I will dream of Miami ...

Words hardly do justice to the incredible, awesome time I had this weekend.

Well, one word does come to mind: Overstimulating.

My first trip to the Food Network's South Beach Food and Wine Festival far exceeded my expectations. Turns out, all of the things I worried would cut into the fun - crowds, lines, getting shut out of demos - were not an issue.

In their place were all these wonderful things I never anticipated. A well-stocked goodie bag. A waterford wine glass. A lanyard with a clip attached so you could wear the wine glass around your neck. A rum tent.

Someone really put a lot of thought into this.

We started as soon as the festival opened at 11 a.m., walking past Peter and Paul to cross under the golden gates into our own personal heaven - at least for the next seven hours.

We passed tent after tent, all with signs beckoning us in with promises of meeting some of the country's greatest food personalities - not just those on the Food Network.

To be honest, a lot of the details of the day are a little bit of a fog. That's where this whole overstimulation comes in. And I was feeling that way well before we hit the rum tent.

What kind of Food Network groupie wouldn't feel that way? We saw Bobby Flay, Rachael Ray, Emeril, Michael Symon, Paula Deen, Guy Fieri. There were stars everywhere, many of them happily working the crowd and chatting it up with their friends. We got our picture with Robert Irvine.

All this sandwiched between the beautiful greenish blue waters of the Gulfstream in the Atlantic and Ocean Drive.

I LOVE MIAMI!!!!

Forget the all you could eat food and wine. Just being there was euphoric.

Of course there was a highlight of the day: The Rachael Ray signing.

She was the last in my tri-fecta of first wave Food Network favorites. She was really my first, the one I watched in college who made me really think I could be successful in the kitchen. I packed my little Yum-O shirt just for the fest and started staking out her demo tent for seats practically as soon as we got there. Forget that Bobby Flay was on stage. He was the farthest thing from my mind this time around. I wanted to see Rachael.

The wait wasn't long before she came on stage for her demo, much the same as on t.v. Maybe a little bit more reserved. Maybe a little distracted by the live audience. Maybe a little tired. This was already day four of the festival. But she was every bit as warm and welcoming as you would imagine.

After the demo I bolted over pretty quickly to the tent where she would do the book signing. The book people were pretty strict, saying she might only sign one book and only one bought at the festival.

But I had something else I wanted to try and sneak under the radar. I had the very first copy of her magazine, Everyday with Rachael Ray, and I wanted her to sign it.

As I walked up to the table and put my two items down I heard the woman in front of my gushing.

"Ohhhhhh, you have the first copy of the magazine," she said.

I looked up and realized it was the editor. That might not seem that awesome to anyone else, but I'm a journalist. I can appreciate it.

I asked her if she would sign it too. At first she insisted that I didn't really want her to.

"No I really do," I told her. "I really want you to sign it."

She got a big smile on her face and started flipping through the pages.

"Where should I sign it?" she asked.

"Anywhere you want," I told her.

"I'll sign my column," she said.

She held it up and showed Rachael, who slapped her signature on the cover.

And that was it. It didn't occur to me until I walked away that I could have told her I'm a reporter. Oh well. It was still a great moment.

Then I followed the sound of the steel drum band down the yellow sand road. The rum was waiting ...

A little postscript: The rest of the festival was a blast. After a few trips to the rum tent, Paula Deen even started to grow on me. At the very least she's a great entertainer. Guy Fieri was a great way to end the festivities. And then of course we had the perfect end to a perfect weekend. We capped off the trip with brunch at Emeril's : )

It's the FINAL COUNTDOWN ...

Cue the trumpets from that cheesy Europe song.

Or just forget about the trumpets altogether and start your own countdown.

For me, I'm less than a week away from SoBe.

I was so busy relaxing all weekend and recharging my battery for the big event I forgot to post my weekly installment on the blog countdown.

But yes, there's a decent chance that next time I post it will be photos of the South Beach Food and Wine Festival.

Of course my festival experience would not be complete without the appropriate attire. This time I'm conjuring Rachael Ray. My Yum-O shirt arrived in the mail this week in perfect time for me to have for the food festival.

Everyone sing with me. The final countdown ...

Opa! Greek Glendi style

The lure of a baklava sundae got stronger every day leading to the weekend.

I knew it was time for the Greek Glendi, the annual celebration of all things Greek at St. Barbara's in Sarasota. It's pretty clear when you go to this sort of thing that Greek people know how to eat, and party.

The Glendi was one of the first must go to events I learned about when I moved to Florida. The office I worked in was right up the street, and I think we went both Thursday and Friday for lunches of moussaka and baklava.

Since then, I've learned the Glendi is more fun as a weekend event. Especially with this year's discovery that you can buy a bottle of wine for $15 (two for $25, for the avid wine drinkers) and then spend an afternoon strolling through the little bazaar sipping some vino. Despite common thought to the contrary, Greece can actually put forth a few decent wines. Just stay away from the retsina.

For the most part, us outsiders stay on the periphery of the real fun, sitting in folding white chairs and letting members of the parish captivate us with their Greek dancing. We figured they had a hidden stash of ouzo they weren't serving to the company.

