Dayton Dining

Sip & Stroll – Coming Soon To Outdoor Drinking Districts

May 1, 2015 By Lisa Grigsby

Grab a beer and head outside. Well, not yet. But soon. Maybe. It depends on where you are.

State lawmakers gave final approval Wednesday to legislation that would allow outdoor alcohol consumption in areas such as The Oregon District, The Greene or Austin Landing. Governor Kasich signed House Bill 47 yesterday making it effective now, allowing more than 60 Ohio cities with a population greater than 35,000 people to create ‘outdoor refreshment areas’ that are exempt from the state’s open-container laws.

The legislation designates that these entertainment area’s are limited to a half square mile area that has at least four liquor licenses. Beavercreek Mayor Brian Jarvis has said his staff “will research it, look into all the details, all the legislation. Then come back to us during a work session to explain what it’s all about.”
No word yet from other potential outdoor drinking districts yet, but we’re sure we’ll be hearing more very soon.

According to the legislations, smaller communities would be able to designate such areas in two years.

Who was Dougie Apple?

May 1, 2015 By Dayton937 Leave a Comment

Dougie Apple

Sometimes a Daytonian’s story bears repeating.

As you know we go on many fantastic Food Adventures. One you can’t miss is about 2 weeks away.

Friday, May 15th is the Big Brews and Blues Festival. This is a blues festival with a cause. The event raises money for the Dayton Diabetes Association.

It is an amazing event, with Blues Bands, dozens and dozens of Beers to sample, and food vendors. The 2015 event is being held at Riverscape Metropark. It is not only a terrific night, but it is a festival with a purpose. Dougie Apple was a Dayton native who also had a purpose.

In fact, at the festival, a banner typically drapes a booth selling beverages for his foundation. This is where the Food Adventures Crew first learned of his story. If you have attended the festival, you may remember seeing the booth yourself.

Sometimes a person who spends a small amount of time on this earth, has a very big effect on those around them.

May 15th, 2015 – Big Brews & Blues festival for Dayton Diabetes Foundation

Such is the case of Dougie Apple, one of 6 kids who grew up in a Miamisburg, with his 5 sisters. He was boy who at the age of 12 found out that he had diabetes. When he was diagnosed it was a surprise, since there was no one else in his family who had this typically genetic disease.

He was active in sports like soccer, and he loved the Cincinnati Reds. After his diagnosis he decided to attend a camp with other kids battling his diabetes. This camp, called “Camp Ko-Man-She,” changed his life. Dougie continued to visit the camp each year, and it helped him cope with the disease. After his diagnosis as he grew up he took a job at King’s Island. He even worked at a local car wash, to feed his interest in cars. He then decided to work at the camp as a counselor, helping mentor other children with the disease.

Dougie’s journey from camp attendee, to counselor and eventually camp director. He affected literally hundreds of lives for the positive, by comforting kids, and making them forget about their illness.

Meanwhile Dougie was dealing with an illness of his own. He received a kidney transplant and pancreas transplant from a donor family who lost a child named Daniel. The Apple family and Daniel’s family became close, and still are to this day. As Dougie continued to have a positive influence on Dayton area kids with diabetes at camp, his illness unfortunately took an unexpected turn for the worse. On February 3rd, 2012 Dougie Apple succumbed to the diabetes, which he fought so hard to conquer.

At his funeral, his family was overwhelmed by the crowd of young people who made the trip to his funeral. They shared stories about how Dougie helped them get through a tough time in their childhood, or helped them get enough courage to give themselves diabetes shots. He had affected so many lives, and the result was staggering. The family wants to keep Dougie’s intentions alive, so they set up The Dougie Apple Tree Fund, and continue to raise money in his name.

Over the past 3 years, the Dougie Apple Tree Fund has raised approx 5 thousand dollars per year. They donate the funds to the Diabetes of Dayton charity. The request is that some of these monies go to send children to the camp that Dougie attended. It is a chance to help these kids to live a normal existence. If you attend the festival, please stop by the Dougie Apple booth and buy a bottled water or a soft drink can, you will be quenching your thirst and helping quench the desires to find a cure for diabetes.

Blue Bands Throughout The Night

So please, consider attending the

BIG BREWS & BLUES FESTIVAL

Friday night, May 15th from 5-9pm at Riverscape.

Tickets are $30 prepay or $40 at the door.

Besides great blues bands, there will be approximately 70 beers to sample. The Food Adventures Crew is honored to be a part of this event, and hope you will be too.

Come celebrate the lives of those who are fighting diabetes, by helping them find a cure.

This is not an event that lines corporate pockets, it is an event that affects real people in the Dayton area. Make sure you help make a difference as well.

If you would like to donate or learn more about the Dougie Apple Foundation, please send an email to [email protected].

Hope to see you with some Big Brews at the festival ! Below are some photos from previous year’s events, please browse the gallery.

Are you a Dayton Foodie? Then join the over 5,000 foodies in the Miami Valley area following Food Adventures on Facebook HERE !

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Everthings Coming Up Roses at The Century

April 30, 2015 By Lisa Grigsby

The Kentucky Derby means bourbon and in Dayton, when you think bourbon The Century naturally comes to mind. And it should, since it’s been receiving plenty of national attention for our Gem City!

