Dayton937

Things to do in Dayton | Restaurants, Theatre, Music and More

Archives for September 2012

Cinema Classic, Barfi! + TICKET CONTEST

By Leave a Comment

Hello Dayton! This week brings a special event that many people follow but we wanted to continue to spread the word. Every Monday at 1p.m. (except holidays) Rave Cinemas Dayton South 16 is proud to present our Rave Cinema Classic series. For just $3 audiences can be transported back in time to watch a feature from yesteryear up on the big screen. Each admission includes a 16 ounce drink and a 46 ounce popcorn. What a treat!

Showing on Monday, September 10th will be the feature Taras Bulba. Originally made in 1962, Taras Bulba is a “Romeo and Juliet” story that takes place in the late 16th century in Ukraine. Taras has finally slowed down and embraced farm life comfortably enough to send his son, Andrei, to a Polish school. In the time frame the Ukrainians are trying to free themselves and their land from the Polish. Once Andrei gets to the new school, he falls romantically in love with the daughter of a Polish man. From here, drama ensues, as the two struggle with their newfound love, family honor, and their national identities. The stars of the feature are Tony Curtis, Yul Brynner, and Sam Wanamaker.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foapI_Wqe40′]

 

BARFI!

We will also be featuring a special Bollywood film called Barfi! on September 14th (exact show times are not yet available). A love  story that takes place in the 1970’s, Barfi! finds three popular Indian film stars learning about love and that love does not always find itself within “normal” societal boundaries. Barfi, a boy that has both hearing and speech impairments falls in love with Shruti, who ignores her feelings for him instead to pursue a “normal” lifestyle. Many years go by and Shruti and Barfi’s lives intersect again, but this time Barfi is seeking his love Jhilmil, who has gone missing. From this point weaves a love triangle that teaches life lessons.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZxrao3zou4′]

AND DON’T FORGET…

On September 7 to September 13th, 2012 The Greene 14 will be showing IMAX Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark for a one week special engagement only. The original film has been completely digitally remastered with stunning visuals. Add in the one of a kind sound system IMAX provides and audiences are able to feel that they are actually part of the movie…that’s a
BIG boulder Indy!

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVafAz78A08&sns=em’]

CELL PHONE POLICY

Have you ever been sitting in a dark theater intently watching a movie when suddenly a slight glow catches your eye from a few rows in front of you? We understand that is distracting to the other patrons. At our theater we consistently monitor the theaters and are constantly on the lookout for cell phones in the auditoriums. Those who use their cell phones are promptly issued a warning. Next strike…you’re out! We enforce this policy  so everyone can enjoy their movie with the least amount of disruptions as possible.

For showtimes… http://ravecinemas.com/theater.aspx?id=47

ENTER TO WIN TWO MOVIE PASSES!

“Like” this post and fill out the form below then leave a FB comment telling us that YOU want to win a pair of movie passes from Rave Cinemas Dayton South and what your favorite movie of all time is. We will randomly draw a winner and notify same. Contest closes 09/05/12. Passes awarded will be valid for 30 days from close date at Rave Cinemas Dayton South only and must be used by then or will be forfeited. Valid for any showing, except special events. Please bring ID to verify your name and just ask for a manager when attending informing them you won the Dayton Most Metro contest.

CONTEST CLOSED

Congrats to this week’s winner: James McQuinn!

Explore a Block Party & Urban Nights Previews During September First Friday

By Leave a Comment

Downtown’s next free First Friday art hop will be held from 5 to 10 p.m. Friday, Sept. 7.

The United Way of the Greater Dayton Area will host the Live United Block Party in the Oregon District from 4 to 7 p.m., when 19 partner agencies of the organization will set up booths along Fifth Street, including Goodwill, a Special Wish Foundation, the Girl Scouts and Catholic Social Services. Guests who visit more than 10 of the booths will be entered into a raffle to win several prizes, including a diamond tennis bracelet and a pair of tickets to a Cincinnati Bengals football game. Select restaurants, including Blind Bob’s, Dublin Pub, Oregon Express, Coco’s Bistro and Trolley Stop, will donate a portion of proceeds during

Folk musicians Todd the Fox will provide roving entertainment during September First Friday.

the event to the United Way. Look for Heater, the Dayton Dragons’ mascot, wearing a Live United T-shirt during the block party from 5 to 6 p.m. The United Way of the Greater Dayton Area supports local health and human service programs provided by more than 70 partner agencies in Montgomery, Greene and Preble counties.

