Muffin Top

In addition to the Memorable Eats, the Fancy Food Show has its share of memorable sights–the place is a feast for the eyes as well as…well, a feast (of samples).

First off, the show encompasses both north and south halls of the Moscone Center–no small feat. Connie and I walked the halls for five hours and we saw “the whole show,” in disbelief at our accomplishment. To tell the whole truth, we walked past the majority of stalls without checking in to manage this feat. In other words, the fancy food show is really close to that vision of heaven with eternal food and samples.

My memory is a blur of tastes and sights…

But amidst all the sights, I want to call out a few that I saw…

FOOD CELEBRITIES
What is a food show without a handful of food celebrities hawking their wares and shmoozing with the thousands of foodies crowding the convention hall?

Paula Deen…

Here’s Paula Deen hawking her brand. When Connie and came around her booth earlier in our walk, we remarked on all the Paula Deen products, only to have the booth people claim she’d be by later. Oooh. I love Paula Deen. We made a note to try to come back in a couple of hours.

When we finished roaming the South Hall we went back to her booth, only to see a HUGE line of people waiting to meet her and take a picture with her. Patience is not one of my virtues; I snapped a picture of her from afar. Hell, I’ll photoshop myself in if I’m desperate. I would like to say, however, that she was the only food celebrity hugging her admirers and taking pictures arm in arm with her fans.

Ina Gartner aka The Barefoot Contessa…

Here’s Ina Gartner with her fans. Unlike Paula, she stayed behind the counter while taking pictures with her admirers, in her cool Hampton-esque way. Despite my love-hate relationship with Ina Gartner, I was still a bit starstruck to be within FEET of her.

Paul Prudhomme:

He was signing book after book! He’s lost a bit of weight since I saw him last on television–and was busy…signing books.

Those were my encounters with the Famous at the Fancy Food Show. Next, are a few notes regarding other sights at the show…

THE BEST AND THE WORST BOOTH BABES

FRESH metro mint water!

Some of the booths were over the top in appearance–and there were a fair number of oddly dressed booth “babes” (such as a pair of people dressed as an “Adam and Eve” pairing–wearing body tights and fig leaves over “crucial body parts.”) But the Metro Mint people were the FRESHEST! They were dressed in white, with spiffy ties that matched their Warez. Just crisp. Plus, their new orange and lemon mint water were wonderful (especially the orange).

“slaves” over at numi:

Ugh. Can you believe this? This was possibly the WORST sight, in my opinion–it made me downright uncomfortable to see the women rolling tea balls in front of everyone. They looked like slaves.

There you have it, the Fancy Food Show from my vantage point.