In 2013 it made the Bourbon Reviews list of the America’s 55 Best Bourbon Bars and again made the list which by then grew to America’s 60 Best Bourbon Bars. We think they got it right when they said:

“In what could be the most underrated Bourbon bar in the country, the Century Bar takes you back to 1862 with its 150-year-old back bar. The home of the former Kette & Sons Rye Whiskey Distillery, Century Bar packs 87 Bourbons and regularly holds blind tastings. It’s the sort of place every Bourbon drinker should visit at least once in his or her life.”

Travel and Leisure included The Century in their round up of the “Best Whisky Bars in America.” And Men’s Journal just recently named it as one of The 10 Best Bourbon Bars in America

“A small bar with a huge bourbon list, The Century is as devoted to the whiskey as any other place in America. The knowledgeable staff can help you pick out your new favorite bourbon while you take in the stained glass and tables made from whiskey barrels.”

So on the week leading up to “the fastest 2 minutes in sports” I had the pleasure of joining a handful of Centurions (fellow drinkers who’ve made it through 100 bourbons at the Jefferson Street joint) for a special tasting of bourbons that were newly released in Ohio that very day.

I.W. Harper was a Kentucky bourbon brand started by Isaac Wolfe Bernheim in 1879. It changed hands a few times over the years. In the mid 1990’s, I.W. Harper was pulled out of the U.S. market and offered only in Asia; primarily Japan. After being unavailable in the U.S. for 20 years, Diageo has decided to bring back the historical I.W. Harper label stateside this spring. It’s made from a mash of 73% corn, 18% rye, 9% barley and 82 proof.

As The Century’s Joe Head so eloquently pointed out, “it’s a light bourbon, perfect for when someone stops by in the afternoon and you weren’t planning on drinking, but feel obligated.”

Our next tasting was a Henry McKenna Bourbon, a single barrel rye mashbill bourbon. Joe explained it’s a Heaven Hill produced bourbon out of Louisville, KY. This single barrel bourbon is bottled in bond after aging ten years in a federally bonded warehouse near Bardstown, KY. He further introduced many of us to the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897. Bottled-in-Bond or Bonded, the liquor must be the product of one distillation season (January to December) and one distiller at one distillery. It must have been aged in a federally bonded warehouse under U.S. government supervision for at least four years and bottled at 100 (U.S.) proof. The bottled product’s label must identify the distillery where it was distilled and, if different, where it was bottled. Only spirits produced in the United States may be designated as bonded.

There may have been some other tastes after that, but things sometimes get fuzzy at The Century. I do know we finished off the evening with a dessert tastings of a chilled Buffalo Trace Bourbon Creme and it was delightful. But even more so was hearing Joe talk about future events The Century has planned!

May 2nd – 141st running of the Kentucky Derby. Celebrating the official drink of the Kentucky Derby, The Mint Julep. This year they are partnering with Bulleit bourbon for Derby! They will also be listening to the call of the race on the radio as they don’t have picture boxes. Doors will open at 3pm and proper Derby dress is encouraged, but not required. Reservations are not necessary, however you can make reservations if you would like.

May 30th – 2nd Annual Bourbon and Warped Wing beer pairing -more info to come

watch their Facebook for more info…

No dates yet but look for a Bourbon and Girl Scout Cookie Tasting, more collaborations with other local breweries, more special tastings for Centurions and by fall they should have their Speak Easy opened next door. Things are sure looking rosey (and that’s not just the Four Roses talking) these days at my favorite Jefferson Street establishment and when Joe was asked if he was happy with the way things were going he was quick to share, “I fucking love my life and am very lucky to do it!”

Cinco Cervezas: Pints and Paella To Celebrate Cinco De Mayo

April 29, 2015 By Lisa Grigsby

El Meson is celebrating craft beer with a Cinco de Mayo celebration theat features local, craft beers. Cinco Cervezas was created to combine Cinco de Mayo celebrations with unique creations from local breweries. According to Owner Bill Castro, El Meson has “seen a huge demand for local beers. Being a local business ourselves, we want to support our fellow small businesses and craft breweries.”

Cinco Cervezas attendees will be able to taste unique brews and enjoy El Meson’s famous paella. “Attendees will receive an 8oz pour of five different, locally-crafted beers, and we’ll have giant paella pans set up on our new patio dishing out huge helpings. Participating breweries will be Yellow Springs Brewery, Warped Wing Brewing Company, Toxic Brew Company, The Dayton Beer Company and Star City Brewing Company.
“It’s a really exciting time for craft beer in the Dayton region, and we love to collaborate with other independent businesses” Shane Juhl, owner of Toxic Brew Company, said. “We’ll be bringing out pepper beer to the event, which will be a great fit with El Meson’s food,“ he added. Tickets for the event run $34 and include a souvenir tasting glass for each guest and can be purchased online. Tickets at the door, if available will be $39.

DMM Ticket Contest:

One lucky DMM winner will win a pair of tickets to Cinco Cervezas! Two ways to win:

1: Like and share this story to your facebook or twttter and tag #MostMetro so we can see it.

