Celeb Chefs Roy Choi & Tyler Florence party for Water at the W Hollywood

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Celeb Chefs Roy Choi & Tyler Florence party with smartwater sparkling at the W Hotel in Los Angeles, also known as the W Hotels Insider Collective at W Hollywood.

Chef Roy Choi and Harley Pasternak at smartwater sparkling Insider Collective dinner at W Hollywood

smartwater sparkling and W Hotels partnered to host a rooftop dinner as part of the latest installment of the Insider Collective, an exclusive series of intimate events that have been popping up at W Hotels around the globe. The private event was held at W Hollywood with special guest, celebrated chef and founder of gourmet Korean food truck Roy Choi, who chatted with innovators of food, fashion and fitness who attended.

Chefs Roy Choi and Tyler Florence at smartwater sparkling Insider Collective dinner at W Hollywood

Those included TASTE Hall of Fame inductee and chef Tyler Florence, stylist Katie Grand, celebrity trainer Harley Pasternak, blogger Dani Song and more…

Dani Song at smartwater sparkling Insider Collective dinner at W HollywoodThe special event celebrated the launch of new smartwater sparkling, which has all of the attributes of the smartwater you know and love but with just the right amount of bubbles.

The goal of the W Hotels Insider Collective is to bring together the most dynamic people in the fashion, music, tech, design and culinary worlds as only W Hotels can. Carefully curated, these events are designed to bring together influencers from different worlds for spirited conversation over good music and even better food and cocktails.

smartwater sparkling Insider Collective dinner at W HollywoodRoy Choi is a chef, restaurateur, and author based in Los Angeles who is responsible for essential California restaurants and food such as POT, Commissary, Chego, A-Frame, and Kogi™, one of the first food trucks in a movement that has now gone nationwide. In January 2016, he will open in Watts, an exciting and innovative restaurant concept that combines high quality with fast food. While he has traditional culinary training, he also draws inspiration from music, art, and, of course, well-crafted beer.

 

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Levi’s goes Viral with new Video Series

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For several generations, the Levi’s brand has used television commercials as a major vehicle to promote their popular jeans. Now they have turned to the Internet and Social Media to expand their reach, as well as to try a few new concepts, some with viral potential.

A popular new spot, often called ‘The Boyfriend,’ ‘Coffee,’ and the ‘The Morning After,’ is actually called “Beautiful Morning.”Set to Adrian Torres Pacheco’s song You Rascal You, it has a :30 second and 1 minute version, as well as other derivatives.

The spot is conceived and produced like short film with a dating-oriented storyline that some viewers may find familiar, it is charming, witty, and with a surprise ending that leaves the audience smiling.

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The TASTE AWARDS took a moment to chat with Jen Sey, CMO at Levi‘s, about the inspiration and strategy for this piece.

 

Jen_Sey_option11TA: What was the creative inspiration for this video?

Jen Sey / Levi’s: We were inspired by the Levi’s advertising in our archives – the narrative structure of past 501 films in particular, where there was always a fun and sexy twist at the end. Films like “Laundrette” featuring Nick Kamen, which introduced the 501 shrink to fit in stonewash.

For the introduction of the 501CT, the latest twist on the original 501, we wanted to showcase the modern Levi’s guy. Our 501CT hero is cool and sexy, but turns out to be a really nice guy in the end as well. The perfect modern hero.

TA: How does it fit into the overall Levi’s brand campaign?

Jen Sey / Levi’s: One of the core tenants of the Live in Levi’s campaign is storytelling: all generations of our fans have stories to share, and that’s something that you’ll see coming to life throughout the campaign work. From the Live in Levi’s Project (where we share stories from our friends of the brand as a way to inspire fans to share their Levi’s stories with us), to the launch of the new women’s collection, where we partnered with Alicia Keys.

So for this season – that we’re able to connect with such a broad audience to celebrate Levi’s stories – we pivoted to use TV as a bigger storytelling platform.

levis-logoTA: Who worked on the spot?

Jen Sey / Levi’s: The Levi’s Global Consumer Marketing Team and our advertising agency FCB West. And it was directed by Sara Dunlop.

TA: The video is in Macy’s stores and on YouTube. Where else can it be seen?

Jen Sey / Levi’s: On TV and cinema across the Americas, Europe, and Asia, as well as in our stores and on digital pre-roll globally.

It’s everywhere.

TA: Any plans with social media?

Jen Sey / Levi’s: The spot was teased through our global social channels encouraging and directing fans to see the full length on our Facebook and youtube channels. What’s great is that so many of our fans spread the word themselves by sharing on their social media channels.

WATCH HERE:

Margaret Cho stars in animated food truck series – Chow-Fuhn

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Margaret Cho is taking her comedic chops to the world of animated food trucks in what she calls the first ‘Sci-Foodieomedy’, entitled CHOW-FUHN.

Chow-fuhn13In this new web series, also including the voices of Bobby Lee (IMDB) and Jon Lovitz (IMDB), Margaret and cohorts expose the chef vs. chef, cut-throat business of food trucks!

The series is created by Gabriel DeFrancesco (IMDB, Trading Up, Roman Holiday, RISD ’99 IL), and is aiming to raise $120,000 on Kickstarter.

