January 26, 2005

Reprinted from "The Oakland Tribune" , 1/26/05, Food Section, p.1

San Francisco Fancy Food Show opts to get real

By Jolene Thym - FOOD WRITER

A quick stroll down a single aisle at this year's San Francisco Fancy Food Show at Moscone Center earlier this week proved one thing: Fake is out, real is in.

Gone are the carb counts on food packages. Nearly gone are sugar substitutes. And totally gone are the mountains of barely digestible food substitutes that ruled the aisles one year ago.

This year's show was all about butter and cream, cheese and chocolate, nuts and fruit, and all things spicy, fresh, organic, fair trade, healthy and irresistible.

Unlike the 2003 and 2004 shows, which were relatively quiet, this year's show was one massive traffic jam of tasters eager to eat their way along the cookie and condiment super-highway — miles of aisles stacked high with 50,000 gourmet foods and beverages, many of which are new to the Bay Area market.

Judging by the crowds at the show, the food industry has recovered quite nicely from the economy slump.

"This has been just non-stop, all day. The crowds are unbelievable. I am just exhausted," admitted a hostess behind the Cypress Grove Cheese counter.

Other exhibitors echoed the same sentiment, most with big smiles. Participating in the show is a major financial and time investment that they hope will pay off.

The show is not open to the public, but rather to the trade only. It is the place that gourmet shops, specialty stores and grocers go to shop for what they will put on their shelves in the coming year. Members of the press are invited to taste so that we can give the public a preview of what they soon will see on the shelves.

Lest the volume of this taste-testing affair escape you, let me reiterate. There are 50,000 products that deserve to be tasted. That's 50,000 bites of food, roughly enough to feed a large elephant.

Not quite up to the task, I spot-tasted. Here are some mouthfuls that I thought you might like to know about. Delicious crackers

Seriously the best cracker you could ever hope to taste is Milton's French Onion Crackers, one of four varieties of completely natural, trans fat-free crackers made by Milton's Baking Company in Del Mar. The company owners, a pair of jolly men named Barry Robbins and David Levy, got their start with bread in 1996. Now they're translating their bread flavors to rich, flavor-packed crackers with a delicate crunch. The crackers are sold in 3-packs of 10-ounce boxes at Costco for $5.29. In the next few months, Milton's plans to introduce smaller packages of 1-inch-square crackers especially for snackers. More about the crackers can be found at www.miltonsbaking.com.

Good bacon

If you've caught any of the Canadian bacon debate of late, then this is your invitation to find out for yourself what the fuss is about. Real Canadian bacon is non-smoked, salt-brined pork — not a bit like the meat that most Americans call "Canadian bacon." Real Canadian Bacon is juicy, tender and perfect to use on sandwiches, salads, pizzas or any other place that American-style Canadian bacon is used. The salt-brined pork isn't a good substitute for recipes that depend on the smoky flavor of American-style Canadian bacon, but it is decadent and delicious, and an entirely different flavor experience. The bacon sells for about $10 per pound, plus substantial shipping charges. To get Real Canadian bacon, go to realcanadianbacon.com. It is not yet available in Bay Area stores.

Quick tea

For those who don't have enough time for tea but want the benefits, Tea Tech and Teaology have the solution. Both companies offer no-brew, no-fuss instant green tea made with tea powder that delivers eight times the benefits of brewed tea. Tea Tech sells slender tubes of green-colored tea powder that are mixed with either hot or cold water to make a strong, but not overly bitter beverage. A touch of fructose reduces the bitterness. The tea comes in three flavors: original, natural raspberry and lemon. No flavors have enough sugar to amount to even a single calorie. The tea costs about $9 for 32 servings. Go to www.teatech.com. Teaology packages its tea in traditional bags, and has four flavors, including a rosemary citron. Their tea is $21 for 18 pouches.

Nice rice

Some might call it plain rice, but Lotus Foods of El Cerrito captures the delicate, aromatic flavor variations within its line of heirloom rices, including Forbidden Rice, Bhutanese Red Rice, Kalijira (baby basmati) and Carnaroli rice. The company sells its rice in 15- and 32-ounce packages, and is happy to share a recipe to make sure the flavor is enjoyed to its fullest. Lotus Foods specializes in introducing Americans to the distinctive flavors of grains and other foods, including algae and seaweed. Their products can be found at Whole Foods, Andronico's and other specialty and natural food stores.

For the traveler

Other fun new products include a spice-travel kit by Grapevine Trading Co. in Napa that includes a palate of 15 spices in a compact tin. The tin sells for about $28. Visit www.grapevinetrading.com. Also in a tin are the San Francisco Chocolate Factory's Wine Lover's Chocolate line, a trio of tins that come complete with wine-pairing suggestions. The tins are $19.99 for three 3.5-ounce tins of chocolate.

Another travel must are Divina's new "Grab an O" plastic packs of olives; 4.4 ounces of olives for $3.50. Highly portable and just the right size for a picnic, the olives are sold in an array of flavors. One of the most interesting is a melange of olives and chewy lupini beans, a wildly popular condiment in Italy that is relatively new to the American market. Divina is available at specialty food stores.

