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I Heart Food

Sharing our experiences eating out and what we cook at home--everything related to food and drink
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Tacos al Pastor!

Norfolk Virginia Taco Festival 2018

July 19, 2018

Shelby and I were at wine tasting at Origin Wine Social with our go-to +1 Rachel told us about the Norfolk Taco Festival happening Norfolk the following week.

What?

How did I not know about a taco festival happening in the area?! I'm slipping... When I got home later that night I checked it out - over 75 varieties of tacos were going to be served at the Waterside District. Heck yeah, I'm in!

I was able to get into the sold out event and was you could have guessed it was packed! There was a line around the park waiting to get in because it had met capacity. They were letting people in on shifts. I think there were people at the door who thought they could buy tickets, unfortunately they had to be turned away.

I found Rachel and Shon already full of tacos and sipping lagers. I chatted a minute but wanted to run around real quick to get some shots of the action. First thing I notice is that there lines everywhere! That combined with the heat produced some griping from the crowd. This being the first event they've thrown in the space, there will be some growing pains. I'm sure they'll make the appropriate adjustments next time they do this. Back to tacos.

There were a ton of tacos being slung by the restaurants that participated, just about any variety you could think of. My favorite was the al Pastor I found being made by a new outfit called Javi's. I mean there is something sexy about seeing meat on a spit slowly roasting. Reminds me of the donner kebabs we would get in Germany.

I bumped into a few friends while I was there and I would grab my drinks from the inside of Waterside to skip the lines outside. I'm not going to ramble here but check out the rest of the photos and catch it next year!

In event Tags tacos, Norfolk Taco Festival, Norfolk, event, al Pastor
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Evening on the Creek

March 22, 2017

 

I go to a lot of events - I mean a lot! If you follow me on on Instagram (click on my feed to the left) you'll know I'm out and about all the time. Most of the events I go to revolve around beer, reason being is that there are basically more beer events than there are food events. Food events involve a ton of planning, prep work, staging, cooking, etc... I definitely try to attend any food event I'm invited to, they're great for checking out a chef's innovation and creativity. Needless to say, the food is a treat to eat of course!

I was recently contacted by Kate from Hoffman Beverage, a large distributor in our area, about helping promote a beer and food event that would be located at the Virginia Aquarium. They've invited me and Shelby to come hang out and do a couple of my favorite things:

Eat and Drink

Oh, that's Kate in the photo below! She was buying me beers at our meeting in Norfolk but that isn't why I agreed to be involved with this, honest!

Note: If you want to buy me a beer if we ever end up at the bar together, I will gladly accept ;)

Her idea, Evening On The Creek, was to do something that was different than the what has become the standard event model of setting up a table, have volunteers pour beer, rinse-dry-repeat till you're drunk. Kate and the team wanted to pair some unique beers from breweries they have in their catalog with some goods eats. The result looks pretty delicious too! Ticket holders will be treated to some great beer and food at tasting stations that allow people to take their time to appreciate their pairings and peruse the components of the collective meal. All of this will be at the wonderful Virginia Aquarium over looking the beautiful Owl Creek.

I can go on but I'm going to copy and paste the official event notice here for you to check out. There's a link below to purchase tickets too, "Early Bird" tickets are on sale until MARCH 24th, 2017 for $75. I hope to see you there!

Buy tickets here.

The Official Stuff:

Join 20 local, regional and national breweries in support of Virginia Aquarium’s Stranding Response Team as they host the “An Evening on the Creek” on March 25th at 6 pm. Each expertly crafted beer, chosen in part for their rarity or limited quantities will be masterfully paired with complementary artisanal eats created by Chef Jason Congleton. Enjoy these rare, limited quantity beers and amazing food all while overlooking the beautiful view of Owls Creek and stunning environment of the VA Aquarium.

Tasting Station 1: "Bourbon Barrel Aged"
Goose Island Bourbon County '14, Oskar Blues Barrel Aged Ten Fidy '16, Bell's Black Note '16, Founders KBS '17.

(GF) European Cheese & Charcuterie Platter- Rabbit & White Wine Sausage, Wild Boar with Cranberries & Shiraz Sausage, Garlic & Herb Gouda, Dilled Havarti, Aged Provolone, Creamy Gorgonzola, 3 year aged White Cheddar, Spicy Garlic Pickled Veggies (V) *Without the Sausages*

Tasting Station 2: "Sours"
Avery Raspberry Sour, New Belgium La Folie, Brouwerji Omer Vander Ghinste Cuvee Jacobins Rouge, Commonwealth Sophrosyne Sour Saison.

Bavarian Style Smoked & Beer Braised Wild Antelope Bratwurst with House made “Southkraut”, Quick Pickles, & Creole Grain Mustard Crème in Split Top Lobster Roll (Stadium Dog on steroids)

Tasting Station 3: "Hopped Up"
O'Connor Heavy Footer, Starr Hill King of Hop, Alewerks Bitterest Valentine, Heavy Seas Alpha Effect.

