My Trip to South Beach Wine & Food Festival 2017
Every year, if my busy schedule allows, I always try to attend the annual South Beach Wine & Food Festival in Miami, Florida. The national, star-studded, multiple day event showcases today’s most distinguished spirits producers, chefs and culinary personalities. Proceeds go to The Florida International University Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management. This institution is one of the top hospitality management schools in the United States.
This year, I attended luncheons and dinners, and spoke at various events. I also conducted a book signing for “Vegetables: Inspired Recipes and Tips for Choosing, Cooking and Enjoying the Freshest Seasonal Flavors", and I hosted a wonderful cocktails and dinner affair at Stephen Starr's well-known restaurant, Le Zoo.
But first, I spent a little time in Palm Beach, one of my favorite vacation spots. It was a very busy and wonderful trip - enjoy these photos.
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- A trip south to escape the cold winter can be so invigorating. Here we are arriving in sunny Palm Beach.
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- My first stop, dinner with friends. Here I am with Memrie Lewis at Buccan, a restaurant, bar and lounge in the heart of Palm Beach.
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- Buccan features progressive American cuisine. Here is a peek into the kitchen.
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- Here’s another quick snapshot I took with Memrie and my friend, entertainment banker and entrepreneur, Lisbeth Barron.
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- The next day, it was back to work – I was asked to speak to the Garden Club of Palm Beach at the Society of the Four Arts.
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- It was “standing room only” in The Walter S. Gubelmann Auditorium, a 700-seat theater.
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- During my presentation, I showed many slides. This is my Westport, Connecticut home, Turkey Hill, which I sold more than 10-years ago. I talked about the gardens I developed over the years – at Turkey Hill, at my Bedford, New York farm, and at Skylands, my home in Maine.
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- I showed photos of my elaborate vegetable and flower gardens and offered my best advice for planting.
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- I showed this slide of my long clematis pergola, underplanted with these beautiful alliums.
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- I also bumped in to Iris Apfel, a businesswoman, interior designer, and fashion icon. It was a nice event. We were asked not to take photos inside Palm Beach’s Everglades Club, where we had lunch, but there are beautiful photos of this historic space online.
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- The next day, I headed to Miami Beach for an appearance on the Today show.
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- Here I am with mastermind of the South Beach Wine & Food Festival, Lee Schrager. Lee tries to attend as many events as possible at the Festival.
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- Here’s a nice photo – my publicist, Susan Magrino, my friend, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and myself.
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- The segment included a group cooking demo. We were all having so much fun, it was hard to get everyone’s attention for a group shot. Here I am with Chloe Coscarelli, Alon Shaya, Al Roker, Seamus Mullen, Katie Lee, Marcus Samuelsson, Alex Guarnaschelli, Scott Conant, and Geoffrey Zakarian.
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- Here’s a quick snapshot of Al and me.
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- During my portion of the segment, I showed how to make perfect soft-boiled and hard-boiled eggs.
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- My hard-boiled eggs come out perfect every time. Go to my web site for the recipe. http://www.marthastewart.com/354061/perfect-hard-boiled-eggs
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- Here are the finished products. Don’t they look delicious? My how-to for making perfect soft-boiled eggs is also on my web site. http://www.marthastewart.com/318797/marthas-soft-boiled-eggs
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- In keeping up with social media, Al Roker took a few selfies.
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- And here we all are posing for the camera.
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- Our own Yehuda Shmidman, chief executive officer at Sequential Brands Group, Inc. was also in Miami for the Festival.
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- Chloe Coscarelli and I stopped for this quick photo. Chloe is a vegan chef and author. In fact, she was the first vegan to ever win a culinary competition on television.
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- Another fun group shot of all of us at the breakfast table during a Facebook LIVE broadcast. The segment took place by the pool at the Loews Hotel.
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- As part of the Festival events, I also spoke at Books & Books, Bal Harbour Shops, and conducted a book signing.
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- Sam Sifton, journalist and Food Editor of The New York Times, interviewed me.
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- I spoke for nearly an hour, sharing stories of how I built my business and brand, how I felt about the current hospitality industry, and my thoughts on the future of food.
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- It was a very full and energetic audience – my cousin, Connie, also attended. She is seated in the front row.
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- Here I am with Sam after the interview.
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- Then the lines formed all around the shop for the book signing. It was so nice to see such an enthusiastic group of people excited about my book, “Vegetables”.
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- I always try to stop for photos when possible – it’s very important to keep the line moving, but also to take time to meet with the customers.
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- And, I always like to personalize the books I sign – it’s a detail that is very important to me.
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- Here I am with my cousin, Connie Kostyra. It was so nice to see her. Be sure to check my blog on Monday, when I share more photos from the evening events I attended at this year’s South Beach Wine and Food Festival. Enjoy your weekend.
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