Otis and I, along with our friends Seth and Jenner who were visiting from New Haven, had the honor to attend the 'Deathmatch Japanese' dinner party on Sunday, hosted by my old friend Jon Dietz and his roommate Joe. 15 courses of incomparably delicious Japanese food was served, prepared by some of the best chefs and cooks in Portland...we also got to sample an exhaustive list of sake.

Seth and Jenner needed to drive back to New Haven early on Monday, so we didn't make it to the fifteenth course, but every single dish in #s 1-11 that we tasted were phenomenal. I honestly don't know if I've ever had a better meal.

My personal favorites were the following (although I really don't want to seem like I am criticizing any one else's food, which as I said was amazing):

Shabu-shabu prepared by Erik from the former Restaurant Bandol and forthcoming Evangeline, which featured shiso-miso marinated black cod, saffron-bonito fumet, mussels and pickled fennel, horseradish rouille, and fennel pollen. This dish was an incredible meld of Provencal and Japanese flavors, which played off the richness and subtlety of both cuisines.

A Duo of Fish prepared by 'Sean' (I don't know who he is, so if someone could tell me, that would be super helpful). This pairing of a light snapper tartare in tangerine rice wine vinaigrette and a sashimi of tarahiki in a ponzu glaze over an uni emulsion tasted like Spring, with a perfect balance of acid and smoothness.

Sweet Potato Gyoza with a dipping sauce of coconut, sesame, ginger, and sake, from 'Shane' (again, I didn't meet him so I am not sure who he is) that were ridiculously addictive.

And finally, my favorite dish, the Tampopo Ramen from Bronwen, who cooks at 555. This dish included a chicken and pork broth, braised pork belly, pickled ginger and dandelion greens, and a hard-boiled duck egg. The intense flavors were simultaneously exciting and comfortable. Yum yum yum was really all I could say while eating it. Well, technically it was more 'mmm. mmmmmm. mmmmmmmm.'

Thanks to all the talented folks who cooked for this meal, and thanks again to Dietz for the invite. I am a very lucky woman.

EDITED to add: check out John's much more comprehensive (and photographed!) rundown of the event. (John's gorgeous Maine shrimp were also fab!)

Over the weekend at an undisclosed time and in an undisclosed location, Otis and I were privileged to attend 'Deathmatch Bizarre Foods,' which was filmed by a production crew for the purpose of broadcast on the Travel Channel's show Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern. We had to sign our names in blood that we would not reveal what transpired there.

Actually, it was Sunday from 10:30 to 3:45, on one of the islands in Casco Bay, and we blogger/writers were asked only not to reveal the specifics of the location and the details of the foods, until after the show airs this fall. That leaves plenty to talk about.

I cannot imagine a more glorious day to hop on a boat and cruise out to a gorgeous semi-private island in order to drink wine and eat food prepared by some of the most fabulously inventive chefs in New England.

I think it hit 90-something in Portland, but on the island there was practically no humidity, and a light breeze. The sky was a perfect blue, and although for about half an hour it looked like the sea fog might roll in, it never did. It's one of those days where you don't realize how strong the sun is, and end up with a ridiculous sunburn. In my case, I was lucky that Sean, another guest non-chef like me (she's a lawyer, actually-- but equally passionate about food) had the foresight to bring some sunscreen and the grace to offer it around. I only missed one spot on the back of my left arm, which is now bright red.

As the title implies, the overall theme of the deathmatch was 'bizarre foods'-- but that wasn't all there was to it. The dishes also all shared a common genesis: traditional Maine ingredients. From Allen's Coffee Brandy to Maine moose meat, each dish had a twist that was uniquely local. As noted above, I've been asked not to reveal too much-- so all I will say is that kombu butter sandwiches are delicious.

The entire experience was fabulous. Sam and Don from Rabelais Books reveal a little more in their blog, and Japanese hand-roll roller extraordinaire Johhny D shared some detail in the eGullet forums, if you're really hungering for more.

I'll post again when I know when the episode is going to air-- it sounds like it might be the season finale for the show this fall, which is flattering to Maine! I should also note that Andrew Zimmern is an awfully nice guy; his crew were all great, too.