2: Copy and paste the image from our DaytonDining Facebook page.

Warped Wing Releases Summer Saison Thursday

April 29, 2015 By Dayton Most Metro

A motivated group of engineers, the likes of Deeds, Patterson and Kettering to name a few gathered in a small barn out behind a house. These men, Dayton’s most formidable heavyweights of invention contemplated the future of industry. And discussed scientific and technological issues over long hours, cold nights and yes, Saison. The result? Some of the most important inventions known to mankind. These Dayton drivers of forethought were appropriately named the “Barn Gang”.

Warped Wing has brewed this beer to celebrate the efforts of these hard working gentlemen. This Farmhouse ale is hazy, opaque, golden straw in color. Its Dry hopped with Vic Secret hops, which provides a melon and white grape aroma and flavor with a mild citrus note. There’s an ever so slight bitterness with just enough bite to balance the beer. The malt character is light and crisp and the beer finishes very dry.

Stop by the Warped Wing Brewing Company at 26 Wyandot this Thursday at 5pm to be amongst the first to try this beer, perfect for summer swilling.

Columbus Brewery North High Debuts In Dayton With A Pub Crawl

April 28, 2015 By Lisa Grigsby

North High Brewing co-owners Tim Ward on the left, Gavin Meyers on the right with Brewmaster Jason McKibben in the middle.

In 2011 to college friends, Gavin Meyers and Tim Ward, partnered to bring a new kind of brewery to Columbus: one that focuses on the EXPERIENCE of brewing. They opened North High Brewing as Columbus’ first and only Brew on Premises establishment, where the customer is the brewmaster. ( Dayton’s Eudora Brewing Co offers this). In addition to customers brewing their own beer, North High Brewing creates small-batch, high-quality craft beer that they serve in their taproom as well as on tap at dozens of area restaurants and bars.

The demand for their beer has been so high that they recently underwent a brewery expansion that has taken them from being one the smallest breweries in Columbus to being one of the largest. In order to help with the new production brewing facility, North High Brewing recently brought on Jason McKibben as Brewmaster and partner. Jason has been a professional brewer for 15 years, including as senior Brewmaster at Anheuser-Busch, and most recently as head of production at Anchor Brewing in San Francisco.

The building that now houses North High Brewing was originally a Ford dealership in 1917, and the founders set out to restore the building to its original historical glory. Visitors will find numerous salvaged and repurposed architectural elements from throughout Ohio and the nation, including windows and doors from historic OSU buildings, old post offices, and even an 1870’s distillery.

The beers of North High Brewing are finally coming to Dayton and this Thurs, April 30th you can join the North High on Fifth Pub Crawl that will welcome their brews to town. The crawl will kick off at 5:3ppm The Barrel House (where there’s plenty of parking behind the building) and then move on to Dublin Pub at 6:15, , then head to the Trolley Stop at 7pm, walk next door to Lucky’s at 7:45pm and and end up at Blind Bobs by 8:3ppm . The crawl locations are less than 1 mile from start to finish.

It’s A Farmers Market At Night, With Beer!

April 24, 2015 By Dayton937 4 Comments

Local Vendors will light up the “Night Market” Saturday Night

This Saturday the place to be is the Yellow Cab building. Tucked back on fourth street between Garden Station and the Dublin Pub is a community art space that hosts all kinds of events, most notably the Food Truck Rallies, art shows, concerts, movie showings and even farmers markets.

This weekend the Night Market is happening. Night Market is a night time farmers market with craft beer, food trucks and entertainment. This is a fun way to fill your table full of local goods, drink some craft locally brewed beer, grub on some of the best food trucks around and listen to some tunes from DJ Etch. All ages are welcome for this party atmosphere market.

With spring time here our farmers will be selling their veggies. Brickel Creek will be bringing her organic goodness. Flying Mouse will have maple syrup. Homefull will be bringing items from their 150 raised beds.

Look for popcorn, both sweet and spicy from Caramel Cravings, and gluten free baked items from Neighborhood Nest including spicy cheese crackers! Also featured are vanilla extracts, jams and jellies, spice blends, granola, cookies, and cinnamon rolls from Baker’s Vegetable Market & Greenhouse. Baker’s will also have hand pies, sprouts, lettuce and baby vegetable plants, so you can get your own garden started.

HouseMade will have their sriracha, hot honey, salts and rub. Simpleman Beef Jerky will be coming down again from Columbus with their all natural and amazing beef jerky. My Artisano Foods from Cincinnati will be making their first appearance with their gourmet cheeses.

Spices, Veggies, Non Food Items, Beers, and much, much more

There will even be non-food items to look out for. Travis Eads from Oakwood will be selling his handmade items for the kitchen and the home. Ludic Soap will be returning with her amazing smelling handcrafted soaps. Also, Gem City Tee Shirts will have all kinds of Dayton designs on hand.

You will have four food trucks to look forward to for the night. New on the scene is the Drunken Smoker Food Truck featuring Waffles. The Shakery, Fronana and Sweet P’s will also be there.

