Zagat Winner!

The winner of the one year membership to Zagat.com is....CER! Thanks to random.org CER's comment was chosen as the winner. You have 48 hours to contact me with your name and address or you'll have to forfeit the prize. Boo hoo! CER would eat...Taco dip & chips, but only how my mother makes it -- blend of sour cream, cream cheese & a bit o' lemon juice, with salsa, fresh romaine lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and a hefty layer of freshly grated cheddar. No taco seasoning or ground beef or olives or any of that -- just the spread and fresh veggies. It is to die for.

Sounds good, CER. Congrats and enjoy the wealth of information that Zagat has to offer!

DCW_NYC

-Hilary-

Spring Giveaway!

I'm giving away a one year membership to Zagat.com! All you have to do is leave a comment answering the following question: If you had to eat the same meal for the rest of your life, what would it be? And no topping changes or condiment switches. If you choose a double cheeseburger and fries it can't be with mayo one day and pickles the next. The winner will be chosen at random on Saturday, May 2. The winner will have 48 hours to contact me with their home address, or I'll pick someone else who is more attentive to their inbox.

Zagat.com has much more than restaurant reviews and searches. The site (which is mobile phone enabled for all you Blackberry and iPhone addicts) boasts discussion boards, nightspot, hotel and attraction guides, as well as menus and virtual tours.

I would eat burritos for the rest of my life. Shredded chicken, black beans, tomatoes, sour cream, cilantro, and hot sauce wrapped in a grilled flour tortilla. I'm go glad I grew up in Mexico Southern California.

Good Luck!
DCW_NYC
-Hilary-

And the Winner Is..

Gini from Raleigh, NC! Her book title:
86 My Husband. The challenges of being a chef's wife.
I love it!! The use of kitchen lingo that only DCW's (and chefs themselves) know is great!
Gini, you've got until Monday to email me back with your contact information so we can get the books to you ASAP!

Thanks to random.org for supplying the random number generator. And of course Jessica Conant-Park for writing these fabulous books and giving them away.

DCW_NYC
-Hilary-

desperatechefswives@gmail.com

Contest: Win 2 Books!!

My dear friend, and fellow chef's wife, Jessica Conant-Park has written the fourth edition of her Gourmet Girls Mystery Series, FED UP. The series is described as Bridget Jones meets Janet Evanovich meets Julia Child. A cozy, culinary, romantic, humorous, chick lit mystery series set in the Boston restaurant scene. This latest book is near and dear to my heart; my chef was given the opportunity to write some recipes for the wedding in the book. So check those out too!

"Part-time student Chloe Carter is planning her best friend’s wedding, working for her parents—and glued to her chef boyfriend, Josh, as he competes to star in a new TV series. The premise:Josh hijacks unsuspecting grocery shoppers and prepares them gourmet dinners. Everything’s going great—until one shopper drops dead.With the cameras on him from the beginning, Josh is obviously innocent, but Chloe wonders: Was it one of Josh’s competitors? Or the deceased’s husband? Or someone on the crew?Sifting through suspects, Chloe deals with wedding chaos and Josh’s erratic behavior. She’ll have to balance her plate while trying to catch
a food felon…"

Now, the contest part!

The prize:

Jessica has so generously donated a signed copy of her latest book, FED UP as well as the new paperback version of TURN UP THE HEAT, the third book in the series.

The rules:

-To enter, simply leave a comment on this post answering this question:

How would you title a book about your life with a chef?

-You must leave your email address so we can contact you. Once a winner is contacted they have a couple days or so to respond with a mailing address.

-All entrants agree to be placed on Jessica's Food Fiction newsletter list.

-Don't fear if your not married to a chef: title your book about your life and its connection to food.

A winner will be chosen at random next Friday, March 6.

If you want to double your chances of winning some great books, head over to Jessica's Newsletter site and check out her other contest to win Fed Up, Turn Up the Heat, Michelle Scott's complete Wine Lovers Series, and Mia King's Sweet Life and Good Things. To enter, email the newsletter team at:foodfiction@gmail.comfoodfiction@gmail.com with the subject line "Food Fiction Contest."All you have to do is tell them your favorite meal or send them your favorite recipe! (You will be added to Michele and Mia's newsletter list unless you note to opt-out.)That contest runs until March 1, 2009.

Good luck!

DCW_NYC
-Hilary-

Chill TakeDown

This Sunday Melissa, from Fork This Magazine is competing in a chili contest in Brooklyn. It's only $10 to go and you get all the chili you want! There is also a People's Choice Prize so you get to participate, too!

Union Pool, 5 PM, Sunday, August10, Brooklyn, NY

DCW_NYC

-Hilary-

In His Second Life (contest!)

Win this shirt!

Sometimes I wonder what my chef would be doing if he wasn't a chef. And I don't mean food purveyor, restaurateur, or caterer. I mean what NON FOOD job would he have? How different would my life be? Would I live in Jersey City? Would I have kids by now? Would I need a blog to vent my lonely heart to? Probably yes to the last one because if he's not dedicated in this way, he's dedicated in another.