I can't wait to see the show! By the way, for my faithful readers, you shouldn't expect to see much of me in the footage-- I was never interviewed or anything so I will just be there as background. Which is just as well, because I couldn't get a hair appointment in time, and my roots were wicked bad. Regardless, when the time comes, you can look for me wearing the pink and white striped pants and white shirt. I'll be drinking white wine and smiling ear-to-ear.

Labor Day weekend was a series of glorious Maine days, with sun, wind, and kick-ass food, culminating in Sunday night's 'Deathmatch Forage.' As usual, the food and the company were both spectacular. Sadly, I don't have an official menu (they weren't printed the night of), so I can't provide a rundown of the ingredients. But, given that the theme of the evening was food and drink that were personally grown, foraged, or killed by the chefs, or someone they each knew personally, it was an amazing example of the bounty of our local ecosphere (and beyond-- there was salt from Hawaii!).

My favorite dishes were the opening course, which was a pork-o-licios concoction of pulled pork, pork belly, head cheese, and kale, and the deceptively smooth corn chowder with smoked duck. Everything was fabulous, though, and each course provided a new and surprising flavor profile. Thanks to Johnny D for the take-home pile-o-seaweed, and of course to Jon and Joe for their hosting excellence.

The media attention, including professional photography, was fun too-- Maine Home + Design sent a journalist who seemed equally interested in the food and the many characters in attendance. Plus, there was a puppy. What a night!

On a personal note, I am still hoping to find the time for a blog redesign, although it's receding into the distance somewhat, as school has started and the rigor of cite checking has reared its time-consuming head.

Don't forget to check out Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern on the Travel Channel this Tuesday, November 18, which features the Maine Foods Deathmatch.

If you look carefully, you may be able to see yours truly in the background. I wasn't interviewed or anything.

Portland Psst provides a good rundown of the Deathmatch media coverage here.

If you have time, you should try out the always-fabulous Joe Ricchio's Sweet Corn and Duck Soup with Smoked Chiles. It was truly phenomenally delicious. And I don't even really like duck!

Coming soon-- a full report on Deathmatch Last Meal, which went into the history books on Sunday night. As usual, crazy, exhausting, fun, and delicious.

Here's a photo of Jon carving the Jamon Iberico de Bellotta. This ham was indescribably delicious. It tasted so amazing. Jon made us all drink a glass of sherry with it-- an Amontillado del Puerto-- which brought the flavor experience to a whole 'nother level.

Johnny D. has some photos and info over at eGullet.

Also, check out Zack Bowen's incredible photos!

As promised, here's a more complete rundown of the most recent Deathmatch Experience.

The theme: what would you eat (and drink) for your last meal?

It was definitely one of the best Deathmatches yet, in my opinion, both because the food and wine were amazing, but also because the crowd was uniformly in ridiculously cheerful moods and having a great time.

The run-up was a bit stressful for me because, like an insane person, I agreed to prepare a 32 page + cover book for the party. This book was made up of photos of the chefs (most taken by Zack Bowen, and a few others taken by Katie Selva-- both of the photographers did a great job with the shots), their answers to Joe's "what would you eat at your last meal" questionnaire, and the complete song list for the party, submitted by the guests, who could each choose three songs.

So, because of the time pressures of my trip to France, Joe's trip to Argentina, and Zack's very busy schedule, the turnaround time on the book was literally three days. Have I mentioned I am in my second year of law school, and coming up to finals? I had the book, two papers, and the beginning of studying for finals to do, and at points I felt like I was losing my mind. However, amazingly I managed to lay out and have the "client" (aka Joe and Dietz) proof the whole thing in three days. We went to press on Monday the 13th, and thanks to the incredible speediness of my friend Kirk and his team at Creative Imaging Group, we had very good quality books, printed on a digital press with great color, by Friday afternoon. (For those who care about these things, we had them perfect bound as well, and they looked great.)

Anyway. Nobody really cares about the books if they haven't seen them, I imagine. Sorry, I got a little off track. Let's get to the food.

That's a photo of Gerry enjoying Leslie's homemade tagliatelle with Broadturn Farm butter, sea salt, and white truffle. That was one of my favorite dishes, along with Leslie's fonduta-- essentially melted cheese with truffles, and crostini to dip in it. Both dishes were incredibly homey and comforting, as if Leslie were my Italian grandmother making me a meal after a long plane ride.

