Feast Portland 2013 Day 3: Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger

September 25, 2013 by 3 Comments

Disclosure: I was granted a Bloggers Pass for Feast Portland 2013, and asked to help promote Feast but they did not require that I write this post and I am not otherwise being compensated. 

Even though I already posted about the Feast Saturday High Comfort event, it was not the only event I visited on Saturday. Another huge event for Feast Portland 2013 Day 3 was the Whole Foods Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff competition at Directors Park. Of course, there was the Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger competition to watch. Also, I was able to stop by some of the various producers who were offering free samples during this free event, and my Bloggers Pass also got me entry into a VIP area where I saw the most beautiful bloody mary bar in my life.

Logo for the Whole Foods Market Best Butcher Competition and Fishmonger Faceooff Live Music from Redwood Son at the Whole Foods Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff competition during Feast 2013

But first, the informative stuff.

I had previously written about Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff in a countdown post noting what happened last year (answer- it wasn’t here!) and also the day before the event listing out the competitors coming from all the regions to compete, and a little bit about the Whole Foods Markets meat and seafood program.

Despite the on again, off again rain, many people still braved the weather to cheer on the various participants. It was amazing to watch the butchers and fishmonger really show their craft in knowing the anatomy of the product and their samurai like skills in slicing and dicing to prepare cuts in mere minutes. At the event, 22 regional winners of butcher and fishmonger contests now vied for the national title. Between the competitions, live music by Redwood Son kept everyone in good spirits.

Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger: Whole Foods Market crowns champion butcher and fishmonger at FEAST Portland Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger: Whole Foods Market crowns champion butcher and fishmonger at FEAST Portland
Whole Foods Market® crowns champion butcher and fishmonger at FEAST Portland – See more at Whole Foods Market Newsroom

In the end, Hector “El Jefe” Yedra from a San Franscico Whole Foods representing the Northern California region and 25 years of experience won the title of “Best Butcher”, beating out the defending champion Armand “the Arm” from New Jersey. Meanwhile, Frank “The Italian Slayer” Ficarra from the Florida region took away the “Finest Fishmonger” crown, flexing his 30 years of experience.

Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger event 2013, Best Butcher on the left, Finest Fishmonger on the right, per the Whole Foods Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff at Feast 2013

It was amazing and intimidating to see these men and 1 woman (a female fishmonger!) at their craft. Butchering and fishmongering are centuries old craft, and something that is often behind the scenes as you may purchase your surf and turf already packaged from the coolers or only think of them as being behind the case to wrap up your purchases. It was humbling to see their skill, when I am barely evenly cutting up vegetables. On a related note, Whole Foods is going to continue to cultivate and honor this traditional line of work with not only the training they already provide to their current team members, but announcing the launch of an intensive 18 month Apprenticeship Program to further foster new generations of experts.

One of the vendors I was able to speak while at this event was Creminelli Fine Meats. There, I was able to chat with Cristiano Creminelli. You can’t import the Italian salami, so they imported an Italian man instead! Cristiano’s family have been cured meat artisans working with fine meats for centuries (generations and generations of recipes and skill-passing from father to son which they can trace back to at least the 1600s!), including his father and his brother still in Italy!

They source their meat from local ranchers and family farms in Iowa (their base of Utah isn’t really a source for pork) from animals that are 100% vegetarian fed with no antibiotics, which is why Christiano believes actually the salami they are producing here in the US is even better than what you can get back there because of the incredible quality of meat they work with! Look how beautiful it is. Yes, that is Christiano jumping with excitement in one of the photos. Apparently since it wasn’t past lunchtime yet there had not been enough time since he probably shaved that morning to equal the natural super manly shadow you can see on the banner on the left of his booth, heh.

Creminelli Fine Meats is available at Whole Foods, so check them out! Although I adore my local Portland providers Olympic Provisions and Chop, I rest easy knowing that when I travel to other cities and states, I can still put together an incredible delicious picnic for a hike with impressive sandwiches while supporting old world tradition and great animal husbandry practices at family farms just by stopping at a local Whole Foods.

