Recently, I celebrated my birthday at La Poste Eatery and Wine Room and it was one of the best wine and food experiences ever. We decided to have wine pairings with dinner.

Our first course was the Foie Gras on Banana Bread with a sliced Banana with caramelized sugar on top that had a maple carmel syrup finished with cracked sea salt. We had a glass of Nicolas Feuillatte Brut Champagne. The hint of sweetness from the Champagne complimented the syrup and the Banana Bread and the driness of the brut matched perfectly with the salt. The Foie Gras melted in your mouth and had this creamy after taste.

The second course was an order of Ravioli with a field blend of mushrooms, fresh sage, cream, and parmesan reggiano. It was paired with Styring Estate Pinot Noir ’06, this was one of the best comfort combinations that I ever had. The Ravioli had a parmesan sage cream sauce with crispy pieces of sage on top that added a slight crispiness to the cream. The Styring Estate Pinot Noir was the perfect pairing. It was a very soft tasting with berries and finish with tannins. This is one of the best well balanced Pinot Noir that I have ever tasted.

The third course was fresh catch of John Dory, a nice crispy white fish with a wonderful red wine reduction with sliced carrots and sliced parsnips. A sweet and savory taste intertwined with the light fish was perfect and it was paired with Domaine Aubissieres Cuvee Silex Vouvray ’09.  It wasn’t tart at all, a slightly sweet taste of melon and fruits. I loved it because it didn’t have that sour taste that Sauvignon Blancs have. A wonderful summer wine that you can drink all summer long and for $16.99 a bottle with a 90 point rating from Robert Parker who wouldn’t want to.

The last course was a white chocolate bread pudding with dried cherries and a butter cream carmel sauce. It was paired with La Tour Vielle Banyuls dessert wine. First of all anything with white chocolate and bread pudding is exquisite. The taste that carried me into bliss was the port-style wine that in France they chill and drink it as an aperitif. This nutty, fruity dessert paired perfectly with the chocolate dessert.

I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone who loves wines, food and wonderful ambiance.

Relish Restaurant Group announced today that for the second year in a row four of their area restaurants will hold a Veterans Appreciation Week giving all veterans a free entrée. The Bistro, Chalk Food +Wine, Local 127 and Lavomatic Café will salute area troops with a free meal in celebration for Veterans Day. The event will last from November 8^th through November 14^th during regular business hours.

“Our service members deserve more than one day in recognition of their service and sacrifice to our country, this is why we are giving back for an entire week,” said Summer Crenshaw, Director of Marketing for Relish Restaurant Group. “Last year we were able to serve several hundred area veterans, donating nearly $10,000 in meals. We expect this year to be even bigger and we are excited to serve our veterans.”

This year the restaurants will also offer patrons the opportunity to give back to veterans, through a special patriotic-themed cocktail menu with proceeds benefiting Disabled American Veterans (DAV). “We’re very impressed with Relish Restaurant Group’s generous recognition of veterans,” said Marc Burgess, Executive Director of DAV’s National Headquarters in Cold Spring, Ky. “In addition to providing a great meal, they’re going a step further and giving their patrons an opportunity to support our veterans service programs.”

To participate in appreciation week, veterans just need to show proof of military service and make a reservation at one of four restaurants. The veteran will choose on entrée from a special menu.

Proof of military service includes:
• U.S. Uniform Services Identification Card
• U.S. Uniform Services Retired Identification Card
• DD214
• LES
• Citation or Commendation
• Photograph in uniform
• Veterans Organization Card

Participating restaurants:

Local 127
127 W. 4th St
Cincinnati OH 45202
513-721-1345
www.mylocal127.com

The Bistro
413 Vine St
Cincinnati OH 45202
513-621-1465
www.bistrocincinnati.com

Lavomatic Cafe
1211 Vine St
Cincinnati OH 45202
513-621-1999
www.lavomaticcafe.com

Chalk Food and Wine
318 Greenup St
Covington, KY 41011
859-643-1234
www.Chalkfoodwine.com

Churchill Downs Entertainment Group is hosting Fork, Cork & Style this Sunday from 1-9 pm at the racetrack. The festival is bringing in celebrity chefs and party specialists, and Bringing to life its theme of “Fork, Cork & Style” the festival will present signature foods from around the country, celebrity chef cooking demonstrations, a wine tasting featuring 150 elite brands and innovative ways to dress up your next tailgating party.

