Fire and Ice Festival at Saybrook Point Inn

Fire & Ice at Saybrook Point Invigorates Winter Fun 

Festival highlights to include fully sculpted Ice Bar, spectacular sushi display, ice carving, and horse-drawn carriage rides

Photo Source: Saybrook Point Inn Facebook Page

Saybrook Point is celebrating the charm and character of winter with its third annual Fire & Ice Festival on Saturday, January 16 from 12:00pm to 5:00pm.

Guests will marvel at the fully sculpted Ice Bar created exclusively for the event, and revel at such seasonal activities as elegant champagne tastings of Perrier-Jouët & Mumm Cordon Rouge, spectacular ice carving showcase, delightful sushi sampling, exciting champagne sabre ceremony demonstrations, and charming horse-drawn carriage rides along the shores of southern Connecticut.

The uniquely designed Ice Bar will warm the soul with such creative libations such as chocolate cordial cups made with Patron Incendio, and will lend a handsome contrast to Fresh Salt’s beloved signature Fire Bar. Guests will also enjoy drink specials and tastings at the Marina Bar with special guest vendors, and savor delectable food samplings by Fresh Salt’s award-winning chefs, including chili, chowder, sliders, and more.

The Fire & Ice Festival at the Saybrook Point Inn & Spa is free and open to all ages. For young attendees, the event will feature children’s movies and face painting inside the Inn’s Grand Ballroom and a strolling magician will be enchanting guests throughout the property. In addition, the event will feature exciting live entertainment with the electrifying sounds of “Straight Up”.

For more information about the third annual Fire & Ice Festival at Saybrook Point, or to make a room reservation, guests may call 800.243.0212 or visit www.saybrook.com.

Saybrook Point Inn
2 Bridge St
Old Saybrook, Connecticut
(860) 395-2000
http://www.saybrook.com/

The 2016 Melissa Marottoli Hogan Foundation - Gala For A Cure

Save the date for the Melissa Marottoli Hogan Gala for a Cure

The 2016 Melissa Marottoli Hogan Gala for a Cure 

will be held on 

Saturday, March 5th at 7:00pm 

at Woodwinds in Branford, CT

In early 2015 I had the honor of attending the Annual Melissa Marottoli Hogan Gala for a Cure. This event is held in conjunction with the Melissa Marottoli Hogan (MMH) Foundation. It was a wonderful event full of hope and love, celebrating the life of a beautiful woman, sister, daughter, granddaughter, cousin, wife, and friend, Melissa Marottoli Hogan, who lost her battle to cancer in December 2012.

About Melissa Marottoli Hogan

Melissa Marottoli Hogan was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer at 26 years old. There is no explanation, no reason, no answer to how Melissa got lung cancer. Many people erroneously believe that this type of cancer is caused by smoking. That is simply not the case as Melissa was not a smoker. In fact, according to the American Cancer Society, nearly 80% of new lung cancer cases do not smoke.

After her initial diagnosis, Melissa was able to beat the odds, living five years with stage IV lung cancer…. four years longer than expected. Her family attributes this to Melissa’s attitude, faith, and access to great medicine.

You see, throughout Melissa’s fight, her family researched cutting edge medicine, both domestic and abroad. They went to the remarkable major cancer centers: Dana-Farber, Memorial Sloan Kettering, MD Anderson, and Smilow at Yale, also to lesser known places in New York City and California, and to even more specialized clinics in Germany and Austria. Melissa's identical twin, Lindsay Marottoli Greenberg, was beside her sister the entire time, working with doctors to seek out new treatments, traveling to Vienna to use her own immune system to help her twin sister boost hers.

About the Foundation

Founded by the family of Melissa Marottoli Hogan to honor her life, the MMH Foundation seeks to support ground-breaking lung cancer research, to promote lung cancer awareness, and to provide assistance to lung cancer afflicted families. The Foundation donates all net proceeds, has no paid staff, and enlists the help of sponsors

Through the MMH Foundation, Melissa’s family wants to help other families beat the odds, and to assist researchers in finding a cure. They seek out oncologists who are committed to a cure, to thinkers attempting better care for cancer patients, less toxic than drugs alone.

