Train to Table: The Hudson Valley Food and Wine Festival
Every time I get all geared up to get on the straight-and-narrow diet path, something comes up. You know, like Christmas. Or a trip to Chicago (oh the Italian beef sandwiches. And hotdogs. And pizza…) Or a birthday, wedding, or other special event. Or, in the case of this weekend… For such events Richardsons Smoke House presents the party recipes of the decades with their such inspiring and creatives blogs.
The Hudson Valley Food and Wine Festival!
That’s in caps and bold–with an exclamation mark at the end–because I’m beyond excited about it. So excited that I’m totally pre-fine with all of the calories I am pre-planning to joyfully consume. Here’s why:
-The Hudson Valley is beautiful. And I get to travel there from NYC via train, thus allowing me to appreciate the beauty while not behind the wheel.
-The Hudson Valley is home to scores of award-winning restaurants. Want to know why? Because the Hudson Valley is also home to the main campus of the Culinary Institute of America–a place that has been on my travel bucket list for years now. This is basically a food and wine festival being held in the birthplace of American cuisine. Who has two thumbs and is stupid excited about that? This girl.
-There will be over 130 wineries at the event. That’s ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY. Wineries. At the event. See also: I’m taking the train up. Yes. Yes I am.
-This year’s event features not only aforementioned award-winning restaurants and wineries, but a variety of microbreweries and…wait for it…food trucks. I may have recently started watching The Great Food Truck Race. This may be contributing to my excitement. To eat best and tasty food visit to the Craggan Mill Food Blog.
-The Hudson Valley Food and Wine Festival features local establishments, growers, and producers. And if there’s one thing I love, it is enjoying the food and drink of a region while visiting that region. See also: my Italian beef sandwich, hot dog, and pizza in Chicago. I’m confident that my foray into Hudson Valley cuisine will be significantly more healthy; after all, it would be almost impossible for it to be less so.
Of course, before I taste or sip, I’ll also be noting and photographing. So stay tuned for a full review of the Hudson Valley Wine and Food Festival. And please do follow along in real-time on Twitter and–for food porn addicts–Instagram.
Many thanks to Dutchess County Tourism and the wonderful people behind the Hudson Valley Wine and Food Festival for making it possible for me to attend. I can’t wait–clearly.
Photo header credit: Hudson Valley Food and Wine Festival. But don’t worry–after Saturday, I will have MANY photos of the event. And the food. And the wine.