Tomato Pop Up
Artist Kevin Berlin is obsessed with tomatoes. The artist, whose works have been snatched up by the likes of Hillary Clinton, George W. Bush, Buzz Aldrin, and Quincy Jones, will turn the Oscar Molina Gallery in Southhampton, New York into the Tomato Pop Up! from August 15 - September 5. The pop-up will feature Berlin’s works on his favorite subject: the tomato. Berlin has immortalized various varieties of tomatoes including San Marzano, Sicilian Ciliegino, and Fiorentino tomatoes. Of course, every tomato needs friends, so other pieces such as “Grapes,” “Watermelon,” and Nutella” will also be on display.
Wedding in aisle four
Discount grocer, Aldi, is looking for a couple that’s in love with shopping. Also is looking for a couple who want to have an Aldi wedding. The wedding will be held at the Aldi Insights Center in Batvia, Illinois, officiated by an Aldi employee. A reception will be catered by Aldi, offering a wedding cake, chicken sliders, and custom wedding favors. Aldi will even give the newlyweds a year’s supply of groceries as a wedding present. If you’re interested, you have until August 17 to visit the “Happily Ever Aldi” site and tell Aldi why you want to walk down the (grocery) aisle.
“House of the mouse” has its own food and wine festival
When you think of food at Disney, your thoughts might immediately go to giant turkey legs, Mickey-shaped waffles, and Dole Whip, but the “house of the mouse” actually has its own food and wine festival. The Epcot Food & Wine Festival runs through November 19, offering food and drink at 25 different stands scattered throughout the park’s World Showcase. The food ranges from pedestrian Impossible sliders and Buffalo wings to interesting choices like a SPAM musubi nigiri and German schinkennudeln (pasta gratin with ham, onions, and cheese). Find the list of everything to eat and drink here.
What to do with that extra 15K
Join Nancy Silverton, Ruth Reichl, Laurie Ochoa, and Alec Lobrano — Gourmet’s longtime European correspondent and a restaurant critic in France since 1986 — on an eight-day trip to France. The trip, called Dinner with Friends Abroad, is limited to 25 travelers from October 9-16 and includes dinner at the Drouant, a visit to the Champagne region, stays in luxury properties, and visits to artisanal producers. “The meals will be memorable.” One would hope, at $14,475 per double occupancy.
From your host
You might have seen that John McDonald, founder of this newsletter as well as Mercer Street Hospitality, has opened a restaurant over the weekend — Smyth Tavern, a Tribeca stunner that showcases conversation-art pieces in a sophisticated mahogany-paneled room. Here’s more where that came from as well as a discussion on what prompted him to have opened three restaurants in a year during the pandemic.