Over 5,000 people showed up to the Third Annual Taste Talks in Brooklyn this past weekend. The event, co-presented by Squarespace, was a total hit featuring dozens of chef presenting new platters and points of view on various panels and in various cooking demos.
The festival included food, drink, music, the latter of which was curated by the one and only musician and culinary tastemaker Questlove. Questlove brought the beats with a live DJ set to kick-off the festival’s first major event, Sweet Thinking: A Dessert Party, which he co-hosted alongside celebrity chef Dominque Ansel on the McCarren Hotel & Pool rooftop.
Saturday’sevents were the strongest, featuring over 90 chefs, food writers, photographers, bartenders, and more in over 18 different events. A favorite was LaBrea Baker’s food truck parked on-site serving a delicious lunch variety using their signature “healthy but delicious” bread.
A highlight of the various products on showcase at Taste Talks was Soylent, the surprisingly tasty soy-based meal substitute. This blogger is no fan of fad diets or meal substitutes or vitamin supplement, so it was much to my chagrin that I realized Soylent left me feeling satisfied. It was not the most flavorful meal I had at the festival, however, the milkshake-like beverage did the trick and kept me running on steam for the rest of the day.
Saturday ended with 120 guests sitting down for an elegant meal at the Mother of Pearl Dinner led by the culinary team known as Dinner Lab. Island Creek oysters and bubbly Cremant de Loir Wines poured over cocktail glasses as guests delighted in a multi-course meal from the city’s top chefs: prawns and mussels from chef Leah Cohen (Pig & Khao), striped bass from chef Daniel Holzman (The Meatball Shop), cauliflower, squash and anchovy tempura with Cypress Grove cheese from chef Jacob Rosette (Dinner Lab), and mini Pavlova from Ovenly’s Agatha Kulaga and Erin Patinkin.
Sunday brought similar events and the festival’s closing event, the All Star BBQ where Questlove once more brought the beats as guests devoured delicious meats on the Williamsburg waterfront. Surprise guests from Broadway’s Allegiance actors George Takei and Telly Leung helped serve various dishes including the delicate yet memorable grilled short rib patty with Tex Mex-style queso, red pepper-chorizo, relish, smoked mayo and potato chips by Hamburguesa Campeona.ย Talks Talks will return for its second year to Chicago on October 2-4, 2015, curated by chefs April Bloomfield and Paul Kahan.