A cadre of Foxwoods chefs were tapped to prepare a tasting menu for the James Beard Foundation in NYC on July 25th and, lucky me, I was invited for a sneak peak! Twenty food bloggers spent an extravagant evening at the Paragon, wined and dined with a locally sourced and impeccably prepared tasting menu.

We started with a fleet of intricate hors d’oeuvres: lamb tartare, an ethereal Beltane Farm croquette, raw Stonington Flounder, and swiftly moved on to the sort of elaborate dishes that are prepared using tweezers and expellers: a Bomster Scallop Crudo, and, possibly my favorite dish of the evening, Confit Rillettes with mache and Arethusa Farm Camembert on a crispy waffle fry. What’s better than duck on a potato chip? Yum! I’m not much of a meat eater, but made room for the Wagyu Ribeye. I was a Wagyu virgin, but given the chance I’d have it again (and I will; it’s on the menu at the Paragon).

Desserts were next; the most stunning and delicious was a Goat Cheese FetaBrulee with an Olive Oil “sponge”. Each course was inventive and carefully considered, and I had no idea this level of gustatory delight was available at Foxwoods. Now you know, too! Click here for the menu at Paragon. Find out more about James Beard Foundation dinners here: www.jamesbeard.org www.foxwoods.com/paragon

p.s. while I was snapping away with my iPhone, my new blogger friends at Front Row Eats in Providence took fabulous photos of each course with a fancy camera. See them here.