We did become fully involved in the festivities when it came to the eating. I spent much of the week contemplating the menu and decided this would be the year to try the lamb shank, what turned out to be a hearty and warm choice for a pretty frigid evening.

And despite the fact the temperature dropped to about 50 degrees (that's pretty cold for us Floridians) I couldn't leave without my baklava sundae. I wandered over to the lonely looking lady charged with manning the ice cream table on this chilly night.

Whoever came up with this concept was brilliant. They pour the honey and nut mixture - the baklava filling - over ice cream and top with a cherry. I find the cream kind of cuts the sweetness of the honey mix, and lets you enjoy the best part of the baklava without all of the flaky phyllo. All it needed was a good dollop of whipped cream.

I even let the little old Greek woman sucker me into buying the church cookbook. I thought it was the most appropriate memento from the celebration.

Of course that leaves the obvious question: What the heck is a glendi? The answer is actually pretty obvious. Glendi is the Greek work for party.

Opa!

12 Days: 7 Hrs: 40 Min.

It's getting close. So close I can practically taste the bite-size South Beach delectables and smell the salty breeze of the Atlantic.

We're down to two weeks until the big South Beach Food and Wine Festival. At this very moment two weeks from now my friend and I will be perusing the tents of the Grand Tasting, scoping out the best sample-sized Miami cuisine and some nice, tasty vinos.

Yeah! What could be more thrilling?

(The countdown in the title, by the way, is for the start of the festival Thursday. We're making a fashionably late appearance : )

I love Luna, and an evening at the jetty

This week my editors thought it was a good idea to send me to Venice to explore why its elderly residents are so opposed to school taxes (I know, it seems obvious). For the uninitiated, Venice is this little city south of Sarasota that has become quite the retirement community. The median age is 65.

I end up in Venice a fair amount, but usually it's a quick trip to a school and back to the office. I don't think I've ever taken the time to really immerse myself in the local culture. Now that I have, let me tell you, these people live in style.

I decided to spend my day like a local, starting with some time in the large print section of the library before strolling through the shops on Venice Avenue. I sat in the park at one of the tables with the checkerboard tile tops listening to bluegrass music and talking to residents soaking in the sunshine. What a life!

I've always enjoyed Venice. Over the years I've visited a lot for work or to meet up with friends for dinner. It has this quaint, kitschy old Florida charm that has disappeared from so many other places. The beaches are great. There's a wine bar and decent little restaurants. Sure, I don't exactly fit into the demographic this time of year. But that almost makes it more interesting.

Anyway, no trip to Venice is complete without a visit to Luna Ristorante. It's this homey Italian restaurant that operates out of a cute Venetian-style building. Inside, the decor is more like a sports bar. But on a nice day - and there are plenty of them - you can sit at one of the metal tables on the patio surrounded by a hedge of rose bushes and overlooking a fountain. They play Frank Sinatra and Harry Connick, Jr. They're old school. They don't even have a Web site.

One of the best things about Luna is the fresh baked white bread they bring to the table with this spicy (note the spicy) pepper relish. A friend of mine noted on a recent trip that it's so good she could just eat that as her dinner. The other best thing is the lasagna. It's the kind you can tell is homemade, its layers of beef, Italian sausage, noodles and ricotta cheese wrapped in gooey mozzarella and blanketed in thick tomato sauce. It's simple, not overdone with a lot of execssive spices. It's the simplicity that makes it so appealing. This time I noticed that the sauce kind of tastes like the one my mom makes (awwww).

The portions make Luna all the more worthwhile. I easily get two meals from the lasagna (unless I'm really hungry). One time I ordered spaghetti with veal, peppers and onions and had so much left over I had to freeze a bunch of it.

I capped off my dinner at Luna with a trip to Brindley's wine shop, which has a surprisingly nice selection of carmeneres from Chile. Then it was on to the jetty. The jetty's a fun place to fish, but this time I was just going to take in the scenery.

I busted out one of the plastic wine glasses in the back of my car, made friends with the baby seagulls and soaked in the sunset.

That's what I call a lovely evening (and workday for that matter)!

On a final note, this post, like the corresponding Facebook photo album, is dedicated to Emily, a faithful reader of my blog with whom I look forward to many splendid evenings at the jetty when she returns from Senegal.

Happiness is ...

... good friends, the beach, a mommy apron, some paella and plenty of vino. Blissful!

A lovely Sunday!

I think I've decided that my new favorite day of the year is the annual Forks and Corks food and wine festival at the Ringling Museum.

I've gone every year since they started doing it in 2008, and every time it seems like it gets better - more food, more wine, better music. It's just so lovely to spend the afternoon leisurely strolling around the courtyard of the Ringling. One of the pourers from Miami said it's probably the best venue he's been to for that kind of festival anywhere in Florida. Cheers to the Fresh Originals!