This event is rain or shine. If this rain passes by for the weekend this event will be held outside. If not there is plenty of space inside for everyone. The hours are from 5-9 pm Saturday the 25^th of April.

Featured breweries for this weekend are Toxic, Yellow Springs and Warped Wing.

This is a perfect, intimate market for those of you who enjoy eating local and buying local. What better way to spend a Saturday evening then at the Night Market? It is a perfect time to create your own local, organic Food Adventure, and celebrate what Ohio has to offer.

Come down to eat, drink, shop and meet some new Dayton peeps!

Check out our photo gallery below for Night Market highlights. For more Dayton food scoop, please “like” Food Adventures on Facebook by clicking HERE! Join the 5,000+ fans following Chef House, Hungry Jax and the Big Ragu !

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Dayton Beer Company Opens Downtown!

April 23, 2015 By Dayton Most Metro

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Pete Hilgeman and Assistant Brewer Dustin Stanley

The Dayton Beer Company will open its Downtown Dayton Production Facility and Beer Hall today, April 23rd at 2pm . This will be the second location for the company, whose Kettering, OH tap room opened in 2012. “We couldn’t be happier that we are finally opening in the heart of downtown,” said Peter Hilgeman, Operating Manager and Brewmaster, a 2005 Alter High School graduate who holds a marketing and international business degree from the University of Cincinnati.. “It’s been a long process and we are excited to get open and share our new space with everyone!”

Opening weekend highlights will include live entertainment, multiple food trucks, giveaways and several other surprises to be revealed as the weekend unfolds. The Beer Hall will feature a heavy rotation of food trucks in their parking lot.
Hours & Foodtrucks for the opening weekend are:

Thurs 2 -10pm    Harvest Mobile Cuisine and Empanadas Aqui
Fri 2pm – 12am PA’s Pork and McNasty’s
Sat 12pm – 12am   Smokin BeeBeeQ, LaPampa Grill, and Wicked Wich
Sun 12pm – 8pm   Ramen Rickshaw

The new facility will allow the brewery to increase production capacity, warranted by the demand for its beer in Dayton as well as to expand distribution throughout Mid and Southwest Ohio. The 8,000 sq. foot space, located in the former Weiler Welding building at 41 Madison Street, features state-of-the-art equipment including a canning line and a 15 barrel steam brew house, which together offer an initial brewing capacity of 3,000 bbls annually, with opportunity to scale up to 6,500 bbls. Hilgeman says,“Not only are we able to increase our capacity but soon we will also be able to offer bottles and cans. These are projects that we have wanted to do, but just didn’t have the room in our original space.” In addition, the new brewery features 5,000 sq. feet of space for patrons, including areas available for private events. The 36 taps will feature Ohio craft beers.

Founded in 2010, the award- winning Dayton Beer Company believes in continuing the city’s rich history as a place where innovation is born with its unique but accessible brews. Small
batch, handcrafted beer embodies its vision of how beer should taste. The Dayton Beer Company will continue to operate its Kettering Tap Room at 912 E. Dorothy Lane 45419 (though it will be closed this week- as all hands are on deck to get the new place open). And Hildeman says they will keep their tradition of $10 growler and $5 howler fills on Wed nights.

Awards Dayton Beer Co has won:

Best of Craft Beer Awards 2015 Gold Medalist:The Java Man Cometh

Best of Craft Beer Awards 2014 Gold Medalist: Mad River Milk Stout.

Alltech Commonwealth Cup 2014 Silver Medal Winners: Batch #100, Batch #300, Riverside Rye IPA, Wandering Second Black IPA, Savannah Sour, Bretta Recognize.

Alltech Commonwealth Cup 2014 Bronze Medal Winners: Patterson Pale Ale, Merseyside Barleywine.

2014 US Open Beer Championships Silver Medal Winner: Batch #300 in the Out of Bounds IPA Category.

For more information on the Dayton Beer Company, please visit www.thedaytonbeerco.com

Soup Dinner Fundraiser for Stivers School For The Arts

April 22, 2015 By Dayton Most Metro

Each guest may choose a handmade ceramic bowl and fill it with soup, bread and dessert generously donated from local restaurants

Enjoy dinner, watch wheel-throwing demonstrations, take a studio tour and see our students’ award winning work from this year in the Fifth Street Gallery.

Your $10.00 donation ensures the continued excellence of our ceramics program.

Local Food Truck Competing for National Title

April 21, 2015 By Lisa Grigsby

One of Dayton’s most popular food trucks has made it to the finals of the National Contest run by Mobile Cuisine.com. In an online vote to find the hot dog vendor of the year, food trucks and carts from across the country have been nominated for this recognition.

Zombie Dogz, owned by husband and wife team, David & Lee VanArtsdalen, have cultivated a cult following for their dogs topped with gourmet ingredients in the Dayton area and now needs your vote to capture the National title. You can vote once a day through 11;50pm May 1st. No registration is required to vote and in literally takes 5 seconds. As of this morning, Zombie Dogz has a commanding lead, but these contests can change leaders many times throughout the week long campaign. The winning truck or cart will be profiled in Mobile Cuisine and will hold the title of top mobile hot dog vendor for 2015.