There will be cooking demonstrations by Emeril Lagasse, “Top Chef” finalists (Brian Malarkey, Eli Kirshtein, & Betty Fraser) and local Louisville chefs.  There is a grand wine tasting with over 150 brands (via Southern Wine & Spirits) from 2-5 pm and 6-9 pm. Restaurants from Louisville and across the nation will also be serving tasty bites. According to the web site, notable restaurants participating include:

Chicago area’s Albano’s Pizzeria, #8 on Travel Channel’s “101 Tastiest Places to Chow Down” for their football-sized pizza puff ; Buffalo’s Anchor Bar, home of the original Buffalo Chicken Wings and #17 on the “101 Best Places to Chow Down” list; Memphis hot spot Central BBQ, rated #1 BBQ joint in Tennessee, which will prepare delicious ribs and pulled pork; West Virginia’s Hillbilly Hot Dogs, which placed #15 on the Travel Channel’s “101 Best Places to Chow Down” list and is best known for their 15-inch Home Wrecker hot dog topped with a pile of tasty condiments; Chicago’s world Famous Billy Goat Tavern and Grill, which brings their highly publicized cheeseburger adored by the cast of Saturday Night Live who performed the sketch “Cheezborger, Cheezborger”; Tony Luke’s in South Philly, home of the ultimate cheesesteak featured on Travel Channel’s “Man v. Food”.

So there you go. Come for the wine and food and enjoy some live music while you’re there. Between Beer Fest on Friday, a wedding on Saturday, and this event on Sunday … well, this weekend is most definitely the Last Bash of Summer for Kevin & myself. We’re staying the night in Louisville, an option I highly recommend.

Tickets are $29 for all music performances, cooking demos and one portion of food from the restaurant of your choice. For $64, you can get all of the above plus access to the Grand Wine Tasting inside Millionaires Row 4. For $200, you can do all of the above and meet Emeril while you’re at it.

Can’t make it to Louisville? Drive three more hours and you can attend the next Fork, Cork, & Style, held in Chicago on Oct 2.

Full Disclosure: While I was interested in this event anyway, Kevin & I were given free tickets to attend the event, although I have no idea if we have access to the Grand Tasting.

You’ll recognize Bryant’s name from some of our more recent Wine Shop Wednesday posts, as both he and Chef Dave have been out at the Wise Owl Wine Bar in West Chester.

I got a call from Bryant this afternoon and here’s what I know so far. La Poste is looking to be a little of everything good, it sounds like. That includes having a “massive and all-encompassing wine list” that includes plenty of by the glass selections as well as by the bottle.

It sounds like primarily American cuisine. Bryant got excited as he described how they want to have a bit of the ambience of the a champagne lunch at the Waldorf in the ’60s, but don’t worry – they’re going to have primarily bistro fare and maybe a tasting menu so that Chef Dave can show off his stuff.

Tink’s is in a lovely location in Clifton on Telford and Ludlow. It’s a neighborhood restaurant and the owners want to cultivate that neighborhood feeling, hoping they have regulars. Happily, Bryant also told me he’d save a regular seat at the bar for me.

La Poste is set to open in Fall 2010.

Restaurants mark up cheaper bottles by an average of three times the retail price, while the prices of higher end wines are typically doubled, says Ronn Wiegand, a master sommelier who runs the industry newsletter RestaurantWine.

Last week, I got to eat at the wonderful (and amazingly expensive) new restaurant Sage in Las Vegas’s new Aria / City Center complex. My friend and I picked a $44 bottle of Argentinian Malbec off of the wine list, and proceeded to enjoy two bottles, but I was aware that the bottle probably retailed for around $15. We made a decision to “not think about it.”  That said, we both felt we got off lucky with the $44. Mixed into the French listings was a bottle of Domaine de la Romanee-Conti La Tâche, which was listed at over $9000. Per bottle. Ouch!

