The New York Bar Show

I recently attended the 2008 New York Bar Show to get a taste of some new products in the market. This year, the show was held at the Javits Center on W 34^th, and featured brands from all over the world.

Not surprisingly, the show was dominated by vodkas (There had to be at least 20), each trying to stand out in the crowd. But it was the unconventional new brands that captured my interest. Castries Peanut Rum Cream, a blend of roasted peanuts, cream, and aged rum, sounded intriguing, but I was skeptical about how it would taste. I ended up being more-than-pleasantly surprised by the product (which is distilled in St. Lucia) and found myself imagining a delicious dessert drink—The Peanut Butter Cup:

 The Peanut Butter Cup

2 oz. Castries Peanut Rum Cream

1 oz. Stoli Vanil Vodka

1 oz. Hiram Walker Crème de Cacao

Shake vigorously over ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with chocolate shavings.

Leblon Cachaca was another product that caught my eye since Cachaca seems to be all the rage right now. I’m finding it on every new cocktail menu in classics like the Caipirinha, as well as replacing more traditional ingredients in drinks like the Baybreeze, Mojito, and Margarita. Try their twist on a Cosmo:

Cosmopolitan Caipirinha

1 ½ oz. Cachaca

½ oz. fresh squeezed lime juice

1 oz. Hiram Walker Triple Sec

1 oz. Cranberry Juice

Splash Simple Syrup

Shake vigorously over ice and strain into a frosted martini glass. Garnish with a raspberry.

Noticeably missing from the show: Absinthes (surprisingly, there was just one), and new-flavored liqueurs (no St. Germain or anything of the like). Ah, well, maybe next year…

In the mean time I'm extremely excited about the new client we signed to join the Blue Nile Consulting family and time not spent at the show will go to very good use helping Lady & Son Butchery in Toronto I"d link you to their site but we're still designing it) to expand their business and take the next leap in their marketing evolution.

All the best,
Logan
CEO/Chief Rainmaker
Blue Nile Consulting

Can I pick up someone else's badge if I had a written letter from them or some such proof that I could speak on their behalf or represent their interests?

A very nice lady named Louisa called me back. I explained that I was a consultant already registered to attend (ie I payed my $35 bucks like I do every year) but I wanted to find a good way to get info into the hands of my consulting clients and would this way work?
She said she'd get back to me and within an hour and a half she did (I'm assuming she spoke with her manager or some higher up since it seemed like a question they had never gotten before).This is the message she left on my voice mail on June 9th just after 5pm:

“Logan, this is "Louisa" returning your call from the TRADE SHOW, at 555-BIG-SHOW ext. 123, um the answer to the question you asked was if… you cannot pick up the..the associates’ badges. If their badges were mailed out individually you will have to get their badge and then you will be able swipe it at the various booth that the associate is interested in. Otherwise you will not be able to do so. If you don’t understand this message give me a call back ASAP at 555-BIG-SHOW ext. 123. Thank you.

Well, I thought it was pretty clear that I needed to get their badged in order to swipe it but I called her back to make sure. I did indeed understand her correctly but with their being so little time between our conversation and the show there wasn't guaranteed that someone say in California would have time to get me their badge, what if it got lost in the mail or what if they were at the show and needed it as well. Louisa told me the other solution was to have the company register a badge with my name on it so I could officially represent them. Bingo, problem solved. Or so I thought...
With that info I began constructing my newsletter to offer this great service I had come up with. I figured it was win-win-win-win:

• Would-be attendees strapped for cash and/or time could still get resources from the show.
• Exhibitors would get sales leads and contact information from companies that they might otherwise have missed.
• Trade Show organizers got more money and potentially new subscribers for next year's show. Besides, with an extension of their discounted registration fee perhaps their numbers were down so this would help.
• I would grow my business/have happy clients/do what I do best and make a little something for my efforts. I really did think it was a brilliant idea.

