The offerings vary at some restaurants, but for the most part, the purchase of two courses will get you a tasting of two or three chocolate desserts. Some restaurants require a reservation and certain restrictions apply. For all the locations, the special is not available on Valentine’s Day. More details can be found on the Chocolate Week website.

We arrived at the Convention Center nice and early. After taking a brief stroll through the exhibition hall, we were ready to pick up our wine glasses and begin the tastings. We had a great time sipping on different wines, cleansing our palate with bread and water, and sipping some more. I’m not the most knowledgeable about wines, but I do enjoy the wine experience, especially when thinking about how it pairs with different foods, dishes, and moods. The Grand Tasting event draws a huge crowd, but I was happy that it was not too crowded on Sunday, allowing us to maneuver through the space with ease and sample drinks with little waiting time. Sweet!

There was a Hennessy Ice Luge. Awesome! My Hennessy cranberry cocktail traveled through the ice luge and into a small plastic shot glass. Along with my drink, I also scored a pair of rocking pink shades. Woo!

As we walked around, visiting the booths, and tasting wines and liquors, we made sure to take pictures of the ones that we sampled, along with the ones that we liked. We sampled mostly red wines. Here are some of the ones that caught our attention.

Chile: Casillero del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 (the under $10 wine), Marques de Casa Concha Cabernet Sauvignon 2009, Terrunyo Cabernet Sauvignon 2009, Concha Y Toro Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 (pricey bottle but very enjoyable)

Columbia Valley, Washington: Chateau Ste Michelle Cabernet Sauvignon 2009, Chateau Ste Michelle Indian Wells Merlot 200

France: Chateau Boutisse Saint Emilion Grand Cru 2008, Chateau Lyonnat Lussac Saint Emilion 2008 (definitely requires food, great with a hearty dinner)

California’s North Coast: La Follette Pinot Noir North Coast 2010 (very easy to drink, good for a casual drink)

And then there was Scotch Whiskey – The Glenlivet and their aged single malt whiskeys. The flavor, aroma, texture develops as the whiskey ages and most of the flavor depends on the type of the cask in which it matures in. We tried the 12 year and 15 year aged Classic range whiskeys and the Nadurra 16 year. Out of the three, I definitely liked the 15 the best, on the rocks or with some water. Mm.

Throughout the afternoon, we caught a glimpse of the chef demonstrations on the Main Stage as we walked by.

Aside from all wine tasting, we also grabbed at few bites at the event. Prepared foods were available along the back wall of the exhibit hall. Restaurants offered some of their signature dishes in exchange for food tokens which could be purchased at certain kiosks. There was a nice selection of cuisines, from American to Italian to Asian, and food items included burgers, sushi, seafood, meatballs, and more.

Upstairs there was a whole floor dedicated to beers. We made a through the space, but didn’t really sample much since at that point, we were working on sobering up for our drive home. I’m a huge fan of Red Stripe beer, so I was excited to approach their booth where they were sharing samples of their Red Stripe Light.

We had a great time at the Grand Tasting. We got exposed to so many new wines and spirits, as well as the tasty foods and snacks to enjoy while drinking, from fancy chocolates to savory dips. Thanks Mohegan Sun for the press access. Stay tuned for upcoming posts on the foods we ate and the snacks we sampled at the Grand Tasting. Cheers, for now!

One of the foods I have to avoid is mainstream yogurt and turn to soy yogurt instead. I have no problem with soy yogurt and I find it delicious, but lactose-free yogurt could be enjoyable too. The other day, I heard about Yoplait’s new line of lactose-free yogurts and now I’m very curious to give it a try.

This yogurt is 99% fat free with no artificial sweeteners and contains 50% of the daily value of calcium, with vitamins A and D in every cup. They are available in four flavors – Strawberry, Peach, French Vanilla and Cherry. I believe it became available in supermarkets this month. I’ll keep my eyes out for it. If you’ve tried it, I’d be interested to know what you think.

(Photo: wwe)

Noodles dishes are a must, as they represent longevity.

Then there was Sweet and Sour Bean Curd, on left, and Mixed vegetables and Shrimp, on right. Dried bean curd represents wealth and happiness. Mixed vegetables symbolizes family harmony and the shrimp/prawn brings extra happiness.

