Meatpaper Pig Party at Camino 4/27

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To celebrate the arrival of their seventh issue, the nice folks over at Meatpaper are celebrating with a "pig party" at Camino (3917 Grand, Oakland) on April 27. The party for the last issue was a gas (see Tamara Palmer's report), and editor Sasha Wizansky promised that the lines wouldn't be as bad this time around, so this shindig should definitely be worth the schlep to Oakland.

The $35 ticket covers porky eats such as fireplace-roasted pig, corn dogs, sausages, pig tails, chicharrones, and cold cuts by Camino chef Russell Moore and guests Sam White & Chris Kronner of OPENrestaurant, Ryan Farr of 4505 Meats, Leif Hedendal of Cooking with Leif, and Taylor Boetticher of Fatted Calf. An open bar will feature drinks from co-sponsors Trumer Pils, Oliver McCrum Wines, Pacific Edge Wine & Spirits, Leopold Bros., St. Barts Spirit Company, and Beaune Imports. Entertainment will include a whole-pig butchery demo.

Breakfast of Champions

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SFGate reported last week that two tons of Olympian Michael Phelps' Corn Flakes boxes were donated to the SF Food Bank, and promptly flew out the building. As it turns out, there are other San Francisco businesses who have found new and artistic uses for the now ultra-rare and recalled item. This humorous display was spotted in the window of a head shop, and would probably mortify the execs at Kellogg's.

Foodie Art & Arty Food

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Jason Mecier
From March 13 to April 26, Eclectix Gallery (10082 San Pablo, El Cerrito, 4 blocks from El Cerrito Plaza BART) presents a group show of art about food, wine, cooking, and eating. The opening reception, 7-9:30pm this Friday, will feature edible art from Sweetface Bakery and live music by Eclair de Lune. The closing reception, 3-5pm on Sunday, April 26, will include a vegetable and fruit carving demonstration by Jimmy Zhang.

The gallery is open Tuesday through Thursday from noon to 7pm, Fridays and Saturdays from 11am to 10pm, and Sundays from noon to 6pm. Other noteworthy foodie destinations in the immediate neighborhood include the El Cerrito Plaza farmers markets on Tuesdays and Saturdays from 9am to 1pm, the Cerrito Speakeasy Theater, where you can drink good beer and eat passable pizza while watching second-run movies, and Banh Mi Ba Le (10174 San Pablo) for good cheap Vietnamese food. While you're in the area, you might also want to check out the inedible but awesome Mod Lang (6328 Fairmount) and Down Home Music (10341 San Pablo) record stores.
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JC Garrett


Psycho Donuts

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It's quite a schlep from S.F., but doughnut fanatics may judge the trip worthwhile for the unique artistic creations at Psycho Donuts (2006 S Winchester Blvd, Campbell, two miles south of the Winchester Mystery House). The creative inventions at this new shop, which doubles as an art gallery, include the Psycho, topped with pretzels, lemon glaze, chocolate, and cayenne; and the FungShui, with green tea and chocolate. If you can't make it down there, check out psycho-donuts.com for more fun pictures.
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Foodie Film Fun via Time Magazine's "50 Top 10 Lists of 2008"

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Thanks to Time magazine and its infernal time-wasting "50 Top 10 Lists of 2008," I've discovered a genius filmmaker called Adam Pesapane, a digital artist who calls himself PES.

Time featured, as its #2 Viral Video of 2008, a lovely bit of magic called Western Spaghetti, less than two minutes of stop-motion animation in which aluminum foil becomes olive oil, Rubik's cubes are sliced into a hot pan, pin cushions are tomatoes, and Pickup Sticks and rubber bands are pasta uncooked and al dente. It never gets old for me! (And, stop the presses, it's just been announced as an Official Selection for the 2009 Sundance Festival.)

At the PES website, there's a whole world of the 35-year-old Pesapane's work to discover. Recommended for foodies: the colorful, brisk Cake Countdown, the mesmerizing My Pepper Heart, and Rogue Peanut.

