A fairly amazing-sounding Better Beer Society brown bag series event at Butcher & the Boar, some revised menus at local restaurants, a local foodie’s epic Mother’s Day feast, tasting notes for Summit Pilsner and Steel Toe’s Provider, the Star Tribune’s Taste 50, and a new urban farm in Minneapolis.
by sponsored on November 3, 2010
Consider this your invitation to Something New: The Independent Wedding Fair.
This Nov. 14 from 1-4pm, join a hand-picked selection of more than 25 of the Minneapolis-St. Paul area’s most talented and passionate wedding vendors at The Varsity Theater in Dinkytown, Minneapolis.
And from noon-1pm at the Varsity, we’ll be hosting a “Not So Real Wedding” — a full wedding day condensed into an hour of amusement. We’ll begin with a cocktail quarter hour, then a ceremony, and end with a reception featuring cake cutting, dance instruction, and more.
Besides the opportunity to meet and talk with a variety of wedding professionals, the Independent Wedding Fair will offer “Ask the Experts” discussions to give you a chance to ask questions about planning your day. As the Star Tribune wrote, it’s an “alternative to the wedding mega-fairs that are impersonal, high-pressure, unimaginative, and unnecessarily opulent.”
Still not sure? Join us for some amazing snacks from Chowgirls Killer Catering, Sweets Bakeshop, and Jessica’s Cakes, or just chill out in the lounges and take it all in. We’ll have live music from two local bands, food and cake samples, and more.
For tickets and more information, visit the website.
THE CONTEST
To help spread the word about the Fair, we’re putting a $150 gift certificate to Corner Table on the line. Here’s how to enter:
1. Post a comment at the bottom of this story, using a valid name and email address.
2. Your comment should be a tip for brides and grooms about wedding food or drinks — the thing you wish you’d known, or great ideas that you’d like to share.
Continue reading Win Dinner at Corner Table from the Independent Wedding Fair »
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
The Crispin Cider Company of Minneapolis is putting out a call to mixologists and hard cider fans to create the next great Crispin cocktail.
The natural apple flavor of Crispin various artisanal ciders plays well with almost anything — the possibilities are both numerous and refreshingly delicious. Autumn’s around the corner, so we’re particularly looking for cocktails that suggest the spice and contrast of the season, as well as cocktails that evoke or complement seasonal food favorites.
Enter in one or both of the following categories:
Lazy Bartender — The most creative two-pour cocktail. That means Crispin + one other beverage + serving suggestion + an optional garnish.
Creative Mixology — Anything goes.
Please include a digital photo of your cocktail — we may run your photo on the Heavy Table when we announce contest results.
Crispin Cider Company
The winner of each category receives a $50 check and a splash of fame.
Submit up to two recipes (plus a photo for each) for the next great Crispin cocktail by midnight Friday, September 24 to:
Rules and Other Details:
We’ll publish the two winning entries and the two runners-up.
Cocktails should have a name, a list of ingredients and garnishes, instructions for how to prepare the drink, and clearly defined measurements — either a ratio, or shots / teaspoons / tablespoons / jiggers / etc.
Attach a photo of your cocktail — photos may be published if the submitted cocktail wins a prize.
Specify whether you’re using Crispin Original, Brut, Light, Honey Crisp, The Saint, Lansdowne, or some kind of mixture.
The contest runs from today (August 19) until midnight Friday, September 24.
A winner will be announced in early October.
Crispin Cider Company and Heavy Table staffers are not eligible.
Consider this your invitation to Something New: The Independent Wedding Fair.
This Feb. 6 from 11am-3pm, join a hand-picked selection more than 20 of the Minneapolis-St. Paul area’s most talented and passionate wedding vendors at FIVE Event Center in Uptown Minneapolis.
“Independent” doesn’t mean “high-cost” or “low-cost” — it means a good cost for the level of service and experience they provide. We look for local people who are determined to give a lot of bang for a buck, often by not having the infrastructure that larger businesses might have.
Besides the opportunity to meet and talk with a variety of wedding professionals, the Independent Wedding Fair will offer panel discussions on wedding topics like “planning the timeline of your wedding” and “how to achieve your wedding style.” The atmosphere will be low-pressure and cordial.
Still not sure? Join us for some amazing snacks from Chowgirls Killer Catering, Sweets Bakeshop, and Jessica’s Cakes, or just chill out in the lounges with music and take it all in. We’ll have live music from a string quartet, food and cake samples, and door prizes including a hand-knit shawl from Knit-n-Jules.
For tickets and more information, visit the website.
THE CONTEST
We’re teaming up with Saffron Restaurant & Lounge to put a $100 gift certificate on the table. Here’s how to enter:
1. Post a comment at the bottom of this story, using a valid name and email address.
2. Your comment should be a tip for planning and enjoying a great wedding — something you wish you’d known, or something a bride and groom might not necessarily think of before the day of.
