Colossal Curry Cookoff 2017!

Curry fans, rejoice!! The Austin Food Blogger Alliance is hosting its second Curry Cookoff on April 22, 2017, at Shangri-La, from 2-4 p.m. This event was a ton of fun last year and the contestants all brought their A-games and created some seriously outstanding curry concoctions. Last year's three celebrity judges - CK Chin, Brandon Watson, and Kelly Stocker - had the very difficult task of selecting the Curry Champion of Austin (as well as 1st and 2nd runners-up), and attendees cast their votes for the coveted People's Choice prize. DJ Dolomike spun the hottest tunes to get the sold-out crowd moving.

We are working to make this year's event even bigger and better, so be sure to get your tickets while they're still available! Or, if you think you've got the cooking chops to grab the coveted Curry Champion crown, interested contestants should email us at cookoff@austinfoodbloggers.org. It's FREE to enter and there will be fabulous prizes for the winners - not to mention bragging rights!

Hope to see you there!!!

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Fleming's Southern Hemisphere Event - and a GIVEAWAY!

The folks at Fleming's Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar invited me out recently to check out their Southern Hemisphere Wine Harvest event. This fun event celebrates the flavors of the Southern Hemisphere during the region's annual wine harvest. We've been lucky enough to dine at Fleming's several times in the past, so I knew we would be in for a treat, and eagerly took them up on their offer. As always, the food was delicious and the service was truly unbeatable. From the second we hit the front door until the moment we left, we were treated like kings (and no, they didn't know I was a blogger when I was there).

The meal was wonderful, as well. We started with Fleming's wonderful complimentary bread, which was served fresh from the oven. It came with chardonnay cheddar and champagne brie spreads - a fun diversion from the usual butter.

My husband is a fan of the wedge salad. We split one of these, and thank goodness - pictured is my half of the salad, and I think the photo makes it look quite a bit smaller than it really was. The slab of bacon served with it was divine (sorry for the lighting on this pic - I'm experimenting with a flash trick that Linda Nguyen taught me - still learning!)

For my entrée, I chose the New Zealand Rack of Lamb from the Southern Hemisphere menu. It was served over a generous bed of truffle-parsley mashed potatoes and crispy leeks, a melt-in-your-mouth concoction that totally made me swoon. The lamb was super tender with excellent flavor.

My husband ordered the Double-Thick Pork Rib Chop with a julienne of apples, jicama, apple cider, and a creole mustard glaze (this was from their regular menu). This caveman-esque slab of meat was very impressive!

Sadly, both of us took home a substantial amount of leftovers and did not have room for dessert. It was a bit crushing, as I had my eye on their walnut turtle pie!

Not only did Fleming's make us feel like royalty, they want to make YOU feel the same way! So they've given me a $100 credit to give away to a lucky reader! (It basically works like a gift card, except that it has to be used in a single visit and can't be used for alcoholic beverages, gratuity, or taxes). 

Would you like to win it and enjoy a totally splurge-y meal? To enter, leave me a comment telling me what you'll order off Fleming's menu if you win.  I'll pick a winner at random on Monday, March 27th (because we all need a little something to make Mondays better). You can get up to two additional entries by following me on Instagram and/or following me on Twitter - just please leave me comments here letting me know you've done so (if you already follow me, that counts too!)  NOTE: this can be used at any Fleming's location in the U.S., so you don't have to live in Austin to take advantage of this giveaway.  Good luck!

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