Sew Dayton, the newest Pop-Up Shop in the Activated Spaces initiative to fill vacant downtown storefronts, will host its soft opening during First Friday at its new home in the Color of Energy Gallery, 16 Brown St. The shop, owned by two Dayton seamstresses, will sell a variety of fabric and patterns, bags, and accessories, in addition to offering sewing classes. Sew Dayton be open until 9 p.m.

Blue Sky Project, CADC, Gallery 510 Fine Art, Grass Roots Enrichment and Wellness Center, K12 Gallery for Young People/TEJAS and the Yellow Cab Building will debut new works of art during First Friday. The Ghosts, Cemeteries and Murders Walk of Downtown Dayton will begin at 7 p.m. at Courthouse Square; contact tour guide Leon Bey at 274-4749 or email [email protected] for a reservation. The Loft Theatre will host the opening night of “Managing Maxine,” a new comedy, at 8 p.m. More than a dozen restaurants and bars will offer dinner and drink specials, and several retail stores will host sales and other special events.

More than 40 downtown businesses will participate in September First Friday; see a complete list of what downtown businesses have on tap for First Friday on the DDP website.

During First Friday, fire dancers from the Soul Fire Tribe and folk musicians Todd the Fox also will provide entertainment while roaming the streets of downtown.

First Friday is presented by the Downtown Dayton Partnership with support from the Oregon District Business Association, the Ohio Arts Council and WYSO-FM 91.3. The Downtown Dayton Partnership’s website has a complete list of downtown’s arts and cultural amenities, as well as a dining guide, parking map and much more.

Volunteers for Dayton! Opportunities: September 4-11

By Leave a Comment

Greetings MostMetro-land!

Welcome to our new weekly round-up of urban Dayton volunteer opportunities!

Mural by David Kenworthy at Garden Station

As someone who’s been involved in a lot of community improvement projects at both grassroots & government levels, I’ve sensed a need to better coordinate all the amazing energy that people have for our center city these days. I’ll be pulling these from our Facebook group and items that you e-mail me. So if you’re looking for ways to get involved in Dayton’s revival, check back here every week. Be sure to report back what you’ve accomplished!

Get Your Hands Dirty – Help Wanted!

    • Install a mosaic mural:  East End Community Services and K12 Gallery need your help at 504 Xenia Avenue in the Twin Towers neighborhood. Tues. & Wed., Sep. 4-5; drop in any time from 8:30am until 2pm. Bring work gloves if you have them and dress to get messy! For more info call Amanda at 259-1898 or e-mail her.
    • “First Friday Park” Planting & Volunteer Social:  Downtown volunteer Brian Ressler took it upon himself to get a grant to beautify the highly-visible triangle between St. Clair & Patterson at Fifth. Now he needs some extra hands to help plant flowers! Gather for drinks, pizza, and First Friday after. Friday, Sep. 7, 6pm; more info & RSVP here.
    • Downtown Dayton Revival Music Fest: Talk about slacktivism! All you need to do to show your support for downtown is buy a ticket and show up to hear great music. Saturday & Sunday, Sep. 8-9.
Downtown Mural Volunteers

Downtown Mural Project volunteers cleaning. Photo: Carli Dixon

  • Volunteer at Urban Nights: Downtown’s favorite street party needs your help! Visit the Downtown Dayton Partnership and sign up to be a trolley or walking guide, serve beer, or survey guests at this Friday, Sep. 14th event.
  • The Dayton Skatepark Project: Join other skateboarding enthusiasts in their quest to start a downtown skatepark by following their page.
  • Dayton Unleashed is a grassroots group improving a fenced area at Deeds Point for use as a dog park. Learn more at their page and stay tuned for volunteer clean-up dates.
  • Donate Dayton items for the RNNC basket: Each year neighborhood activists represent Dayton at the Regional Neighborhood Network Conference and contribute a Dayton-themed basket (including gift certificates, mugs, T-shirts, etc.) to be raffled off. Contact Sandy Melke to contribute.

Crowdfunding

We know that money is often tight these days, but remember that there is power in numbers – even the smallest donations can add up for grassroots projects!

Future Fifth Street Co-op Brewpub

  • Build a park in St. Anne’s Hill: This historic neighborhood just east of downtown hopes to raise $1500 as a match to their City of Dayton mini-grant. Learn more and contribute on Razoo.
  • Own a brewpub: Speaking of St. Anne’s, their cooperatively-owned Fifth Street Brewpub is still seeking inaugural members, so for $100 you could be an owner too!
  • Cityfolk Post-Festival Appeal: The weather was truly unkind this year, shutting down the downtown festival twice and resulting in a 60% loss compared to other years. To keep the festival, the concert season, and the Culture Builds Community educational program going, Cityfolk hopes to raise $100,000 by the end of the year. Please give at the Cityfolk website.
  • Give a Dam!: Over $3.8 million has already been raised for the River Run project, but now it’s your turn to give a dam.
  • Success! Congrats to Sew Dayton and the Downtown Mural Project for meeting their recent crowdfunding goals (although I’m sure they’ll continue to take your money).