Tips can be ways to save money, add style, or just enjoy the day.
We’ll use the best ideas to create tip cards that we’ll give out at the wedding fair, and one tip — drawn at random — will win the submitter a $100 gift certificate to Saffron.
Contest Deadline: Drawing will take place midnight, Wednesday, Jan. 27.
Heavy Table contributors and Something New vendors are not eligible to win.
THE RESTAURANT
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
The critically-acclaimed and award-winning Saffron Restaurant & Lounge is the brainchild of brothers Saed and Sameh Wadi. Opened in February 2007 and specializing in contemporary Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine, the restaurant features a seasonal menu which utilizes only the highest quality ingredients. The delicacy of Saffron’s cuisine is in the details of the craft; curing lamb bacon, grinding aromatic spices, and making ice creams and sorbets daily is what we take pride in.
The bar at Saffron is an ideal location to sit and relax while enjoying hand-crafted cocktails, a wine list with selections from around the world, and delectable mezzes from the Mediterranean. The space itself boasts a vibrant, warm, and inviting atmosphere that makes it a perfect location for dinner with family, friends, and business associates or an intimate night out.
Becca Dilley / Heavy Table
This piece is sponsored by Crispin Cider Company
The Crispin Cider Company and the Heavy Table invite all ambitious Thanksgiving chefs to carve away at creating some new Crispin-kissed holiday recipes. Category winners will receive $75 gift certificates to Surdyk’s in Minneapolis.
There are two categories for entries — contestants may enter either or both, up to two submissions total. Send your entries to
Traditional Turkey: A Thanksgiving recipe involving turkey and using Crispin Hard Cider. (See sample below.)
Non-Traditional: A recipe involving another Thanksgiving-friendly meat or vegetarian meat substitute — could be roast leg of lamb, goose, duck, wild game, and so forth. (See sample below.)
Photographs are helpful, to demonstrate plating. These may be published.
Crispin is a crisp (not “sweet beer style”) super-premium natural hard apple cider especially designed to be enjoyed over ice. There are three distinctive varietals — Original is crisp over ice, Brut is European-style extra dry over ice, and Light is the first light cider in the US and is bright over ice.
Recipes should specify whether you are using Crispin Original, Brut, or Light varietals.
The contest will run from November 2 through midnight Wednesday, November 18. Winners will be announced by Nov. 20. Prizes will be awarded to winners in both categories.
Crispin Cider Company reserves the right to publish all recipes entered. No employees of the Crispin Cider Company or the Heavy Table are eligible to enter.
Thanksgiving Organic Roast Turkey with Crispin Honey Crisp Hard Cider and Honeycrisp Apples
Continue reading The Crispin Cider Thanksgiving Contest »
Many thanks to the various entrants of our Crispin Cider Autumn Cocktail Contest.
Empire Builder
Scott Wentzka
2 oz Crispin Original
½ oz vodka
½ oz Starbucks Coffee Liquor (*)
Dash of simple syrup
(*) Starbucks works here because its a liquor that’s about the coffee first. Something like Kahlua is too sticky-sweet and ruins the effect.
My wife and I are frequent visitors to the Pacific Northwest, and we always travel on the Empire Builder from here (home of Crispin) to Seattle (home of serious coffee freaks). This cocktail is now on our short-list rotation year-round.
It’s completely unintuitive, but the Starbucks actually enhances and highlights the subtle apple essence of Crispin Original. Crispin Original has such a subtle flavor (closer to champagne than the typical brewed hard cider); it’s all too easy to obliterate it — trust me, this works.
– Scott Wentzka
The St. Crispin Autumn Velvet
One part original Crispin Cider
One part Vouvray -or- Rosé Côtes-du-rhône
A splash of black currant juice
– Marie Flanagan
In honor of The Affair event and expo (Nov. 7-8), we’re offering readers a chance to share stories and win prizes.
Tell us about your most outrageous affair — in terms of entertaining, that is. We’re looking for (very!) short stories about kitchen mishaps, faux pas, wacky theme parties, decadent cocktails, or anything else that suits the theme of entertaining in style.
Email your entry to Contest runs until Oct. 26.
Grand Prize: $100 basket of Bistro Blends premium balsamic vinegars and oils.
10 Runners Up: A pair of tickets to The Expo at The Affair (value: $50).
About The Affair: Sample, shop, and explore everything about home entertaining. Multiple stages, luxury food, wine, and chocolate. Learn the latest fashion trends for home and host along with fantastic finds for all your gift giving.
Location: Minneapolis Convention Center: Hall E
Hours: 10am-6pm, Nov. 7-8
$25 advance tickets / $30 at the door
Buy your tickets online or at Kowalski’s Markets, Panera Bread, and Gaviidae Common.
The Affair reserves the right to publish all stories entered. No employees of The Affair or the Heavy Table are eligible to enter.
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