2010 NYCWFF

The first time I went to an Alton Brown demo, I was a little disappointed the scientific chef focused on cooking for kids. Luckily, at this year's Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival, Brown was more rated R than PG. Although it was 11 a.m., he got things started by teaching the crowd how to make mint juleps.

The theme of his demo was quintessential Southern cuisine with the defining flavor of the South being bourbon. While cooking bacon bourbon ice cream and bananas foster, he joked about the differences between Yankees and Southerners in the kitchen and had some pretty hysterical and memorable quotes. To see what he had to say about everything from parenting to Martha Stewart, read on.

Besides revealing a little of her personal life at a demonstration, Giada De Laurentiis also hosted one of the kickoff parties to the Food Network's New York City Wine and Food Festival. On Thursday night she was taking pictures and passing out meatballs at Meatball Madness, a walk-around competition that featured over 30 of New York's Italian restaurants and chefs. While I thoroughly enjoyed Nate Appleman's (of Pulino's Bar and Pizzeria) pepperoni meatball, my favorite was from Missy Robbins of A Voce. Her meatball was stuffed with a wonderfully creamy herb and ricotta mixture. The top prize of the people's choice award, however, went to Mia Dona's Donatella Arpaia. Her tasty meatball was served slider-style on potato focaccia with cacciocavallo cheese. It was spicy and pretty darn delicious!

To get a better look at the event, check out the photos after the jump.

Over the weekend I attended the Food Network's New York City Wine and Food Festival. There were tastings, book signings, parties, and chef's demonstrations. One of my favorite demos was hosted by the lovely Giada De Laurentiis. The petite and gorgeous chef, who made smashed potatoes, pork chops agrodolce, and chocolate cookies, invited audience members to the stage and candidly answered plenty of questions. You may know that she's the mother of 2-year-old Jade and that she pronounces words like mozzarella with a distinct Italian accent, but during the demo I learned a couple of things I never knew about Giada. Find out what they are after the break!

Although Fall is in full force, there isn't a shortage of fabulous food events. Get excited because it doesn't matter where you live, there's something delicious going on. From the festivities at the Food Network's Wine and Food Festival in New York City to San Francisco's fourth annual WhiskyFest, we'll be hitting up parties on both sides of the nation! What food extravaganza will you be attending? Share with us below in the comments.

• Napa, CA: Morton's and the Mondavi Families: Celebrating the Legendary Blend — Oct. 7
• New York, NY: Food Network New York City Wine and Food Festival — Oct. 7-10
• Des Moines, IA: World Food Festival — Oct. 7-10
• Gulf Shores, AL: National Shrimp Festival — Oct. 7-10
• Seattle, WA: Celebrity Chef Tour — Oct. 8
• San Francisco, CA: WhiskyFest — Oct. 8
• Charleston, SC: Taste of Charleston — Oct. 8-10
• Scottsdale, AZ: Arizona Taco Festival — Oct. 9
• Reno, NV: Great Italian Festival — Oct. 9-10
• Grand Prairie, TX: 27th International Bar-B-Que Cookoff — Oct. 9-10

Also, San Franciscan's listen up: next week we'll be at Wine and Spirits Top 100 Tasting, a fabulous walk-around event that's totally worth checking out. More details to come!

This Thursday, we're off to the Big Apple to spend the weekend with the culinary elite at the Food Network's New York City Wine and Food Festival! One of the events we hope to attend is Tacos and Tequila with Claire Robinson. In preparation of the event, the Network's new personality and host of 5 Ingredient Fix spoke to us about the taco she's serving, her technique for developing recipes, and her first cookbook. To find out what food trends she's over and what she thinks of being compared to a young Rachael Ray, read on.