 

You can also join our group to participate in discussions on Dayton activism–this week’s hot topics include food trucks, bike share programs, and the Priority Board system–send me volunteer opportunities, or just check back here next Tuesday!

 

 

Downtown Dayton Revival Music Festival Spotlight – Volume 3: Shake! Shake! Shake! with Bronze Radio Return

By 3 Comments

The Downtown Dayton Revival Festival will be highlighting over 30 bands that are from all over the United States, including some from the great city of Dayton.  On September 8th and 9th, most of the festival goers will be given the first chance to see and hear a lot of the bands for the first time.  One band in particular is ready to make an imprint here in town.

Bronze Radio Return

The band’s name is Bronze Radio Return.  The band consists of vocalist and guitarist Chris Henderson, Bob Tanen on bass, Rob Griffith on drums, guitarist Patrick Fetkowitz, Matt Warner on keys, and guitarist Craig Struble.  The band helms from the city of Hartford, Connecticut.  The band got their name from Henderson.  When he was growing up in the picturesque state of Maine, Henderson would spend time in his father’s art studio, and music could be heard blaring through an old bronze radio.  The music played through the radio inspired Henderson to dig more into music. During a recent phone conversation, Henderson explained more in detail.  “I love listening to an album all the way through, over and over again.  I love finding all the different things that you discover with each listen.”

The band’s beginnings trace back to when Henderson, along with Griffith, Tanen, and Warner all attended the Hartt School of Music, which is located in Hartford.  “We studied all kinds of music, including the backgrounds of jazz, and blues players”, Henderson mentioned to me.  With the knowledge of the greats before them, the band wanted to incorporate those styles and influences it into their own music. So, the three guys recruited Fetkowitz and Struble, and headed to the studio.

The band released their first EP in 2008, followed by their full-length debut album ‘Old Time Speaker’, which they recorded in Nashville.  In 2011, the band released their sophomore album, ‘SHAKE!SHAKE!SHAKE!’.  The album, recorded in Oklahoma, shows the band’s evolving sound with the continue fusion of rock and soul.  Currently, the band is working on their third album.  The band recently spent 5 weeks on a farm in Virginia to record most of the album. “It’s good to go to different places to work on an album,” Henderson explained. “It keeps you focused on the music.”  The album is slated to be released sometime between January and February.

Listening to the band’s albums, you are instantly conscious of the band’s different elements.  Each member of the group brings their own flare to the band.  Whatever it’s the banjo being strummed passionately to the sweet sounds of the harmonica, Bronze Radio Return bring a sound that makes them stand apart from the rest.  And their live shows are no different.  The band makes it a point to make sure that their audience is having as much as fun as they are. Henderson added, “We will make sure that people are moving in the audience.  We want to see people swinging around.”

Bronze Radio Return will be embarking on a tour starting on September 5th.  “We are ready to get our stage legs going again”, Henderson says.  “We are excited about the atmosphere we are about to witness.”  The tour will take the band throughout most of the eastern seaboard, along with a few stops in the Midwest, including Cleveland.  The tour will end on October 27th at the Mercury Lounge in New York.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GsorW2-uF8′]

See all of our Downtown Dayton Revival Music Festival Band Spotlights

A Plea For Purging/As Hell Retreats Say Farewell To Dayton

By 1 Comment

It’s sad saying goodbye to bands that play that special kind of soothing metal that inspires sweaty, stinky freaks to jump, dive or prance into a pit and cause gleeful self-immolation. It is both the sounds they make on stage from the furious roar into the microphone to the metal thrashing mad guitar playing that drives the kids nuts to the giant footstep thud of the bass and drums that sound like your right underneath a medieval war dance.

The Quit Your Band and Get a Real Job tour is the found farewell of Tennesse’s A Plea for Purging and As Hell Retreats. They played their last Ohio show Friday August 24 at The Attic with a Haemolacria tear in the eye,  a heavy metal heart and a Chelsea Grin from ear to ear. Though they loved touring and seeing the fans across the nation the rigors of road life had got to them and were ready to settle down and be normal/respectable folk again. But not before they gave the crowd a thoroughly severe kiss goodbye dose of noise corruption.