The CNN article continues, with tips about wine by the glass:

Think that’s rough? Prices for wine sold by the glass are tripled or even quadrupled, Wiegand says, since restaurants have to account for the chance that they won’t sell the whole bottle before it spoils.

I hate ordering wine by the glass, but occasionally, that’s all I want and I bite the bullet. If I’m with a group though, or if Kevin and I actually want the same glass, I’ll tend towards a bottle. Back when Tonic was Twist, I would always order a bottle of the Gruet Sparkling Wine from New Mexico as opposed to just a glass. The difference between an ~$14 glass and a $40 bottle seemed negligible when people were sharing. I recently noticed that Tonic still offers the Gruet on their list, so if I can ever tear myself away from cocktails, I might resort to the full bottle again.

Many restaurant wine lists have a sweet spot – that spot where you can find several bottles of wine in a similar price range that is actually affordable and not so far off from the retail price to give you a heart attack. At Sage, we found that spot in the Argentinian section. At the Wine Cellar at Las Vegas’s Rio, that spot was located in the Spanish wine section. So if you have to shop by price, look for the sweet spot.

Cheers to 1WineDude‘s Joe Roberts
for tweeting this tip!
Dollar sign used under Creative
Commons from OldMaison

Josh trained all the bartenders (Benjamin, Maggie, Erin, and Mike), and every one of them has that vintage, craft cocktail thing down to the art that it is. Even better, they’ll explain anything to you, from how and why they make their own bitters, tinctures, and ice to the history of the cocktail on which you’re sipping.

Photo by Bob 5chw4r7z

For me, the test of any bar is the Manhattan. If you read my post earlier this week, you know that Josh made me a flawless Manhattan. I expect nothing less from the folks at Tonic, and they deliver. My request of “stirred and up” might as well be laughed at – how else would they serve it? And I love that.

The cocktail menu is large and eclectic, and the menu is divided up into several sections: Classical (e.g., Moscow Mule, Aviation), Classic Punches (e.g., Bourbon Milk Punch), Neo Classical Originals (e.g., The Liberal Liberal and the absinthe-included Lumberjack Frappe), and New Punches (e.g., Teachers Punch). The menu not only lists what is in each drink, but provides you with a history of each cocktail.

Photo by Bob 5chw4r7z

My first night there, Benjamin made me a Bluegrass Flip. It was a drink I’d never heard of, but really enjoyed. Honestly, I’m not overly sure what was in it besides some liquor mixed with a Bourbon Barrel Stout and some egg; maybe some bourbon? Trust me, it’s a lot better than it sounds, and it lives on their Specials menu.

My friends all have a range of favorites. One girlfriend swears by the Liberal Liberal, which is a slight twist on a Manhattan. The recipe calls for Wild Turkey 101, sweet vermouth, Amaro, and the house-made orange bitters. I know that a couple of the bartenders actually prefer the drink with different bourbon. I tried it with the Wild Turkey, but it wasn’t up my alley. I suspect I might enjoy it more with Four Roses. Another girlfriend is very attached to the classic Moscow Mule, which is simply Smirnoff Lime Juice and Goslings Ginger Beer. Finally, a friend of mine will always order an Old Old-Fashioned. I had to ask – what’s a New Old-Fashioned? Apparently newer Old Fashioneds have some fruit muddled in the bottom, but the older style focuses more on the bourbon.

Photo by Bob 5chw4r7z

Twice now I’ve ordered snacks. Tonic shares a kitchen with Local 127, but don’t expect to order off the Local 127 menu. Tonic offers light bites, but they’re quite tasty. Thus far I’ve tried a rather yummy plate of Stuffed Baked Potato Skins (so cute and tiny!), Ohio Kennebec Fries with Cheddar Sauce, and an order of Sliders. I’ve seen the Grass Fed Fox Hollow Burger with Cheese. It’s huge and according to a friend of mine, quite tasty. Because they share the kitchen with Local 127, Tonic adheres to the same policy of local foods from local growers and markets.

