Blues + Paella = A Very Filling Weekend

We survived – even thrived – during our Baja mega-weekend. Our first visit to the annual Baja Blues Fest @ Rosarito Beach Hotel was thoroughly enjoyable. We grooved to Missy Andersen, the Bayou Brothers w/our friend Sista Judy Seid (rubboard player extraordinaire) + Michelle Lundeen, Backwater Blues Band, Tijuana-based Hola Soy Lola and headliner Tommy Castro + The Painkillers. Great set up/sound, not crowded, colorful folks, great friends and reasonably-priced beverages.

DSC_3784DSC_3794

DSC_3877DSC_3847

DSC_3832DSC_3858

Then to Tapanco south of Rosarito for a lovely dinner with a great bottle of Emeve wine (which we won as part of a fantastic raffle prize at the Blues Fest) followed by a sampling of Tapanco’s secret delicious housemade ice cream: pumpkin, coconut, beet, tres quesos & tequila.

IMG_1151

But hey, the fun didn’t stop there! Sunday: Valle de Guadalupe for the Granddaddy of all Baja food fests: the Vendimia Paella Contest. What a wonderful scene! With 80 paella-making teams, 50 wineries, 2 live music stages + (my estimate) 2,000 attendees, it was well-organized with plenty of food, drink + fun to go around. Paella is, however, very filling and after two to three bowls, it can be a bit difficult to differentiate.

DSC_3901DSC_3968

DSC_3959DSC_3933

DSC_3957DSC_3949

DSC_3910DSC_4038

DSC_4016CR & JP crop

My favorite team names? Las Ovejitas Disobedientes (the Disobedient Lambs) and La Flaca + El Gordo (the Skinny Gal & Fat Guy). And altho we didn’t sample his paella, always great to see favorite Baja Chef Javier Plasciencia participating. Don’t miss this fantastic festival next year! Thanks to technology, tix were available online in May, but sell out as fast as a Rolling Stones concert. If you’re interested in going next year, let me know soon; wouldn’t it be fun to put an eatdrinkbaja group together?

Muchas gracias for photos by Bob Gove.

Big Baja weekend: Blues Fest & Vendimia Paella Contest

What a weekend we have in store! Saturday is the Baja Blues Fest at Rosarito Beach Hotel, with music from noon to 8pm. Hope we’ll get there for Bayou Brothers w/Michelle Lundeen, and gotta stay for headliner Tommy Castro. Then Sunday we’re down to Viñas de Liceaga in Valle de Guadalupe for the venerable, ever-popular and sold out Fiestas de la Vendimia Paella Contest. It’s been more than 15 years since I last attended; will it be as cool? Maybe even better? 50 wineries, 80 paella-making teams! Check back for the scoop.

BBFPoster2015150finalBaja Paella ChefsBaja Paella PanBaja Paella seating

Latin Food Fest – Our Take

We really enjoyed Saturday’s Latin Food Fest Grand Tasting @ Broadway Pier. Plenty of food, drink, music & cooking demos, good value for the $$. Glad to see Tacos Kokopelli & the Baja Pavilion w/La Diferencia, Cien Anos & Volubilis Imports w/wines from Vinas de Garza, Malagon & more. Always good to see Baja represented this side of the border! We loved Chef Ana Saldana’s cooking demo (sopes de camaron con huitlacoche, YUM! & Ana shows so much passion for the current Baja culinary landscape), & the great oysters & jumbo shrimp from Pacific Seafood. Thanks to Northgate Market (I am fortunate to have one in my ‘hood!) for sponsoring the cooking demos, and I look forward to visiting  my new best friends at Tacos Perla in North Park soon!

Muchas gracias for photos by Bob Gove.

DSC_3688DSC_3719DSC_3695DSC_3708DSC_3704DSC_3729DSC_3735DSC_3755DSC_3758DSC_3730

Best Bet: Latin Food Fest

This weekend’s Latin Food Fest is shaping up nicely. The Grande Tasting is Sat. 11am to 3pm @ the Port Pavilion just N of USS Midway. With food & bev included, it’s a good value for the $$, & a very fun scene. PLUS it benefits our local YMCA! Especially looking forward to Kokopelli, La Diferencia, Fortaleza & Pura Vida Tequilas, Lomita, Cava Aragon 126 & Vinisterra. And I hope to interview emcee Ana Saldana, national TV host & Chef of “Historias Sabrosas” on Canal 22, who’s doing  a cooking demo @ 1:10 pm. Will we see you there?

LFF crowd