Food File

By PEGGY ANDERS
Published May 30, 2007

Special events

Taste of Pinellas: 5-10 p.m. Fri., noon-10 p.m. Sat., noon-7 p.m. Sun., Vinoy Park, 501 Fifth Ave. NE, St. Petersburg. Feast on fare from 40 restaurants, plus grilling demonstrations, beer garden, music, kids' activities; free admission, charge for food, benefits All Children's Hospital. Go to tasteofpinellas.com.

Pepperfest: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat.-Sun., Sand Key Park, 1060 Gulf Blvd., Clearwater. Sample spicy Thai, Mexican, Cuban, Japanese cuisine using hot peppers; salsa competition; hot pepper products and plants for sale, cooking demonstrations, mini-seminars on growing peppers, plants for kids, other foods for milder tastes available for purchase at Pepperfest 2007; free admission. Call (727) 588-4852 or pinellascounty.org/events.

Savor Sarasota: Find a new favorite from more than 40 Sarasota restaurants that offer $15 lunch and $25 dinner menus Fri. through June 10 in Savor Sarasota Restaurant Week; go to savorsarasota.com for participating restaurants, sample menus.

Tampa Bay Culinary Club: 12:30 p.m. June 16, Wild Fish Restaurant, 28910 U.S. 19 N, Clearwater 33761. Wild Fish offers Latin and Caribbean flavors; Tampa Bay Culinary Club members meet for culinary demonstration of signature dishes; $10. Register by June 12, advance payment for new attendees. Call (727) 789-2605.

Wine tastings/classes

Gravitas Wines: 6:30-8:30 p.m. today, Tastings, a Wine Experience, 149 First Ave. N, St. Petersburg. $10. Call (727) 894-2255.

Discover Wine Country: 5:30-7:30 p.m. today, ABC Fine Wine & Spirits-Tampa Wine Tasting & Cigar Smoker, 3110 W Gandy Blvd., Tampa. Food- and wine-pairing stations, also cigar and whiskey samplings; $10. Call (813) 839-7167.

Gelato & Pink Champagne: 7-9:30 p.m. Thur., La Casa Dolce Cafe, 406 S Howard Ave., Tampa. Try tiramisu, creme brulee, gelatos, chocolate-covered strawberry sorbet, paired with sauvignon blanc, pink Champagne, cabernet; $10. Call (813) 259-0002.

Benefit Tasting: 6-8 p.m. Thur., 3613 S Beach Drive, Tampa. Fine Wine & Spirits Warehouse wines, plus appetizers; $25 per person or $40 per couple suggested donation, benefits Alzheimer's Association. Call (813) 837-8941.

Wine Country Sampling: 5-7 p.m. Thur., ABC Fine Wine & Spirits, 6398 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St. N, St. Petersburg. Assorted wines and hors d'oeuvres in casual tasting; $5. Call (727) 527-1579.

Summer Whites, Big Reds: 5-8 p.m. Fri., 1-4 p.m. Sat., A & L Fine Wines, Palm Harbor Plaza, 35249 U.S. 19 N, Palm Harbor. Refreshing, lighter white wines for summer, plus robust red wines to contrast; free. Call (727) 781-4760.

Best of the West: 4-7 p.m. Fri., VINO 100, 1038 Bloomingdale Ave., Valrico. Varieties from Perry Creek in California's Sierra foothills region, Silver Lake wines from Washington; free. Call (813) 654-8466.

Travels With Charlie: Charlie's Wine Bar, 533 S Howard Ave., Tampa presents:

- Australian and New Zealand sampling of shiraz and blends, refreshing white wines, 7:30 p.m. Fri. $15 advance, $20 at door.

- Explore California's Wine Country in Napa/Sonoma Wine, Dine & Learn wine lesson with four-course dinner, 7:30-9 p.m. Sat.; $35, registration required.

Call (813) 250-1967 or charlieswine.com.

Lincoln Heights Pairing: 6-8 p.m. June 6, Lincoln Heights Bistro, 603 Elm St., Safety Harbor. Sauvignon blanc, viognier, pinot noir pair with grilled corn cakes, eggplant rollatini, chicken Waldorf; $12. Call (727) 726-4210 for reservations.

Cooking classes

Beautiful Broccoli: 11 a.m. Sat., Nature's Food Patch, 1225 Cleveland St., Clearwater. Bombay broccoli with noodles among vegetarian recipes using broccoli; free. Call (727) 443-6703.

Quick & Healthy, Menu for Two: Rolling Pin, 2080 Badlands Drive, Brandon presents:

- Quick & Healthy 30 Minute Meals hands-on class includes pear ginger crumble, noon-2:30 p.m. Sun.; $40.

- Cooking for One or Two makes easy and elegant two-serving meals from beef to chicken, 6:30-9 p.m. June 8; $45.

Call (813) 653-2418, then press 3, to register.

Italian Immersion: Four-week classes on Italian language, cuisine and culture begin 6:30- 8:30 p.m. Mon. at Tastings, a Wine Experience, 149 First Ave. N, St. Petersburg, $200, or 6-8 p.m. June 7 at Castellano & Pizzo Italian Gourmet Foods, 4200 S Henderson Blvd., Tampa; $195. Classes include materials and dinner. Registration required, call toll-free 1-888-386-5764.

Silver Palate Chef: 6:30 p.m. (cookbook signing 5-6 p.m.) Tue., Apron's Cooking School at Publix Supermarket at Shoppes of Citrus Park, 7835 Gunn Highway, Tampa. Sheila Lukins, food editor of Parade magazine and author of The Silver Palate Cookbook, demonstrates favorite recipes; $40. Call (813) 926-4465 or publix.com/aprons/schools.

Compiled by Peggy Anders of the Times. Send news of coming events at least two weeks in advance to Food File, St. Petersburg Times, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731.

[Last modified May 29, 2007, 17:00:37]