Burger. I was intrigued by the story and had to see how this deep-fried behemoth of burger is actually made. So, last week the Hot From The Kettle crew sojourned to the OCI. Check out the video on Hot From The Kettle!
Melody Kettle, owner and executive editor of Hot From The Kettle LLC, currently resides in Montclair with her husband and two children. She grew up in Bergen county, and spent most of her time beside her grandmother in the kitchen, where she developed a love for cooking, food, and entertaining. After receiving a B.A. in English from Rutgers University, Melody attended Rutgers Law School where she earned a Juris Doctorate. In 2010 Melody began blogging and “vlogging” (video blogging), and in March of 2011she launched Hot From The Kettle®, One Steamy Wine & Food Destination. Hot From The Kettle has established itself as the definitive on-line source for restaurant news and reviews in Montclair and surrounding areas. Hot From The Kettle also publishes content such as culinary demonstrations, recipes, and methods that have attracted national and international interest.
