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Each Guest Received Souvenir Glasses

Did you miss it? Endless wine tasting and all the food samplings you wanted were featured at the 2013 Fleurs et Vin Festival held at Carillon Park on May 19th. The Big Ragu was on hand with Dayton Most Metro’s staff, greeting the massive crowds and sample the various offerings. It was a Food Adventure paradise in the heart of Dayton, and a must eat on our list of events.

If you were not able to make it to this annual benefit for the AIDS Resource Center Ohio, then check out our recap, below.

Here’s the Skinny:

— FLEURS ET VIN is Dayton’s Premier Wine and Gourmet Food Festival, typically held each year on a Sunday in May from 1-4pm under the tents at Carrillon Historical Park. It is an all-you-want tasting event with a loyal following.

— ALL of the food and wine was donated by locally owned restaurants, allowing 100% of the proceeds to benefit AIDS Resource Center of Dayton. A Food Adventure with a cause

— Admission price allowed you access to over 400 wines from around the world and taste menu samples from 20 local restaurants, along with a Belgian Beer Garden area !

— Live and Silent Auction areas allowed even more funds to be raised for this worthy cause that focuses of prevention and education about AIDS, along with service programs that help those in need with HIV/AIDS.

— Live music filled the air and added to the warm ambiance.

With so many good wines and so much good food, below are our picks for the best of the best from this spectacular event!

Crab Rangoon from Thai 9. Our Favorite Rangoon in Dayton.

OUR FAVORITES (THE FOOD):

Thai 9’s Crab Rangoon and Chicken with Rice: In our opinion, the best crab rangoon in the Dayton area were these incredible samples from Thai9. Stuffed full and deep, and served with a sweet side of Thai sauce, we found ourselves returning to this line often. The Thai chicken dish was also incredible at this station. It was a Thai pepper chicken, served in a brown, curry house sauce over a bed of white rice. We told them we loved it, but our mouths were so full that they couldn’t understand us.

The Dock’s Crab Cakes: Slowly seared on their portable flat top grill, these were flavorful, hand-packed circles of love. The sauce that topped the crab cakes was the secret ingredient that kept us coming back for more. The staff of The Dock probably wanted to file a restraining order against us for hanging out by their grill as much as we did. We could not resist seconds of these scrumptious bites of crab heaven.

Hawthorn Grill’s Sorbet and Strawberry ShortCake: All of the desserts at Hawthorn Grill are homemade by Chef Candace and her staff. Her sorbet was a perfect, refreshing break during this hot event. The bite size piece of cake, topped with a strawberry sauce also hit the spot.

Scratch Catering’s Beef Brisket and Carmelized Onion Bruschetta: When doesn’t Chef Matt Hayden please the hungry crowds? This delicious, slow-cooked sampling was just as pleasing to the eye, as it was to our taste buds. The hits from Scratch Catering just keep on coming ….

OUR FAVORITES (THE WINES):

Canella Blood Orange Mimosa: Talk about refreshing! This tasty, bottled mimosa was the perfect drink, on this hot day. The server at this booth had to be tired of us by the end of the event. Probably our favorite offering from the Vintage Wine Distributor. This Italian wine cocktail is made from grape wine and the juice and pulp of blood oranges from Sicily.

Heron Chardonnay: A crisp, white wine made from 22 year old grape vines. The winery is a female owned, family vineyard run by Laely Heron. One of the few American women who made wine in France, Heron’s products are also produced in California.

Spreitzer Riesling 101: This German Riesling comes from a winery owned by two brothers who have been honing their craft since 1997. It was a cold, refreshing sip of sparkling goodness in the warm weather.

The Belgian Beer Garden: Although this was a wine festival, Heidelberg Distributing distracted us with some great beer selections. Food Adventures enjoyed a couple of Stella Artois beers in a souvenir pint. The Big Ragu went for some Hoegaarden beer and an Ommegang Witte Beer.

All in all, this is Dayton’s “Wine me and dine me” Festival. We loved being a part of a wonderful event, that supported a locally based AIDS charity. Good local food and world class wines, what more could one ask for? So let us end this Food Adventure, by raising our glass with a toast.. “Whether you love Merlot or Chardonnay, here’s to seeing you at Fleurs et Vin, next May!!”

For more wine, and no whine, visit Food Adventures on Facebook and “like” them by clicking HERE !

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The 2nd annual “Taste of Centerville” happened on June 15 in the Heart of Downtown Centerville from 6-9 pm. The event benefited Food4Summer, which is a charity started by partnerships between Centerville churches. Food4Summer furnishes nutritious meals to low income children in the Centerville area when school is out for the summer.

The Taste of Centerville started at the registration booth where we paid $20 each to sample items from various Centerville eateries. Many local businesses opened their doors and offered discounts to participants of the event. Centerville is the home of The Big Ragu, so we had to check out this event. It was a classic Food Adventure, and the photos tell the story on this one.

Key Lime Pie Cupcakes from Sweet Dot’s Cupcakes in Cross Pointe Center.