Already the foundation has funded half a year’s research at a thoracic oncology lab at Smilow Caner Center at Yale New Haven. The leading physician at that lab is Dr. Scott N. Gettinger, who researches immunotherapy: a concept where our own immune systems can be taught to kill cancer.

About the Melissa Marottoli Hogan Gala For A Cure

Melissa Marottoli Hogan Gala For A Cure is a wonderful event featuring dinner and dancing, a silent and live auction. Melissa's family truly makes this gala an event filled with life and love in honor of the beautiful Melissa Marottoli Hogan. For more pictures from the 2015 event visit HERE.

March 5, 2015
Woodwinds
29 Schoolground Road
Branford, CT 06405

Tickets $100.00
Please make checks payable to Melissa Marottoli Hogan Foundation

Melissa Marottoli Hogan Foundation
6 Partridge Lane
Branford, CT 06405

Contact info@mmhforacure.org
203.675.7492

Purchase a Ticket as an Attendee:

Ticket Options

Single Ticket $100.00 USDTwo Tickets $200.00 USDThree Tickets $300.00 USDFour Tickets $400.00 USDFive Tickets $500.00 USDSix Tickets $600.00 USDSeven Tickets $700.00 USDEight Tickets $800.00 USDNine Tickets $900.00 USDTable (10) $1,000.00 USD

Make a Donation:

Founded by the family of Melissa Marottoli Hogan to honor her life and to assist with lung cancer research. Each year the foundation seeks to support groundbreaking lung cancer research, promote lung cancer awareness and provide direct aid to families in need. There are no paid employees and 100% of the net proceeds go to support the goals of the foundation.

MacChiliFest in Westport CT to Benefit the Turtle Fund

MacChiliFest comes to Westport Connecticut on Sunday February 7th!

You remember ChiliFest, right?  Well, this popular event now includes a mac 'n cheese competition! 

Yup! ChiliFest just got better!

“Pairing mac 'n cheese with our chili competition was a natural” said Jim Keenan, event director.  “People know this event as Chilifest but we wanted to tweak the name so people understand immediately we're more than just great chili this year”

MacChilifest will take place at Bedford Middle School in Westport CT on Sunday Feb. 7th from 11am to 3pm.  The event is promoted as a pre-Super Bowl event as the Super Bowl is held later in the day.  

“The big game doesn't kick off until close to 7pm” said Keenan.  “So instead of hanging around to go out or have friends come over, people come out in droves to judge the best chili and now mac 'n cheese in Fairfield County.  It's a tailgate atmosphere where most people come in their favorite team jersey.  Some even put on eye black.  Even the band from Sacred Heart University comes and pumps up the crowd in anticipation of the big game later that day.”

AND! THERE's MORE!!

MacChilfiFest will be filmed for Firehouse Kitchen, a popular television program centered around the incredible food creations of firefighters, will be filming a future episode at MacChilifest on February 7th.

Tickets are available online now at www.MacChilifest.org as well as at the door.  

Adult Tickets are $15 

Children Tickets (aged 6-12) are $5.  

Everyone is given a spoon, ballot and pencil, and then set off to enjoy unlimited sampling of 20 different kinds of chili's and mac 'n cheese entries from 18 restaurants as well as local fire departments. Their votes will determine the winner in the classic beef chili category, the creative chili category and the new mac 'n cheese category. 

“We've added some new heat to the chili competition with several new restaurants in the competition this year.  I'm equally excited about having a mac 'n cheese division as these entries are sophisticated.  Mac 'n cheese has become the trendy playground for chef's to showcase their culinary creativity”  Keenan said.  “It's definitely not the blue box mac we grew up with.  Kids of all ages will love this new addition to chilifest”.

The table is set for another strong competition with defending champions Geronimo (Fairfield & New Haven), Southport Brewing Co. (Fairfield & Milford) and the Westport Fire Dept all back to defend their category titles from last year.  Looking to dethrone them is Blind Rhino (Norwalk), Bobby Q's (Westport), Chef's Table (Fairfield), Chilibomb (Fairfield), Da Pietro's (Westport), DrewbaQ (food truck), Little Pub (Greenwich, Ridgefield and Wilton), Liquid Lunch (Milford and Shelton), Mac' It (Norwalk), Old Post Tavern (Fairfield), Sam's American Bistro (Stamford), Simply Delicious (Norwalk), Tru North Tavern & Table (Black Rock), Wire Mill Saloon & BBQ (Redding/Georgetown) and the Weston Fire Department.