Anyway, there were a few big winners of the day. Michael's on East had the same ginger and garlic flank steak with fresh ground horseradish they had at the Lakewood Ranch festival. Delicious. Ceviche represented with a paella, made in the traditionally giant paella pans you see in Valencia. Probably our two favorites were the Mayan chocolate cupcake (nice kick of heat and cinnamon) from The Bijou Cafe and the braised kobe beef from Ophelia's. By the time we got to Ophelia's I had really reached my full stomach capacity, but the flavors were so great (think mushroom ragout and white truffle cream) I stuffed every bite of it in.

On the wine front, there was a lovely tent with Pinot Noirs from the west coast and lots of California representation. I got to try the Swanson Alexis cabernet sauvignon that my friend Melissa raves about.

And honestly, we really didn't have a bad sample. Sure, there were some things that could have been better, but by and large the restaurants really stepped up to the occasion and put their best flavors forward. LOVE it!

Oh, and yes those are wine humor t-shirts my friend Melissa and I are wearing in the picture. Surprisingly, they were a big hit! We got a TON of compliments, a photo taken by one of the pourers and an invite to some upcoming wine events (and some decent pours from people who presumed we take our vino seriously!) Talk about a conversation starter.

Sarasota Forks and Corks

OK ... I can already hear Emily laughing from her little hut in Senegal.

Yes, I'm all dorkily excited about another food festival.

This time it's the Forks and Corks food and wine festival right here in Sarasota. A group of local restaurateurs started doing it two years ago at the gorgeous Ringling Art Museum.

I can think of few better ways to spend a Sunday afternoon than sipping wine, eating food from some the area's best restaurants and strolling around the grounds of the museum.

And I expect this to be the best festival yet. The first year they had the festival in June, a terribly humid and miserable time of year for eating and drinking in Florida. Last year they moved it up to May, but it didn't make much of a difference.

Finally, they got the picture and we're on for January.

Some of the girls and I got special wine humor t-shirts (think sayings like "Drinks Well with Others"). We've got our tickets.

Now, less than two weeks and counting ... I'll have a drink for you Emily, you smart ass : )

Happy days are here again ...

Call it Christmas, just two months early. This past week I came in official receipt of my tickets for two upcoming food fests - the Suncoast Food and Wine Festival in Lakewood Ranch and the South Beach Food and Wine Festival in February in Miami.

As mentioned before, I've been wanting to go to the South Beach fest for years, largely because it involves all of my favorite Food Network personalities.

Although it can't boast the likes of Emeril, Bobby or Rachael, the Lakewood Ranch festival is exciting in its own right. For $60, I get to eat and drink as much as I want, with much of the food coming from big ticket restaurants I can't normally afford to go to. Even better is that Starbucks is usually on hand giving away packages of their wrapped biscotti and cookies. I can easily find ways to get the most of my admission!

Off to SoBe the wizards ... the wonderful wizards of food!

I watched the countdown tick off the minutes, right until midnight this morning.

That's when tickets for the 2010 South Beach Food and Wine Festival went on sale. I've been shut out in years past, and this year I wasn't going to miss it.

Bobby Flay wrapped up his Throwdown as midnight struck and the magical virtual box office opened. Within six minutes I had in my possession (electronically at least) a coveted ticket to the Grand Tasting.

I can imagine it now. Me, on the sandy, white beach tasting the finest of South Florida epicurean fare and rubbing elbows with the likes of Rachael, Bobby and Emeril.

OK, I know it won't QUITE be like that. But the beach isn't going anywhere, and the food will likely be more incredible than I could ever imagine. If I happen to catch a glimpse of one of my favorite stars, it will be all the more exciting.

So yeah, maybe I'm being melodramatic, but this is really exciting - a somewhat nervous excitement - for me. I've been wanting to go to the SoBe fest for years, and finally it's going to happen.

Part of the angst comes from the fact that taxes and all this set me back some cash. But talking to one of my friends in the office today - after she invited me to her son's school International Festival/fund raiser - I realized that times like these when I can somewhat guiltlessly drop money on something like that for myself could be limited.

I might as well take advantage of the opportunity.

To SoBe... or not to SoBe ...

... I actually think I already know the answer to that question.

For those not in the know on this one, by SoBe I'm referring to South Beach in Miami. More specifically, to the annual and extravagant food and wine festival.

Each year masses of foodies from all over the country flock to see the rock stars of the culinary world do their thing, while indulging in dishes from some of the best chefs in the nation. Oh, there's also vino.

I've been wanting to go for the past few years, but it's pretty pricey and most years I either had other things I needed to spend my money on or had no one to go with me.

But I've resisted so long, and really haven't treated myself to a vacation (besides visiting family at home) since I entered the workforce. I think this will be the year I succumb to the temptation.

The big event at the festival is the Grand Tasting Village, where one can pay a somewhat hefty sum for unlimited food and wine and a chance to see presentations by the likes of Emeril, Rachael and Bobby.

The chefs also do a number of events besides the tasting. I'm eyeing Rachael's beach burger bash and Emeril's champagne cocktail party.

The festival runs from Feb. 25 to Feb. 28, and tickets go on sale in late October.