Here’s a Vegetarian Dish with mushrooms, cabbage, algae, seaweed and bean thread noodles.

In the kitchen, there was a huge pot of Vegetarian Egg Drop Soup

Next to the soup, was a large pot of Che, a Vietnamese dessert soup with glutinous rice balls in a gingery syrup. The large ones are filled with grounded yellow mung beans and the smaller ones are purely rice balls. It’s served in a small bowl topped with coconut cream and it’s very delicious!

Banh Chung and Banh Day are traditional foods enjoyed during Vietnamese New Year, or Tet. They are sticky rice cakes filled with mung bean and pork. Banh Chung is rectangular and Banh Day is circular. They are usually found wrapped in banana leaves. Here they are lightly pan-fried, but they can also be grilled too.

On the stove, my aunt was cooking up some Turnip Cake, made with shredded radish and rice flour. It is initially made into a large cake, but cut into small pieces to serve.

The turnip cake pieces are pan fried with a couple extra ingredients, like eggs and scallions.

The turnip cake turned out nice and crispy on the outside, soft in the center, and very flavorful.

Happy Year of the Dragon!

(Photos: Ben Hider)

The cake being transported in the snow.

Buddy Valastro and his Office Depot desk cake

There was a ribbon cutting ceremony.

The Office Depot Foundation presented a $1,000 donation to the Make-a-Wish Foundation (New Jersey Chapter).

The event concluded with an autograph and photo session where attendees got the chance to meet with Buddy Valastro.

Oh, and of course, there was slices of cake for everyone!

The new Office Depot retail store is located at 59 Washington Street in Hoboken, New Jersey and Carlo’s Bakery is located, up the street, at 95 Washington Street.

Gong xi fa cai! Kung hei fat choi! Chuc mung nam moi!
Wishing everyone much prosperity, happiness, good luck, great health, and lots of tasty eats!

Don’t forget to check out the local Chinese New Year events in your area. Today in New York City Chinatown, there’s going to be a Firecracker Ceremony to start off the new year, while the Annual Chinatown Lunar New Year Parade and Festival will be held next Sunday.

Have Fun and Happy Eating!

This is much better. It’s ready to go back on the shelf now.

Disclaimer: Products were provided to me to review by LocknLock as part of the LocknLock Supporters Program. No other compensation was received for this post. The post was written by LookyTasty and all opinions expressed are solely mine.

By the way, if you’re looking to buy more food containers, LocknLockplace.com has a storewide 50% off promo code available right now. The code is: WINTERFEVER and it’s valid until Jan 30th.

Here it is holding baby carrots and vegetables. The easy to open lid allows air-tight storage, keeping food fresh and secure.

Disclaimer: Products were provided to me to review by LocknLock as part of the LocknLock Supporters Program. No other compensation was received for this post. The post was written by LookyTasty and all opinions expressed are solely mine.

Starting at the Museum of Chinese in America (MoCA)… There’s the Lunar New Year 2012: Decoding the Chinese Almanac with Joanna C. Lee and Ken Smith, co-authors of the Pocket Chinese Almanac, this Saturday, Jan. 21 from 2:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m..

On Sunday, Jan. 22nd from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., MoCA welcomes you and your family to Lunar New Year Festival Family Day where there will be workshops on traditional Chinese dance, calligraphy and language.

MoCA is also hosting walking tours this weekend as well as next Saturday Jan. 28th. The tour takes visitors through Chinatown to experience the traditions and customs observed by Chinese households and businesses in preparation for the New Years. The schedule can be found here.

Then on Monday, Jan. 23, there’s the Firecracker Ceremony from 11:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Roosevelt Park between Grand and Hester Streets. Firecrackers are ignited to bring good fortune and scare away the bad spirits.

On Sunday, Jan. 29th, there’s the 13th Annual Chinatown Lunar New Year Parade and Festival. The parade starts at 11:30 a.m. around Canal Street South and weaves through the streets of Chinatown. There will be music, dragon dances, performances, and many decorative floats from local organizations and community groups. The streets will be crowded, but it’ll be great! Oh yeah, firecracker confetti shooters too! Those are always fun!