For foodies and non-foodies alike, Roof Sex will bring a blush to your cheeks. Even his commercial work (for Bacardi, Nike, many others) demands many viewings. --Meredith Brody

Tags: Brody, Food News

Playing With Food

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Last night, as the tryptophan was kicking in, we played Foodie Fight, a Trivial Pursuit-like game published by S.F.'s Chronicle Books. It was unexpectedly difficult overall, and we complained about that a lot, but there would always be an easy question or two just when we were about to get too frustrated.

Though I was soundly defeated, I'm excited to now know that tea is only grown on one plantation in the country, that Thomas Jefferson was the first president to hire a French chef for the White House, and that "nervous pudding" is diner slang for Jell-O. It was also fun to see the Bay Area make more than a few appearances in the question stack. Not always in the most obvious of ways, either. Examples:

What dressing, created at the Palace Hotel, San Francisco, is named after a 1920s play about hostages held by a group that believes in a goddess? [Answer]

What hip-hop group lent its song "Reanimation" to a TV commercial for Sunkist orange soda in 2005? [Answer]

What academic journal about food and culture was launched in 2001 by the University of California Press? [Answer]

What did Carlos Santana release in 2005 that wasn't music? [Answer]

-Tamara Palmer

Tango Ceviche Comes to YBCA

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This weekend, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts plays host to Tango Ceviche, an exploration of Argentine tango and Peruvian ceviche. The afternoon will combine instruction in both in order to, in the organizers' words, "discover the sublime truth that raw fish and a close embrace share a common settlement."

Co-presenter the Red Poppy Art House Annex has explored the intersection of food and dance before with previous installments of Tango Ceviche as well as the equally intriguing sounding Sushi Soukous. The next Tango Ceviche takes place this Saturday, September 6 from 1-4 p.m. at YBCA's Room for Big Ideas. Admission is $20 ($15 for YBCA members), and participants are encouraged to bring their own wine and beer, not to mention dancing shoes. Visit the YBCA's events page for more info. —Tamara Palmer

Frankenart Mart To Serve Food Poems on Sunday

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By Tamara Palmer

Tasty writer Melissa Price plans to dish up food poems on-demand at the crafty Frankenart Mart in the Richmond District on Sunday from 4-6 p.m.

She’ll ask some questions in order to create verse just for you, timed via egg timer to 10 minutes. I told her some of my favorites (color, food, number), as well as my birth date and decided which animal I’d like to be, if I ever get the chance. The following poem emerged in return, poppin’ fresh out the kitchen.

Slow Food on Film Festival Screening: Strawberry Fields

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Direct from the Slow Food on Film Festival 2008 in Bologna, Italy, Slow Food San Francisco invites you to the U.S. film premiere of Strawberry Fields at the Delancey Street Theater (600 Embarcadero) this Friday, July 25. In the film -- which snagged the Special Mention of Honor for Best Documentary -- Israeli filmmaker Ayelet Heller chronicles a day in the life of Palestinian farmers in Gaza. More from the Slow Food folks:

"When we think of Gaza on the Mediterranean Sea we remember the news reports about Israel's decision in 2005 to disengage from the strip and withdraw its settlers....and all the drama that that entailed. But how often do we, so far away, get a real sense of life on the ground, for ordinary people? What is life like for the more than one million Palestinians in that fertile but troubled strip?"

The screening starts at 6:30 p.m., to be followed by a reception at 9:00 p.m. where some gourmet goodies will be served: Fra'Mani Salumi, Harley Farms Cheese, dessert, and wine by the glass. It'll cost you $15. Buy advance tickets online here.

-- Brian Bernbaum

The Land Of A Million Cereals at Mission 17


(Click the image for a full slideshow.)

By Catherine McCulloch

“Milk and cereal, milk and cereal, milk and cereal, milk and cereal...” Artist Ryan Alexiev’s allegory of consumerism gets a little soggy at his new exhibit at the gallery Mission 17. On the other hand, I left the exhibit with cheerios on the brain.

Alexiev, a San Francisco local, explores the history and social implications of cereal consumption through his art. The didactic nature of his work makes this exhibit feel like a lesson on mass consumerism with an emphasis on advertising. Alexiev creatively uses different forms of media to get his message across, and some of his work is borderline genius. It’s one of those exhibits you walk through and wonder if the artist might be just a tad insane.

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