Never had a Zombie Dogz? Here are descriptions of a few of their dogs: Diced green apple, blue cheese, bacon and BBQ sauce make up the Dead Dixie, Pinepple habanero pulled pork, mandarin orange cherry and pine Apple salsa, topped with sesame seeds are on The Brain Daddy, white truffle mac n cheese, shredded cheddar and cracker crumbles are Calling in Dead.

Horseless Buggy Eatery, another Dayton based food truck, won the title for 2015 Best Burger and was a finalist in the best fish Taco Category this year in a similar online vote.

Here are the hot dog vendors in competition:

Alamo Dogs – San Antonio, TX
American Wiener – Tampa, FL
Beez Neez Sausage – Portland, OR
Biker Jim’s Gourmet Hot Dogs– Denver, CO
Frank Gourmet Hot Dogs – Buffalo, NY
Good Dog Hot Dogs – Houston, TX
The Greasy Wiener – Los Angeles, CA
Love Hot Dog Co. – Harleysville, PA
Willy Dog – Hamilton, Ontario
Zombie Dogz – Dayton, OH

Zombie Dogz hasn’t updated their schedule for this week yet, but to find them and other area food trucks, just click on MostMetro.com’s Food Truck Finder Calendar.

Garlic Lovers Unite!

April 20, 2015 By Lisa Grigsby

Lovers of garlic, great local foods and good times will want to mark Sun, July 19th on their calendar!

The Sons of Italy and DaytonMostMetro.com are partnering to bring a day full of family friendly fun featuring fantastic foods and marvelous music by The Menu’s, Dayton’s favorite party band. The event will take place on the grounds on Bella Villa Hall at 2625 County Line Road in Kettering from noon until 8:30pm.

Food offerings will be required to contain garlic and expect to see some off the wall items! And what’s a festival without some contests, run by The Big Ragu and his Food Adventure crew, like the garlic peeling contest, a garlic eating challenge and more. You’ll even be able to sit in on some cooking lessons, featuring what else- garlic! Sunday is also the final day of the Bocce Classic, and after the tournament their will be open lanes for you to try your hand at this classic Italian lawn bowling game.

Vendor sign ups are now in process and a list of participating eateries will be available soon on the GarlicFest event page. Sign up there for more info. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Sons of Italy student scholarship fund.

Oregon Pinot Noir Tasting at Arrow Wine Centerville Tonight

April 20, 2015 By Dayton Most Metro

Patricia Green Cellars is located in the Ribbon Ridge Appellation of the Willamette Valley of Oregon on a 52 acre estate purchased in 2000 by Patty Green and Jim Anderson. The winery, and thus the two friends and business partners, are noted for producing a tremendously broad selection of vineyard designated Pinot Noirs from several vineyards representing some of the better sites in the Willamette Valley with a particular emphasis over the years on Ribbon Ridge, Dundee Hills and the Chehalem Mountain appellations. Patricia Green Cellars focus is to produce Pinot Noirs that show the distinct characteristics of the sites and vintage within the context of the wines. Due to this all of the vineyards the winery either maintains or purchases fruit from are extremely well-tended sites that seek to grow the best fruit possible through rigorous attention to detail on every single vine. Over the years as many as 20 different bottlings of Pinot Noir have been produced in any given vintage. To ensure that these wines are of the highest quality possible, are unique in and of themselves and distinct across the range of wines the decisions we made about the quality of each barrel is quite rigorous ensuring that each bottling represents the best possible wine from each vineyard and vintage.

At a larger level the philosophy of the winery is fairly simple: Do what needs to be done. The two partners of Patricia Green Cellars feel that you simply cannot enter into a vintage with pre-conceived notions of what is going to happen, what the fruit is going to be like, what the wines are going to be like and what is going to need to be done to turn fruit into the best wines possible. There are certain approaches and techniques that will obviously be applied, however the intensity of those actions is fluid. That fluid nature would extend to nearly every aspect of the winemaking. Ultimately things are done as simply as is possible. The 14th century friar William of Ockham stated that “one should not increase, beyond what is necessary, the number of entities required to explain anything.” This is the physics theory known as Occam’s Razor. It applies to winemaking though, too. With over 50 combined years worth of winemaking experience the two partners are quite possibly the longest-partnered winemaking duo in Oregon and they have come to realize that the hardest thing to do is to do the simplest things. However, by paring down, as much as is possible and as much as is sensible, they have found that the wines are better off for it.

Of course to be a truly successful winery one must start with very strong raw materials. That is where the strength of Patricia Green Cellars lives as a winery. Over the years an ever-increasingly strong set of vineyards has made up the core of the winery’s Pinot Noir volume. The crowning jewel initially was landing what is the Estate Vineyard with the purchase of the property back in 2000. After that the near yearly search to bring in extraordinarily high-quality sites, most times with older vines serving as a part of the equation, continues and the winery continues to be able to release unique wines from terrific sites that drive the reputation and finances of the winery. At this juncture Patricia Green Cellars has now assembled what is certainly its strongest collection of well-farmed, high-quality sites with great reputations in its entire existence. The dogged determination to continue to produce the best bottlings of vineyard designated Pinot Noirs, to continually show the willingness and ability to craft critically-acclaimed Pinots from new sites and sell them on a vintage in and vintage out basis has opened the door to this day where a stable of vineyards reflects the winery’s reputation and the winemakers’ skill level.

