Taste of the NFL Wrap Up

Andy and me at Taste of the NFL

 I would say I hate to brag, but this is a pretty big deal :)  If you've been following my Twitter (KAStrickland), Facebook, or this blog, you'll know that I recently was the winner of a local contest and got the opportunity to go to Taste of the NFL.  If you didn't know about it, you can read the summary here.  Everyone keeps asking me who I met, what I ate, and if I had fun, so I figured I'd write up a quick post about it all!  I've included some pictures below, but for more pictures of Taste of the NFL and the Super Bowl week festivities in Fort Worth, check out the pictures on my Shutterfly page.

"Who did you meet?"
There were a TON of NFL legends there, along with some of the top chefs in the country.  I was probably the only dork there who was more interested in meeting the chefs than the players, but to each her own.


Players (pictures match with the descriptions above them)

• Tommy Nobis: linebacker for THE University of Texas 1962-1965, Falcons 1960's, "Mr. Falcon," Five time pro bowler, All Decade Team of 1960's... turns out that he was also friends with my dad in college! 

Tommy Nobis and Andy-- hook 'em!

• Billy Cundiff: kicker for the Ravens & Cowboys

Me, Billy Cundiff, and Andy

• Chad Hennings: defensive lineman for the Falcons & Cowboys

Me, Chad Hennings, and Andy

• Donny Anderson: Green Bay Packers, two-time Super Bowl Champion: I and II, All American

Andy, Donny Anderson, and me

• Al "Bubba" Baker: defensive lineman for the Lions, Cardinals, Browns, Vikings

Al "Bubba" Baker

• Karl Mecklenburg: Broncos

Me and Karl Mecklenburg- those rings were heavy!

• Bob Lurtsema: Past record holder for Viking sack yardage, Vikings, Giants, Seahawks

Andy and Bob Lurtsema

• Stu Voigt: player director for Taste of the NFL, All Time leading tight end receiver; three Super Bowls

Andy and Stu Voigt

• Jerry Sisemore: Eagles
• Marcus Robertson: Titans
• Craig Terrill: Seahawks
• Roger Staubach and Miss America, Teresa Scanlan, were also there, but we didn't get a chance to talk to them. 

Roger Staubach and Miss America celebrating their birthdays

Chefs

• Grady Spears: owner, Grady's, founder of Dutch's

Grady Spears and me

• Jon Bonnell: owner and head chef, Bonnell's

Jon Bonnell and me

• Michael Thomson: owner and head chef, Michael's Restaurant & Ancho Chili Bar

"What did you eat?"
Anything and everything.  And, yes, it was ALL a-mazing.  Out of all of the 32 NFL cities represented, I absolutely believe that the Flavors of North Texas section was my favorite.  There, we tasted foods from Grace, Grady's, Bonnell's, Michael's, Eddie V's, and Del Frisco's.  Our other favorite dishes were crab cakes, rosemary grilled cover steak, Maryland crab imperial and fried green tomato sandwich, chipotle cured pork shoulder tacos, chicken and noodles, shrimp and chorizo, mango bbq pork loin, grilled portobello mushroom slider, truffle whipped potatoes, fish taco with ceviche, Ancho beef with potato corn cake and smoked corn creme, and cake made by the star of Cake Boss, Buddy Valastro.

The Cake Boss' cake

 "Flavors of North Texas" included grilled quail breast over jalapeno mac n goat cheese with micro cilantro (Bonnell's), bacon wrapped smoked gulf shrimp with roasted chile and goat cheese grits (Michael's Cuisine), Dr. Pepper braised wagu long-bone short ribs and aged smoked gouda mac n cheese with crispy Texas sweet onions (Del Frisco's), chorizo stuffed dates wrapped in bacon with charred pepper sauce (Grace), pan de campo with beef short ribs braised in Texas port (Grady's), shrimp and grits with mustard greens (Olenjack's Grille), and tuna crudo (Eddie V's).

Like I said, de-lish.

"Did you have fun?"
I think this post sums it up :)