Take a look at the pitch

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ABC’s ‘The Chew’ to Broadcast from Disney Epcot Food & Wine Festival

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ABC’s “The Chew” is leaving its Manhattan studio for the first time in the show’s history to broadcast from the 20th annual Epcot International Food & Wine Festival at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, FL. The Emmy-Award® Winning lifestyle series will tape five shows with co-hosts Mario Batali, Michael Symon, Carla Hall, Clinton Kelly and Daphne Oz on Oct. 7, 8 & 9 to air during the week of Oct. 12 -16 on “The Chew.”

Epcot International Food & Wine Festival“We are beyond excited to be invited to celebrate such an important food event,” said Gordon Elliott, executive producer of “The Chew.” “What a great way to kick off our fifth season. We are planning a terrific series of shows for our viewers and live audience that will use every available piece of magic the park and our show can muster. Stay tuned!” he added.

“The Chew” shows from Epcot will showcase festival highlights as well as food and beverage from “around the world” of Walt Disney World Resort. From stellar dining experiences to immersive dining that transports guests into cherished stories, “The Chew” will explore Disney Parks restaurants that offer innovative, fun and healthful dining choices and share some of their favorites.

In addition, “The Chew” will be featured in two themed marketplaces located at the new Next Eats area of Future World – the first time in the festival’s history that new culinary experiences have expanded into the Future World area of the park.

Epcot International Food & Wine Festival2At the new Sustainable Chew Marketplace, festivalgoers can enjoy three delicious dishes inspired by “The Chew” co-hosts. From savory pork spareribs with red wine and fennel with cheesy mascarpone grits and ricotta & zucchini ravioli with tomato sauce to vanilla panna cotta with fresh figs and pistachio brittle, “The Chew” has something for everyone during this milestone 20th Epcot International Food & Wine Festival celebration. The eco-home-inspired marketplace will offer guests a chance to learn more about how food is grown and the importance of food sustainability. Herbs and vegetables harvested from The Land pavilion greenhouses at Epcot will flavor the marketplace dishes.

A second new Future World marketplace at Next Eats will feature the Chew Lab, where Disney chefs are collaborating with “The Chew,” to create a cutting-edge marketplace inspired by food-science labs and the hottest culinary tech trends.

Visit TheChew.com for information on how to obtain tickets to be part of the live audience during “The Chew” broadcasts at Epcot International Food & Wine Festival.

“The Chew” will continue to update viewers on additional festival plans throughout the summer. Tune in weekdays 1:00pm/ET and visit TheChew.com.

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About “The Chew”:

Celebrating and exploring life through food, “The Chew,” is an innovative and groundbreaking daytime series co-hosted by a dynamic group of engaging, fun, relatable experts in food, lifestyle, and entertaining. Produced by Gordon Elliott’s Chew Productions for the ABC Television Network, “The Chew” serves up everything food — from cooking and home entertaining to food trends, restaurants, holidays and more — all aimed at making life better, fuller and more fun. Featuring celebrity chefs Mario Batali, Michael Symon, and Carla Hall, entertaining expert Clinton Kelly and health and wellness enthusiast Daphne Oz, “The Chew” is a leap forward into a delicious new kind of lifestyle series. Follow “The Chew” (@thechew) and hosts Mario Batali (@mariobatali); Michael Symon (@chefsymon); Clinton Kelly (@clinton_kelly); Carla Hall (@carlahall) and Daphne Oz (@DaphneOz) on Twitter ™

About Epcot International Food & Wine Festival:

Epcot International Food & Wine Festival presented by Chase celebrates 20 delicious festival years with the new partnership with “The Chew” and with a lineup of brand-new marketplaces, menu items, premium experiences and entertainment. For updates about festival events and premium experiences, visit epcotfoodfestival.com throughout the summer.

 

Indie Documentaries on Food & Drink surge in 2015

2015 has been a banner year for indie documentaries about food and drink, chefs and mixologists.

Case in point, Caffeinated, which recently premiered.

Also hitting the screens and circuit, Kickstarter funded,  The Birth of Sake, by Erik Shira. ‘The Birth of Saké’ is a documentary film that explores how sake is handcrafted at a family-owned Japanese brewery named Tedorigawa.

Description: In a world where most mass produced goods are heavily automated, a small group of artisans must brave unusual working conditions to preserve a 2000-year-old tradition that we have come to know as saké. THE BIRTH OF SAKÉ is a cinematic documentary that reveals the story of passionate saké-makers and what it takes to make world-class saké at Yoshida Brewery, a 144-year-old family-owned small brewery in northern Japan. The workers at Yoshida Brewery are an eclectic cast of characters, ranging from 20 to 70 years old. As a vital part of this cast that must live and work for a six-month period through the brutal winter, charismatic veteran brewmaster Yamamoto (65) and the brewery’s sixth-generation heir, Yasuyuki Yoshida (27), are keepers of this tradition, and are the main characters who bring the narrative forward. As craftsmen who must dedicate their whole lives to the making of this world-class saké, their private sacrifices are often sizable and unseen.

From what the TASTE AWARDS can see, this is more than a short-term trend, this is the tip of a very large list of food & drink-based films. More on this topic soon.