At the Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, it was awesome to have an opportunity to learn about Creminelli Fine Meats... you can't import the Italian salami, so they imported an Italian man with his recipes instead. Available at Whole Foods- the meat, the meat, not the man!Awesome to have an opportunity to learn about Creminelli Fine Meats... you can't import the Italian salami, so they imported an Italian man with his recipes instead. Available at Whole Foods- the meat, the meat, not the man! List of available Creminelli Fine Meats products, check your local Whole Foods List of available Creminelli Fine Meats products, check your local Whole Foods List of available Creminelli Fine Meats products, check your local Whole Foods Some of the offerings of Creminelli Fine Meats: Praga sliced meat. Check your local Whole Foods

As more people started to arrive I wasn’t able to spend as much time speaking to all the vendors, though there were a few I wanted to highlight. From Ocean Beauty Seafood I learned about this new product, a beautiful caviar that is less salty because instead of using salted water they used soy sauce: what a gourmet appetizer to put together, requiring only simple assembly of cracker, smoked salmon, a little whipped cream cheese or creme fraiche or even yogurt and a 1/4 teaspoon of this caviar. Want an easy dinner to go with a great red or beer? At Whole Foods you can purchase these mussels already in a tomato and garlic broth and pre-cooked- you just need to steam to warm it up and add your garnish of Parmesan and you’re good to go!

Meanwhile, American Homestead Natural Pork sampled uncured wurstmeister natural smoked sausages, including bratwurst and this jalapeno german sausage. No nitrates or nitrates added, raised with no added hormones or antibiotics and vegetarian friend at family farms. And look at that gorgeous Bacon Wrapped Scallops from Raw Seafoods Inc. These were only a few of the complimentary bites for anyone that arrived at Directors Park for this FREE event with FREE samples! If they repeat this event next year, you MUST go!
Soy sauce caviar! so fancy! All available at Whole Foods Soy sauce caviar! so fancy! All available at Whole Foods Mussels that come prepackaged in broth and precooked, just warm and add your garnish of Parmesan! At Whole Foods American Homestead Natural Pork sampled uncured wurstmeister natural smoked sausages, including bratwurst and this jalapeno german sausage. No nitrates or nitrates added, raised with no added hormones or antibiotics and vegetarian friend at family farms. Available at Whole Foods Bacon Wrapped Scallops from Raw Seafoods Inc. Available at Whole Foods

Finally, the most beautiful Bloody Mary bar I have ever seen.

One special VIP treat I was able to enjoy with my Bloggers Pass was the Bloody Mary bar crafted by Elephant’s in the Park. It included New Deal Distillery Portland 88 vodka, a rim using The Meadows Mesquite Smoked Sea Salt & Black Sea Salt, and a base mix that included lemon, worcestershire, Cholula, and tomato juice for a spicy kick!

Meanwhile, there was a huge table on either side to create our own skewers from various vendors that are also available at Whole Foods. So you could totally do some of these yourself for your own bloody mary bar!

Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, The Most Beautiful Bloody Mary Bar I've ever seen, stocked with various goods from Whole Foods surf and turf vendors Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, The Most Beautiful Bloody Mary Bar I've ever seen, stocked with various goods from Whole Foods surf and turf vendors Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, The Most Beautiful Bloody Mary Bar I've ever seen, stocked with various goods from Whole Foods surf and turf vendors

The Surf Skewer Menu included options such as

  • Seared Yellowfin Tuna and Cold Smoked Atlantic Salmon from Blue Circle
  • Patagonia Blue Mussels Mediterranean Style from Ocean Beauty Seafoods
  • Ceviche Bay Scallops from Raw Seafoods Inc.

The Turf Skewer Menu included

  • St Louis Smoked Pork Rib from American Homestead Natural Hampshire
  • Beef Italian Style Meatballs from Colameco’s
  • Campfire Salami from Creminelli Fine Meats
  • Chicken Meatballs from Northwest Farms & The Original Brat Hans
  • Rib-eye Steak from Panorama Organic Grass Fed Beef
  • Original Tom Tom Turkey Snack Stick and All-Natural Fully Cooked Bacon from Wellshire Farms
  • Pork Chorizo from Whole Foods Market

Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, The Most Beautiful Bloody Mary Bar I've ever seen, stocked with various goods from Whole Foods surf and turf vendors

There was a Vegetable Skewer Menu too, but I didn’t have any more room on my skewer. But talk about decadent! So I had to have two. The first one was very meatball centered, while the second one I stepped it up to a meatcentric steak and rib garnish!

Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, Build your own garnish for Bloody Mary, courtesy of various vendors available at Whole Foods, in this case particularly Cold Smoked Atlantic Salmon from Blue Circle, Chicken Meatballs from Northwest Farms & The Original Brat Hans, Beef Italian Style Meatballs from Colameco's Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, Build your own garnish for Bloody Mary, courtesy of various vendors available at Whole Foods, in this case particularly Rib-eye Steak from Panorama Organic Grass Fed Beef and St Louis Smoked Pork Rib from American Homestead Natural Hampshire

Whole Foods also provided a few more bites to help us with our Bloody Marys…
Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, Bites courtesy of Whole Foods at the Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff during Feast Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, Bites courtesy of Whole Foods at the Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff during Feast Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, Bites courtesy of Whole Foods at the Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff during Feast Whole Foods Best Butcher and Fishmonger Event 2013, Bites courtesy of Whole Foods at the Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff during Feast

Disclosure: I was granted a Bloggers Pass for Feast Portland 2013, and asked to help promote Feast but they did not require that I write this post and I am not otherwise being compensated.  The views and opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own, and I will always provide my honest opinion and assessment of all products and experiences regardless of whether they were complimentary or not. 

Also check out my recap of Day 1 Sandwich Invitational and Day 2 Oregon Bounty Grand Tasting, as well as the other Day 3 event of High Comfort Recap. You can also check out Portland Monthly’s slideshow of the event.

Signature

Filed Under: Festival Event, Food and Drink, Sponsored Post Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Whole Foods Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff at Feast (Free Event!) on Sat!

September 20, 2013 by 1 Comment

Sponsored Post for Whole Foods. Disclosure: I was provided a gift card for Whole Foods in order to create a meal using the surf and turf from Whole Foods Market, and asked to promote the Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff event at Feast. There was no other compensation. But I will always provide my honest opinion and assessment of all products and experiences I may be given. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own.

I previously wrote a little bit about the upcoming September 21 Feast Portland event with Whole Foods, the Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff, summarizing the previouslies in that post. After already winning regional competitions, 11 butchers and 11 fishmongers will be here at Director Park from 11am-2pm Saturday for the final battle.

Overview of the Contest and Faceoff Event

The contest and faceoff consists of a series of quick-fire challenges in front of a live audience (which could include you- it definitely is going to include me!) and panel of expert and celebrity judges (recognizable names include Jenn Louis and Paul Qui who have been on Top Chef Masters and won Top Chef respectively, as well as owning restaurants; also Adam Sappington of Country Cat and Aaron Franklin of Franklin BBQ).

See the detailed list of the panel and the competitors at the The Whole Foods Newsroom, but here’s a quick glance!

Meet the Butchers and Fishmongers at the Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff at Feast 2013, September 21 at Director Park

Meet the Butchers and Fishmongers at the Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff at Feast 2013, September 21 at Director Park

According to the Feast Website for this event, besides being dazzled by their presentation, craftsmanship, and swagger, there will also be opportunities to sample some surf and turf from Whole Foods Market’ partners, and also enjoy live music and a photo booth.

Whole Foods Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff at Feast 2013, September 21 at Director Park

Get to Know your Whole Foods Meat and Seafood

In addition, this is also an opportunity to learn about the background behind the sustainable meat and seafood at the counters of Whole Foods. I spoke with a local fishmonger at the nearby Whole Foods in the Pearl, and was impressed to hear that one of his coworkers, Jesse, won in competing with his other coworkers at the store in terms of yield. He then faced off against all the other fishmongers at the Portland stores and won, which then took him to the regionals to compete. Although he did not win the regionals and is not competing tomorrow at the Fishmonger Faceoff, you may find that your neighborhood Whole Foods gives you access to some pretty top notch talent!

I also learned that they are all ready to help you get your seafood prepared for your dinner. Do you want to buy that fresh shrimp, but don’t want to deal with deveining/removing the tail? They’ll totally do it for you.