When it came time to draft the newsletter I wanted to give people the easiest way possible to register for the show and then register for the "Walkthrough". I added a usable link to the TRADE SHOW's registration page (who doesn't like free publicity?) so attendees could register directly with them since admission to the actual show wasn't what I was professing to grant them. I did use their company logo, which was an admitted error; though at the time I didn't think they would mind the free publicity and added traffic directly to their site.
The final link was to registering for the "Walkthrough" on the consulting site where I made it clear that any participants had to register with the TRADE SHOW before they could participate in my offer. Thanks to the call with Louisa I now had the requirements to list about the badges: I had to be down as a representative of a participant's company or they had to mail me their badges. Again, after my phone calls I was lead to believe that this was on the up and up.
So here we are a week later and bam, out of the blue I get a very disturbing email from TRADE SHOW's lawyers, not a phone call but an email even though my consulting site very clearly lists my numbers. Cease and desist kind of stuff, "Trademark Infringement, False Advertising, Tortious Interferance with Business Relations (yeah, I had to look up Tortious too), etc. Once the shock wore off I opened a reply window but instead decided to call the lawyer directly because emails can be misunderstood or read into and I wanted to make sure we were perfectly clear on what my offer was about.
I assured Ms. Lawyer that my intentions were pure. That I regretted any misunderstandings, that of course I would remove the registration page and any online offers for the upcoming "Walkthrough". My goal wasn't to piss off the TRADE SHOW organizers just provide a needed service where everyone got what they wanted. Especially the exhibitors who spend lord only knows how much money in hopes of increasing sales. I've had booths at trade shows, it's exhausting in both the pre-show preparations and the execution. Nothing hurts more then spending all of that money/time and not hitting your sales quotas or not walking away with a good stack of purchase orders.
When I hung up the phone I felt positive that this could easily be resolved, I had made numerous apologies after all, had eloquently stated my case and within 15mins had removed the offer from the consulting site, removed the archived link from the newsletter site and the listing on FohBoh. I ate a little crow during the conversation but I've eaten worse so I knew I would survive.
She did mention that I had been barred from the show (huh?) but that she would look into what it would take to get me reinstated. At this point I was wondering why someone didn't just pick up the phone and call me first? Is it really better to pay $350+ an hour to have legal documents drafted, to have meetings over a small offer from a small consulting company and to go so far as to just drop my registration from the show without even a polite phone call? Have manners completely left the business world? Very sad course of action coming from a multi million dollar company that probably makes more money in a year then I've made in the last 10.
After holding true to my word about removing the offer I wrote Ms. Lawyer and again expressed my desire to make things right. It was a completely heartfelt letter:

Dear Ms. Lawyer,
Thank you again for your time on the phone today. I wanted to write and let you know the web page with the "walkthrough" promotion has been removed, along with any additional online versions of the offer (of which there were only two).
Again, I would like to express my profound apology for any misunderstanding or confusion my offer may have created. As a native New Yorker and a CIA graduate, attending the New York show has always been a highly anticipated and exciting experience for me.
I've been in the food industry since I was 13 so it greatly disturbs me to know that what I thought was a creative way to bring information and resources to those unable to attend the show (thanks to today's economy) has potentially sullied my reputation within an industry that I love and respect.
Thank you again for your time and I look forward to hearing from you in regards to my ability to attend the show since not doing so will require changes to my family's plans to come down to NY.
All the very best,
Logan

It also gave her, and her client, my direct contact information vs. the "info@" email address. Professional, I thought, and again heartfelt. I went about the rest of my day since I still had work to do outside of this fiasco and waited to hear back on the client's verdict.
At 5:25pm (don't ya love it when people send you disturbing information after 5pm when they know you can't get them on the phone?) I was sent an email from Ms. Lawyer. At the time I didn't realize another email in another account was about to blow this one out off the water and turn my mood from hurt and disappointment to anger at being maligned... Ms. Lawyer's email stated I could attend if I sent an agreement to the following back in writing:

TRADE SHOW will agree to permit you entry to the forthcoming TRADE SHOW in New York City provided that you agree, by return email,

(a) to permanently cease and desist from disseminating the accused solicitation;

(b) to cease all use of TRADE SHOW’s marks, including use of the TRADE SHOW Logo, and close variant thereof in any manner which is likely to confuse consumers or members of the trade as to the source or sponsorship of your, solicitations, services or business;

(c) not to request, accept, use, wear or present to others at the TRADE SHOW any badge obtained by or for the benefit of any other company, or other than issued by TRADE SHOW in your name for the benefit of yourself and Blue Nile Consulting only; and

(d) not to render "walk through" services, or to obtain or supply trade show materials to or for the benefit of any other party.

Upon receipt of your return email confirming such agreement, TRADE SHOW will welcome you to its trade show. Thank you for your cooperation.

Very truly yours,

Ms. Lawyer

Now considering I had already been told I could use another attendee's badge (thanks Louisa!) point (c) was irritating, but what really gave me pause was the line:

"not to render ...or to obtain or supply trade show materials to or for the benefit of any other party."

