Wednesday, June 30: Parkshore Grill
Banfi Wine Dinner. If your keyboard isn't drool-resistant, read no further: tonight's menu of freshly-picked, organic ingredients includes a five-course, wine-paired mouth-watering menu of house-made mozzarella with white anchovies, roasted baby beets and grilled focaccia paired with Masschio, Prosecco; lemon-savory baked hogfish, local peaches and heirloom tomato fuedo sartanna, paired with Chardonnay, Grillo; smokey barbecued quail with sweet corn, grilled local eggplant, and braised cherries, paired with Sartori, Valpolicella; tamarind braised beef short ribs with celery root-potato pave, ancho chili glace, and crispy leeks, paired with Casillero del Diablo, Reserve Malbec; and for dessert, apricot panna cotta with toasted almond – bacon brittle, paired with FloruS, Moscadello di Montalcino DOC Late Harvest. Proceeds benefit Zoe’s Edible Garden at All Children’s Hospital. $70. 6:30-9 p.m., 300 Beach Drive NE, St. Petersburg (727-896-9463)
Wednesday, June 30
Wine Tasting. Tampa's Fine Wine & Spirits Warehouse hosts a benefit for Voices For Children/Guardian ad Litem at the home of Mike Kwasin. They're offering a tasting of more than 40 wines from Jaboulet, Jadot, Jordan, Newton and Sonoma-Cutrer — perfectly paired with meat and cheese platters — to get you through the mid-week work slump. $25 per person; $40 per couple. 6-8 p.m., 3613 Beach Drive, Tampa (813-837-8941)
Wednesday, June 30: The NoHo Bistro
Wine Wednesdays. The wine and tapas change weekly, so come back regularly and bring your BFFs, blind dates, co-workers, boy/girlfriends or, hell, someone else’s boyfriend. $15 for two glasses of wine paired with two tapas. 1714 N. Armenia Ave., Tampa (813-514-0691)
Thursday, July 1: Macy's
Chef Cat Cora Book Signing. As the only female Iron Chef on Food Network’s kitschy hit series and the new poster girl for lipstick lesbians, Cat Cora’s got some (proverbial) cojones. Today, the Greek goddess of the kitchen shows off her skills at a cooking demo. It’s largely focused on helping home chefs use what they’ve got on hand to spice up simple, tasty meals — also the topic of her latest book, Cat Cora's Classics with a Twist. 12 p.m., 27001 US Hwy 19 N., Clearwater (727-724-7314)
Many more events after the break:
This article appears in Jun 24-30, 2010.