Oh the wine list? I haven’t paid much attention. Because Tonic is so focused on craft cocktails, I don’t expect them to have the world’s largest wine list. However, since they are a part of Local 127, I do expect what they offer to be top-notch. I was happy to see they still offer the Gruet sparkling wine from New Mexico, which is the bottle I always ordered at Twist ($8 a glass at Tonic). They also offer a nice Montfort Chenin Blanc ($5) and a rather eclectic red selection including Chile and South Africa. It’s a short list, all by the glass. I should probably ask for a wine list next time I visit, just to see what all of the options are on the off chance I order a bottle.

As for beer, they have a nice selection of bottles, including Lindemann’s Framboise and Bells Seasonal. Their tap includes Unibroue’s Maudite, La Chouffe, Delirium, several ciders, and the Left Hand Polestar Pilsner, among many others.

The prices at Tonic aren’t cheap. On a good night, it’s easy for two people to run up a bill of around $100. At the same time, you’re not drinking well drinks either. I’ve been to Tonic three times now, although I want to go more. Of course, I’m in Las Vegas now, trying to find a decent Manhattan in Sin City. But I’m actually home the entire month of February. Do you know what that means? It means you can find me at Tonic.

My review:

My thanks to Bob 5chw4r7z for use of the photos!

The Greater Cincinnati Independents, a group of more than 30 locally owned restaurants, are offering prix-fixe menus of $26.09 per person. This generally includes 3-courses, including dessert. Beverages and taxes are not included, but many places are offering paired wines or wine flights for a special price.

The point of all this, of course, is to give you a chance to try a new restaurant and to support the little guy while you're at it. After all, why eat at a chain when you can eat at a unique-to-our-city cafe? Before you roll your eyes at me, Restaurant Week includes places such as Dilly Deli Cafe, Mesh, Hugo, York Street, Lavomatic, and more. Restaurant Week runs through Sunday, so get out there and give it a try!

While you're debating on the restaurant you want to visit, you can enjoy the early start to Oktoberfest. The Goodwill, er, Gemuetlichkeit Games start on Thursday with the Beer Stein Races at noon on Fountain Square. Contestants race across the Square double-fisted with full beer steins that weigh around 35 lbs. The winner is judged by both best time and the amount of beer left in the container. A second is added onto each contestant's time for each ounce spilled.  After the Beer Stein races, you're treated to the Pretzel Toss. Basically, it's cornhole with pretzels.

I love Friday's event, however. It's the Weiner Dog Races, again at noon on the Square. It had to be one of the cutest – and most hilarious – things I witnessed last year. You can bet I'll be there again, camera in hand, to snap those adorable dogs running (and aimlessly wandering) while dressed as hot dogs. I'm a little bothered by the hot dog vendors on the Square during this, but Kevin finds it wonderfully funny. 

Enjoy!

We love our German beer here in Zincinnnati (see Oktoberfest and Hofbrauhaus). So why not open a biergarten / brewpub featuring one of Cincinnati's original German brews? Christian Moerlein will be opening a 15,000 square foot restaurant and brewery, complete with outdoor biergarten, down on the Banks.

The new multi-story brewpub will be built on top of a parking garage across from the Great American Ball Park.
The restaurant, to be called the Moerlein Lager House, will seat 500
inside and 600 in the beer garden.  It will span the block on Main Street between Mehring Way and Theodore M Berry Way, in stumbling distance from the ball park, really.

According to the Business Courier, "Preliminary designs for the two-story building include a green roof,
balconies and terraces with views of the river, Roebling Suspension
Bridge and the ballpark."  I fell in love with green roofs in Vancouver, so I'm pretty excited about just that one small detail on its own.

The new restaurant will also offer brewery tours. It's slated to open in 2011.

I can't imagine the place being anything but packed all the time. When I lived in Maryland, my friends would go to the store looking for Moerlein beer, which just baffled me at the time. After all, I'd grown up with it. Moerlein is nationally known as a maker of craft brews and, combined with the ball park, will be a huge hit for tourists.

Yes, you read that right. In the bar area only, McCormick &
Schmick's offers a $1.95 Happy Hour menu, available with the purchase
of two drinks per person. Don't roll your eyes – those drinks do not
have to be alcoholic. Yes, for the purchase of a coke and an iced tea,
you can have a giant $1.95 hamburger.