MacChilifest benefits the Turtle Fund which seeks to promote the education of young people in art, music, theater, skilled craft and other creative pursuits in order to create a rich cultural heritage for tomorrow.

Chilifest is proudly sponsored by Stop & Shop, Volvo of Westport, The Greens of Canondale, Cabot Cheese, Chaboso Bakery, Tabasco and WEBE 108.  

For more information about Chilifest please visit www.MacChilifest.org  

Bedford Middle School  

88 North Ave, Westport, CT 06880

New Year's Eve 15 at Parallel Post to Welcome 2016

Parallel Post New Year’s Eve Menu

5 p.m.- midnight

First Course:

    Oysters Rockefeller

        or 

             Winter Squash Ravioli Sage Browned Butter

Second Course:

Blood Oranges, Hazelnuts Fennel, Greens, Citrus Vinaigrette

Third course

New York Strip with Wild Mushroom Sauce, Twice Baked Potato

Pancetta Wrapped Roasted Quail with Aged Cherry Balsamic Vinegar

Fourth course

             Zeppoli with Chocolate Sauce

              Pumpkin Bread Pudding

$45 per person plus tax and gratuity

 please choose one item from each course, no substitutions

Parallel Post Christmas Day 2015 Menu

PARALLEL POST

Christmas Day Menu

12 p.m. – 10 p.m.

Specials

 Slow Roasted Prime Rib- Potato Croquettes, Garlic Leafy Greens       31

Norman Bloom Lobster Rissotto-  Fresh Picked Lobster, Tossed With Herbs, Cheese Rissotto-  31

                                                                             

     

Starters & Soups

Copps Island Grilled Oysters lemon butter, benton’s bacon, Pecorino   8                  

Parsnip Puree crème fraiche  7

Rustic Chicken Soup orzo, spinach, maittake mushrooms, parmesan 8

Adult Grilled Cheese smoked onion & pear chutney Fairfield ,Ct. Flaxseed Bread 8

Charcuterie et Fromage pear & cherry chutney, honey

glazed almonds, ciabatta 16

Crystal Wings, bleu cheese dressing, celery 10

House Made Chips, feta dill dip  5

Garden

Gilbertie’s Greens, Roasted Heirloom Beets,Coach Farm Shaved Goat Cheese, vanilla Basil Vinagrette 10

Romaine With Caesar Dressing, shaved parmesan, white anchovy 12

Salad Accoutrements: grilled Chicken 5  steak 9  grilled Shrimp 9   seasonal fish MP

Entrées & Sandwiches   

All Natural Roasted Chicken Breast  Anson Mills goat Cheese Polenta,Swiss Chard,Pine Nuts, Currants 17

Pan Seared Scallops  Beluga lentils, SUNCHOKE PURÉE, winter squash, hazelnut 29

Braised Beef Short Rib Beef jus, truffle potato PURÉE, roasted vegetables 25

Grilled Chicken Breast On Ciabatta roasted tomato, gouda, dill aioli, 10

Grilled Burger Ox hollow grass-fed beef, vermont cheddar, benton’s bacon, fancy sauce, sesame Brioche 13

Sides

Goat Cheese Polenta 5

Truffle Potato puree’ 4   

Roasted Cauliflower  smoked paprika, toasted almonds, Arugula  5

Sea Salt House-Cut French Fries spicy ketchup 5

Crispy Brussels Sprouts, Pine nuts, pecorino cheese, citrus oil 5

            

                                                                                                                                  

Menu For 12/25/15

18% gratuity added to parties of 6 or more

Consuming raw or undercooked meat, poultry, seafood, shellfish or eggs may increase your risk of food borne illness                                         

Washington CT Friends of Music Concert New Years Day 2016

Ring in the New Year with the Annual Washington Connecticut

Friends of Music New Year's Day Concert!

