Latest news with #DomPérignon
Axios
2 days ago
- Business
- Axios
We tried this over-the-top Iowa State Fair $100 lobster roll
🦞 Jason here: Yes, I forked over $100 for a lobster roll, and fellow fairgoers, it's worth every shiny penny! Why it matters: The High Roller Roll is one of 68 new fair foods this year, highlighting what makes the Iowa State Fair special. It's over-the-top fun food that tells a story and offers a chance to indulge in something you won't find at your local Hy-Vee. State of play: The sandwich at JR's SouthPork Ranch includes fresh Maine lobster tossed in clarified butter, topped with three dollops of crème fraîche and a bit of caviar, and finished with 24-karat edible gold. That's all nestled in a split-top bun seared in decadent gold-dusted duck fat. Zoom in: The combo version, which includes two rolls and a bottle of Dom Pérignon, costs $600. It's the priciest food menu item in Iowa State Fair history. The intrigue: The High Roller Roll was inspired by a caviar sandwich found in New York, JR's CEO Brooks Reynolds tells Axios. Stunning stat: Lobster roll sales rose from 3,100 in 2021 — the first year their restaurant operated during the fair — to 11,700 last year. Reality check: The combo might be a tougher sell. As of 12:30pm Thursday, the opening day of the fair, none had been sold. Yes, but: I was the seventh to buy the Roller. Jason's thought bubble: I'm not a huge seafood lover, but this buttery, rich sandwich sold me. If you try the combo, take a pic and send it to us! 🧈 Butter ranking: One stick = meh. Five = don't miss it.
Vancouver Sun
31-07-2025
- Business
- Vancouver Sun
Vancouver restaurants show that sake's time has officially arrived
The late, great French chef Joël Robuchon ran seven restaurants with three Michelin stars and had 38 celestial stars at one-time. The icon was a sake devotee, demanding it be in all his restaurants. 'I was completely restricting my kitchens without sakes,' he said. Another French giant, Richard Geoffroy, was chef de cave at Dom Pérignon for 28 years, reviving the brand to its iconic status during his tenure. But in 2 019, he made a dramatic pivot and opened IWA 5, a premium sake brewery in Japan. With such vaunted non-Japanese palates besotted with sake, you'd think a stampede of the curious would have followed. Stay on top of the latest real estate news and home design trends. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Westcoast Homes will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Well, no stampede, but there's definitely trotting. Non-Japanese Vancouver restaurants are having 'aha' moments followed by sake showing up on their drinks lists. Why now? First, there are sake teachers and agents spreading knowledge. WSET, the international certifier for wine and spirit training, has responded to the deepening interest and now off ers sake certification and validation. As well, there's a whole new wave of sake makers in Japan, innovating and experimenting with different styles and flavours, including sparkling sake and richer, bolder ones. And, as in North America, alcohol consumption is dropping in Japan, so there's more product to export. Recently, Geoffroy, the former Dom Pérignon champagne maker, was at Tetsu Sushi Bar for a sake-paired dinner (regularly h appening these days). At the dinner, Ge offroy said his dramatic pivot to sake was the creative latitude. 'It was like getting the keys to Home Depot and not just working with a table saw and router,' he said. 'And sake is umami in a glass with 20 times more than in wine. It loves food. It amplifies flavour. Sake makes food shine. Try it with pizza. They're umami bombs.' Tetsu chef-owner Satoshi Makise invited Geoffroy be cause IWA 5 is his favourite sake. 'I feel his style is similar to mine. It's still traditional but innovative. I love that. He creates different styles of sake using white wi ne making t echnology and ages it for different flavours. He's created a sake with an aftertaste (lingering finish), not just an initial flavo ur, an d it can pair with any cuisine.' Makise created a menu to sync with IWA 5's terroir, the coastal Toyama prefecture known for exceptional seafood. Geoff roy blends three rices and five yeast strains for his sakes, and two of the yeasts are traditionally used in winemaking. The most startling sake dinner, however, was at The Victor, a steak house, a daring move as I'll bet 99 per cent of diners feel steaks are wedded to bold red wines. Steak, you say? I want tannins! Patrick Ellis, one of about a dozen non-Japanese 'sake samurais' in the world, was there to prove us wrong. Ellis dislikes saying 'sake pairing' because, well, frankly, sake is kind of a floozy — it'll go with anything and isn't too fussy about what. In more professional speak, Ellis s ays, 'It do esn't have many restrictions. It doesn't have the acidit y of wine, but what it does have is 20 to 25 times more umami than wine, and about 80 per cent of our taste r eceptors are for umami. 'Umami is based on glutamate amino acids and it's what starts you salivating,' he says. 'It doesn't fight with food, as wine can.' Ellis adds that beef contains inosinate (formed when muscle tissue breaks down) and when glutamate and inosinate are consumed together, it's pure umami synergy. 