I just ate 42 foods.
Actually, I ate more than that because I just uploaded 42 pictures, and many of them contained more than one food. I’m also sort of speechless because every single food was out-of-this-world phenomenal.
All of this deliciousness came my way tonight at the David Burke Townhouse, courtesy of a Foodbuzz event to celebrate one million posts.
Before I arrived at the restaurant, I had taken “townhouse” literally to mean that the party would be taking place in someone’s swanky uptown apartment. In fact, the party took place at this swanky uptown restaurant. With an egg theme (much like my life lately):
I ran into Ashley immediately upon arriving, and we contented ourselves at the bar with wasabi cracker sticks and thyme lychee martinis:
Those lychee martinis were teeny, so I had four of them. (Whoops.) I just get so excited about drinks that have real fruit! Plus, my first three did not contain any actual lychees. I had to go back for the fourth when I started to see the whole lychees floating around in other people’s drinks.
As soon as we got the go ahead, Emily and I beelined to the back of the restaurant where food was waiting. Remember, I’m still speechless, so I will let the photos do the talking.
Shellfish (including lobster, crab, mussels, oysters, and jumbo shrimp):
My plate:
I had more than you see in that picture, of course. I couldn’t let the chance for fresh lobster and fresh crab to pass me by!
There were tons of sauces for the seafood, along the lines of wasabi crème fraîche, lavender crème fraîche, pineapple-truffle sauce, mango something, and more. I tried all the sauces on the side because I wanted to experience the flavors but I did not want them to mess with the perfection of straight lobster and crab 😛
Sushi:
Scallops in their shells with a ginger-scallion sauce:
My plate with two sushi rolls, a scallop, and a pile of picked ginger:
The carving station had salmon with horseradish sauce, turkey with gravy (I’m making that up because I can’t remember what sauce it really was), and short (?) ribs with red wine sauce. (I’m not a rib expert. Feel free to correct me if I have mis-identified.)
My plate with a little of everything:
I actually didn’t finish that plate. It was too meaty for me, and I like my salmon more done.
There were dumplings like this. Some had lobster, some had chicken, some had beef, and several had foie gras in addition to the other meats. I had at least one of each.
Lobster scramble with caviar:
Enjoying eating straight out of the mini frying pan:
Mini raw-ish crackers with beef tartare, smoked salmon-cream cheese, and more foie gras:
Pineapple shrimp skewers (yes, actually IN the pineapple!):
Chicken satay with peanut sauce:
Pretzel-crusted crabcake with poppyseed honey and kumquat-jalapeno jam (YES, it was THAT amazing):
Lobster flan (served in an EGGSHELL):
Hamachi with watermelon:
And then the desserts began to come around. I kept myself to “one of each,” but one of each became far more than I had anticipated as more and more desserts rolled out of the kitchen!
A mini red velvet cake bite with cream cheese frosting:
Pecan-cinnamon buns arranged on a mini-stove. There was actually a fire flickering inside the stove, but you can’t tell from this picture:
Apple fritters on a bed of brown sugar:
Mine:
Cheesecake lollipop tree!!!!!!
One of each (clearly the theme of the night): triple chocolate nut, strawberry pistachio, and chocolate with chocolate crunchies:
Dark chocolate cherry cupcake (literally the size of my thumb — I had two) and butterscotch pannacotta:
Chocolate-nutella milkshake!
At around this time, I started to get overwhelmed by too many desserts and not enough hands. I found a narrow ledge and got a collection going:
(On the right is a chocolate rice crispy-cereal treat.)
A coconut cream puff and a warm custard-filled doughnut ball (the doughnut ball actually had a fancy Italian-ish name that I cannot remember):
Malted milk and a grapefruit bar with crème fraîche:
The malted milk had a very familiar flavor. Missy hit the nail on the head when she said it tasted like the milk leftover from a bowl of Fruit Loops. I only had a couple of sips because I can make that myself. I left the milk on the ledge and promptly knocked it over with my big bag about five seconds later. David Burke himself swooped in to clean up the mess.
The grapefruit bar, on the other hand, was insanely good (though Emily wasn’t a fan. I guess you really have to love grapefruit.) It had gold leaf on top:
And rather than a bowl of mints on the way out, the Townhouse had peanut brittle, of all things! The grab-in-action and my pieces:
So, this was a scrumptious event that I got to share with several fun ladies who love food almost as much as I do! I hijacked this photo from Missy’s recap (which you should check because she has many more facts about the event and the restaurant): Me, Emily from Super Caloric Chalk Dust, Melanie from MelonCauliflower, Ashley from Healthy Happier Bear, Missy from Missy Maintains, and Diana from Soap and Chocolate.
I’m so glad that Foodbuzz decided to celebrate one million posts and invite me. I just wish they could have invited the starving population of NYC as well since there was more food than anyone there actually needed. I always feel torn at events like this — awed and thrilled that I got to attend, yet overwhelmed and distressed at the excess! The thought of trying to comandeer all these leftovers was too much to handle at this particular stress-pinnacle of the semester, but I hope they went somewhere useful. And I hope thinking about it doesn’t keep me up tonight!
What makes you feel torn?