The Annual Washington Friends of Music New Year's Day Concert, with the New Baroque Soloists, will take place at the First Congregational Church on January 1st, 2016, at 4 PM. A champagne reception with the musicians follows the concert in Wersebe Hall. Tickets are $30 in advance, $25 for first time guests, or $35 at the door. Tickets are available online at   WashingtonCT4Music.blogspot.com or at The Hickory Stick Bookshop in Washington Depot.The New Baroque Soloists will be performing the music of J.S. Bach, J.J. Quantz, and Alessandro Marcello. "And it's a great way to start 2016!"  commented Waltraud Tammen, the Washington Friends of Music vice president.

The New Baroque Soloists offers audiences an exciting presentation of baroque chamber music, rich in voices of woodwinds, brass,and string instruments. The group offers a varied repertoire, including popular works by all known composers, as well as premiers from the group's proprietary repertoire, complied through twenty years of research and performance.

Under the leadership of Douglas Myers The New Baroque Soloists, first-class professional musicians from New York and Connecticut, offer new presentations of baroque chamber music, rich in the voices of woodwinds, brass and stringed instruments.

Washington Friends of Music New Year's Day Concert

Where: First Congregational Church
When: January 1, 2016 4:00 pm
Tickets: 
$30.00 in advance 
$25.00 first time guests
$35.00 at the door 

Tickets are available online at  WashingtonCT4Music.blogspot.com 

or at the Hickory Stick Bookshop in the Washington Depot

 

Shop The Blue Back Square in West Hartford CT

Social Media Promotion

 #ShopTheBlueBackSquare
#BlueBackSquare (Part II)

Last weekend I received an invitation from Kat of A Little Bird Told Me to attend a lunch and shopping promotional event at the beautiful Blue Back Square in West Hartford CT. Of course I was on board with this event! Shopping and Food? Count me in!

If you haven't already read my recap of Part One you can read it HERE. (It's all about lunch at Vinted Wine Bar and the merchants (ElyseRyan Jewelry  and Nelson Salon and Spa) that met with us there.)

And here is Part Two, all about the stores we visited at the Blue Back Square, West Elm Furniture Store, Ooh La La Boutique, and the NoRa Cupcake Company.

West Elm Furniture Store

I started at West Elm Furniture Store and almost didn't make it out. Seriously. This is a store you could spend all day in and still keep finding great little vignettes you didn't see the last time you walked by.

West Elm features modern furniture,  bedding, room decor, and dinnerware and offers complementary design services by their in-store style experts.

Here's a slideshow of more finds at West Elm Furniture Store.

West Elm Furniture Store is located at 91 Memorial Road in West Hartford's Blue Back Square.

For more on West Elm visit http://www.westelm.com/stores/us/ct/west-hartford-blue-back-square/

Ooh La La Boutique

Next I visited the cute little Ooh La La Boutique, whose items feature "the playful side of sophistication" !

#ShopTheBlueBackSquare at Ooh La La Boutique

I especially loved their jewelry and picked up a few sparkly statement necklaces for holiday parties and date nights!

#ShopTheBlueBackSquare at Ooh La La Boutique

And I absolutely ADORED this deep navy dress with a bold tomato red peony print! I was even more happy when I learned that fellow event attendee Rosa from the fashion and lifestyle blog Lady Diana's Pearls purchased it!

#ShopTheBlueBackSquare at Ooh La La Boutique

Find accessories, jewelry, scarves, dresses, and more at Ooh La La Boutique!

Ooh La La Boutique is located at 80 Memorial Road at the Blue Back Square in West Hartford.

For more on Ooh La La Boutique, visit their facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/The-Ooh-La-La-Boutique

NoRa Cupcake Company

I finished my shopping at NoRa Cupcake Company, a company I was very familiar with - but had never been inside their store! Lucky me was in for a treat as I perused their seasonal cupcake flavors and settled on one special flavor to bring home to the resident grinch in our household. LOL!!

Shop the Blue Back Square at NoRA Cupcake

With all these amazing flavors of cupcakes, like Drunken Santa, Butterfinger, and Buddy the Elf, it was so hard to choose!

Shop the Blue Back Square at NoRA Cupcake

But I just couldn't resist the fun flavors of The Grinch! Chocolate coconut cake, white chocolate mousse filling, green vanilla bean frosting, and a smattering of shredded coconut. Hello YUM!

Shop the Blue Back Square at NoRA Cupcake

NoRa Cupcake Company is definitely NOT your mother’s cupcake company!
NoRA's recently opened at 103 Memorial Road in the Blue Back Square in West Hartford and their main shop is in Middletown CT. They also have a Lil' NoRA Cupcake Truck!