Sadly, I completely missed some of the dishes. It was a particularly chaotic evening-- there was a tent (and the bar) set up outside, but it became colder and colder as the night wore on, so some people were inside, some outside, and the serving of the dishes ranged from someone walking around with a tray, to people lining up outside the (very small) kitchen (with broken plumbing-- that's another story) waiting to be served.

So if I miss mentioning a dish that's why. Everything I had was really quite incredible.

1. Erik from Evangeline did a very simple caviar service of American caviar on a potato chip with a dollop of creme fraiche. Lovely, simple, the perfect way to start the meal.

2. Joe Ricchio, one of our hosts with the most, made a tortilla soup. I seriously think he would make a fortune if he started a soup-making business. His soups are uniformly fantastic. Perfect balance of spice, smoke (from the smoked peppers), and acidity.

3. Jamon iberico de bellota. I mentioned this in my previous post. Dietz (most host #2), like Leslie, pretended he was my grandmother. In this case Spanish.

4. Peruvian ceviche, by Joel. Two styles of ceviche-- the first with a more traditional (to us) lime base, and the second with a coconut milk base, which was new to me, but according to Joel very common in Peru. Fresh fish, great flavors.

... I missed quite a few courses here ...

5. Leslie's dish... discussed above...

6. Nolan made a maple candied pulled pork and a popover. It was kind of like a little sandwich of pork. Num num, and the perfect size. Too much more and the sweetness would have overwhelmed, but the size and the contrast between the popover and the pork balanced it.

7. Feijoda finale + caipirinhas, by Johnny D. and John Myers, respectively. There seems to be a theme here-- Johnny D. was also channeling a grandmotherly comfort food, in this case a stew from Brazil.

8. Deconstructed BLT with hot mayonnaise in your mouth. Josh and Kate from One Fifty Ate (one of my favorite places in the city, which I keep meaning to write about) did this one. If you take a look at one of the other bloggers' recaps of this meal you will learn more about this dish. I don't really like mayonnaise, at least in any sort of large amount, and was worried that if I sat down and had a naughty schoolgirl squirt mayo in my mouth a) someone would take a picture of me, which would be used as evidence of unfitness to join the bar, and b) I would throw up. So, um... no. The process was quite amusing to watch though.

9. Shortrib pot pie by Stephen and Merry. This was hands down my favorite dish. These were teensy little pot pies with a perfectly flaky crust, and just the right amount of rich filling with shredded beef and tiny little cubes of carrot. Just impeccable. I could have eaten 5 in a row. (I want Merry to come over and school me in crust-making.)

10. Sweet & sour balsamic braised short ribs, salt & vinegar fries, by Jason. Also a delicious treatment.

At this point I started getting really, really full and missed a couple of dishes. I took a break, drank some wine, and danced like an idiot, which was quite fun.

Eventually it was time for dessert, which included ginger pudding with chocolate sauce by Jodi, croquembouche by Krista of Bresca (which I tragically missed, I don't know what happened!), pound cake from Samantha (of Rabelais), and heaven and hell chocolates from Meg. All were amazing (I am SURE that was the case with the croquembouche...wipes tear from eye), but I have to say, keeping with the grandmother theme, that Sam's pound cake, served simply with whipped cream, was the perfect dessert to my last meal.

Actually, I ended the evening standing in the kitchen sticking pieces of pound cake end in the whipped cream bowl. Mmm.

So, yeah. Pretty phenomenal dinner. I'd really suggest checking out Zack's photos. Mine ended up being kind of sparse because there was such a crush in the kitchen that I had trouble grabbing shots of the food.

And, to wrap up... here's the drink list:

The Wine: (More than 92 bottles worth if you do the math!)