It was a hot evening, but it did not stop us from hitting every food booth along the “Taste of Centerville.” We walked the four corners of the event, emotionally eating our way through warm and cheerful Centerville. There were a slew of vendors, but The Food Adventures Crew is here to sort them out for you.

Meadowlark Restaurant ‘s Hot Dogs with Slaw & a Spicy Relish .. Amazing taste!

Below is a list of each restaurant and our favorite food selections from each booth:

Meadowlark – Chef Wiley wowed the crowds with her spin on a Classic Slaw Dog. A filling, refreshing taste at one of our favorite places on earth.

Sweet Dot’s Bakery Cafe – The friendly manager of this establishment gave us small Key Lime Cupcakes with Icing. These tiny bites were terrific, with the homemade taste of love in every morsel.

Murray’s Cheese – This New York company sells its cheeses in Kroger. We enjoyed the Aged Cheese Plate with 3 pieces of savory and delicate cheeses. Great stuff !

Graeter’s served up samples of their light and refreshing Peach Ice Cream.

Savona – Offered a gourmet Grilled, Stuffed Free Range Chicken Skewer appetizer. The chicken on the skewers were rolled in a way that it was like Grilled Chicken Cordon Bleu on a stick.

LaRosa’s Pizza – We were pleasantly surprised with their fantastic Boneless Wings. They had 3 great sauces that tickled our tastebuds.

Graeter’s Ice Cream – Refreshing Peach Ice Cream cooled us off on this evening. Always busy, this Cincinnati company has a good following in Centerville.

Horton’s Hoagies – New family owned restaurant with fresh hoagies and subs. We loved their Sub Samples, and are eager to visit this place !

The Melting Pot – They offered Chocolate Fondue with Strawberries and Rice Crispie Sticks. Irresistible treats at this booth!

DiBella’s Old Fashioned Subs – Huge samples of Turkey and Ham Subs on various types of buns were stacked at this booth. Big mouths needed for these big sandwiches.

Louisiana Grill’s Bourbon Chicken over Rice

Louisiana Grill – The friendly staff served out sample tastes of Bourbon Chicken Over Rice. It was a rich and flavorful combination.

Johnny’s Slice of NY Pizza – Of course we loved another chance to taste a small slice of New York. Owner Michele and her daughter served up delicious sample squares.

Unhinged – Not a food store, but they hand fed us tasty treats and told us home baked goodies are in the lobby from time to time. Definitely a place to visit again!

City Barbecue – The Pulled Pork and Pulled Chicken station was phenomenal. They had each of their BBQ sauces out, so you could drizzle your own topping to the slow cooked goodness.

Panera Bread – We enjoyed the Pastry and Cookie Display, and sampled some tasty homemade items.

Mama Disalvo’s – One of our favorite stops had a Salmon Rigatoni in a Creamy Tomato Sauce. It was amazing how our samples were cooked to perfection.

Pulled Pork Sliders from Archer’s Tavern.. everything they serve is good!

Unique Celebrations Tea Room – Hospitality was second to none, and they had some Homemade Light Desserts that were simply dreamy.

Archer’s Tavern – Pulled Pork Sliders Topped with Slaw gave festival goers a great taste of a great eatery. Even owners Dan Apolito and Mike Fullenkamp were on hand.

Sam’s Club – This station passed out bottled water, so we wouldn’t pass out from dehydration!

Sweeney’s Seafood – We tasted the wonderful Grilled BBQ Shrimp on the patio and met the new chef. We could have eaten the entire display.

Smoothie King – The samples of Strawberry Smoothies were so good, that The Big Ragu dribbled some down his shirt.

Buffalo Wings and Rings – They walked around handing out samples of Garlic Parmesean Boneless Wings and Hot Buffalo Boneless Wings too.

The Hot Sex Roll from Kabuki. We ate a lot of these hoping to reap some kind of benefit.

Kabuki – Earlier in the month, we received a personal invite to the festival from Kabuki’s management, for which we are grateful. This station was one of our favorite stops of the night. The Hot Sex Sushi Roll and Playboy Sushi Roll were so good that it caused us to do erotic dance moves on the spot.

The Water Store – Ionized Water with a unique, fresh taste. We loved the friendly staff and the great tasting ionized water that you can have in your home by purchasing their attachment.

Caribou Coffee – No coffee, but instead they gave out Sparkling Teas and Juices. A most refreshing station on this night, so we went back for seconds.

The Big Ragu devoured this Jimmy John’s Turkey sub in record time

Jimmy John’s – Freshly wrapped Turkey and Ham Subs were given out by the friendly greeters. The freshly shredded lettuce gives their sandwiches a nice crunch and flavor.

Whew! What a FOOD ADVENTURE !! It was nice to see a community get together for a great cause and enjoy some wonderful food. THE BIG RAGU is looking forward to next year’s “Taste of Centerville.”

Were you at the June 15th event? If so, please leave your thoughts and comments below!

Did you know Food Adventures has a Facebook page? Click here to “like” the page

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Fleurs Et Vin: A Great Success at Carrillon Park

Food Adventures Invades the “Taste of Centerville”