Daily Loaf

Get squashed at Publix Apron's cooking class.

Wednesday, November 4: Snookers Grill
Champagne and Sushi. It seems like the words I’m reading are too good to be true, but unless my senses are deceiving me, it appears that Snookers is offering unlimited — yes, like, all you could ever imbibe — champagne and chef-selected sushi. Those just happen to be two of my favorite delicacies, and though I admit to never having tried them together, it sounds like a damn fine idea. $15. 7-9 p.m., 606 N. Pinellas Ave., Tarpon Springs. (727-937-6665)

Wednesday, November 4: Toasted Pheasant
Autumn Wine Dinner. Fall has finally come to Florida, and although that may not mean a changing of the leaves, it does mean that it’s cooling down at last — and we can swap our cooling whites for a sumptuous selection of warming reds at this wine tasting and dinner, with a menu that includes: autumn sausage and sage corn chowder paired with Shug Pinot Noir Sonoma; grilled asparagus and swiss strudel with a duet of tomato and asparagus coulis paired with Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc; a quail and beef short rib  duo of roasted quail filled with chestnut and sage with rich beef roast, paired with Mettler Zinfandel; and caramel apple ginger snap with cinnamon ice cream paired with Santa Alicia Late Harvest Muscatel. $45. 6:30-8:30 p.m., 14445 N. Dale Mabry Hwy., Tampa (813-265-6700)

Wednesday, November 4: World of Wines
Holiday Wine Tasting. Warm up with toasty wines to heat the cockles of your heart, including: Kenwood Yulupa Cuvee, Piper Sonoma Brut, Caposaldo Prosecco, Cristalino Brut and New Age White Wine, accompanied by hand-selected, catered hors d’oeuvres. $10. 6-8 p.m., 3431 S. West Shore Blvd., Tampa (813-835-9463)

Thursday, November 5: Publix Apron’s Cooking School
Get Squashed. Learn to make the most of this seasonal staple with a menu that includes: butternut squash with curried shrimp; baked acorn squash filled with chorizo sausage; hubbard squash cheese soufflé; zucchini and yellow squash chutney; and a classic pumpkin pie. $35. 6:30 p.m., 7835 Gunn Highway, Tampa (813-926-4465)

Many more events after the break: Read the rest of this entry »

Florence Fabricant discusses how Sherry’s bitter half is gaining exposure. (Read more about Sherry here). Tara Parker-Pope lists 20 healthy foods that cost under $1. Kerri Conan tells a tale of two snacks, featuring flatbread with leeks, pears and blue cheese. The Times staff investigates Champagne. Mark Bittman offers up 101 simple appetizers prepared in 10 minutes or less and how to make the classic Italian dish Pizzoccheri (buckwheat noodles bathed in butter).

Olivier Cuevas — owner of St. Petersburg’s L’Olivier Bistro — is working feverishly to complete his new L’Olivier Cabaret before the Super Bowl. “Because there will be so much attention on Ybor during the Super Bowl,” he said, “all these big networks will be situated there. It will be dramatic and important that we open then.”

It’s going to be a challenge. The cabaret is under Teatro on 7th in Centro Ybor and will feature a lounge decked out in couches and chaises, a big dining room and a large stage, not to mention the 18-foot-tall Eiffel Tower Cuevas has planned. “It’ll be Paris in the 1920s,” he explains. “La Belle Epoque, crushed red velvet, a grand piano, candles everywhere.”

L’Olivier Cabaret’s menu will feature straightforward bistro fare — although more extensive than that at his St. Pete spot — with nothing over $20 at dinner, or over $10 at lunch. If you’re looking to spend more money than that, there will also be a Champagne bar with bottles ranging from $50-$500, including icons like Dom Perignon and Krug. Only French, of course.

The main focus of attention will be the twice-nightly shows Read the rest of this entry »

With New Year’s Eve approaching, and with the inflated Euro jacking the cost of French Champagne, ’tis time to look for more affordable options for your day-after-decadence hangover. Thankfully for the financially challenged, the Italians make Prosecco and the Spaniards craft cava.

Cava, named after the caves in which this sparkling wine is stored, is Spain’s solution to Champagne. And it should be yours. Producers create the bubbles in the same fashion – with a second fermentation in the bottle (called “Methode Champenoise” or Champagne Method) — yet cava’s flavor can be earthier and a bit stronger, likely because of the usage of indigenous macabeo, parellada, and xarello grapes in addition to the traditional French grapes chardonnay and pinot noir. Tightly regulated under Spanish wine laws, Cava is principally produced in the Penedes region in east central Spain. Good ones: Read the rest of this entry »