Erik was a serious drummer starting at the sweet age of six. Upon graduating high school he would have become some kind of studio drummer. Again, working odd hours and possibly traveling. Doesn't sound much better.

Then I think about his dream job, the job that he'll never get but he thinks would make him a bad ass. According to Erik he'd want to be a spy. (I have to chuckle to myself as I write that.) And by spy he means a serious mission impossible/jason bourne/bond type of spy. Like I would marry a spy. Have you seen Mr. and Mrs. Smith? No way! But he can dream about it all he wants.

All I know is teaching and kids- it flows inside of me. If I had to do something totally not related to kids I think I would end up being some kind of personal organizer. I can organize and sort like its no body's business, but that's no fun. My bad ass dream job would be a detective. Someone also very bad ass a la Olivia Benson, Law and Order SVU. "Manhattan SVU, I need a bus!" I love that show. And yes I've been caught talking into my walkie (digital camera) asking for "backup". I think it's okay to dream about another life, another way of living that is completely different from your own.

So this contest is pretty straight forward. Leave a comment with your name/alias and email and I'll enter you to win a Desperate Chefs' Wives t shirt (medium). The comment topic comes in two parts.

1. Tell me what your chef would be doing non-food related to make money.


2. Tell me what your chef would be doing to fulfill his secret dreams. (totally unrealistic)


3. Feel free to share your dream jobs, too!
   

Thanks for entering. I will pick a winner next Sunday the 11th. You'll have to respond to the email I send within 48 hours to win. Good Luck!

DCW_NY
-Hilary-

Contest Winner!

Minna doing some private cheffing.

Congratulations to Minna Suh from Brooklyn, New York for winning the signed Gourmet Girl Mystery Series books by Jessica Conant Park! Minna moved to Brooklyn two and half years ago from Chicago. She works as an editorial assistant at a consumer health website. And no she's not married to a chef, but she is a part-time personal chef on top of her 9-5. Before that she had graduated from culinary school and done an internship with StarChefs.com.





Congrats, Minna! Enjoy the books!


DCW_NYC
-Hilary-

Win 2 Books: Simmer Down and Turn Up the Heat!

The DCW is having its first annual contest in honor of my 100th post which although passed us by quite some time ago is none the less very important and worth celebration.

The prize: A signed copy of Jessica Conant-Park's Simmer Down (paperback) and Turn Up the Heat (hardback)!

To enter: It's simple. Just add a comment t0 THIS POST with your name and email that answers this question: Whose cooking do you like better: your mother's or your chef's? And if you don't "have" a chef..just leave a comment about ...anything! (This is for you, Passion.)

The drawing: On Sunday, March 16th I will have someone pick one of your names at random and email you right away, sending the books soon after.

I want to thank Jessica Conant Park for providing her wonderful Gourmet Girl Mystery Series as a fantastic prize!

Don't forget to tell your friends, and if you don't leave your email you won't be eligible to win!

DCW_NYC

-H-

Good Luck!

New York City's Sexiest Chef

And no, my bandanna wearing husband isn't on the list. It's better that way-wouldn't want to deal with crazy groupies. (oh this picture to the side here is a sexy lady chef halloween costume...think about it for next year)

My chefwife pal, J found something very interesting the other day. The Daily News is having a contest set up so you can vote for a sexy chef and your vote also counts as a entry in their contest.

The prize? Dinner for two at the winner's restaurant. (A $150 gift certificate not good on gratuities or alcohol.)

The catch? You have to register with The Daily News. No biggie though-its free.

The chefs? You've got 11 to choose from and they all look like young hipsters from the new forefront in the culinary world of NYC. I'm young myself but where's the older generation of pros like Jean-Georges and Daniel Bouloud? Now those are some handsome men. Then again the contest refers to the "sexiest chef" not the "most appealing chef who you want to sweep you off your feet".

For a list of the chefs and a small piece on their "sexy" lives click HERE.

The rules? You can vote once a day until 11:59 (ET) on Monday, November 12. Every day that you vote you receive another entry in the contest. Not too bad, eh? You can vote in 3 categories for each chef: "Hot", "Very Hot", and "Sizzling". Which is a little unfair because maybe I don't think they are even at the hot level-but I'll play along.

I like this contest because it gives REAL chefs a time to shine in the spotlight and promotes their restaurants. I don't like it though because it sends a message to single women that chefs are all sexy beasts. Well, when they come home complaining at 2am and they get calls from work at all hours of the night on their few days off...they ain't so sexy. But those chef whites....they look like culinary angels. (Wow-I do have the capability of saying completely moronic things. )

DCW_NYC

-H-

PS. I'll probably continue to vote "sizzling" for Craig Koetsu the exec. chef at Park Avenue Autumn. He looks good.