Thursday Sips & Nibbles

I am back again with a new edition of Thursday Sips & Nibbles, my regular column where I highlight some interesting, upcoming food & drink events.
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1) Pedro Martinez is no stranger to a good old Boston rally. That's why he and his wife Carolina invite all of Boston to join them as they introduce and celebrate the runners of the first ever Pedro Martinez Charity Boston Marathon team at the Rally with 45 on Sunday, April 15, from 5pm-8pm.

Rally with 45 promises to be an epic night at a new Boston hot spot, as they rally for the Pedro Martinez Foundation Boston Marathon team. Rev up for the Boston Marathon by having a great time for an amazing cause. All proceeds go to the Pedro Martinez Foundation, which holistically educates and supports underserved children and families in Latin America and the United States.

Over the course of 10 years, they have reached and helped hundreds of thousands of children and families. They provide meals, clean water, education, scholarships, job training skills, day care services, hurricane relief and assistance, new home construction, sports education, and so much more. It is their belief that it "takes a village" to raise a child and support a family, therefore they truly rally around children and families, to allow them to have a brighter future today and tomorrow.

This is sure to be an unforgettable evening that includes:
Delicious Ballpark themed food and drinks
Upbeat music from our very own DJ
Special gifts
VIP Area with full dinner and Swag Bags
Dancing
And much more!

WHERE: The new Hurricane's at the Garden located at 150 Canal Street - just steps from TD Garden.
HOW: Tickets are $39 for general admission and $119 for VIP, and can be purchased at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rally-with-45-tickets-44339164635.

2) Chef Daniel Bruce and Chef de Cuisine Keith Bombaugh invite guests to Meritage Restaurant + Wine Bar to celebrate the start of spring with an Early Spring Forage Dinner on Friday, April 6, from 7pm-10pm.  The Chefs will present a special menu featuring the freshest early spring ingredients with expert wine pairings to toast to the end of winter.

Full menu for the event is as follows:
Amuse
Vegan Oysters + Mignonette
Domaine Huet Sparkling Vouvray Loire Valley, France
White Out (Fluke Crudo, AAA White Asparagus, Enoki Mushrooms)
Cantina Terlano Winkl - Sauvignon Blanc Alto Adige, Italy
Woodland Anglotti (Morels, Ramps, Fiddleheads, Prosciutto)
Domaine Lafarge Vial Clos Vernay - Cru Fleurie Beaujolais, France
Maple Lacquered Duck Breast (Fava beans, Roasted Beets, Smoked orange Rum)
Qupé Black Label Syrah Santa Barbara, California
Rhubarb Consommé (Textures of Strawberry, Steamed Meringue, Basil)

Ticket are available on Eventbrite for $145 per person (including wine, tax, and gratuity) here: www.earlyspringdinner.eventbrite.com

3) On Wednesday, April 4th at 5:30 p.m., SRV’s co-executive chefs of Kevin O’Donnell and Michael Lombardi will continue their cicchetti takeover series with guest chef, Will Gilson of Puritan & Co.. Guests will be treated to Gilson's spin on cicchetti (or Italian small bites,) which will be served up complimentary in SRV’s sleek bar and bacaro area of the restaurant where guests can pair their gratis bites with Italian-inspired cocktails, amaro or a variety of wine by the glass and bottle. The complimentary cicchetti will be available until supplies last.

The menu will include:
Crispy potato with caviar, horseradish and celery leaves
Foie gras mousse with sticky toffee pudding and candied pistachios
Clambake “stuffies”
Tempura hen of the woods mushrooms with gribiche and leek powder

Reservations are not required. Featured cicchetti will not be available in main dining room.
For more information, please contact (617) 536-9500

4) The Wine Press, which is located in Brookline, is one of my favorite wine shops so I was happy to learn they will be expanding to a second brink-and-mortar location in the Fenway neighborhood. The new store, Wine Press Fenway, will be located at 200 A Brookline Ave., in the Pierce Boston residential high-rise across from Regal Cinemas. It should open sometime this summer.

“Since Jyoti and I bought the Wine Press we’ve wanted it to grow,” said Aaron Mehta, General Manager of the Wine Press and CEO of GORA, Inc. “We pride ourselves on constantly evaluating the offerings in the market and giving our customers great value throughout the store. We enjoy being a part of the Brookline community for the last seven years, and we look forward to ingratiating ourselves in The Fenway Neighborhood.”

The Wine Press Fenway will feature a modern custom-designed interior, attractive floor to ceiling wine racks, and a dedicated space for wine tastings. Not only will they sell wine, but as they do in the Brookline store, they also will be selling exciting beer and spirit selections. The Wine Press hosts free wine tastings every week and numerous other events each month to help introduce patrons to new drinking experiences. In 2017, the Wine Press offered over 800 different wines and hosted over 75 tastings. They will hold similar tastings and events at Wine Press Fenway.

I'm looking forward to their new Fenway location and will report back once it opens.

5) Kane’s Donuts is bringing the flavors of spring to New England with fresh, local ingredients like blueberries from Maine and honey from Peabody. The April flavors of the month include: a Honey Blueberry Pie Donut, Snickers Donut and an Old Fashioned Glazed Donut, along with a Gluten-free Chocolate Ganache Donut and Chocolate Coconut cupcake.

The Honey Blueberry Pie Donut is a light and airy yeast-style donut, filled with blueberry pie filling and dipped in the Kane’s signature honey glaze. The Snickers Donut is a yeast-style donut, frosted with Taza milk chocolate, topped with chopped Snickers and peanuts, and drizzled with a caramel swirl. The Old Fashioned Glazed Donut is an old-fashioned cake-style donut with a hint of nutmeg flavor, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and dipped in a honey glaze.

For the gluten-free April flavor, Kane’s has crafted a Gluten-Free Chocolate Ganache Donut, a rich chocolate cake donut dipped in a decadent chocolate ganache. The cupcake of the month is a Chocolate Coconut Cupcake, a devil’s-food cake base topped with a creamy vanilla frosting, then rolled in sweetened coconut flakes.

The above-mentioned flavors of the month are available at both Kane’s locations, Saugus and Boston, throughout the month of April.