FEASTS BY THE SEA
1/30/2007 11:07:44 AM by Clint Brownfield
If oysters, crab and other delectable shellfish are on your menu this year, why not pair them up with some wine and similar libations and head out to one of the five seafood and wine festivals we recommend. We promise your taste buds will thank you.
Places that are fortunate enough to have the ocean as their backdrop usually have another thing to be grateful for: prime seafood. In all my years as a travel writer, I’ve amassed quite the list of places to travel — and the best times to travel there. But none of the exotic destinations I’ve visited can compare to the sumptuous offerings available at the feast-happy festivals I’m about to introduce you to. Start planning now, because these seafood-heavy gatherings are sure to max out before you even have time to plan your next meal.
Kapalua Wine & Food Festival
July 5-8, 2007
Maui, HI
kapalua.com
Hosted by Master Sommelier Fred Dame, this renowned event attracts world-famous winemakers, chefs and visitors for a series of wine tastings, festive gatherings and gourmet meals. Celebrating its 26th year, this nationally acclaimed food and wine extravaganza includes al fresco samplings of reserve bottling and the bounty of Hawaii’s ocean prepared by Hawaii’s top chefs. It’s the state’s longest-running food and wine festival.
In addition to three celebrity chefs, the festival also features 14 of Hawaii’s top chefs who participate in a number of tastings, pairings and meals. The popular celebrity chef lunches are full lunches with wine pairings — not just samples.
Dame is also the president of the Master Sommeliers and as many as 12 other Master Sommeliers are present each year which is quite an accomplishment since there aren’t that many of these experts in the world.
Kapalua Resort is located on Maui’s west side and is paradise defined, with jaw-dropping views of the Pacific and the islands of Molokai and Lanai just a few miles to the west and south. It features the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua and Kapalua Bay Resort and Villas in addition to a number of private villas that can be rented or purchased.
There is also a phenomenal array of golf links that tie the whole expanse together. Each January, Kapalua is host to Mercedes-Benz Championship. This year, an elite field of champions from the 2006 PGA TOUR will compete in the season-opening event at the Kapalua Resort’s Plantation Course. Early qualifiers include three-time defending champion Stuart Appleby, Tiger Woods, David Toms, Retief Goosen, Jim Furyk, Rory Sabbatini and Geoff Ogilvy.
Knysna Oyster Festival
July 6-15, 2007
The Garden Route
South Africa
oysterfestival.co.za
Knysna is beach central for Eastern South Africa and one of the prettiest places on this side of the planet. Here, boats of all types are enjoyed by locals and visitors alike, either on the serene lagoon or on the Indian Ocean.
Going strong for 23 years, traditional favorites of the Knysna Oyster Festival include the Oyster Cooking Competition, the Oyster Eating Competition, the Waitron Race and the Bowls Tournament. The Cooking Competition, organized by the South African Chefs Association, has become a culinary adventure all its own. It’s apparently the party you simply can’t miss. Tickets sell like hot cakes for this one.
The Oyster Eating Competition is also a big draw and an attempt will be made to break the Guinness Book of World Records set last year of 24 oysters eaten in one minute and eight seconds.
Knysna is renowned for its oysters which are found in the protected lagoon that spreads out above the town. All oysters stay fresh for up to seven days, but it’s said that the ones at the Knysna Festival are among the freshest in the world.
Knysna itself is a bustling holiday town, with fabulous views over the blue lagoon and beyond to the Indian Ocean, as well as a fantastic cliff-top walk. And, if you act quickly, you might be able to reserve lodging at Pezula, South Africa’s first truly great luxury resort (pezula.com).
The Rotary Crab Fest
Aug. 3, 2007
Annapolis, MD
annapolisrotary.com
Perhaps no other town in America has deeper roots in the sea than Maryland’s capital, Annapolis, even though it’s tucked into the northern part of the Chesapeake Bay. It is, of course, the home of the U.S. Naval Academy and is “Crab-Central” for people who just can’t get enough of those juicy little decapod crustaceans.
The Rotary Crab Fest is known as the biggest crab feast in the world and has been going strong since its inception in 1945. It’s held the first Friday in August of each year. This year will mark the 62nd anniversary of the feast. Last year, more than 2,400 people were served, or about 7 percent of the entire population of Annapolis. Visitors are most welcome.
