Convention Day 1, Part 2: FOOD

No experience with friends is complete, for me, without sharing food! While I don't have a picture of it, rest assured that we started yesterday at Starbucks, since Lydia is an addict (short quad breve no foam latte), and Neelam needed to have a positive experience to shore up her knowledge of how to order in Starbucks-ese. She had a tall latte and added her own sweetener. I had a soy banana chocolate Vivanno without the banana, since they were out of bananas (proof that my store at home isn't the only one that hasn't figured out its banana needs yet!). All were pleased with their drinks, although mine needed 2 more pumps of mocha in order to compensate for the lack of flavor the banana wasn't there to provide. Salt Lake City is blissfully cool in the morning and evening, and I was delighted to be just a smidge chilly as we walked to and from said coffee establishment.

Lunch for me was the box lunch that I paid for as part of my convention fee. But I took it and tagged along with Neelam and Lydia to Takashi, a sushi restaurant that Lydia had researched before coming (how I love the internet!). I tried sushi for the second time in my life, and it was phenomenal! I will share more later today, after I have my own picture to share of what I will eat, as we're returning today. It had a most unusual ingredient, and I'm not talkin' something you normally associate with sushi! It was a wonderful dining experience.

After our afternoon session, we lit out and used the light rail to track down a cupcake place called Mini's Cupcakes. I rarely call food a religious experience, but I'm not sure how else to define the PB Fix cupcake! It was SO amazing--cream cheese peanut butter infused frosting with chopped peanuts and a VERY good, and you know I'm picky about chocolate cake because I make my own from
scratch, dark chocolate cake. Oh...there are no real words. Totally worth the effort, and it didn't spoil my dinner, which was...


We went to the hotel's restaurant called Barbara. I had duck for the first time in my life, nestled on a bed of corn polenta, drizzled with brown butter, blackberries and roasted hazelnuts. There is wilted radicchio supporting the duck, but that was the only part of the dinner I didn't care for. The rest of it was happily consumed.

Okay, gotta run! We start even earlier today, at 7:30, but they told us that the pre-show was not to be missed! Shelli's signature line is going to be revealed today, and I'm sure there will be more surprises. Will keep you posted.