For more on NoRa Cupcake Company visit them at http://www.noracupcake.com/

Again thanks to Kat of A Little Bird Told Me for inviting me and to all the merchants who hosted us, West Elm Furniture Store,  Ooh La La Boutique, and the NoRa Cupcake Company!


For more information on the Blue Back Square visit http://www.bluebacksquare.com/

Read Part One of this event ==>  HERE.

For more pictures of this event 

visit the Home Place facebook page HERE

and while you're there, don't forget to "like" us!

Disclaimer: I was invited to this event by members of the merchants' public relations and marketing firms, however, all views expressed are my own.

Lunch at Vinted in the Blue Back Square - West Hartford CT

Social Media Promotion

 #ShopTheBlueBackSquare
#LunchAtVinted (Part I)

Last weekend I received an invitation from Kat of A Little Bird Told Me to attend a lunch and shopping promotional event at the beautiful Blue Back Square in West Hartford CT. Needless to say, I jumped at the chance to finally visit this great little shopping district in West Hartford that I had heard so much about.

Rather than make this a super long post - I'm breaking my recap into two parts. Part One will be all about lunch at Vinted Wine Bar and the merchants (ElyseRyan Jewelry  and Nelson Salon and Spa) that met with us there --- and Part Two will be about the stores we visited at the Blue Back Square. (Read Part II about my shopping experience HERE)

Vinted Wine Bar

The event started officially with a sampling of the NEW lunch menu at Vinted Wine Bar, a member of the Federal Restaurant Group, with establishments in Massachusetts and Connecticut. The Vinted has an amazing selection of wines by the glass and a fun American tapas menu that goes perfectly with this quaint little place.

Vinted Wine Bar West Hartford CT

I adored the wine stations that surrounded the room with some great selections. I even spied one of my all time favorites the Prisoner Red (below, second from left).

Wine Stations - Showcasing and chilling over 60 varieties of wine

We started our lunch off with a nice light white wine, the Igreco Filu Bianco Calabria. The perfect selection for a luncheon with friends! Ever so slightly acidic, with a fresh clean flavor profile, this was a great Italian white wine to start our tasting with!

The bottle looks a bit like a minion, no?

Igreco Filu Bianco Calabria IGT, Italy

For our first course, we had a delicious Roasted Shrimp Kale Salad made with julienned apples, spiced walnuts, fresh radishes, with a creamy buttermilk dressing.

Roasted Shrimp Kale Salad

Next we had a delicious de-constructed platter, the Winter Beet Salad, made with smoked yogurt, porcini 'dirt', charred red onion and prosciutto.

Winter Beet Salad at Vinted Wine Bar

Next up on our luncheon sampling list --  the Truffle Risotto Balls with a truffle butter sauce. I could eat these all day, every day. They were ohhhh soooo goood!

Truffle Risotto Balls at Vinted Wine Bar

We then sampled a crisp cocktail perfect for the holiday season, an Apple Spice Cocktail, perfectly presented with a sugared rim and citrus peel. I have to say, this was a great plus for me as most wine bars I visit don't pay such close attention to their cocktail and spirit menus. Vinted has a cool craft cocktail menu with everything from Juleps to Moscow Mules! Definitely a plus!

Apple Spice Cocktail

Another great item we sampled was the Forest Mushroom Quesadilla, stuffed with aged cheddar cheese, sauteed kale, roasted garlic, parmesan, and chili oil with a charred scallion sour cream dip on the side. So incredibly good!

Forest Mushroom Quesadilla at Vinted Wine Bar

Everything was delicious! Other items available that day were a Honey Barbecue Chicken Slider (does that sound amazing or what?) and another craft cocktail, a modern take on the classic Grasshopper!

While all this food tasting was going on we also met with ElyseRyan Jewelry and members of the Nelson Salon and Spa who were on hand for beauty tips and makeovers.

ElyseRyan Jewelry

ElyseRyan Jewelry is beautiful and her philosophy of giving back is just as lovely. Depending on the item, a portion of proceeds is donated to the Ilya Peckerman Fund benefiting the Vasculitis Foundation’s Research Program or to the Easter Seals organization. Owner, designer, and hand-crafter Elise Rosenstock is equally giving, and gifted all the lunch attendees with her Easter Seals cuff bracelet. (Thank you Elise!!)

