::: InstaFoodbuzz Welcome

Sabra sponsored one heck of a Welcome Reception for us lucky Foodbuzz Festival attendees.  I tried roasted pine nut, roasted red pepper, and basil pesto hummus with pita crisps.  I also sampled four of the passed appetizers including the dungeness crab louie, bruschetta, chicken salad puffs, and jalapeno hummus mini pizzas (which were by far and away my favorite item of the evening).  Bonny Doon provided the wine and I chatted up some friendly faces from the winery that gave me cards for free tastings, which will be perfect for Thanksgiving weekend.

While the past two Foodbuzz Festivals have focused Friday night events around San Francisco's incredible street food vendors, this year's opening night was the blogger awards dinner.  I may have had two too many appetizers, so I exercised restraint when it was time to walk the line.  The buffet line that is.

I grabbed a ceviche shooter, a spring roll, kale/leek/ricotta tart, baked four cheese macaroni, and butternut squash risotto.  The broad variety of items ensured that even the most particular and picky eaters discovered something delightful.  While 400+ enthusiastic eaters enjoyed their dinner fare, Jen (who writes Tiny Urban Kitchen) provided an altruistic account of deciding to donate her $10,000 Project Food Blog prize to a Boston area charity.

Dessert came out after the awards were handed out.  I hedged my bets by selecting something sweet (licorice macaron... incredible), something chocolate (valhrona chocolate ganache bites), and something fruity (pomegranate cream with candied kumquat).

Tomorrow I will attend three sessions in the morning covering everything from a featured publisher panel to a lo-tech photography workshop and effective social networking discussion.  In the afternoon we'll convene at Metreon for the Taste Pavilion before heading to the Hyatt for a cooking demo with Tyler Florence and a four-course surf and turf gala dinner.