Huh? But I'm a consultant, benefiting other parties is what I do best! Do I read this to mean that the TRADE SHOW could care less about food industry consultants? Food stylists, marketing experts, web designers, the list is long. But I figured if it meant I could attend and not ruin a family trip to the City (not to mention wasted plane tickets) then I would agree. I figured I'd run it by my lawyer in the morning (there's $350 down the drain!) and take it from there.

All in all I was feeling okay about it all until a foodie friend and associate forwarded an "official" email from the TRADE SHOW organizers that was sent out 10mins. before Ms. Lawyer offered me my conditional entry to the show:

Dear TRADE SHOW Members and Participants:

A company trading as Blue Nile Consulting is disseminating solicitations to TRADE SHOW members, exhibitors, trade show attendees and/or prospective participants (blog author's note:..I used email addresses from contacts I've made over the years and one listing on FohBoh, all legal and legit), for its trade show "registration" and "walk through" services in connection with the forthcoming TRADE SHOW convention to be held in New York City from June XX through July X, 2008.

TRADE SHOW has protested such solicitations based on, among other things, its concern that Blue Nile may be confusing the trade (blog author's note:..no one called me asking about any confusion by the way) into believing that it is licensed by, or affiliated with, TRADE SHOW, or that there is a connection between its business and TRADE SHOW which does not in fact exist. Blue Nile Consulting will not be permitted entry to the TRADE SHOW. - (blog author's note:.. hey wait a second! Their lawyer just said I could go...)

Please be advised that TRADE SHOW has not authorized Blue Nile to render "walk through" services, to register others for its show, to extend a trade show discount, or to have others register for the show in Blue Nile's or its employee's names (blog author's note:.. well, clearly they don't speak with their own staff) .There is no affiliation or connection between our respective businesses and TRADE SHOW cannot vouch for or comment upon its services. You are urged to conduct your own due diligence when dealing with this company. (My reputation is impeccable!)

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact The Vice President, Finance & Administration Guy, at 555.BIG.SHOW ....

Sincerely,

The
President

Wow....sad....

This is a classic example of a mountain being made of a mole hill, where sue first, find out the facts later prevails. Where over-reactions (via a big "intellectual properties" law firms with offices in places like Moscow, Riyadh and Baku) become the norm. It's a shame the TRADE SHOW felt the need to be dishonest in their own dealings with me, rude in their handling of the matter and reneged on their offer to "avoid an unnecessary escalation of this dispute" if I took action within three days (I guess taking positive action within a number of hours vs. days was too much for their systems and reacting with negativity was their only perceived option).

Thanks for reading this far, you're fabulous, whoever you are. Thank you for reading my side of things; since I don't have access to TRADE SHOW's massive email database this is the only way I can counter the bad will they've spread in such an unprofessional manner. Stay around, post your thoughts and come back when there's more positive news to read about.
Wishing you the best,
Logan Niles
Chief Rainmaker
Blue Nile Consulting

A lot has transpired in the last 12 hours and needless to say I have mixed feelings about it all.

But rest assured, Blue Nile Consulting is a legitimate business, with wonderful clients and a great deal of respect for the food industry (most parts of it anyway)...after all I've been a working part of it since I was 13.... So dispite what you may have read there's been no defrauding going on, any misrepresentations or criminal intentions perpetrated just an age old David and Goliath story where a lot of time, money and angst could have been saved with a simple phone call.

As I said, stay tuned....

Logan Niles

Rank, comment and subscribe. Check out the featured artists. websites and their amazing works

I swung by the Javits Center today to pick up my press badge for NY Comic Con '08 and to take a look around. There wasn't a lot going on, just exhibitors registering and people setting up booths. There wasn't any detectable Cos Play going on, and after checking the IGN theater I took off. It was a pretty crazy time.

I tried unsuccesfully to track down the camera lens and bag I bought that were both delivered to my old address by a stubborn ebay seller. Note to self: Don't order anything until you've changed your contact address.

Be sure to check back tomorrow and periodically over the weekend for updates on the Con. It should be a great time...and a lot of work.

