Here again still playing catch up!! The Super Bowl was several weeks ago yes, but I would be remiss if I did not do a brief recap for you guys on the Taste of the NFL event. This event showcases chefs from around the country, each representing an NFL team/city. Proceeds from the event go to local food banks. Since Houston hosted the event, most of the proceeds go to the Houston Food Bank, with other NFL cities receiving a smaller share for their local food banks.
The Red Carpet
Media pass and red carpet ready!
Once I received my media invitation, my mind began to swirl with “what shall I wear?!” questions. Just a few weeks before, I picked up a beautiful printed African maxi skirt from local boutique Haute Dimensions. When I bought it, I thought I have NOTHING to wear this fabulous skirt to! Well fate would have it, not long after I learned I would be attending Taste of the NFL, so it all worked out perfectly!
As part of the event I got to serve as media on the red carpet. Y’all that whole situation was so overwhelming! I ended up being more of a looky lou with my iPhone as opposed to hard core media. While on the carpet, I stood only a few feet away from Alyssa Milano! I mean who didn’t grow up watching her on Who’s the Boss and Charmed?! I was super excited to see her. There were also important folks from the foodie world like Andrew Zimmern, Alex Guarnaschelli and Richard Blias.
Then the most important moment of the night! The current Miss America Savvy Shields made her way down the red carpet, walked past me the doubled back just to tell me that my skirt was amazing! Do you know the kind of clothes this lady has access to and she stopped to tell little ole me that my outfit was great? *Gasps, faints, SWOONNNNS* I ended up getting a picture with her later in the night.
*Squeals*
The Charity Portion
So the tickets for this event were pretty pricy, but guests could feel good knowing that a good chunk of their ticket price goes to charity. Once at the event, there are plenty of other opportunities to “donate” by purchasing versus items. First, they offered a lunch box filled with goodies. Buyers of this item had a chance to win Super Bowl tickets. They also offered autographed footballs because each NFL team not only brought tons of food, they also brought in an NFL great from their team. Knowing that my dad is a huge KC Chiefs fan, I picked up a ball and made sure to get all of the Chiefs players to sign it. He loved it and promptly displayed it on his office bookcase.
First signature on my autograph ball.
THE FOOD
This isn’t my first rodeo when it comes to these kinds of food events, but this is probably the first time that I was noticeably overwhelmed! I carried a football under my arm, while balancing a wine class, iphone and dishes while walking around. Due to this I was only able to take a limited number of photos.
As a true Houstonian I scoffed at the Cowboys stand, which for some reason got top billing IN HOUSTON. Who planned that foolery? The Kansas City Chiefs (my birthplace) and the Texans stand were must stops. Some of my favorites were the ones that stayed true to the cuisine of their city. Like the Baltimore Ravens whose dish was a crab cake with chowder. Great dish and true to Baltimore. Probably the best dish of the night, were the pork dumplings from Buffalo Bills. They kept a line for most of the night.
The Video
For more photos and recaps, make sure to check out this video made by Que Snaps!
Overall
Taste of the NFL hosts these events every Super Bowl and smaller ones in various cities around the year. Make sure to check out their website for more information on future events!
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