'The perceived umami increases by up to 10 times than when consumed on their own,' Ellis says. At The Victor dinner, Dassai Junmai Dai Ginjo sake and Wagyu flatiron steak were very civil to one another, and might I say, they liked each other very much. Action! Kiss camera! The Victor is actually the perfect restaurant to test the sake-goes-with-anything claim because there's sushi and sashimi for a classic pairing and steaks to test out the synergy. Fanny Bay Oyster Bar is another non-Japanese restaurant that 'got' sake. Owner Malindi Taylor says it's a no-brainer. 'Oysters and sake are a natural pairing, complementing each other due to both being rich in natural umami flavours,' says Taylor. 'We've had sake on our menu for the last seven years. Guests love seeing it on our Happy Hour menu as it's not something you see everywhere.' At Michelin-recommended Yuwa Japanese restaurant, co-own er and sake sommelier Iori Kataoka feels sake is finally getting its due. 'We can't ignore sake anymore,' she says. Not like when she opened a first restaurant in the early 1990s, and all she could get was boxed sake. 'It was on top of a machine and only hot sake would come out,' she says. 'There were only two sake agents and now there are over 16, representing over 300 kinds of sakes.' And by the way, warm brews are no longer the sign o f loser sakes. Top brewmasters recommend heating to reveal, not mask, properties in certain sakes. Yuwa recently held a special event dinner with six Japanese sake makers and a barley shochu maker. 'Six different ideas for making sake, so it was super interesting,' Kataoka said. The dinner included a sparkling sake, which she says, has been hugely successful. 'It's compared to champagne. The bubbles don't last as long but has the taste a nd mouth feel .' A Wagyu beef dish was serv ed with Shichihonyari Muu Kimoto, a rich junmai sake known for going well with both seafood and meat. To make richer sakes, there's less polishing of the rice, keeping more of the husk. It takes skill as it can leav e unwanted flavours, Kataoka says. 'This sake maker is very good at it, keeping some grain and balancing acidity and depth a nd umami.' With every visit to Japan, she discovers sake makers using new techniques, from the rice milling and fermentation, to aging, and experimenting with different woods, and trying different waters and yeasts. Or, for that matter, staying 100 per cent true to terroir. 'France's wine sommeliers now do sake judging, applying wine analysis to judge colour, aroma, and taste, exactly like wine. Sake makers have always been detailed and specific but now there's technology to analyze everything and scientifically keep sakes consistent from year to year.' Restaurant owner and sake whisperer Miki Ellis, (Dachi, Niwa) another longtime evangelist, loves triggering 'aha' sake moments for guests. 'Our team is excited about sake and recommending them, and we try to focus on unusual styles, the weird and wonderful sides of what sake can be, to further add to 'aha'! We have a lot of somms (sommeliers) and industry people come in and say, 'Oh my god, I never thought of it this way.'' And she's squared off with wine people at private dinners pitting sake against wine for each course. 'Sake won! It surprised us,' she admits. 'I have yet to find food that doesn't go well with sake. It's more of a challenge with wine.'
Metropolis Japan
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Metropolis Japan
Bulgari Ginza Bar
Resting on the tenth floor of Bulgari's Ginza Tower, Bulgari Ginza Bar is a lavish sanctuary of affluence and excess. At its core, the bar is quite conventional: small bites, cocktails, and wines by the glass. This may seem surprising from Bulgari, a label renowned for its baroque design, but refining the classic bar experience in a chic space is a refreshing subversion of expectations for the brand. The cocktails here are smart twists. They marry Japanese spirits and Italian amaros, but the highlight of the menu is certainly the Champagnes by the glass. This features both Ruinart and Dom Pérignon. Champagnes can also be enjoyed at La Terrazza Dom Pérignon Lounge, the bar's open-air rooftop space, which hosts several old and rare vintages of its namesake Champagne house. In addition to its signature drinks, the Bulgari Ginza Bar offers a curated selection of Italian-inspired bar bites that pair elegantly with the beverage menu. Enjoy seasonal antipasti, artisanal cheeses and refined finger foods crafted with premium ingredients. The menu complements the drinks without overshadowing them, creating a balanced and indulgent tasting experience. The bar's interior design reflects Bulgari's signature elegance with contemporary restraint. Deep leather seating, golden accents, and panoramic windows overlooking the Ginza skyline create a moody yet luxurious ambiance. The setting transitions seamlessly from an upscale aperitivo spot in the early evening to a glamorous nightlife destination after dark, attracting both local connoisseurs and international guests seeking an elevated escape.