It was March 9th, and our trip to the Jacob K. Javits center on Manhattan’s west side began with an early morning phone call from ETL: “Hey, what time do you think it is?” I chewed my cereal and considered this for a moment. I glanced at the clock—it clearly said 8:36. Waaaaaaiit a minute… ETL’s pregnant silence was like a claw hammer in my heart. FUCK-- Daylight savings time! The one event we were looking forward to—the Press Pastry Tasting—evaporated before our now one-unscheduled-hour-older eyes.

Undaunted, we hustled downtown as fast as the subway would take us. The Javits center on this fine March day hosted the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show on its lower level. We obtained our press passes after some delay, and after cutting a rather self-important CNN reporter (“you don’t need my name, just put down CNN”) in line, and headed into the domain of the restauranteur.

It was laid out in much the same way as any other convention, rows and rows lined with innumerable booths of vendors hawking their wares and services. A great many of them were restaurant technologies and gadgets to make foodservice faster and more efficient. We photographed many things, though apparently, it’s not permitted to photograph artsy porcelain service sets. Photos of these are issued by the vendor only…

The show also hosted the International Pastry Arts Competition—the very event whose delectable wares we were denied by the tyranny of railroad timetables—whose theme this year was “Under the Sea.” Very prom-esque! We made a beeline straight for this area and were presented with such amazing works of gravity-defying confectionary that words cannot do them justice. I will allow ETL to provide imagery for your drooling pleasure.

1st Place - Wing Cheung, Grand Hyatt Hotel (New York) for his "Food Chain" piece. HintHint, it helps to have a well articulated concept to back your art:

2nd Place - Anthony Smith, Cosmopolitan Club (New York):

3rd Place - Salvatore Settepani, Pasticceria Bruno (New York):

Screwed from the go:

And now the complete, if somewhat blurry gallery (click through to originals):

After we ogled the edible art, we began making our rounds. The vendors present were wildly varied—offering all aspects of foodservice from organic ingredients, to ready-to-serve entrees, and from one of man’s most ancient tools (the knife) to food-processing masterpieces, (the PacoJet). You may take some of these things for granted, but when you stop and think… Where DO diners get their signature tacky double swinging doors? Bags and take away containers, menu jackets, anything you might want emblazoned with your logo—where do you find these things? You can start here, at this NYC Expo. Catalogs and assorted schwag were passed out with abandon—if you don’t need it, we can make you need it, and if you do need it, we can sell it to you.

Some of the standouts in our minds were Red Jack Orchards, purveyors of the finest apple cider I have ever tasted—the immortal souls of apples are seemingly snatched from the æther before they can make it to apple-Heaven, and distilled into jugs for our heathen enjoyment.

The Ronnybrook Dairy Farm also charmed us with its clever use of the sweetest old woman on Earth: As we ambled by, nearly full but happily snacking on some ice cream (Mine: Moose Tracks, ETL’s: Blueberry), she enticed us over. “Do you like ice cream?” This is a silly question. “Would you like to try *our* ice cream..?” Again, silly! At this point, my hands are full of schwag from various stalls, and my cup of heretofore delightfully chocolatey and peanut buttery ice cream. “We have samples of… lets see… Ginger!” Neurons fire—ginger ice cream? Oh my. “I guess I’ll put down my heathen ice cream here,” I say with quiet shame. The sweetest old woman on Earth smiles and gently takes the offending container from me, adding conspiratorially, “I’ll just throw that away…” The unfinished end of that sentence, and we can pretend it never happened hangs clearly in the air. Ginger ice cream is a revelation, my friends. Organic and homemade ginger ice cream takes that nigh unto the next level.

The New York City Pizza Competition also made its home here, and I watched an aged Italian man make a pizza before me, and of course, sampled the results. It was delicious, surely, but not significantly set apart from any other top-notch pizza.

Jonathan Lord pastries bestowed upon us some of the most delightful cheesecake I have ever had the joy to taste—not too sweet, creamy and smooth, and infused with vanilla and pumpkin and spices.

We also met representatives from the Round Table of Food Professionals, which has a chapter in New York City, whose main purpose is to provide networking and education to budding restaurants and the like. They host classes and workshops, and meet-and-greets for your ladder-climbing pleasure.

We departed the show with great bags of schwag, cutting boards, ingenius folding grocery bags, citrus-fruit invasion devices, and many, many pamphlets. ETL will soon be awash in food-porn spam… I’m sorry about that, by the way.

All in all, the Restaurant and Foodservice Expo is definitely a top-notch event to hornswoggle your way into, and should not be missed. As I walked around, I desperately wanted to open my own restaurant. This has been a dream of mine for a long time, and the show has rekindled it somewhat—it’s definitely daunting—but maybe someday it will happen. I will certainly be coming to this show next year, fondling that fucking PacoJet yet again.