Tales of Expansion: Baby Butternut Edition 
Going to school in Amherst and missing all the sweet stuff in Brooklyn 🙂
I missed a lot of good food huh? I guess I can wait until foodbuzz’s NEXT millionth’s post 🙂
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Wow…I can’t decide what looks best. I think my favorite is the pecan buns in the oven!
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wow how are your pictures so gorgeous?
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I hear you on the torn thing… my first thought was, “must. become. food. blogger. IMMEDIATELY!” and my second was, “Isn’t there a recession on?” But the food did look freakishly delicious.
Oh, and happy birthday!! I wasn’t around the computer, but I’m glad you had a fabulous day, and your baking really does astound me!
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I am absolutely jealous on the other coast. I love David Burke and everything looks amazing! I can understand the concern about excess, but at the same time I am glad you enjoyed yourself!!!!
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could you do me a huuuge favor and block my face out of the group pic?
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What an event, what an event!! I would have DEFINITELY gone for those wasabi sticks….AND DESSERTS!! That little stove w/ the pecan-cinnamon buns are probably the cutest things I’ve ever seen!!
I think it’s great that you have compassion for people who aren’t fortunate enough to eat at some gourmet buffet, but I’m glad you enjoyed yourself…and you deserved a great night!
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WOW! What a dinner!!!!!!!!!
I’m glad you enjoyed it! And you have a great heart too! 🙂 I think us food bloggers should host an event one day with the proceeds going to an organization that feeds the hungry. Whether in North America or overseas!
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you lucky girl!!! I’m so jealous of you!!! I have to eat everything from the event!!!! Everything look so fancy and yummy~~~ really a delightful dinner~ 🙂
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What a beautiful meal!! I feel the same way at events like that because there’s always SO MUCH food!
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Holy monkeys. That event looks spectacular! I cannot believe all that food!! Mmm! I’d feel torn about all that luxury juxtaposed with the starving population outside those walls, too. I’m not sure when I feel torn on a regular basis. I suppose dairy makes me feel torn, but that seems so superficial compared to starvation.
By the way, the past couple days I had no fresh produce (ok, only a few items), and I totally thought, “what would Sarah do?” I have to thank you because it led me to create Cinnamon Maple Sweet Potato Toast, aka the best snack ever.
Have a happy humpday!
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Wow – what a fun event! I love the presentation of the food 🙂 I understand what you mean about the excess of food, and it’s frustrating that leftovers can’t be donated to a homeless shelter. I briefly worked as a waitress at a country club one summer during college, and there would be loads of untouched foods leftover from parties. They wouldn’t even let the staff take the pristine food home due to food industry laws. Bleh.
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Oh wow sarah I am so jealous I should have left work early to go there, it looks like so much fun. I would have been all over those cheesecake lollipops.
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I just realised I missed your birthday! I’ve been scrolling through some old posts (by the way, those cakes you made.. the strawberry icing.. omigod… so incredibly saliva-inducing) So happy belated birthday! 27 isn’t that old… although I’ll be 24 later this month and am freakin’ out a little so can absolutely understand the reservations..
Amazing food today – sensory overload! The dark chocolate cherry cupcake looks exquisite.. and I love little desserts. I want to try some malted milk now.. sounds really good!
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what an awesome event!
I feel the same way about these things. It’s sad that our country has the largest number of overweight people than any other nation, yet we still have people that go hungry everyday. It just seems so unbalanced!
glad you had a good time 🙂 I love the little oven!
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Holy food Batman! It all looked good- even the seafood- and I am not a huge seafood fan. The pecan cinnamon buns and the lychee martinis looked the best to me.
I completely get where you are coming from when it comes to excess! I feel the EXACT same way. I always get that way whenever I am at work sponsored events or conferences where there are excessive amounts of food EVERYWHERE! It’s too much to bear at the thought of where all the leftovers go. I grew up in a household where nothing went to waste. My dad always said we could have whatever we wanted foodwise but it would upset him if anything went to waste so that is pretty much instilled in me. I have two puppy dogs so literally NOTHING goes to waste in my house 🙂
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Omg what a cool event!!
I’m amazed at the desserts. Love the little oven with the cinnamon buns, so cute!
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What a FANTASTIC spread of food! I’m am so jealous! The seafood and desserts were the best!
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42?! I am glad I didn’t count. You get snaps for thoroughness because you have pictures of some foods that I didn’t even ever lay eyes on! Oh man, I will dream of the nutella milkshake long long time…
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um, i am at my desk, dying. this food looks amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! you lucky girl 🙂
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Great seeing you last night!
Torn = seeing someone I don’t know pour a half-gallon of milk into the drain (when we were leaving the beach house this weekend) and feeling like I didn’t know her well enough to say “NOOOOO!!!”
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Hi Sarah,
It was great meeting you last night. The food was sooo gooooood! You were an awesome taster! I can’t believe you posted all this in such detail so fast!
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You take such great pics, and omg this post is making my mouth water. All that food looks insanely good, especially the desserts!
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I feel the same way often at events where there is tons and tons of food thrown out, when so many people truly need it, right in the neighborhood.
The event looks great and the desserts–to die!
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Omg I didnt know about the lobster dumpling and I didnt know it was lobster FLAN in that egg and a CHOCOLTE NUTELLA MILKSHAKE??!! Wow
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how much fun!!!! I was really excited to see the name of your blog in the foodbuzz email this morning!!
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