Junk Food Nation, I’m back from New York City and the 2014 Summer Fancy Food Show!  It was a blast and my arteries are officially clogged.  A big shout out to Jen, Rob, and Nicole – the JFG crew for two days. Without the Junk Food Gal, these three good friends filled the void as we sampled delicacies and mocked vendors for two days straight.  Good times were had by all.

I’m still recovering, and I plan on doing a couple of reviews of the show over the next two days. Meanwhile, we’ve reached the end of our Turkey Hill giveaways.  This month was AMAZING, as so many of you entered, tweeted, commented, liked, etc. over so many social platforms – THANK YOU. I know it was for personal gain, but I hoped some of you stuck around to read the daily review of junk food.  Let’s wrap this puppy up with the announcement of some winners, shall we?

YOUR FOUR FREE COUPON WINNERS FROM JUNE 28:

Thanks to all who entered my Twitter Contest last Friday! Today’s random winners are:

@btyson91, @ReggieCLim, @circejuno, @DeannaR413

Congrats, you guys! Email me your contact info to Junkfoodguy@junkfoodguy.com and I’ll get the free coupon in the mail to you!

(Meanwhile, calling CAROLE PRIMAVERA! WHERE THE HECK ARE YOU? EMAIL ME.)

AND THE MONTH WINNER OF THREE FREE 1.5 QTS OF TURKEY HILL ICE CREAM:

Drumroll please…. JAMIE HAMILTON (Jamieham@_________)  CONGRATS!  Three coupons coming your way…email me!

RECOVERING FROM THE 2014 SUMMER FANCY FOOD SHOW:

So…yeah.  That happened.  If you were following me on Twitter or on Instagram or on Facebook, then you saw a lot of what I saw (and ate) from the show.  Over the next two days, I’ll highlight some of my favorites and write about some stuff that happened.  When I returned home to DC yesterday, I was definitely wrecked. It was sweltering, I felt bloated, and my leg muscles were ablaze.  The Junk Food Gal and I quickly ditched our plans to watch the US/Belgium game at our local drinking hole. I would’ve passed out if I had been stuck in the sauna-bar for two hours before the game even occurred.

I didn’t grab too much from the show this year (as opposed to past years) because (1) I made some good relationships and plan to have some companies ship me stuff directly, and (2) without the Junk Food Gal, I was down a bag to haul the stuff back to DC.  I still ended up with a decent haul:

2014 Summer Fancy Food Show: The Loot

Not too shabby. As soon as I got home, the Junk Food Gal declared all things chocolate to be hers.  I was too weak to argue.

Maybe next year I’ll run a contest to have a reader of this blog come along with me….hmmm, what do you think?  Let me know in the comments below.

A WORD ABOUT DI FARA’S:

Last year, I made a point to eat pizza every single night I was in NYC, because the pizza selection in DC is a bit limited (I have a couple of favorites, but not many).  This year, I made it a point to hit Di Fara Pizza. The reason was simple – after looking at a TON of “Best Pizza in NYC” and “Best Pizza in the Country” lists, this joint was top five on many, if not all, lists.  So I had to try it.

A small hole in the wall, this cash-only place is neither nice or cheap.  But their pizza was OH SO GOOD:

Di Fara’s Half Pep, Half Cheese

Di Fara Pizza – another angle

Di Fara Pizza: Fresh basil, lots of olive oil, amazing pepp.

I’m not here to review Di Fara’s pizza, or to have a battle over whether it IS the “best” pizza in NYC or whatever – I’ve already seen PLENTY of back and forth on Twitter regarding that topic.  Just wanted to show you some pictures of one of the best pie’s *I’VE* had in recent memory.  Fresh handmade oddly shaped crust, cheese, pepperoni, and fresh basil all attached to a tasty sauce.  Pretty damn perfect, even if the pie did cost $30.

I was with two New Haven Pizza enthusiasts, and they were impressed as well. This is now a “whenever in NYC, need to go here” spot. Lock it in.  Avenue J in Brooklyn.

So that’s it for today. Come back tomorrow for some Summer Fancy Food Show 2014 insight!

Thoughts? Please comment below or hit me up on Twitter @junkfoodguy or LIKE my Facebook Page and message me there. I also have Google+!! Let’s hang out.

Sincerely,

Junk Food Guy