Arrow Wine Centerville will be sampling the Award Winning Pinot Noirs, from Patricia Green Cellars, Willamette Valley, today (Mon, April 20th) from 5-8pm. Patricia will be there explaining the nuances of the wines! The tasting is casual, reservations are not required and tastes are nominally priced.

The Greatest Donuts in the World + Win a Dozen of Them !

April 16, 2015 By Dayton937 267 Comments

Owner Lisa with a Young Customer

Every glazed must kneel, every jelly must bow…. Dayton, Ohio is home to many things, including the World’s Best Donuts since 1960. Bill’s Donut Shop is no doubt a Miami Valley icon, located at 268 N. Main Street in Centerville. They have won countless local awards, and have been featured nationally in Saveur Magazine, USA Today, and even recently on the Ellen Degeneres Show. We think it is not a big step to proclaim these the “World’s Greatest Donuts.” If you don’t believe it, let the Food Adventures Crew edify you.

***** Want to win a dozen of the WORLD’S GREATEST DONUTS? ***** All you have to do is comment on the story below and one winner will be chosen at random next week (one comment per person please).

Local celebs like ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit, WHIO’s Mike Hartsock and University of Dayton legend, Don Donaher have named Bill’s as their favorite. Even national talk show host Phil Donahue, Congressman Mike Turner and singer Chet Atkins have given the donut shop accolades. We have also found many Daytonians who have moved away, always take time to stop at Bill’s Donuts and get their fix. Many who come in form out of town introduce their spouses or kids to the donuts, so the next generation can worship the legend. The shop has a cult following of regulars, some sit at the coffee bar, others in booths, One notable patron Kevin, who is also called “Dewey” is a friendly man who has been a fixture there since the 80’s.

The Pretzel Donut – Click to Enlarge the Flaky Goodness

This place is popular… like grass roots popular. Even without the celeb endorsements. For example, this Saturday Bill’s Donut Shop is hosting the annual Superhero 5k run for A Special Wish Foundation. The 5k had room for 500 runners and it sold out a week in advance. We think the 5k’s “donut after party” had something to do with the sellout.
So, with all the press, popularity and endorsements, why is Food Adventures writing an article on Bill’s Donut Shop? The answer is simple, we dig deeper. We dig into not only which individual donuts are the best of the best, but we ask “WHY?” What is the secret that makes these the most delectable donuts on earth?

HERE’S THE SKINNY:

— Original owners Bill and Faye Elam opened Bill’s Donuts in 1960. In 1995, they sold the business to two of their children, Lisa and Jim Elam.

— One of the biggest attractions is that the donut shop is open 24 hours a day, except for certain holidays.

— The best donuts in the world run about 80 to 85 cents each. There are 2 different types of donuts the yeast ones (glazed) and the cake donuts, but in recent years they have added some delicious danish, creme horns, muffins and more. All of them live up to the delicious standards of Bill’s, especially the huge chocolate brownies with chocolate icing.

— Also known for their coffee, typically Boston Stoker, they also offer milk, juices and hot chocolates and a mini cappuccino bar.

— The booths are old and tight, the coffee bar seating is definitely a throwback style. Warning – you may find long lines on Saturday and Sunday mornings, but the lines go fast. It is worth it for the magic inside the display cases. Another thing.. we call it one of our “fat kid tricks.” If you have the donuts a day or two later, pop them in the microwave for about 15 seconds. It makes them taste brand new again.

The Round Donuts with Chocolate Icing and Cream Filling are Hungry Jax’s Favorite !

— Bill’s Donut Shop is also a huge supporter of local causes. They donate to dozens of charities and have been sponsoring local sports teams for many decades. They have a strong family belief in giving back to the community, which is deeply ingrained in their corporate philosophy.

— The Secret to the “Best Donuts in the World”, according to owner Lisa Elam is in 3 parts:

1) Bill’s uses only the purest, top quality oil to fry their donuts.

2) Top quality sugar and flour go into the donut recipes. Only the best ingredients have been used since 1960.

3) Cooking expertise from decades of experience. There is something to be said for experience and knowledge of workers who have been employed for 20 years or more. They know their craft, they know their industry and have developed a skill and a style. Most of the workers are truly seasoned veterans and expert donut makers overseeing the operation, not someone who has been working there a few months.

We now explore the ultimates in donut world.. which ones are the best? Which ones are the MUST EATS… The Food Adventures Crew has done their homework on this one. The King, Hungry Jax, Chef House and The Big Ragu have literally eaten dozens and dozens of these donuts over the years. Probably enough to fill up Vin Diesel’s car trunk. So here is the result of our years of research….

MUST EATS:

—THE PRETZEL DONUT: A huge pretzel shaped, glazed monster you have to twist to pull apart. Some parts of the donut are gooey and fresh, while other parts have the cooked glazed crust. This is the Big Ragu’s favorite donut of all time. It is a melt in your mouth delight.

