TIP TUESDAY: Give Us Your Hungry & Broke

Valentine’s Day left you exhausted and light in the wallet?  If you find yourself in Chicago this week, you shouldn’t fear.  The Restaurant Week is here!

Restaurant Week (Photo from www.choosechicago.com)

For ten days starting February 17, over 200 restaurants will offer special prix fixe menus starting at $22* for lunch and $33/$44* for dinner.  What are you waiting for?!  GO!  Explore!  Visit old favorites, try new places, spend a few days romping about town without breaking the bank.  Plenty of tables are still available.

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FOOD FRIDAY: Let Your Meal Take Flight

My friends and I love to nosh. Whenever two or more of us are gathered together to dine the plates get passed around and you can bet someone is sneaking bites out of someone else’s dish. I have talked about my love of noshing before in FOOD FRIDAY: Where Everybody Knows Your Name.   It’s the nature of my group of friends: we like to taste everything.

La Famiglia Salad Flight at Sono Wood Fired (Photo by Gourmet Rambler)

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Love Story: Time to Engage

I have heard many proposal stories working in the business I do.  It is a talking point I go over with clients while I crunch numbers in front of them to keep them engaged.  When I proposed to my now wife (she said yes!), I knew I was going to do something different.

Months prior at opening day for the Tigers in Detroit, Michigan, I was given a towel by the Detroit Free Press as a giveaway.  The message they were trying to sell to new readers was that it was “time to engage”.  I am sure they meant reading the paper and getting into current events but I saw a golden moment as the large text on the towel was time to engage.  I kept the towel for seven months!

Jeff & Melissa. Photo courtesy of Jeff Caldcleugh.

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Love Story: A Paul to My Julia

Paul Child once said to his wife Julia: “Life without you is like unsalted food.”  Don’t think that’s romantic?  You should. Salt is a flavor enhancer. It makes everything taste better and brighter. The sweet is sweeter, the savory more complex. Unsalted food can be alright, but as soon as you add that magic pinch it becomes a thing of greatness. Paul Child’s life was good to begin with. But it took Julia’s love to make it sparkle.

Happy Valentine's Day! Love, Paul & Julia. Photo from www.lavidalanka.blogspot.com.

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FOOD FRIDAY: Selecting Hors d’oeuvres

When considering hors d’oeuvres for your wedding reception there are a several of things to keep in mind to make it a happy eating experience for your guests including variety, ease of consumption, vessel and other meals.

Vegetarian Option ~ mushroom toast, mascarpone, caper, paprika, rye sourdough ~ Created by Pure Kitchen Catering (Photo by Bill Lambert)

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FOOD FRIDAY: The Spirits of Frisco

San Francisco… The Bay, the Golden Gate, Lombard Street… There’s so much to see everywhere you look.  All that beauty makes a girl rather… well, thirsty.  After all, let’s be honest here, sightseeing and shopping are always more fun after some cocktailing.  Where to imbibe in San Francisco depends on your beverage of choice.

Sommelier at Winery Collective (Photo by Gourmet Rambler)

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Thought for Today: Oscar Wilde (Dedicated to Gourmet Rambler)

Only the unimaginative can fail to find a reason for drinking champagne.
~ Oscar Wilde

Bubbles for Russian Toast (Photo by Gourmet Rambler)

TIP TUESDAY: Take Back Valentine’s Day

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, the air is all of a sudden thick with romance and expectations.  If you are looking for some tips along romantic lines, please read my previous articles:  FOOD FRIDAY: Edible Aphrodisiacs = More Sex? and TIP TUESDAY: Cooking is Sexy.  However, today I would like to focus on celebrations of a different kind.

Be My Valentine? (Photo from www.commentscod.com)

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FOOD FRIDAY: Cooking with Breanna

I am fortunate to live in Chicago.  There is a great food culture here, with new restaurants opening frequently and new chefs emerging constantly.  Something is always new and fresh and exciting.  That makes Chicago a great scene for someone like me.  However, keeping up with such a wealth of talent can be difficult.  In the whirlwind of restaurant openings and food media releases, one can easily overlook things and people worth noticing.  With that in mind, I would like to introduce you to one of my favorite chefs, one of Chicago’s best kept secrets, and most certainly the woman who will leave her mark on Chicago culinary culture, Chef Breanna Beike.

Chef Breanna Beike (Twitter Profile)

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Dear Mr. Gourmet Rambler: Let’s Be Honest Here…

Dear Mr. Gourmet Rambler:

This made me think of you.

My Motto (Photo from FactAboutYou)

I know you will be amazing. Do you agree?

With love,
Gourmet Rambler

My name is Tatiana or call me Gourmet Rambler.  I love food too much to be skinny.  I am too loud, too sarcastic, tell too many inappropriate jokes and watch too much reality TV.  I am not dainty or graceful unless I am cooking AND eating!  Hungry?  Want more?  Follow me on twitter at Gourmet Rambler.

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