Flay gets Grilled
After partying into the wee hours of the morning at The Florida Room, and doing a book signing along with Tyler Florence at 3:30 p.m. outside the Village, Bobby Flay closed the festival on stage cooking for one of the rowdiest crowds he’s ever faced (maybe because the Village tents had just closed, so people made their way over to Flay’s show feeling, uh, real good.).
“This is the craziest thing I’ve seen in my life,” he said. “Is this a cooking demo?”
With the audience (which was testosterone-laden with plenty of New York accents) cheering Flay each time he took a sip from his beer, Flay asked the crowd, “Where are we drinking next?” Someone shouted the Sagamore Hotel. “The Sagamore? Sagamore poolside. Can you make the reservations? For about 600 of us.”
Free for All
As the Village closed, it was time for revelers to begin looting. If bottles of wine were left open and on a table, it didn’t take long for people to pour the entire contents into their wine glasses. We noticed one guy leaving with the “Green – Recycle Here” golf flag. And one woman was proud to be walking out with a large cutout of the Osborne wines bull. Another popular item were the yellow chair backs at the chef stages that had quotes printed on them from the various chefs.
Grand Tasting Village - Day 2
Some notes on Sunday’s tasting tents on the beach, the final day of the South Beach Wine & Food Festival.
The Belvedere Vodka stand in the center of Tent 1 turned into a South Beach nightclub as the crowd overflowed and grooved to the sounds of DJ Edwin Adams. The velvet ropes had to go into full effect to limit the number of people on the stage, frustrating some who weren’t used to waiting. Several chefs made their way in for a drink after a long day cooking at their booths. Once inside, the wait at the bar was also like a crowded club, but hey, they were free.
Into the night
The Florida Room at the Delano was the sight for Bobby Flay’s private, invitation-only party on Saturday night where friends and fellow chefs enjoyed an open bar until 2 a.m. Making their way inside the swanky exclusive lounge around midnight were Guy Fieri, complete with his trademark sunglasses on the back of his head, and Japanese chef Morimoto, wearing his kimono. About an hour later Giada De Laurentiis arrived after having been at Danny DeVito’s earlier that night (And she’s due in 7 weeks? Are you kidding me?). Bobby and his wife arrived early and stayed late, mingling with friends and fans.
Hanging out back
Mario Batalli, Anthony Bourdain and Jamie Oliver chat it up with friends and fans at the back alley of DeVito South Beach Saturday night.
Bourdain and Batali open up about Miami
I admit it...I'm a fan of Anthony Bourdain's "No Reservations". So, although I had a chance to have a glass of wine and chat with him and his wife inside DeVito about his Puerto Rico episode (I was born and raised in la isla del encanto), I wanted to know more. Does he come to Miami to have an empanada at a hole in the wall, or does he just come relax?
And while Mario Batali let us venture into the kitchen, it didn't feel right to do anything but watch as he cooked up a storm with Jamie Oliver. It was time to chat it up with them in a laid-back setting. But where?
Look, it's Giada!
After stuffing myself with loads of Penne al Ragu with veal, Longbone Waygu Rib Eyes and all sorts of Italian food, I realized this was the first time I polished a plate of buffet food this quickly. Maybe because there was no rubbery chicken or soggy broccoli on this menu, but just plain good ol' home cooking made special thanks to Batali and Oliver's killer recipe mixing? Well, it could be. It was definitely worth my balancing act of plates and silverware on the restaurant's upstairs bar table!
Right after dinner, chilled cheesecake bites, followed by a fruity mix of chocolate drizzled strawberries and pineapple on a stick, were served as dessert. But no one was as sweet as Food Network's Giada de Laurentiis who was happy to show-off her gleaming smile while hitting up the crowd and taking pictures with excited fans.
The Naked Chef
Jamie Oliver watches over a hot stove while cooking at DeVito South Beach Saturday night.
Photo by Sebastian Dominguez
Batali strikes a pose
Batali looks happy to help feed a crowd of 300 as he cooks in the kitchen at DeVito South Beach Saturday night.
Photo by Sebastian Dominguez
Feeding an army
The kitchen at DeVito South Beach was a battleground Saturday night as the pasta boiled and the sauce simmered under Mario Batali and Jamie Oliver's close watch, making sure the buffet tables were covered and filled to the brim to feed the growing lines.
While Oliver stirred up the cheese tortellini, Batali helped out with the sauces and only had one request to keep his engine running.
"Where's the wine?"
Somebody quickly passed him a bottle of white wine, which the chef quicky uncorked. After serving himself a glass and having a few sips, he got right back to talking strategy with Oliver.
- Current 80.6 °F
- It's a romantic night
- Dine alfresco on Miami Beach