—THE CHOCOLATE ICED ROUNDS WITH CREME FILLING: A simple round donut, iced with chocolate icing and injected with light cream.
Hungry Jax points to these as her favorites. The creme texture mixed with the icing and one of a kind Bill’s Donut flavor will put you on Dream Street.

—THE PEANUT BUTTER FILLED LONGJOHNS WITH CHOCOLATE ICING: Chef House’s favorite donut from Bill’s is one of their most sought after. This large rectangle pastry is iced with chocolate and stuffed with peanut butter creme. It’s one of those treats you bight into and say with a full mouth, “are you kidding me?”

—THE BUTTERY TWISTS: Are resident sweets expert, The King, will tell you that this is the best choice in Bill’s display case. A big donut that is buttery glazed and big on taste. Melt in your mouth delicious.

An Apple Crisp Muffin – Better Get Some Milk !

— THE CHOCOLATE GLAZED: WARNING! A glass of milk must be within 3 feet of you when eating these. These devilsfood cake donuts are the cats meow. We could eat a dozen of these ourselves.

— THE PERSIAN WITH NUTS: Huge cinnamon buns with peanut butter icing and crushed peanuts on top. Rich, filling and sinful, what a great way to start a morning.

— THE SOUR CREAM DONUT: It tastes nothing like it sounds. this is an old fashioned style, almost crunchy donut made with a bit of sour cream. The result is the inside is a lightly fluffy, vanilla flavor. The outside is a nice crunchy brown coating with a glaze.

— APPLE CRISP MUFFINS: How did they fit an apple pie into a muffin? This is the dark horse of the whole place and a rare sight. So grab ’em when you can. Thank us later, it will bring tears to your eyes.

Honorable Mention: The Blueberry Donuts are amazing. Also, you cant go wrong with a Jelly Donut with Vanilla Icing or a Powdered Donut filled with Cream. They also have a few donuts that are Custard Filled. The Big Ragu says the custard filled donuts will knock your socks off. There are so many others like the Apple Fritters and the Crullers, which when you say it sounds like you are gurgling salt water. Even the “Doughnut Stix” kick butt.

Again we say, every donut hole must kneel, every Long John must bow. Sprinkles or not, you have now experienced the upper echelon of the breakfast / dessert world. You have experienced the pinnacle of pudding in a glazed bun. You are lucky to live in Dayton, Ohio.. for you have experienced Bill’s Donut’s… The Greatest Donuts in the World.

Want scoop on all of Dayton’s greatest food stops? THEN LIKE FOOD ADVENTURES ON FACEBOOK HERE !

Check out our gallery below and see all the wonderful, magical donuts that Bill’s Donut Shop has to offer !

***** ALSO, DONT FORGET TO COMMENT BELOW FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN A FREE DOZEN DONUTS FROM BILL’S DONUTS !! *****

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Mudlick Tap House ‘s Inaugural Bourbon Dinner

April 16, 2015 By Lisa Grigsby

Germantown’s Mudlick Tap House recently added liquor to their offerings and tonight at 6pm they are celebrating with a bourbon dinner. Smart Guy In A Tie Cocktials owner, Brian Petro, will be conducting a Bourbon 101 throughout dinner which includes education on the basic nosing and tasting techniques of bourbon whiskey, as well as the rich history of the spirit. Chef Lee Anne House has created each course to pair with the featured bourbon cocktail. Here’s what’s on the menu:

1st course:
Gold Rush: Something to cool off the pallet while you are enjoying your Sriracha BBQ ribs
Pork spare ribs slow cooked to perfection. Finished with a sriracha BBQ and served with a cornbread muffin topped with lime cumin whipped butter.

2nd course:
Whiskey Buck: Rye Bourbon with a little bite. It’s a classic American cocktail to complement to a modern twist on a classic!
Braised chicken thighs with a parmesan potato gratin and a brussel sprout and bacon hash.

3rd course:
Bourbon Chiller: A vanilla infused Bourbon with coffee as a balance to the apple, rhubarb, and cinnamon
Apple and rhubarb cobbler served a la mode with cinnamon ice cream.

This is an exclusive event and the Tap House will not be open to the public. Reservations are limited and required. Cost is $50 per person and includes 3 courses and 3 cocktails (beer available upon request). Make reservations by emailing [email protected]!

All You Can Eat “Sushi Club” Hits Dayton + win free sushi

April 10, 2015 By Dayton937 329 Comments

The Alaska Roll up front, Raw Pepper Tuna and Raw Salmon in the back

Attention sushi lovers, you aren’t gonna believe this. For the first time ever, an all you can eat sushi restaurant has opened in the Gem City.

This special place, called the “Sushi Club” has been open for a couple of weeks in West Carrollton. Now, before you start thinking of the side sushi at a Chinese buffet, let us stop you, because you’re wrong. This place is more like a Brazilian Steakhouse setup, but for sushi. Actually, it is just a sushi restaurant, with an option to pay $16.99, and order sushi rolls until you are full. That’s how it works. And the quality is great !! Your humble Food Adventure Crew have already visited the place a handful of times, and we are hooked!