• NYC International Restaurant & Foodservice Show
• Western Food Expo site
• PacoJet
• Ronnybrook Dairy
• Round Table of Food Professionals

Gear up, people! The 2008 New York International Auto Show drives into town this weekend, parking at the Javits Center itself from March 21st to the 30th. The NYT offers a comprehensive review for attendees and armchair enthusiasts alike. While the show unveils new consumer-focused '08 and '09 models, geeky gawkers will be more intrigued by the impractical but totally awesome concept cars. Drool over the latest midlife-crisis-ready sports cars, like this Maserati GrandTurismo 4.7. They don't call them hot rods for nothin'!

Admission is $14 for adults, $4 for children and can be purchased online here. The MTA is offering discount packages for travel on LIRR and Metro-North. Public show dates are Friday March 21st through Sunday March 30th, 11am - 10:30pm (Sundays: 10am - 7pm). The Javits Center is located at 11th Ave. between 34th and 39th streets (655 W. 34th St.) in Manhattan.

Good news everybody. I'm not going to be homeless at the end of the month. Yes, you heard me correctly. I have made new living arrangements. For those who are fans of Seinfeld the series, I will be living right across the street from the diner. Maybe 10 steps tops. Looks like I have a new hangout. And since it's the upper west side, there's no smoking indoors. Which means I won't die an early death just for having a nostalgic hangout.

Plus with the New York Auto Show in town, I'll be a train ride down the street from the Javits Center. I'll probably go on Friday (with my cameras of course).

Pics: Birthday boys wait for Jeaux so they can blow out the candles, the cake, and lunch at Union Square.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which owns the site, put out a statement a few minutes ago saying that the agency had received four revised proposals, with no bid from Brookfield. The timeline, which puts selection of a developer in April, remains the same, the MTA said.

Still standing after undoubtedly millions in expenses on the bid are Tishman Speyer, The Related Companies, Extell Development, and a joint venture of The Durst Organization and Vornado Realty Trust.

Brookfield spokeswoman Melissa Coley told us that the company indeed did not submit a revision to its original proposal, though it was committed to the development of the West Side. She also seemed to be leaving the door open for later involvement at the site, saying, “We hope to continue to have a dialogue with the MTA and the city.”

Brookfield also is planning a 5 million-square-foot development over rail yards a block to the east, with construction to start on a platform this summer. The company released renderings last week.

Brookfield, like Extell, did not have an anchor tenant in hand, a factor that likely would have made it a bit harder to persuade the MTA to give it the green light.

The firm received plaudits from many in the design community for ignoring the design guidelines for the site and installing a partial street grid in its plan.

By Eliot Brown

The NY Observer

the fancy food show is basically a 3 day gourmet food bazaar, although i've never gone for lasted more than 2 days because it's exhausting for your busy overworked tastebuds, and after 2 days i don't really want to taste any more artisanally made cheeses, chocolates, desserts, cured meats, jams, nuts, candies, teas, sauces and cookies from nearly six thousand vendors. although i have learned from past experience to only sample and eat things that i really want to try because if you sample at every booth, by 1 p.m. you feel like you're about to die. or wish you were. so this year, i sampled very lightly. very very lightly, and thereby was able to come home without a gut-clutching stomachache.

godiva and neuhaus chocolate bars. both godiva and neuhaus have their own stores. they make passable chocolates for their market. upscale mall chocolate, anyone? notice the flavor-of-the-moment caramel. whoever thought of browning sugar should have gotten a patent on it.

the fancy food show is where specialty food retailers go to buy product for their stores. it's a mind boggling cavernous array of gourmet food stuffs. there are always a big and wonderful selection of cheeses and condiments. one of the best items that i tasted was roasted cippolini onions. also a truffle pizza tasted very earthy and was delicious. another highlight were cherries in brandy from italy - super boozy, yumm!

