Celebrated Living Magazine

Celebrated Living, a magazine published by American Airlines for their First and Business Class customers, celebrated their 10 year anniversary Wednesday night at the Joule Hotel in Dallas.

At the invitation of Megan Broussard, F&FW contributor Rebecca Shivone Smith attended, with husband Britton, and made these observations on the food, the wine, the hotel and the magazine:

After attending the celebration of the 10 year anniversary of Celebrated Living I can definitely say that they can put together a first class party as well as a first class magazine. The Fall 2009 edition of CL features a food and wine theme and touts Meryl Streep on the cover who recently starred in the “foodie” movie, Julie and Julia.

Master Chef Charlie Palmer, of the Michelin-starred Aureole in New York, has recently opened a restaurant in the Joule Hotel in Dallas and was offering guests a range of delightful hor d'oeuvres paired with wines from around the country. He is featured in this issue of Celebrated Living and provided the party a perfectly enjoyable American epicurean experience . I enjoyed meeting and speaking with him -- and Charlie -- the quail legs were to die for, and I cannot wait to come by the restaurant and eat more of that delicious chocolate ganache espresso torte.

Brinton and I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and look forward to flying first class with American -- maybe just to get the next edition of Celebrated Living!

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The Fall Issue of CL has a "Food and Wine" focus and has many articles of interest for food lovers -- especially those that like to travel.

My favorite article: Ten Trends in Food.
Becca's favorite: West Coast Wine Weekends. "Enough to make me want to hop on a plane and head straight to Napa."

Celebrated Living Magazine: www.celebratedliving.com

Yahoo News: "The Alamo is a Tourist Trap"

Yahoo makes some bad decisions and this was one of the worst. A few weeks ago their lead news story was, "Overrated US Tourist Traps," and the Alamo was listed as one of them. Quoting from the article:

The Alamo, otherwise known as Mission San Antonio de Valero, sits on roughly four acres in downtown San Antonio, a short distance from the River Walk. Much of the original structure is no more, and what remains are a few small stone buildings and some neatly trimmed lawns. The audio tour concludes in an exceedingly well-provisioned gift shop. Andrew Harper

I have a difficult time considering a monument to bravery and selfless actions a tourist trap. It may not be of interest to everyone but respect dictates a more honorable description. Whether or not all of the buildings are there is not the point. The Lincoln Memorial is a monument to a great President, does it need a multi-media presentation to be considered "worth it." Maybe we should add some rides and interactive games to the Alamo. How would that do?

I took my school-aged children to the Alamo to show our respects to the men and women who died there. I considered it hallowed ground, like the battlefields of Gettysburg. I asked my children to walk around quietly even though they did not understand why. I did the same at Gettysburg and Valley Forge. They too are nothing but fields and a couple of huts, by the way.

A nation is a kind of family and a certain respect needs to be shown those who make sacrifices for the other members. We all find different things interesting, but some things should be sacred.

I'll be less polite. Mr. Harper is a dumb-ass for writing the tourist trap story. I suggest he stay on the north side of the Red River. Find a casino. Have some fun.

Zestfest 2009

------------------------- Event Day Alert ------------------------------

1:30 pm / September 12, 2009

I just returned from the Zestfest. If you are attending here are a couple of suggestions:

1. Bring an umbrella. It's raining and looks like it will continue. There are several events there today and it is a little bit of a walk to the hall.
2. It is a $10 entrance fee but you can come and go all day.
3. It was crowded when I left about 1 pm.
4. There are drinks to purchase, including Coors beer, but no food except 1 concession stand serving hotdogs and such. Of course, there are hundreds of sauces, salsas, and relishes to try with plenty of tortilla chips.
5. The website is not very good at explaining where to go. The exhibit hall is actually in the Amon G Carter Building / West Texas Hall. That is just east of the new construction for the Science Museum.
6. Try the super hot peanuts. Wow.

------------------ Original Zestfest Post --------------------

A reminder that Zestfest 2009 is only days away. From the Zestfest website:

ZestFest 2009 is the ultimate party for bold and flavorful food enthusiasts. Hosted by Chile Pepper Magazine in Fort Worth, Texas ZestFest will be action-packed. Cooking demos by celebrity chefs, live music, interactive contests and thousands of bold food samples will make September 11-13, 2009 the zestiest weekend of the year!

If you think you have a winning spicy dish, enter the Fiery Food Challenge.

http://www.zestfest2009.com

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Visiting Forth Worth? See also:

"My Top 20 Best Places to Visit in the Fort Worth Area"