***Contest*** Want to win a free all you can eat sushi experience???

Comment below on why you should win and one lucky person will be chosen at random and will win dinner with the Food Adventures Crew at the Sushi Club!

Click to enlarge this roll called “Sexy on the Beach”

You certainly don’t have to get the all you can eat option, but it’s the best deal in the place. So get ready to grab some chopsticks, pour some soy sauce and stir in some wasabi. It is time to indulge to your hearts content! Time for your own Japanese Food Adventure !

HERE’S THE SKINNY:

— The Sushi Club is located at 2098 S. Alex Rd in West Carrollton

— The best deal is the all you can eat sushi rolls, for $16.99, available all day long. There are 47 different sushi rolls for you to choose from. You can order 2 at a time, and the waitress will bring out your order and you can place another order and so on until you are done. The meal is served with salad, soup and an orange for dessert. The salad is an amazing lettuce and mango salad with creamy dressing. Sometimes, edamame is also served on the house.

— If you want to order Ngiri sushi slices or sashimi raw slices, the fee is and additional 25cents per piece. But it is totally worth it to try 4 or so pieces each visit. The raw sushi pieces are fresh and delicious.

— The staff couldn’t be friendlier. They are very helpful, and always willing to explain the menu with a smile.

— Not a sushi fan? No problem! The menu features Hibachi Steak, Chicken, Shrimp and Lobster too !

With so many choices, let’s just say you can’t go wrong. From mango topped to tuna topped, from yellow tail to salmon roe, whatever you like, Sushi Club will deliver a roll that will blow your mind and your mouth!

After trying nearly 40 rolls, we give to you our patented MUST EATS at the Sushi Club !!

MUST EATS:

The Incredible Roll

— THE ALASKA ROLL: Raw salmon, cucumber and avocado . A simple roll, highlighting fresh salmon.

— SPICY YELLOWTAIL ROLL: This roll is a rarity in the sushi world. Raw yellowtail tuna is chopped and mixed with spicy mayo. The result is a creamy, fresh, raw taste.

— SEXY ON THE BEACH ROLL: We don’t know if they meant to name it the drink name and messed up or what. But we don’t care, it’s that good. Spicy yellowtail on the inside, topped with tuna and salmon

— THE INCREDIBLE ROLL: Shrimp Tempura and avacado, topped with spicy crabmeat, eel and sweet chili sauce. A huge blend of flavors in this one promises to become one of your favorites.

— THE TUNA AMAZING ROLL: Crabmeat, cucumber and cream cheese, topped with pepper tuna, eel and spicy mayo. Whoever named this roll, got it right. Its amazingly naughty.

The Fancy Roll

— THE SOUTH ALEX ROLL: A deep fried roll with smoked salmon, avacado and cream cheese. It is topped with scallions, eels sauce and spicy mayo. Very filling, this one will put a dent in your all you can eat plans.

—THE FANCY ROLL: Tuna, Salmon and avacado, topped with whitefish, miso, and spicy mayo sauce. A nice, big mouthful or flavor.

— THE TUNA ROLL: Raw tuna, and avacado, back to the basic melt in our mouth sushi on this one.

Honorable Mention: A couple of items here are worth mentioning because they are good and because we have not seen them in other sushi place before. Try the raw “Pepper Tuna” Nigiri. It’s lightly coated with black pepper. Also try the Fish Tempura roll. We have never seen these before and it’s not bad. Finally, they offer Raw Tilapia sushi. We again have never seen this anywhere before, and it was very much like yellowtail sashimi. We also love the fact that they have a nice sake selection, and we enjoyed a beer we had never seen on draft before, Kirin Ichiban, one of our fave bottled beers since the early 90’s.

Tuna Roll and Tuna Sashimi

Now… about the free sushi..

***** WIN A FREE ALL YOU CAN EAT SUSHI DINNER ! *****

Put a comment in the story below and 1 lucky person will win an all you can eat sushi feast with the Food Adventures Crew. One winner will be chosen at random next week !

If you come to the Sushi Club, you won’t ever have the “I just spent $20 on sushi and I am still hungry” problem. Instead, satisfy your sushi cravings and treat yourself! Tell them the Food Adventures Crew sent you ! You won’t regret giving this place a try. Roll on !

Speaking of rolls. We literally have ordered every sushi roll on the menu, so please check out our gallery below for killer pictures on what to expect.

Also – visit Chef House, The Big Ragu, Hungry Jax and The King on Facebook by clicking HERE. 5,000 fans can’t be wrong.

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FSB’s Latest Creation: Pomegranate Pale Ale!

April 7, 2015 By Dayton Most Metro

Fifth Street Brewpub, Dayton’s only co-op brewery introduces a brand new beer this Thursday- Pomegranate Pale Ale ̶ a small batch beer created by FSB’s Assistant Brewer Caleb Stapleton! FSB Pomegranate Pale Ale is like summer on tap!

This beer is clean and crisp, infused with pomegranate juice to give it a truly unique tartness that you’ll find both refreshing and invigorating. Remember, this is a small batch beer so quantities are limited. Tapping begins at 4pm on April 9. Get there early so you don’t miss out!