12 x Broadbent, Vinho Verde N/V
Bellenda, Brut Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobbiadene "San Fermo", 1.5l
Bellavista, Brut Franciacorta Cuvée, 1.5l
Perrier-Jouët, Brut Champagne Cuvée Belle Epoque "Fleur de Champagne" 1990, 3.0l (Jeroboam)
6 x Lustau, Amontillado Jerez Puerto de Santa Maria "Almacenista Jose Luis Gonzalez Obregon" N/V
Georg Breuer, Riesling QbA Rheingau Rüdesheim Berg Schlossberg 2004, 3.0l (1 of 30 Produced)
Dr. Bürklin-Wolf, Riesling Spätlese Trocken Pfalz Forster Kirchenstück 1997, 1.5l
St. Michael-Eppan, Sauvignon Alto Adige "Sanct Valentin" 2004
6 x Bodegas Aragonesas, Campo de Borja "Coto de Hayas" Rosado 2007
Estancia, Meritage Alexander Valley 1989, 1.5l
Tramonti, Chianti Classico 2004, 3.0l
Nicolis, Veronese IGT "Testal" 2001, 1.5l
Poggio Amorelli, Toscana IGT "Oracolo" 2003, 3.0l
Domaine Henri Perrot-Minot, Chambolle-Musigny Vieilles Vignes 1999, 1.5l
Domaine Jean Chauvenet, Nuits-Saint-Georges Premier Cru Rue de Chaux 2001, 1.5l
Louis Bernard, Châteauneuf-du-Pape 1999, 1.5l
Domaine de Vieux Télégraphe, Châteauneuf-du-Pape "La Crau" 1997, 1.5l
Château Lamartine, Cahors Cuvée Particulière 2004
Bodegas Alejandro Fernandez Tinto Pesquera, Ribera del Duero "Janus" Gran Reserva 1995
Château Musar, Bekaa Valley 1999
Hanzell, Pinot Noir Sonoma Valley 1990, 1.5l (Signed by Bob Sessions)
Marchesi di Barolo, Barolo "Grande Annata" Riserva 1988
William Hill Winery, Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 1990, 5.0l (Imperial)
Librandi, Val di Neto IGT "Gravello" 2003
Tenuta Il Poggione, Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 1997
Ridge, "Geyserville" Sonoma County 1999, 1.5l
Fauchon, Sauternes "Réserve" 1995, 375ml
Foreau, Vouvray Moelleux Domaine du Clos Naudin 1995
Wegeler-Deinhard, Riesling Spätlese Mosel-Saar-Ruwer 1990
Friedrich-Wilhelm-Gymnasium, Riesling Beerenauslese Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Trittenheimer Apotheke 1989
Fonseca, Reserve Porto "Terra Bella" N/V
Château de Montpezat, Coteaux du Languedoc "Palombières" 2003
Condado de Haza, Ribera del Duero 2001
Mt. Difficulty, Pinot Noir Central Otago 2004, 1.5l
Etude, Pinot Noir Carneros 2004
2 x John Duval Wines, Shiraz Barossa Valley "Entity" 2005
Niebaum-Coppola, Zinfandel Napa Valley "Edizione Pennino" 1999 (Signed by Francis Ford Coppola)
Masciarelli, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo "Villa Gemma" Riserva 2000
Marchesi di Barolo, Barolo Cannubi 2004
Jean-Luc Colombo, Cornas Les Ruchets 1998
Bollinger, Brut Champagne "La Grande Année" 1999

The Beer:

G. Schneider & Sohn, "Wiesen Edel-Weisse" Hefeweizen, Kelheim, Germany, 20l (1/6 Barrel)
St. Bernardus, "Abt 12" Quadrupel, Watou, Belgium, 20l (1/6 Barrel)
Harviestoun, "Ola Dubh Special Reserve 12" Old Ale, Clackmannanshire, Scotland, 40l (Cask)
Castle Eggenberg, "Samichlaus Bier" Doppelbock, Eggenberg, Austria, 3.0l
24 x Geary's, "Wee Heavy" Scottish Ale, Portland, Maine, 12 oz. bottles
24 x Geary's, Imperial IPA, Portland, Maine, 12 oz. bottles
12 x Anheuser-Busch, "Bud Light Lime" Beer, 12 oz. bottles (F'n Spider)
6 x Falstaff Brewing Company, "Ballantine XXX" Ale, 16 oz. cans (F'n Gerry)
Lots x Pabst Brewing Company, "Pabst Blue Ribbon" Beer, 12 oz. bottles, 12 & 16 oz. cans

The Hooch:

Lillet, Apéritif Blanc, France
Cointreau, Triple Sec Liqueur, France
Cock-Russell & Co., "Boodles British Gin" London Dry Gin, England
Lucid, Absinthe "Supérieure", France
Leblon, Cachaça, Brasil
Herredura, Tequila "Silver", Mexico
Don Julio, Tequila "Reserva de Don Julio" Blanco, Mexico

(John Myers made Corpse Revivers and Caipirinhas).