The cool weather, even during the day, certainly helped make the Saturday visit to the Whole Foods GTV a pleasant one. But there were plenty of changes from previous years – the bags were filled with less information and product, so they weren’t as heavy as in the past. The crowds were a little thinner than in the past, but still plenty to fill the tents and create plenty of long lines for small bites of food. And there were no over-sized displays with musical artists or cirque-style entertainers that dominated the tents. As one friend told me, it felt a bit more industrial this time around. Blame that on the recession.

Among our favorites were the alligator bites and the cucumber caviar; the food selections at Le Meridian (pork belly sandwiches), the ceviche at Casa Juancho, the scallops and tuna at the Waterfront Grille, Rosa Mexicana’s chips and guacamole, the bread pudding prepared by Chef Dewey from North One10, the steak from Angelo & Maxies and the wahoo from Centerplate. There was also LIQ – frozen popsicles flavored after mixed drinks like strawberry daqueri or a margarita. And a South African liquer called Amarula that could definitely give Baileys a run for its money.

After a few hours it was time to look for who was throwing the best party in the village.

-- Fred Gonzalez