Foodbuzz Festival 2010 – Day One
I will start my recap off coherently and then it will all become a fuzzy blur to adequately represent how the festival actually went down.
Once I arrived in SF, I took BART to the Powell stop and hoofed it to the Sir Francis Drake hotel. It was an unseasonable 77 degrees, and you would have thought it was August both by the weather and the amount of visitors dragging their luggage through the crowded sidewalks.
I can’t say enough about how fantastic the service was at “The Drake.” My room was ready early, I got all settled in, and quickly made a decision to eat in their restaurant, Scala’s Bistro where chef Jen Biesty focuses on fresh ingredients to create offerings that are a little Italian, a little French.
I had a little salad and a little brussels sprouts:
That’s the Star Pear & Wild Arugula Salad with Pt. Reyes Blue, White Balsamic Vinaigrette, and Toasted Almonds, accompanied by the Sautéed Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta, Shallots, and Lemon Zest.
I figured it was best to start the trip off healthy as I knew I’d soon be facing a barrage of cupcakes.
Of course, a Food Blogger conference is going to flow from one meal to the next fairly quickly and soon it was time for a vegetarian dinner at Millenium orchestrated by a fantastic group of bloggers. 
We were sent a huge array of appetizers, including the most amazing Crusted Oyster Mushrooms in a chickpea flour and thyme dredge. So delicious! For my entree, I had the Tamale:
We set the bar pretty high that first night. The best part of a pre-festival dinner is you get to do some early bonding with complete strangers. Immense gratitude goes to Elena, Jon, and Lindsey for setting a welcoming mood. I was happy to both start and end the festival by dining with them.
Lindsey and I shared Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate back in Bar Drake after dinner.
More to follow and perhaps my DSLR card will even behave and give up its bounty of photos. Fingers crossed.
That salad looks killer!! I hope you recover the rest of your photos!
I still can’t believe I didn’t recognize you at first. I’m an airhead. Next year, I’m coming a day or two early! So nice getting to know you!
Good luck with the DSLR card.
Well, as another blogger said, I do look ten years younger in real life. Lol!
Hi Tiffany! It was great meeting you at FoodBuzz. I hope you love the painting. It’s nice to now that it is going to a great person and a great home. I am looking forward to reading the rest of your recaps.
Hey! I walked by you at FBF but I don’t think we had the chance to properly meet. Anyway, this weekend was a blast!
Brussels. Yum. But then holy chocolate fest- THAT dessert had my name written all over it. Good luck with your card! Eeek.
I swear you are one of my favorite people at the festival. I totally needed a day to let it all settle. I will probably do a week of recaps!
PS, did you get my email with the cottage cheese ice cream recipe?
Hi E – I did get the recipe and can’t wait to try it! Not sure I can handle ice cream when the high temp today is gonna be in the 40′s! Eeek.