Daily Mail
14-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Inside the world's biggest luxury cruise ship suite: Two-storey all-inclusive cabin has wraparound balcony, private elevator and it's own GYM... but wait until you see the price
For most, travelling the world is a just a dream but for some lucky holiday-makers it can be a reality - but only if they've got the funds. Forget cramped cabins and bunk beds, Regent Seven Seas Cruises is offering jet-setters the chance to sail in the world's biggest luxury cruise ship suite. The Seven Seas Prestige claims to be the 'most luxurious cruise ship in the world' and is now offering the Skyview Regent Suite which includes a wraparound balcony, two bedrooms, a private elevator and a personal gym and sauna. Split across two levels, the luxury suite also has its own living room, a floating stone staircase, a walk-in closet, a dining area with its own bar, as well as access to two high-end restaurants. The lavish 817sqm-suit can sleep six guests and is the most spacious on board the ship. But guests will have to fork out an jaw-dropping £20k per night to stay in the floating palace. Guests are waited on by a personal butler and can enjoy daily spa and wellness treatments. To help settle in, Regent Seven Seas Cruise provides a welcome bottle of Dom Pérignon Champagne and Remy Martin Louis XIII Cognac, designer bath amenities, an aromatic suite fragrance collection, in-suite caviar service and daily canapés. The Seven Seas Prestige is the most luxurious cruise ship in the world and is now offering the Skyview Regent Suite which includes a wraparound balcony, two bedrooms, a private elevator and a personal gym and sauna At every port, those who have booked the suite can access a private car with a driver and a guide to show them the sites. Inside the bedrooms there are handcrafted Italian beds by renowned Italian bedmaker Flou which has uninterrupted views of the sea as well as unlimited laundry and dry cleaning, personalised stationery, and even a curated pillow and linen menu. As well as a hand-carved floating tub guests can make use of the sauna, and a walk-in shower and relax on plush sofas facing out over the balcony. For fashionistas, the room offers a large walk-in wardrobe, complete with a central island and glass-front cabinetry, while those who like to focus on their fitness can use the private gym complete with a stationary bike, yoga space, before relaxing in the dedicated massage room. When guests get peckish there is a range of seven specialty restaurants and 11 dining experience. While onboard jet-setters have unlimited access to Elon Musk's high-speed Starlink WiFi, and unlimited shore excursions for when they dock. The ship will sail 13 voyages across the Caribbean and Europe in 2026 and will dock at locations including the private island of Harvest Caye, Belize, London, Lisbon, Portugal and Bordeaux, France as well as sailing up and down the Panama Canal. The ship's maiden voyage in December will see the Seven Seas Prestige depart Barcelona for a 14-night transatlantic festive trip. As well as a hand-carved floating tub guests can make use of the sauna, and a walk-in shower and relax on plush sofas facing out over the balcony For fashionistas, the suite offers a large walk-in wardrobe, while those who like to focus on their fitness can use the private gym complete with a yoga space and massage room. Calling at Miami, Málaga, Spain, the Portuguese island of Madeira and Tortola in the British Virgin Islands the trips also features up to 38 included shore excursions. The luxury liner is the first new ship to join Regent's Explorer-Class vessels in ten years and boasts a capacity of 822 guests with 630 dedicated crew members. Jason Montague, chief luxury officer for Regent Seven Seas Cruises, said: 'At Regent, we are committed to setting new standards in ultra-luxury travel, and the Skyview Regent Suite is a true embodiment of that promise. 'At nearly 820 sqm, this breathtaking two-level suite delivers the most exclusive and elevated experience at sea, complete with every imaginable luxury included in the voyage fare. 'As Seven Seas Prestige™ sets sail on her inaugural season in December 2026, visiting the Caribbean and Europe's most iconic destinations, the ship's 12 suite categories, including the Skyview Regent Suite, will offer our discerning guests a once-in-a-lifetime way to experience the world — with all the comfort, elegance, and Heartfelt Hospitality that defines Regent.'