ElyseRyan Jewelry - Easter Seals Gives Back Bracelets

ElyseRyan Jewelry - Vasculitis Foundation Bracelet

For more about ElyseRyan Jewelry visit http://elyseryan.com/

Nelson Salon and Spa

The team from Nelson Salon and Spa also visited with us during our time at Vinted, offering makeovers, makeup tips, and more beauty secrets.

Nelson Salon and Spa

Nelson Salon and Spa is a luxury, full service salon providing a wide range of services in the West Hartford area.

For more about Nelson Salon and Spa visit http://www.nelsonsalonspa.com


This meetup was so much fun! Big thanks to Kat for inviting me and to Vinted Wine Bar for a delicious sampling of their new lunch menu! And additional thanks to ElyseRyan Jewelry and Nelson Salon and Spa for the informative afternoon!

Vinted Wine Bar
63 Memorial Road
West Hartford CT 06107
860.206.4648
Visit them online at http://vintedwinebar.com/

For more information on the Blue Back Square visit http://www.bluebacksquare.com/

Read Part Two of #ShopTheBlueBackSquare ==>> HERE 

For more pictures of this event 

visit the Home Place facebook page HERE

and while you're there, don't forget to "like" us!

  Disclaimer: I was invited to this event by members of the merchants' public relations and marketing firms, however, all views expressed are my own.

Yelp Hartford Shop Small Bus Crawl

On Saturday, November 28th, aka Shop Small Business Saturday, I had the opportunity to join the Hartford Yelp Community as they celebrated Small Business Saturday in a fun way. Not only did they rent a big yellow school bus to transport us to three local businesses - but those three businesses also featured some fabulous popup holiday mini-markets at each of the locations!

They called this fun event the Shop Small Bus Crawl!

We started in Hartford for our first stop at Hartford Prints!

Hartford Prints! hartfordprints.com 

With pop ups and complimentary bites and bevs from some amazing places!

Rat Bear Handmade https://www.etsy.com/people/GnarStudios
Mo + Pea etsy.com/shop/moandpea
Salt Shoppe salt-shoppe.com
Hartford Denim Company hartforddenimcompany.com
Brunch bites from Hartford Baking Company http://hartfordbaking.com/
Cupcakes from NoRa Cupcake www.noracupcake.com/
Bloody Marys from RIPE & Ballast Point Spirits drinkripe.com & ballastpoint.com
Bites from Bear's BBQ bearsbbq.com

These pulled pork covered churros from Bear's Barbecue were AMAZING!

Then we boarded the bus and set off to the grand opening of Cinder + Salt in Middletown CT

Cinder + Salt - the grand opening! cinderandsalt.com

And even more fun marketplaces inside!

The Inedibles ....
Glitter & Bold facebook.com/glitterandbold
Poor & Pretty facebook.com/poorandpretty
Cupcakes from NoRa Cupcake www.noracupcake.com/
Prosecco from 90+ Cellars ninetypluscellars.com
Coffee from Zen Roasters zenroasters.com

Then we boarded the bus for our final stop in New Haven to visit Vintanthromodern. (Geez...how do you pronounce that??  LOL!)

Vintanthromodern vintanthromodern.com


And they were featuring some creative craft and vendors --- and more food from some interesting places!

Kate Stephen Jewelry katestephenjewelry.com
Northeast Nutmeg facebook.com/Northeast-Nutmeg
Gathered & Sown facebook.com/gatheredsown
DIY Gift wrapping station
Along with more great food and drink from:
Wine from 90+ Cellars ninetypluscellars.com
Cupcakes from NoRa Cupcake www.noracupcake.com/
Bites from Oak Haven Table & Bar oakhaventableandbar.com

We had such fun on this Yelp event 

and it was our pleasure to support some great local Connecticut businesses!

Remember to "ShopSmall" and support local business as much as you can!

Thanks to all the wonderful shops and vendors who sponsored our group 

and special thank you to Emily from Yelp for being such a warm and welcoming host!

For more pictures from the Shop Small Bus Crawl 

visit the Home Place facebook page HERE

and while you're there - don't forget to "like" us!