I absconded with a menu. The $1.95 munchies include a half pound
cheeseburger with cajun fries (also available as a cajun burger),
steamed mussels, beer battered fried mushrooms, fish tacos, and spinach
& artichoke dip. There is also a $3.95 menu that includes crab
& shrimp dip and fried calamari. I went with the gigantic 1/2-pound
burger, cooked to order, and Kevin chose the fish tacos. We also chose
the spinach & artichoke dip. The food is excellent, especially
considering the price.

They have several drinks on the Happy Hour menu. I tried a peach
apple sangria for $5.50, around the average price of their Happy Hour
martinis. Draft beer includes Blue Moon, Stella, and Guinness for
$5.75/glass. For those not as picky about their beer, Michelob Light is
$2.75.

In addition to the Happy Hour drinks, M&S specializes in their
Cocktail History. There's a comprehensive menu detailing the history of
the cocktail, drink by drink, at every table at the bar. Some of these
aren't actually available, like the Pisco sour, which requires a
special type of brandy. Many of the drinks that are available are
listed on the back of the Happy Hour menu.

We're always intrigued by cocktails – real mixed drinks as opposed to
just a bourbon and coke. I also feel better about them price-wise.
Sure, M&S has a great wine list. But I have trouble paying $14 for
a glass of Cloudline Oregon Pinot Noir when I've previously paid $19.99
for a bottle of it at the local store. Sometimes the markup is a little
too much for me to bear. I handle it better when I've never purchased a
bottle outside of the restaurant. But a true cocktail? I feel like I'm
really getting something for my $8-9.

Kevin started out with the Kentucky Speedbump. It looked like a girly
drink, but was quite tasty. Served in a martini glass with sugar around
the edges, the Speedbump is a shaken mixture of Makers Mark, navan
vanilla liquer, and fresh citrus. Yum.

I tried the Harry's Bar Bellini. I'm a huge fan of the Bellini. I had
my first at the Wynn Las Vegas back in February, stuck with that
particular bar & drink the entire trip, and now compare every
Bellini to the Wynn. I do not know if the Bellini at the Wynn was
correct, but I know it used moderately priced champagne. The M&S
Bellini did not live up to my own Bellini standards. It's a blend of
Absolut Peach, fresh white peach puree, and a touch of sparkling wine.
I thought the white peach made the drink too bitter. Kevin rather liked
it and finished it off for me.

I'd highly recommend the M&S Happy Hour. It happens twice a day,
same prices, from 4-6:30 pm and 9:30 – 11 pm. For the early session in
particular, I recommend getting there at 5 pm or earlier. We've often
tried this Happy Hour, but this is the first time we've been able to
get a seat.

Enjoy!

Note: Occasionally I'll repost an older post, just because the information is still valid and I don't want it to get lost in the shuffle. This post was from August, 2007, but M&S still has an unbelievable Happy Hour. You won't want to miss it.

Did you know Cincinnati was big enough to have two different Restaurant Weeks sponsored by two different organizations? Neither did I. The event I usually promote is sponsored by the Greater Cincinnati Independents and brings attention to locally owned eateries. The latest Restaurant Week is all about eating downtown, which I find to be equally important. 

Downtown Restaurant Week includes over 20 downtown restaurants. For those of you who haven't been downtown in years, yes, we have that many restaurants. In fact, this is a great opportunity to experience the new downtown, from the Gateway Quarter and resurging Over the Rhine to the remodeled and lively Fountain Square area and on down to Sawyer Point.

Downtown Restaurant Week runs from Monday, August 10 through Sunday, August 16. For $35 you get a 3-course dinner. At some of the restaurants, you'll get two dinners for $35.  Menus are available at the Do Downtown web site. 

Participating restaurants include Akash India, Arnold's, Black Finn, Boi Na Braza, Bootsy's, Daveed's, JeanRo Bistro, Jeff Ruby's Steakhouse, Lavomatic, Mixx Ultra Lounge, Montgomery Inn Boathouse, Morton's, Nicholson's, Nicola's, Orchids, Palomino, Scotti's, Sung Korean Bistro, Trattoria Roma, The Palace, and Via Vite.

Oh, and that other Restaurant Week? It's currently scheduled for Sept 14-20. The deals are just bustin' out all over!