Boca Food Finds: Can it be True? This Wino is actually getting in to locally brewed Craft Beers!

Hello Foodie Friends,

I sure had my share of craft beer dinners in one week. After attending my first Funky Buddha craft beer pairing dinner at the Boca Resort a couple months back, I enjoyed the experience so much that I decided to organize one at True, one of the restaurants I represent in Downtown Boca. Tuesday, June 24th came and we had an awesome event featuring Funky Buddha, Due South and Cigar City beers with the most delicious pairings by True's Chef/Owner Frank Hawkins.

Brian Torres, from Brown Distributing led the group through an informative talk on each beer, while Frank came out to talk about each food pairing. We got the night off to a start with a Funky Buddha Floridan which paired perfectly with True's Stuffed Shrimp (large shrimp stuffed with crab and topped with this amazing imperial sauce).

Next came the Due South Caramel Cream Ale paired with Devils on Horseback (bacon wrapped dates filled with homemade herbed cream cheese and served with a ginger soy dipping sauce).

Tom's Sliders (Slow roasted beef brisket with cheddar cheese, red onions, cherry peppers & mayo) paired great with Cigar City's Maduro Brown Ale.

Another Cigar City brew, the White Oak Jai Alai IPA was presented with a Chicken Curry (a mild Indian style curry served with Basmati rice and naan).

And for dessert, we had a delightful pairing of Cigar City's Cubano Espresso Brown Ale with an award winning dessert Frank's wife makes called Mud Bars served ala mode.

Curry Chicken, Basmati Rice & Naan

Tom's Sliders

Shrimp stuffed with crab & topped with True's famous Imperial Sauce

Mud Bars ala mode, an award-winning dessert!

True: 147 SE 1st Ave. (561) 417-5100 www.TrueBocaRaton.com

So that was Tuesday, then just two days later, on Thursday, I get a call from my good friend and fellow food blogger, Shaina Wizov of Take a Bite Out of Boca, who happened to have also attended a craft beer pairing dinner at Rebel House on the same night as my True event, asking me if I happened to be free last minute to attend a Cigar City beer pairing dinner at the Boca Resort that evening. As the Beer Gods would have it, I happened to be free and graciously accepted the invite.

Phil, from Cigar City was our facilitator and Chef Ray was the Executive Chef of 501 East at the Boca Resort & Spa. Our line up was as follows:

Tangerine Berliner paired with a Wahoo Crudo, Citrus Supreme, Chive Blossoms and Crispy Hearts of Palm.

Margarita Gose paired with a Sea Salt Roasted Hogfish, Fire Roasted Tomato, Tequila Lime Butter and Chili Garlic.

Barley Wine paired with Veal Ribs, Beer Battered Onion Rings and a Drunken Local Melon Salad.

A Double IPA was paired with New Zealand Lamb-Chetta, (the chef's rendition of a porchetta), Carolina Stone Ground Grits and Florida Lychee.

To complete the meal, we ended with a Cubano Espresso paired with a Smoked Vanilla Souffle, Espresso Ganache (which came in little ramekins that we were instructed to pour over the top at our leisure) and Macerated Local Cherries.