Want some help deciding how to flavor your seafood for your meal? They have tasted all the rubs and marinades and can help you pick out what to add to your selected seafood- and will season it for FREE for you! There are 14 rubs and 7 marinades for you to choose from!  That’s right- FOURTEEN rubs and SEVEN marinades.

The flavors options they offer are wide, varying from Lemon Dill or Blackened to Northwest Chipotle, Tandoori Spice, Tequila Lime, or Thai Curry or more for rubs, and choices such as Caribbean Mango, Ginger Teriyaki, Maple Chipotle and Raspberry Chipotle to select from! My rep was quite fond of Lemon Dill for fattier fish and the Maple Chipotle (though if you want more heat Raspberry Chipotle is hotter). They also provide several options in whcih are already prepped for you, and just waiting for you to finish and cook!

Whole Foods Market, Seafood Whole Foods Market, Seafood Whole Foods Market, Seafood Whole Foods Market, Seafood

When you see they have specials with that whole fish, don’t be intimidated to ask them for help on cutting it for you- it will save you so much work and worry, and they are more than happy to give you a hand and be of service.

I wanted to also mention one of the reasons that when I do purchase meat, I like going to Whole Foods. I am willing to pay a little bit extra because they label all their meat with a scale of 1 through 5+ based on the animal welfare standards. This ranges from 1-no cages, no crates, no crowded as the minimum to 2 -enriched environment 3-enhanced outdoor access 4-pasture centered 5-animal centered no physical alterations step 5+animal centered, entire life on same farm.  Of course, this is not the same thing as organic. However, I strongly support stepping away from factory farms and a return to farming and ranching with respect for the life that is being taken.

Whole Foods Market, butcher Whole Foods Market, butcher

Meanwhile, as I was admiring the case, I became interested in a cut I had never seen before- a Jersey Boneless Short Rib Steak. Apparently, there is only one cut of this per animal, and you don’t see it in stores much because butchers usually take it home to their families. I’ve had short rib before, noticeably and most often in Kalbi, a marinated grilled Korean version of the meat, which I love. But this is a boneless short rib. And, just like with kalbi, they are a very rich cut that includes some good fat content. I’ll circle back with more detail in a future post.

For now though, I encourage you to think about attending the FREE Feast event at Directors Park- both for seeing the mastery of the sharp knives from the butchers and fishmongers and also the surf and turf samples! Come cheer on the butchers and fishmongers as they can demonstrate their craft at this event, and learn about the meats and seafood of Whole Foods!

Disclosure: I was provided a gift card for Whole Foods in order to create a meal using the surf and turf from Whole Foods Market, and asked to promote the Best Butcher Contest and Fishmonger Faceoff event at Feast. There was no other compensation. But I will always provide my honest opinion and assessment of all products and experiences I may be given. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own.

 

Signature

Filed Under: Festival Event, Food and Drink, Sponsored Post Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Counting Down to Feast Portland: Best Butcher Contest & Fishmonger Face Off

August 19, 2013 by 6 Comments

This post is part of my series “Counting Down to Feast Portland” where I talk about events I plan to attend as part of this 4 day food and drink festival September 19-22, 2013. The goal of Feast Portland is to raise money for two Portland charity partners focused on fighting hunger: Share Our Strength and Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon. Disclaimer: I was granted a Bloggers Pass for Feast Portland 2013, and asked to help promote Feast but they did not require that I write this post and I am not otherwise being compensated.

Update – After attending the event, you can see my recap here

Previously: I highlighted the Oregon Bounty Grand Tasting food festival scheduled for Sept 20 and 21 and also wrote of my excitement for the Sandwich Invitational on Sept 19 and then had to go get a sandwich to recover after writing that post.

The previous two events I highlighted might have a ticket price (and remember, they are trying to raise money for charity after all), but not every Feast event does. One of the new events this year for Feast is the Whole Foods Market Best Butcher Contest & Fishmonger Face Off. This is a FREE event! The event takes place as part of Feast Portland on Saturday, Sept 21st 11:00am – 2:00pm at Director Park. There will be surf and turf samples provided by Whole Foods Market’s meat and seafood partners, so don’t worry about watching all that deliciousness and only wondering conceptually about the product.