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Harvey Weinstein Doubles Down On Innocence Anthem Ahead Of Retrial Verdict
Harvey Weinstein is standing on business concerning his innocence. The film producer insists he might have been an extremely sexually expressive person, but never did he forcefully have his way with someone of the opposite sex, as his accusers have alleged. Harvey Weinstein was convicted of first-degree criminal sexual act and third-degree rape in his 2020 trial, receiving a 23-year sentence. Weinstein recently spoke out during the jury's deliberations in his rape retrial, expressing "regrets" about his immoral behavior while maintaining his claim of innocence. In a phone interview conducted at Manhattan's Bellevue Hospital, where he is receiving medical treatment, Weinstein reiterated familiar lines he has used in the past. This interview took place on Thursday with "Good Day New York" host Rosanna Scotto, highlighting his ongoing legal situation while he continues to address various health issues while in custody. The disgraced Hollywood film mogul expressed his regrets about the impact of his actions on his family and friends. He acknowledged the emotional pain he caused his wife and others close to him, describing his behavior as immoral and foolish. Yet, he maintained that he never engaged in anything illegal or criminal. As the jury in his Manhattan retrial for rape and a criminal sexual act began their deliberations after six weeks of testimony, TMZ shared that he admitted to feeling "nervous" about the upcoming verdict. As noted by PEOPLE, Combs and Weinstein have now both been accused of sexual assault by model Crystal McKinney. McKinney, in an amended complaint filed against Weinstein on May 30, alleged that Weinstein raped her and a friend in 2003. McKinney had previously filed a lawsuit in 2024, accusing Combs of drugging and sexually assaulting her. In McKinney's new complaint, she allegedly received a call from an unnamed executive at a modeling agency who arranged a business meeting with Weinstein at a popular lounge in the West Village. McKinney explained that she took a fellow model and roommate with her, hoping that Weinstein might also consider her for an acting role. After waiting at the lounge, they were eventually directed to Weinstein's table. It was there that McKinney noted Weinstein expressed a desire to get to know them better, suggesting they move their meeting to his place, as he deemed the lounge "too loud and crowded" for a discussion about potential acting opportunities. Upon returning to their hotel room, McKinney alleges in her complaint that the film producer excessively provided alcohol, serving multiple bottles of Boulevardier and Dom Pérignon, along with vodka cocktails. She claims that during this incident, Weinstein inappropriately touched her by grabbing her breasts and tearing at her tank top, causing drinks to spill onto her shirt and prompting a quick trip to the bathroom. In her complaint, she stated that her friend had accompanied her when Weinstein entered the bathroom uninvited. He allegedly demanded that the two women strip and join him in the bathtub, where he then exposed himself. McKinney and her friend felt coerced and complied with his demands, fearing retaliation if they resisted his advances. The model further recounted an incident involving Weinstein, where she alleged that he coerced her and her friend into engaging in sexual acts in a bathtub before forcibly dragging them to the bed. She accused him of raping both women and leaving the hotel room abruptly afterward. McKinney described herself as feeling disgusted and frightened at Weinstein's actions and emphasized that she had been heavily intoxicated at the time of the incident. Afterward, she claimed that when she reported the assault to Weinstein's assistant over the phone, instead of addressing her concerns, the assistant instructed her to leave the hotel room immediately. Following this traumatic experience, McKinney reported suffering from a range of mental health issues, including depression, anxiety, anger, self-blame, suicidal thoughts, body image problems, and a sense of demoralization. Since he resumed serving time at the correctional facility, the producer has been exposed to a plethora of illnesses. As noted by The Blast in April, his legal team said that he was battling cancer and diabetes alongside severe coronary artery disease that caused chest pain from reduced blood flow to the heart. He also reportedly struggled with obstructive sleep apnea, thyroid problems, obesity, chronic pain in his lower back and legs, anemia, and hypertension, among other ailments. Some of these illnesses did not happen overnight or on their own; according to his attorney, his living conditions at Rikers Prison did damage to his health. Weinstein reportedly had to survive under freezing temperatures and was made to wear dirty clothes. All this worsened his already failing health, making him susceptible to COVID-19 and double pneumonia. The producer also had to undergo critical surgery to address a fluid buildup in his heart and lungs. His lawyer, Imran Ansari, criticized New York City officials for contributing to his client's suffering. Ansari revealed that he had made multiple attempts to have Weinstein transferred from Rikers Island to Bellevue Hospital, but city officials consistently ignored those requests. He emphasized that this transfer was vital for Weinstein's health, asserting that it could potentially save his life and prevent premature death. The convicted sex offender's attorney also demanded a monetary settlement for their troubles. As noted by The Blast, Weinstein and his attorney requested a $5 million settlement from Bellevue Hospital, which has treated Weinstein multiple times in 2024, including a stay in the ICU. Despite their previous care, Weinstein criticized the hospital for releasing him back to prison before he had fully recovered. His compensation claim extends beyond the hospital; he also demanded remuneration from the City of New York and its agencies. Weinstein alleged that he had suffered both physically and psychologically due to "horrific" treatment and adverse health conditions while incarcerated. His lawyers argued that the prison had severely mismanaged his health and failed to provide optimum medical care. What verdict awaits Harvey Weinstein in his retrial?
