Experience: Taste of the Mint

The Mint Museum Uptown has created a new event entitled Taste of the Mint and the premise is to pair art and food...two of my loves so you know I was in foodie art heaven when I heard about this, right?!
The museum decided to mix art and food by partnering with two local restaurants, Halcyon, Flavors from the Earth and e2 emeril's eatery. Attendees go on a "food tour" indulging in a small plate and drink pairing made especially for them by the respective restaurant chefs. Following the meals, attendees will receive a customized one-hour exploration of the Mint's collections with a focus on the Mint's F.O.O.D. exhibition.

I had the pleasure of attending last month's event and it was, well like I said earlier--foodie art heaven. The theme was tied to "salt" and was inspired by the current exhibition, Return to Sea: Saltworks by artist Motoi Yamamoto. At Halcyon, we were greeted by Chef Jacksina who led us in an "Interactive Tomatoes" demonstration where we tried salt from various regions including Hawaii and Portugal. The course was paired with a Tarragon Salty Dog cocktail. We then had cabbage fermented in kosher salt paired with salmon and dessert, a scoop of rich salted caramel ice cream was unexpectedly delicious. It actually made me do a little dance!

Next we headed to e2 emeril's eatery where we dined on more salt inspired dishes which included oysters with the best garnish I have ever tasted--a mix of diced cantaloupe, fresh shallots, champagne vinegar, parsley and salt and pepper. The signature cocktail for the evening, Zydeco Punch, included a splash of South American pisco liquor and we also had Zinfandel with dessert--a chocolate ganache tart.

 Following the food, we were able to check out not only the Saltworks exhibit but all the exhibits currently open at the museum. For the March 20th Taste of the Mint date the highlighted exhibit will be the much talked about F.O.O.D exhibit. The F.O.O.D. (Food, Objects, Objectives, Design) exhibit provides a thematic look at modern and contemporary objects, handmade and mass produced, that have one of three objectives: to prepare, to cook, or to present food.

Is it me or did this post just make you hungry?

Bzzz: This would be a great gift for an art aficionado or foodie.

Bzzz: The cost is $45 per person and $30 for museum members. Registration closes tonight at midnight. Get your tickets here.