The Best Butcher Contest & Fishmonger Face Off are two branches of regional competitions by Whole Foods Market that are held all over the country. Last year, the Best Butcher contest included whittling down 300 butchers to just 3 (representing the west, central, and east regions of the US) that made it to New York City to be crowned at the the 2nd annual Best Butcher competition at Meatopia. Tasks they had to rise to for the competition included crafting a turducken (duck stuffed inside a chicken stuffed inside a turkey), merchandising a whole lamb, and creating a new cut of beef steak, chop or roast! Best Butcher 2012 Armand ”The Arm” Ferrante will be defending his title. You can read more about Best Butcher Contest 2012 here at the Whole Foods Blog.

Meanwhile, the 1st annual Fishmonger Faceoff of 2012 ended with the Golden Trident being awarded at Food & Wine Classic Aspen, as you can read here about the Fishmonger Face Off at the Whole Foods Blog. Fishmonger Winner Bob “The Fish Guy” Reany had to cut and fillet a certified Wild Alaska Salmon in 3 minutes- and he did it in 90 seconds! Both winners of the Best Butcher and Fishmonger Faceoff had about 40 years of experience each- we’re talking about masters of meat or fish! Check out the awesome nicknames of the fishmongers who competed last year in this 1 minute video of the 2012 finalists- will we be seeing some of them this year?

This year, the final for the Best Butcher Contest & Fishmonger Face Off are BOTH coming to Feast and Portland! It’s serious technique required to know where to cut and to cut quickly, but they also will be judged on “swagger” in knife skills. It should be exciting to watch them throw in showmanship while working with the blade and with still an eye on quality of cuts and quantity of yield of product!

Who knows… is one of the butchers and fishmongers we see at this event going to be one from your neighborhood Whole Foods and providing you with the finest cuts of meat and fish?
Meat + Poultry section of Whole Foods Pearl... Is one of the butchers and fishmongers we see at Best Butcher Contest & Fishmonger Face Off at Feast Portland 2013 going to be one from your neighborhood Whole Foods and providing you with the finest cuts of meat and fish? Seafood section of Whole Foods Pearl... Is one of the butchers and fishmongers we see at Best Butcher Contest & Fishmonger Face Off at Feast Portland 2013 going to be one from your neighborhood Whole Foods and providing you with the finest cuts of meat and fish?

Butchery and Fishmongering is an art that seemed like it was being lost for a while into uniform piles of plastic wrapped hunks of meat in a cooler, but thankfully it has been making a comeback. People are returning to wanting to appreciate where the food comes from, and use all of the animal, which is evidenced by the rise of butchery classes in the past year in Portland. So it seems like the perfect place to hold these Best Butcher Contest & Fishmonger Face Off finals.

Camas Davis of Portland Meat Collective gives a class on butchering a pig at Feast Portland 2012
Above: Photos from last year’s Feast PDX Basic Pig Butchery class with Portland Meat Collective’s Camas Davis. This class is back this year but already sold out! Photo Credit: Feast Portland CopyrightAll rights reserved by Feast Portland

Description from the Feast website: After months of regional competitions at Whole Foods Market stores across the country, 12 butchers and fishmonger finalists are sharpening their knives to go head-to-tail for the glory of being named best in their craft. Come watch the sparks fly as the butcher and fishmonger finalists battle their way to the top. Finalists will be judged by an expert panel that includes top chefs and media on presentation, craftsmanship and swagger in dazzling demos of knife work. Sample some surf-and-turf from Whole Foods Market’s meat and seafood partners, pause for some live music, snap a picture in the photo booth, and even learn a thing or two about high-quality meat and sustainable seafood.

Camas Davis of Portland Meat Collective gives a class on butchering a pig at Feast Portland 2012 Copyright All rights reserved by Feast Portland Camas Davis of Portland Meat Collective gives a class on butchering a pig at Feast Portland 2012 Copyright All rights reserved by Feast Portland
Photo Credit: Feast Portland CopyrightAll rights reserved by Feast Portland

Disclosure: I was granted a Bloggers Pass for Feast Portland 2013, and asked to help promote Feast but they did not require that I write this post and I am not otherwise being compensated. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own, and I will always provide my honest opinion and assessment of all products and experiences regardless of whether they were complimentary or not.

Signature

Filed Under: Festival Event, Food and Drink, Portland Highlights, Sponsored Post Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,