Metropolitain Cooking Show Recap and Contest

The Metropolitan Cooking and Entertaining Show was fun, but crowded! The bf and I got to see Giada de Laurentiis (Food Network) cook live, but we were so far away! Luckily there was a large TV screen in order to see her.

This is what the floor looked like early in the morning. It wasn't as crowded as the afternoon. It was filled with over 200 food vendors! We went crazy with the free samples.

I'm going to show you guys some of the vendor's that I found to be memorable.

Gracie's Garden
They had really cool savory jellies in herbal flavors that tasted really good on crackers. I thought it was cool since I usually think of jellies as being sweet.

Millhouse's House of Rolls
(240) 221-3007
The owner James L. Millhouse Jr. was very memorable. He was one of the nicest people out of the whole place, didn't have a fancy booth or anything, but he was super passionate about his Angel Biscuits which came in 4 different flavors. Very good!

Penny Chocolates
Chef and owner Cheryl Schneider named her company after her beloved long-haired Dachshund Penny. I tried the chocolate covered marshmallow, and it was to die for. They also offer boxed chocolates, chocolate covered marshmallows/Oreos/Graham crackers, chocolate bars, gelato cakes, brownies, cookies and biscottis. Their new location in Fairfax opened this month.

Linda's Garden
Out of all of the dip mixes at the show, Linda's Garden was the best. The flavors were so bold, and the variety was huge! Here are the flavors they offer: Basil-Garlic, Cajun, Dill, Garlic, Habanero, Horseradish, Italian, Jalapeno, Tarragon, Veggie, Spicy Veggie, Tomato-Basil, Lemon-Basil, Chipotle, Onion.

Oil and Vinegar
The bf an I wanted to buy something for ourselves and chose this AMAZING bottle of Garlic & Basil olive oil. They offer many different flavors of olive oil, dippers, pestos and bruschettas.

I've been eating it everyday (I've already used it before this picture) by just dipping bread in it. The flavor is so pure that it makes a great dipping oil. I'd say it's too good to use for cooking since the bottle isn't that big.

Spice Rack Chocolates
Paul Schellhammer (CFO and Co-Creator of Spice Rack Chocolates) was at the show to give out chocolate samples. They are an environmentally friendly company that uses all-natural ingredients and 54% cacao dark chocolate in their products. Here are the unique flavors that caught my attention and the collections they belong to:
Coffee Break Collection
Mexican Chiapas
Peruvian
Mocha Java Hazelnut
Bolivian Caranavi
Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Harfusa

En Fuego Collection
Japanese Wasabi
Intense Indian Curry
Crushed Thai Chilies
Smokey Chipotle Peppers
Spicy Cayenne and Chili Powder

Spice Rack Collection
Fresh Lemon with Sweet Basil
Celtic Smoked Sea Salt and
White Ground Pepper
Key Lime and Jamaican Curry
Rosemary with Mint Leaves
Spicy Cayenne and Chili Powder

Spiced Fruit Collection
Tangy Grapefruit and Lavender
Island Mango and Cracked Black Pepper
Tropical Pineapple and Ground Ginger
Fresh Apple and Coriander
Sweet Peach and Dill

Tea Time Collection
Strawberry Tingle
Cochin Masala Chai
Cherry Rose
Versailles Lavender
Orange Earl Grey

CONTEST TIME!!!
I wanted to hold contest to celebrate my 1st year of blogging on Lunching in the DMV.

Rules:
-Leave a comment answering this request: "My birthday is in less than 2 months, suggest a cool/cute/unique restaurant in the DMV to celebrate my birthday with some friends"
-Include your name and email address so I can contact you if you win
-Contest ends Monday, November 23th at 11:55pm EST
-Winner will be chosen at random

Prize:
A 5-piece box of Spice Rack Chocolates in Tangy Grapefruit & Lavender. It was the 1st flavor I tried, and we literally came back 3 times to that table because all of the chocolates was so good. You can smell the grapefruit when you open the box. The grapefruit hits you with the its citrus flavor 1st, then the 2nd note is the dark chocolate, then finishes with a calming lavender flavor.