Don your best James Bond look and head to this unique event, which features food and spirits from a bevy of local restaurants, chefs and caterers, a fun live auction and tons of prizes and conversation-worthy ways to donate to a good cause. Food Outreach is the only St. Louis area nonprofit whose mission is to provide nutritional support and enhance the quality of life of men, women and children living with HIV/AIDS or cancer.

As A Tasteful Affair food co-chair, I’m especially looking forward to this event, and I’m excited for the amazing lineup of restaurants, including Food Outreach’s own Executive Chef Nicholas Hatfield, who joined Food Outreach in January 2010 and oversees the preparation of about 5,000 meals and side dishes every Saturday, in addition to preparing the 3-course Hot Monday Lunches. Be sure to stop by his booth and the many others at this hotly anticipated event. For more info and to purchase tickets, log on to http://ata23.eventbrite.com.

Park Avenue Coffee famous gooey butter cake

Along with my coffee this morning, I received some good news from Park Avenue Coffee owner Dale Schotte. He signed the lease yesterday afternoon for the Bubba Tea space at 417 N. 10th street Downtown and will open a second location of Park Ave in late February. “I wanted to better serve our customers who stop by for coffee on their way to work Downtown. The location is great for both them and visitors to St. Louis and we hope to only further our reputation for coffee and gooey butter cake” says Schotte.

Park Ave fans can expect the same great Chauvin Coffee, “Food Network” featured and St. Louis favorite, gooey butter cake and array of housemade pastries and breads. But, Schotte also says the new location will add more food to the menu and serve a full breakfast and lunch. Hours will be 7am-6pm daily, with the hope of eventually staying open later after a few months.

I’m a baseball fan to the core—more importantly, a Cards fan. So, a place like Mike Shannon’s has always been an automatic favorite of mine, for pre- or post-game celebrating or ranting, or to simply be surrounded by other Cardinal Nation citizens. And I often stop by for a steak year round, because it’s a great place to eat whether the Birds are on the field or not. But, you don’t have to be a sports lover to appreciate and celebrate the 25th anniversary of Mike Shannon’s Steaks and Seafood. Twenty-five years for any restaurant is notable in and of itself, but in my opinion, Mike Shannon’s anniversary event tonight, in which I’m attending, is more than celebrating a number, it’s recognizing a place that’s been a pillar in Downtown St. Louis since it opened. It’s a thank you to the family behind it who have been a part of the community, both philanthropically and entrepreneurially, for many years. And it’s toasting to a restaurant that cares about its customers—with a clear focus on using local ingredients in their creatively evolving menu while upholding an atmosphere where everyone is welcome. St. Louis will celebrate this mainstay tonight—because really, like baseball, Mike Shannon’s is a place that brings people together.

Mike Shannon’s is celebrating their 25th season with a new creation from Executive Chef Nick Zotos—the “Crown Filet,” a 12-ounce tenderloin topped with a Cajun-seared jumbo lump crabcake and a Creole-dusted butterfly jumbo shrimp and finished off with a classic béarnaise sauce. The Crown Filet will be a special served all year.

Mike Shannon’s Steaks & Seafood

620 Market St.

Downtown

314.421.1540

Vega Deli tacos

Vegan. Raw. Gluten-free. Diners ask and restaurants respond. Less of a “special request” nowadays, the niche food-needs and choices of consumers are mainstream. Locally, you can order raw vegetarian lasagna at Scape American Bistro, enjoy a chocolate vegan cupcake at Sweet Art, bite into a slice of gluten-free pizza at Pi or enjoy raw, organic French fries or tacos at Vega Deli.

With a healthy and eco-conscious philosophy, vegan owners opened the all-natural café earlier this year in Chesterfield—and are now set to open a second location at the corner of Belt and Pershing in the Central West End. Not a vegetarian, vegan or raw-food follower myself, I do however appreciate and support places like Vega Deli, which promote a healthy lifestyle and consciousness eating—and serve some really delicious and fresh food while doing so. And you have to admire the owners’ passion for their mission, according to the restaurant’s website, “lack of convenience will not be an excuse for not eating healthy in STL. We’ll see to that!” Make St. Louis healthier, one Vega Deli location at a time? It could happen. Their menu is refreshing and well-thought out, with an extensive list of options like falafel with whole wheat pita, raw stuffed bell peppers, hand-made vegan burgers, mac n’ cheese and a Cajun Creole black bean wrap. And the selection of desserts is pretty incredible; brownies, raw key lime pie and an apple pie cinnamon cake are just a sampling.  Food so good you forget it’s vegan and simply savor the fresh, natural flavors and ingredients.

Appropriately titled, the new Dreams chocolates are made with a variety of fresh fruit puree (strawberry, key lime, orange, blackberry), enrobed in pure milk and dark chocolate. But these little nuggets of goodness aren’t your grandfather’s chocolate “creams”—they aren’t made with fruit “flavored” goop that oozes out after one bite. The masterminds at Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate Company clearly knew how to perfect the recipe, and the end result is purely delicious. Trust me.

To celebrate the launch of Dreams, the local chocolate company held an event at Shriners Childrens Hospital on  October 8. I was asked to be a “chocolatier” and was paired with a Shriners Hospital patient, to compete in friendly chocolate-making competition, alongside other members of the media. While my energetic and chocolate-loving partner in crime, AJ, and I didn’t win, we had a great time dipping candies into chocolate and attempting to decorate them.  In fact, all the chocolatiers had a fun and unique experience and in the end, the Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate Company raised over $1,100 for Shriners Childrens Hospital St. Louis, which provides medical and rehabilitative services to children with congenital deformities and conditions. And the company’s charitable arm doesn’t stop there; throughout the entire month of October, the company will donate 20% of all Dreams sales to Shriners. Make a difference in the life of a child and satisfy a sweet tooth—sounds like a sweet idea to me! Log on to chocolatechocolate.com for more info.

Chocolatier duo Cristy and AJ.

Making chocolate-covered candy with my chocolatier partner AJ.

The new Dreams chocolate line from Chocolate Chocolate Chocolate Company

Looks like chef and restaurateur Gerard Craft will play a little musical chairs with his restaurants this year as he adds another spot to his repertoire. Come January, Craft will debut Porano, an intimate Italian restaurant in the space that currently holds his original award-winning restaurant Niche. Niche will move next door to the smaller space occupied by the small plates and cocktail bar, Taste by Niche, which—pay attention—will move to the Central West End in the former Moxy location at 4584 Laclede St., next to Craft’s other venture, Brasserie by Niche. Taste by Niche is set to reopen in December.