Perfect Wine & Food Pairings in the ❤ of Town Center
A couple months ago I was flipping through Facebook events and saw a wine pairing event at Simply Fresh Cafe & Market, in the heart of Virginia Beach Town Center. The event was five wines from Spain paired with five tappas for $20.
You never know what you are going to get the first time you visit a place. I was a bit skeptical wondering if I would get a thimble of wine paired with half a cookie, but I was pleasantly surprised. The pours were ample and so was the food. I tried taking photos of all the courses but got carried away with good food, wine, and my company so not all the pairings are pictured below. All the pairings were spot on, the wine really did complement the food and they gave a detailed description of all the wines which you could purchase after the event.
The wines were all reasonably priced starting around $10 a bottle. There was no pressure to buy. In fact there was one bottle I really wanted but they were out of it, and they offered to order it for me. My favorite wine with this dinner was the Vittore, White Vermouth, a fortified wine with a bright golden color, balanced acidity and sweetness.
Five Course Wine & Food Pairing Menu
First Pairing Spanish Citrus Salad.
Second Pairing Tortilla de Patata.
Fifth Pairing Dessert Spanish Berry Tart.
Mike & Carrie enjoying a 5 course wine & food pairing at Simply Fresh in Town Center in VA Beach.
After enjoying the first event so much I booked the March mystery wine event as fast as I could! It was just as fun as the previous one. Great theme of "Oh, the grapes you don't know!" The wines were all good but I especially liked the Riebeek Cellars Pinotage/S. Africa. I'm partial to complex fruit forward light reds.
These events are an excellent opportunity to try several glasses of unique wines without buying a whole bottle. I really enjoy experiencing the marriage of the food to wine and how the two interact. The spectrum of wine flavors, aromas, sweetness and complexities are so vast, it's nice to have them paired for you and pick out how one compliments the other.
My takeaways of Simply Fresh Events:
- Enjoyable, relaxed atmosphere & great location.
- Great prices - you can't beat 5 glasses of wine paired with 5 courses for $20.
- You have to make reservations - it fills up fast!
- Love the themes & variety of wines.
- The Sommelier really knows wines & what food to pair with them.
- Fresh, great tasting food!
Their next wine pairing event is "April in Paris" on Wednesday, April 18th at 6:00 pm. Hope to see you there!
Cheers - Carrie
Five Course Wine & Food Pairing Menu.
Great wines you have never heard of!
First Pairing Almond Bacon Cheese Crostini.
Second Pairing Pea and Mushroom Risotto.
Third Pairing Spicy Chicken Empanada.
Fourth Pairing Roast Beef & Blue Cheese Sliders (2) I ate one 🙂
Fifth Pairing Chocolate Brownie Crisps.
Enjoying the wine & food pairings.
Simply Fresh Cafe & Market
Mon-Thur 9am-7pm, Fri & Sat 9am-5pm and Sun closed
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