I've been having a lot of
trouble with library DVDs lately. They would just display “skipping
damaged parts” for a while, then eject. Or would fail to start the
DVD player at all and eject themselves. Cleaning the disks didn't
help. The internet wasn't much help. There is advice to clean the
slot drive with a business card wrapped in a lens-cleaning cloth.
That scares me. The sales associate at Target assured me that the
non-brush slot drive cleaner that Maxell advertises doesn't exist.
(?!) Then I accidentally discovered that I wasn't pressing hard
enough on the disk with the DVD/lens cleaning cloth. Latest DVD
(Thurgood) went from not engaging the drive to playing
perfectly. Problem solved. I hope. So, I was very happy when two
exhibitors at the Fancy Food Show presented me with lens cleaning
cloths soon after I entered the north hall. I was hoping that this
meant lens cleaning cloths were the new trinket of choice, especially
since I promptly lost one of them. Alas, this was not the case. All
the press kits were on flash drives (the one from Walker's Shortbread
looks like a little cookie and the one from the Republic of Tea has a
wood-grain pattern), but there wasn't another lens-cleaning cloth at
the show. There were several silicone bracelets being offered, but
those are so over. Nobody is even wearing the Lance Armstrong
wristband, which started the whole fad, any more.
Okay. Will Gordon moment
is over. The Fancy Food Show is a surreal experience. After receiving a couple of samples outside from vendors who couldn't afford to be exhibitors, I entered the halls. Both halls at
Moscone—north and south—were packed with aisle after aisle of
exhibitors. I was walking past booth after booth of Japanese treats
when I suddenly found my self in a chocolate section, in front of the
Scharffen Berger booth. What a juxtaposition! And no matter how many times I walked an aisle, there was always something new that I had previously missed.
Everyone is incredibly
generous with food samples. Even the Hudson Valley Foie Gras people
pretended not to notice how much of their product I scarfed down.
After an hour of little nibbles, I was stuffed, and looking for
little packets of things I could take home with me and think about
later. I kept thinking I could take one bite and discard the rest of
each sample, but really, it was all so good that I was quickly
looking at an empty plate. Or empty cracker. I have a limited
capacity, so I didn't want to fill up on crackers, even though most
of them were premium crackers.
Something that really
surprised me was food sales at Cafe Savor inside the show. I don't know how anyone
could want a meal after being plied with all those samples of
excellent treats. Carlene and Rich LeFevre, frequent winners on the
competitive eating circuit, often go for dessert after a competition,
but they're the only competitive eaters who are still hungry after a
competition. And you would have to be a competitive eater to to sample all the tasty treats offered at this show.
Another surprise was that
the plastic bags provided for those who didn't have a tote bag for
all the literature offered by the exhibitors weren't immediately
snapped up by San Francisco residents who have to pay ten cents per bag, none of which are plastic, as plastic is politically
incorrect and not allowed.
International Glacé, Inc., which unfortunately is wholesale only, has the quality of crystalized ginger that Trader Joe's used to have. They are willing to sell to individuals, but unfortunately the minimum order for crystalized ginger is 44 pounds. Their equally amazing glacé fruits have have a 20 pound minimum, though.
Sukhi's Street Food Cart
gave me a little combination plate that was a meal in itself.
And for dessert, a 9-second microwave s'more from Shakespeare Chocolate, which sells a kit for making these.
This is a sculpture commissioned by Redwood Hill Farm to celebrate its 45th anniversary year. Created by Sarah Nep from 80 pounds (!) of the company's delicious Goat Milk Cheddar Cheese, this sculpture is very impressive.
JETRO, the Japan External Trade Organization, featured several demonstrations. This one is a mentaiko caviar canape. After watching the chef assemble these, everybody watching was treated to one.
Le Chef Bakery had the best-looking booth at the show!
Brand Castle makes adorable baking kits that will delight the children in your life. I asked for a flyer, so I could show the Cookie Cutter Collectors the product range, and it came with this adorable ninja cookie cutter attached.
Tea. Many brands of high
quality tea, all vying for your attention.
Pistachios. Many brands
of premium nuts, especially pistachios, which seem to be the latest thing. Have you seen this SuperBowl ad? Pistachios are certainly a lot more attractive now that the manufacturers have stopped dying them.
Walker's Shortbread. Made
from butter, sugar, flour and salt. And nothing else, except occasional inclusions like chocolate chips.
Kitchen Table Bakers.
This outfit makes cracker-like crisps entirely out of cheese. Well,
some of them have flavorings, but no flour, sugar, etc. So they can
be eaten by themselves or used for a cheese-on-cheese experience. Or
layered with anything you might serve with cheese. And perfect for the low-carb diet.
Relm West Labels & Packaging demonstrated their packaging by providing packaged treats.
And Thermosafe was there with several sizes of PolarPack, a blue ice-type product that stays frozen longer than anything else I've tried and works better than dry ice for shipping perishables. There was a large display of insulated carriers that would be good for caterers, containers for many different kinds of food and drink, and fancy tins that were custom made for various products.
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| Trinkets! |
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