International Food Blogger Conference: Foodies Meet in Seattle

I'm spending the weekend in Seattle at the International Food Blogger Conference in Seattle. After a long day of traveling, I arrived at the Hotel Monaco in downtown Seattle yesterday afternoon. The weekend's activities began at 5pm with drinks and appetizers from a variety of vendors. Although I came for the networking and to learn more about food blogging, I'm really mostly excited about all of the amazing food and wine that I get to enjoy over the weekend. And last night's party did not disappoint! There were three rooms full of all sorts of food and wine, portioned in small bites so that you could try everything. And try everything I did. Some of Seattle's best chefs were there to offer tastes of their food that would probably cost an arm and a leg at their restaurant.

For example, Chef Jason Wilson of Crush made the most amazing little sandwich I've ever eaten. The sandwich was entirely made from scratch, including the little brioche buns. The fish was salted and smoked in some very complicated process that I did not understand. I simply nodded and smiled as he explained to me how it was made. Whatever you say Chef. All I cared about was that it was absolutely delicious! The fish was moist, tender and slightly sweet. The tomatoes were juicy and bursting with flavor. The lettuce was crisp and the aioli was slightly smokey and salty with a the flavors of bacon. And those homemade little buns were buttery and flakey. It was a small sandwich but I savored every bite. There were tons of other great options at the party: a delicious banh mi with steak, homemade mango sriracha sauce, and pickled vegetables; lamb chops rubbed in garlic and herbs and cooked to a perfect medium rare; a delicious variety of hand crafted cheeses; and of course an entire table of cupcakes. But the fish sandwich from Crush was definitely the best item of the evening.

I promise I am also here to learn and hopefully make my blog a better place for everyone. So stay tuned for some more posts as I share the interesting, tasty, and funny moments of the weekend.