Schweineschnitzel Street Taco – Savory Pan Sauteed Breaded Chicken Tenderloin Cutlet with hints of Lemon & Citrus, Red Cabbage & Local Apple Slaw for a little sweetness, Spicy German Potato Drizzle

Tasting Station 4: "Tasting Room Only"
Smartmouth IV Chocolate Porter, Devils Backbone Cocoa Bear (Russian Imperial Stout), Back Bay Owls Kreek (Farmhouse style mixed grain Grisette w montmorency cherries), Young Veterans Brewing Company Goat Locker.

German Spaetzle, sautéed with Wild Forest Mushroom Glace & topped with 48 hour Beer Marinated & House Rub Seasoned Flat Iron Steak (V) *Without the Steak*
**each week new limited beers will be announced!**

Station 5: "Free Pour"
Center of the Universe Pocahoptas, Bold Mariner Frogman Lager, Bold Rock Citrus CIder and Port City Optimal Wit will be on-site with your favorite local craft brews.

Poke Bowl – Duet of Garlicky Spiced Arctic Char & Eastern Shore Blue Crab With Citrus Essence Poke, Shaved Carrot, Pickled Shallot, Diced Mango & Pineapple, Red Ginger Wakame “Salad”, Toasted Sesame, Honey-Gochujang Mayonnaise, Rainbow Trout Roe, Sticky Rice
 

In event, Craft Beer Tags Evening on the Creek, craft beer, Virginia Aquarium, Virginia Beach, event, Hoffman Beverage
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Drink the District at the Virginia Zoo

April 2, 2015

I was contacted recently and was given information on a event happening this weekend called "Drink the District's Hampton Roads Beer Fest" . I'll be honest and say I don't know much about the group but apparently Drink the District started in D.C. as a way to put together affordable beer events for young professionals as one site put it.

Sounds like a good excuse to have a drink to me! Seriously though, I'm glad the Virginia Zoo will be getting some exposure and the brewery line-up is pretty sweet. There will be over 75 beers and a couple ciders to sample. Check out the list below:

The event will be help in two sessions: 1:00-4:00 PM and 5:30-8:30 PM. Unfortunately it appears both sessions have been sold out but there looks like a stand-by list is open for the evening session.

There were 5,500 tickets, total for both sessions, which is pretty impressive for an event that had minimal advertising. Go ahead and head over to the registration page where you can buy  tickets here. Maybe something will pop-up, and you'll be able to get in! They gave me a spiffy promo code ("ihf") for $10 off the online price if you can get in. Good luck and say "Hi" if you see me there!

- All images courtesy of Drink the District.

In Craft Beer, event Tags Drink the District, craft beer, event, Virginia Zoo
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Another Edition of...

May 1, 2014

I was putting together events on i-heart-food.com's new event calendar and saw the bottles and taps were going to be flowing this weekend. It's been a while since I posted a map to the local booze trail. Here's what's going on and make sure to check out my calendar for more details on the events:

1 May - Beer Tasting at Grape & Gourmet

- Weekly selection of new arrivals and favorites to try in the store.

1 May - ABSOLUT Artini at MOCA (Sold Out)

- 1920s themed Artini event at Virginia MOCA. Sadly it's sold out but there are rumors of getting tickets if you go to their page and poke around.

2 May - Wine Tasting at Farm Fresh (Great Neck)

- Farm Fresh always pours a couple of wines in the store if you're shopping. Good if the kids are getting on your nerves and you want to take the edge off.

2 May - Wine Tasting at Grape & Gourmet

- Weekly Friday night tasting with regulars. Good stuff!

2 May - Wine Tasting at Yiannis Wine Shop

- Yiannis always has something good on the table and if you're lucky maybe something special.

3 May - Big Brew Day at Homebrew USA

- Big Brew Day is a collection of beer enthusiasts who setup shop outside of Homebrew USA and show you how it's done at home. Last year there was a whole pig, hot dogs, hamburgers and much more. Free to the public. I don't think I need to mention there is going to be a lot of beer there right?

3 May - Town Center Virginia Beach Craft Beer Festival

- Town Center will be cordoned off to keep merry makers in while they enjoy the area's finest craft brews. Food and entertainment will be there too.

3 May - Spring Town Point Park Wine Classic

- The 8th Annual Wine Classic returns to Town Point Park running both Saturday and Sunday. Lots of events and wine will be available.

3 May - Mariner's Museum Craft Beer Festival

- The Mariner's Museum will celebrate craft brews from the Southside and Peninsula in the museum. I haven't been to one yet, but they're supposed to be fun. The Hampton Roads Beard and Stache Society will be volunteering too.

In beer, Craft Beer, event, festival, Friday Night Wine Tags craft beer, beer, Town Center Virginia Beach, Mariner's Museum, Town Point Park, Grape and Gourmet, yiannis wine shop, wine, event, festival, Southside, Peninsula, MOCA, Absolut Artini
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