Put on by the Annapolis Rotary Club, proceeds from the feast go to various local charities and non-profits — so you can actually feel good about yourself as you gorge on steamed crabs, crab soup, hot dogs and beef barbecue, all washed down with beer or soda.
Prince Edward Island International
Shellfish Festival
Sept. 14-16, 2007
Charlottetown, PEI, Canada
peishellfish.com
The “Biggest Kitchen Party in Atlantic Canada,” boasts good friends, good times, good music and lots of world-famous Prince Edward Island shellfish on Charlottetown’s beautiful historic waterfront.
From gourmet chefs to celebrity cooks, first-time oyster tasters to world-class oyster shuckers, this festival always promises to entertain and educate people of all ages. And, to keep your toes tappin’, the festival always features some of Atlantic Canada’s top musicians.
Keep your taste buds happy with the delish delights of the chefs and students of The Culinary Institute of Canada, featuring interactive shellfish culinary demos daily and numerous food stations where visitors can purchase tasty treats.
The Food Pavilion will also offer PEI Seafood Chowder, freshly steamed PEI mussels and clams and renowned PEI oysters and quahogs. Full bar service is also available to wet your whistle. And, you can be your own chowder judge after tasting entries into the Panderno PEI Chowder Championship and the Milk International Chowder Championship.
The Prince Edward Island International Shellfish Festival is a joint effort of the PEI Aquaculture Alliance and the PEI Shellfish Association and has been putting grins on seafood lovers’ faces for 12 years in the Acadian land of Anne of Green Gables.
Galway International Oyster Festival
Sept. 27-30, 2007
Galway City, Ireland
galwayoysterfest.com
Galway City, Ireland, comes alive every year as thousands of people travel from the four corners of the world to enjoy a remarkable festival celebrating the oyster, a food known for its mysterious luxury and passion — so goes the promotion for this 53rd annual feast, where the Guinness flows.
Festivities include the Guinness World Oyster Opening Championship, where hundreds of competitors from around the world vie for a place in this prestigious competition. The winners from each country, with enthusiastic supporters in tow, travel to the city of Galway, in the West of Ireland, to compete for the world title. The final competition takes place on Sept. 30.
For those of us who have ever tried to open an oyster, these winners take on an almost god-like stature. Anyone can eat oysters, but they must first be opened, or shucked, as we say here in the U.S. As Jonathan Swift said: “He was a bold man that ate the first oyster.”
Well, you can be as brave as you like for four days and four nights at this, the granddaddy of all the food festivals while you celebrate delicacies from the sea. And you can’t do any better than the seafood found around Ireland.
THE BXRL Tourney & Food Festival
Apr. 28-30
Bimini Bay Resort & Casino,
The Bahamas
biminibayresort.com
If you aren’t planning to cross over the stream for the weekend of April 28-30, you might want to re-think that! Why? Because Bimini Bay Resort and Casino is hosting the only Bahamas tournament of the season for the popular Billfishing Xtreme Release League (BXRL) show on ESPN2 for the most exciting tournament of the world’s best billfishing anglers. To complement it all, there’s a fantastic food festival featuring some of the most fabulous chefs in the world from Hilton Hotels and enough seafood dishes to satiate your appetite through the whole weekend.
BXRL is the brainchild of television producer, Hawaiian fishing record-holder and outdoors writer, Captain Norm Isaacs, and is one of television’s most exciting big game fishing shows.
Make sure to bring the whole family for a chance to appear on national television, observe this exciting no-kill billfishing tournament and sample delicacies prepared by the world’s best chefs, including the resort’s Casa Lyon’s Head Chef, Kermit Mackey, who heads the Mediterranean-style restaurant.
Along with his experienced culinary team, Chef Mackey has developed a distinct taste among his many dishes by infusing the fresh seafood from the Atlantic with a zingy Caribbean twist, echoing his years of skill and practice in the kitchen.
At 24 years old, Chef Mackey’s inventive style is expressed through an array of impressive gourmet dishes, served to diners amidst a stunning backdrop of interior and exterior ocean views. The restaurant’s interiors include natural stone floors, contemporary colonial furnishings, chic onyx-top bar and accessories intricately decorated with shells...a perfect backdrop for a weekend of fun and food during this one-of-a-kind tournament and food fest.