Fancy fluff

So delicious that it begs to be eaten with a spoon (secretly, of course) is the all new, gourmet marshmallow creme by Tiny Trapeze Confections. The company makes perfectly delicious candies and marshmallows, but bakers who aspire to make the best fudge will want to get their hands on a plastic tub of creme. The creme isn't available at markets yet, but it will be soon. Because it's not yet in distribution, the price is not yet set. Visit www.tinytrapeze.com.

Hot stuff

One of the most successful marriages between sweet and hot is Brent's Fiery Micro Brew Beer Brittle, a salty-sweet brittle with ultra fresh peanuts that has a pleasingly hot finish. The new flavor is $9.95 per bag. It's made by Annette's Chocolate Factory of Napa.

Crave-worthy caramel

A sweet treat of a more traditional kind comes from Bequet Gourmet Caramel from Bozeman, Mont. The company produces exquisite caramel, velvety in texture, and rich with real cream and butter, with just the right touch of salt. The company, founded by Robin Bequet, makes nothing but caramel. Caramels come in various degrees of softness and are all made with real vanilla. They are available in the bulk foods section at Whole Foods Markets and some Draeger's. The caramel retails for about $10 per 8 ounces.

Local favorites

Participating in this year's show were hundreds of local companies, many of which are new to the food industry.

Among the newcomers is Traci Fellows, who started cooking up batches of granola two years ago. Her cereal, Traci's Gourmet Granola, was an instant hit in the Bay Area. Fellows started making her all-natural, oil-free granola two years ago, selling it at farmer's markets. The granola was an instant hit, as it has no added fats, no refined sugar and only the freshest oats that are toasted crisp. The granola sells for $5 to $6 per pound. It is sold at Piedmont Grocery in Oakland, Monterey Market and Berkeley Bowl in Berkeley, and Andronico's markets in the East and South Bay.

Also new to the market and anchored in the Bay Area is Metromint, a refreshing, slightly toothpaste-y flavored water made by a San Francisco company, SOMA Beverage Company. The water is spiked with natural peppermint from the Yakima Valley. It's supposed to settle the tummy, soothe muscles, comfort the mind and a whole lot of other things we're not too sure about. But the water certainly does refresh the palate, and it's definitely unique. The water sells for $1.50 to $2 per bottle.

For girls only

Having an especially fun time at this year's show were the representatives for Seattle Chocolates, who introduced their lineup of Chick candies. The candies, made specifically for chicks of all personalities, aren't especially healthy, but they are a lower fat version of the company's truffle candies. Chick truffles come in small tubes that are decorated with pictures of various cartoon chicks. There's the "Strong Chick," the calcium-fortified milk chocolate truffle; the "Extreme Chick," made with 55 percent cocoa and cocoa nibs; and the "Nutty Chick," which has nuts. The tubes are small, "because chicks know that size matters." The tubes contain two to three chocolates. They cost about $2.50. Go to www.chickchocolates.com.

Seek and you shall find. Seek permission to eat chocolate and call it health food and you will find "Health by Chocolate" bars produced by Ecco Bella in New Jersey. Obviously a company that completely understands women, Ecco Bella has just launched its Women's Wonder Bar, which claims to take revenge on the symptoms of PMS and menopause, and the Instant Bliss Beauty Bar that is said to improve the skin. One could question, but then again, one could simply unwrap the bar and believe. The bars are about $3.50 each. The funniest part? Ecco Bella is a beauty products company. Go to www.healthbychocolate.com.

Refreshing

Thankfully, the halls were dotted with watering holes. There were purveyors of dozens of types of fancy water, some with bubbles, some without. Some with calcium, some with magnesium and some without a trace of anything. No matter the origin or the type, crowds gathered round, eager for a sip.

A company called Zico launched a bizarre new drink — fresh, unsweetened coconut water. They whack open a coconut while it's still green to get at the 8 to 16 ounces of water that's inside. They call it water because it's just a tiny bit cloudy, a tiny bit sweet, and has yet to develop any fat content at all. The water, sold in aseptic pouches, has been a topic of conversation since it was introduced at the New York Fancy Food Show. The water is especially popular with yoga groups, who appreciate the high potassium, low acid content. The water is higher in electrolytes than most sports drinks. Not everyone is crazy about the light coconut flavor at first, but it "grows on" people. The water comes in natural, mango and passion fruit flavors. It sells for $2 for 11 ounces.

In the Italian neighborhood, waters included Vitologatti Spring Water, a natural water that travels under the volcanic mountains of Salerno, grabbing high concentrations of calcium and bicarbonates along the way. The water comes in both high and low mineral versions, which are startlingly different in flavor.

Those who prefer their water with bubbles should order up a glass of the red-labeled Ferrarelle if they see it in a deli or on a restaurant menu. The bubbles in this water are entirely natural, tiny and delicate, like the bubbles in very fine champagne. The water comes from the region south of Rome.

For a clean sip from Umbria, check out Sanfaustino, a high-mineral water that is a cross between still and sparkling water. The slight effervescence is natural, which means it is delivers bubbles without the salt.

Of the three waters, the easiest to find is Sanfaustino. Prices for gourmet water start at $1 to $2 per bottle and go up.

You can e-mail food writer Jolene Thym at jthym@angnewspapers.com or call (510) 353-7008.

Originally published at http://www.insidebayarea.com/food/ci_2537565