2007 is the year of the cacao nib. among the chocolatiers were the usual suspects, with a bunch of new companies. some of them make mostly chocolate bars, while others make hand filled chocolates and truffles with novelty flavors. i like novelty so i tend to find new or unusual flavors the most interesting, but only if it tastes fantastic. usually, it's hit or miss. most artisanal chocolatiers will make a couple of novel flavors that are great while the other "novel" flavors are boring or taste awful. i don't get why some chocolate makers are into using herbs as chocolate flavors. i suppose you can't really distinguish your product line if you use the popular tried-n-true crowd pleasing flavors, oh, like, tasty fruits, so the idea is to put freaky stuff in there that says - we're cool cause you've never seen this flavor before. i do like the trend of putting cacao nibs in chocolate, it's crunchy and adds more cacao flavor. nib me, baby !

theo chocolate. i was curious about theo chocolate because it's gotten a few raves in the blogosphere. i really looked forward to finding another new and good chocolate line. i love it when a chocolatier tries to control the product from roasting the beans to blending it (like jacques torres in nyc), giving foodies a quality product made with love and creativity. but after tasting it, i must say that i was underwhelmed by theo. i only got to sample 3 of their filled confections - basil, mint and another herb. maybe there are better flavors... you hope.

3400 phinney is the theo line of 6 flavored bars.
bread & chocolate had toasted bread crumbs inside the bar, which felt like i was eating tiny grains of flavorless sand - feh.
chai tea had clove and cardamom, it wasn't bad. (if you like chai spices)
nib brittle was a chocolate bar containing small sugar coated nibs. i like nibs. (however the 62% nibby bar by scharffenberger chocolate has deeper more nuanced chocolate flavor and twice as many cacao nibs in it)
coconut curry was a mouthful of spicy curry powder, it was so bizarre that i broke off chunks to give other people to try, they made a face and said "this is weird". it left such a strong raw curry powder scratchy burn in the back of my throat afterwards that i had to gulp water to get rid of it, and noticed that the wrapper around the bar was stained yellow.

they also make 2 cacao nib brittles - one with chocolate, the other plain. to me, this is the best of their entire line. the brittles - a clear brown glassy slab of brittle speckled with crushed cacao nibs, enrobed by an outer layer of chocolate. it was nibby, you-gotta-bite-hard crunchy, very sweet as brittle is basically a sugar paste, and those cacao nibs added cacao flavor.

then i tasted the theo signature line of five plain chocolate bars, from a limited edition 91% cocoa to 65% cocoa. origin bars really tell you about a chocolate because there are no fillings or other flavors to distract you from tasting the true quality and flavor of the chocolate. a plain bar is only as good as the cacao beans used to make it. these bars tasted dull, chalky and had a wet musty hay flavor. the melt/mouthfeel was very hard instead of smooth. a real disappointment. it was only after i got home that i noticed that theo chocolates are made with fair trade cacao. i remember that another fair trade chocolate bar green & black's organic chocolate also had that wet cardboard barn floor hay kind of rank flavor. yeesh! *note to self - stay away from fair trade cacao.

republica del cacao manabi province - home of the arriba cacao bean. i had never seen this brand before but was attracted by the retro looking packaging. i was pleasantly surprised by how good it tasted! wonderful chocolate flavor, and melted in a very smooth velvety way. their line is 4 or 5 single origin bars from various south american countries. i would pay money to buy this in a store, because it has better flavor than any of the "single estate" chocolate bars that i have bought in gourmet shops. ecuadorian arriba cacao = delicious bean.

el rey. i've always liked and eaten chocolate from el rey, the small boutique venezuelan single bean chocolate bar maker. they don't make any wild flavors or gimmicky combinations, they just make consistently good chocolate bars.

e. guittard single origin chocolate bars. guittard is a big factory chocolate manufacturer and wholesale supplier to the chocolate trade. this is their "better" line of chocolate bars, each made with cacao beans from a single country.

i like my jack daniels straight from the bottle - now you know. *hic*

powdered honey (not cocaine), fruit paste and organic green tea.
i think the powdered honey is a great idea. the fruit & nut paste says it's for brie, blue & cheddar cheese on the package, well those aussies are bossy. i ate it with goat cheese. the pear & hazelnut paste is not sweet enough to withstand blue cheese. somebody ought to tell them. look, the jester serves green tea, scary.

some pretty mint tins. those french flavigny mints come in cool flavors of violet, anise and rose, each mint contains an aniseed in the center. the hint mint tin says: a gesture of kindness. these tins show us that eating a mint will enable you to then make out brazenly like those two nekked cherubs.

hazelnut oils and olive oil. most of the foreign food vendors in the drab international sections seem to sell oils and stuff like dates, pasta or canned green beans. these are only a few of the bajillion fancy foods at the fancy food show.

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