Summer Fancy Food Show Recap Part 1

Recently we spent the day at the Summer Fancy Food Show in culinary heaven at the convention center. The featured more than 2,400 vendors and 180,000 products. While we only had time to stop by for 4 hours, we easily sampled at least 100 plus foods, wines and beverages. We tasted hundreds of specialty foods, many of which are sold right here in the D.C. area. Below you'll find a recap on some of our favorite purveyors and where you can purchase their products in the D.C. area.

First on the list, Mann's Brothers Sausage Company. This was our first stop at the show. Mann's is based out of Western, PA and you can purchase at Dean & Deluca in Georgetown. We had the hot Italian Pork Sausage with veggies on a bun (seen to the left) and Mann's truly set the tone for the rest of the afternoon.

Next on our visit was Lefty's Spices and Sauces. Their fish-n-chicken mix was just the right amount of flavor for a back-yard fish fry. Turn's out there is a Lefty's family bar-b-que restaurant in Waldorf, Maryland. Check out the reviews ONLINE. You can pick up any of their spices and sauces in person at the restaurant.



Next stop was Silence Tea - a tea company based out of Gaithersburg, MD. Their tea is all-natural and includes various vitamins. Perfect for my next yoga sessions You can purchase in Whole Foods and Dean & Deluca.

My favorite olive oil company Monini is my go to for healthy cooking. To our surprise the company was giving out free hand massages with their newest product hand lotion. The product is made with 100% natural ingredients. I've used it everyday since!


My next favorite booth was CoCo CoCo Pops! We not only saw the machine make the all natural pop cakes in action, but also snagged two bags of the chips to take home. You can purchase the chips in Whole Foods on P Street and the word has spread because now my friends are all picking up the pop cakes. I think I may have my office mates hooked. With only 16 calories per serving they are a healthy option for munching during the day.

We were floored by the folks of Brunette Down, based in Australia who were there to serve and promote real Australian beef and lamb. Their products are grass fed and free from hormones and antibiotics. I can testify that their lamb was some of the best I've ever tasted. Click HERE to find out which Safeway's in the DMV sell real Australian meats.
















Also on our radar was Hale Tea Company which makes tea cocktail mixes. My favorite was the Sangria mix, but they also featured Cosmopolitan and Mojito. The tea's are all-natural and you can purchase ONLINE.

Stay tuned for more from our festival jaunt later this week. I've been munching Rigoni di Asiago spreads and jams and on Dr. Lucy's gluten and allergy free cookies non-stop this week.