Kettering’s happy groove metal Ignite the Empires were the first of the surrounding areas finest young up-starts to help say goodbye. Screaming Soprano Nick Moshos and band gave a truly uniformed performance proudly sporting work shirts, name-tags, bow ties and aprons that pay the bills. Alongside some unison metal hopping Moshos let out a Pepperidge Farm collection of crying, banshee yells and pig destroying vocals. They indulged in some government cheese with their Cheap Wine and opinions on the state of the union. Mild mannered Moshos pulled an unexpected cartoonish gesture Superman style, minus the phone booth, breaking out/thrashing out in a presumably alter ego Sponge Bob outfit (possible second job at Nickelodeon). Proving that even animated yellow cleaning accessories that soak can be hard-core. Next up was a nice little loud twanger ’bout Them Trailer Park Boys.

Dayton’s own local living legends Gnashing of Teeth sporting a veteran band history rivaling both headliner’s combined have definitely put the time in earning their spiked fist in the face reputation for onstage sound mangling. Formed in 1993 originally called Enslaved (not the Norwegian progressive metal band) with a different sound. Taking a break in December 1995, they chose their known biblical bicuspid biting moniker and their piece of local history was born. Several members changes later their coming back stronger, fiercer, and louder than ever. Founding member guitarist/vocalist Duane White has kept the gritting/grinding sound alive releasing Walking The Appian Way in 2010 on Sancrosanct Records and is working on new material for future release.

Their harmonious artillery range of sound bludgeoning began with Death of Beauty. They played disk opener Separate with its Burton C. Bell yells and technical string prowess and old school Arch Enemy sound/Meshuggah delivery of Death By Design. Singer Chris McKinney, a Daniel Bryan fan, threw the stage into himself resembling a young Buzz Osborne screaming like he could and would swallow your soul showing off sparkling dental work. Playing their own unique conveyor belt metal with the mechanized fury of Fear Factory and brutality of Slayer conjuring up hell fire and brimstone through their instruments. Their harmonies and ‘softer’ parts are like riding an acid death tidal wave onto sands of sulfur from the eternal sea of madness while their spiked mallet to the noggin chugs n riffs and earthquake inducing delivery could bring the house down, literally.

Hamiltons female fronted The Rose Hill was next. Originally named the Epidemic in 2007 they’ve survived through several member changes releasing their first CD With All That I Am in 2010 and will release their second effort Powerless on Sancrosanct in September. Don’t be fooled by a female voice leading the worship. If Rebecca St. James/Natalie Grant is your pleasant cup of tea then the loud but sweet metal screeching croaks of Bethany akin to Morgan Lander, The Agonist’s Alissa White-Gluzz with a little Angela Gossow sprinkled in will hardly be the comfortable shut-eye lullaby you’ll wanna plug into before bedtime.

If vocals that could make birds fall out of the sky wasn’t enough The Rose Hill employs a keytar player. That’s a guitar shaped keyboard for anyone born after the 80’s, Google it. An impressive antiquity to have considering production ceased in the mid 2000‘s. They’re on their second edition and if this one breaks maybe they can borrow Lady Gaga’s. It definitely added a unique ambiance and effect to the metal ripping around it.  They broke out all new goodies for the crowd playing five songs from the upcoming CD. A Sinners Plea and Reaching can be previewed on their Facebook page and you can look forward to hearing Oh Wayward Girl, Forsaken and New Life when you get the CD. Bethany spent the whole set throwing all of her petite frame into every heavyweight word and in a few years could be a contender for Revolvers Hottest Chicks in Metal.

The first half of the nights Facedown alumni bidding a loud final farewell As Hell Retreats played like their namesake throwing out a menagerie of twin guitar biblical progressive death wraith math metal that would send the most evil dark hearted of the devil’s dark dominions howling away in surrender . They hit hard with a nine course set with all the hard thumping metal fixin’s and you didn’t even need a bent salad fork.  They played with machine gun fire fret fingering, blasting out Young Heretic, Inferior (can be heard on Facebook), Shun, Misanthropist, A Beggar, Transgress, Raze and Matriarch. The unique technical, slow chug of some tunes made for unique free-styling pit activity breaking out and an unconfirmed report of an Irish jig was spotted. The building block metal sadly had to end at some point but not before they raised hands to the crowd and God Almighty with a blaze of glory thank you for a journey and career well spent.

A Plea for Purging answered a plea for more with a gnarled good mess of fun. Zakk Wylde’s doppelganger guitarist Blake Martin spun some true metal hair shredding for an hour presumably when he’s not stunt doubling for Halloween’s Tyler Bates. The no weight limit crowd surfing began on a sea of human bones. With fists and fury the fans threw their passion at the band and a fistful of metal was returned. Singer Andy Atkins walked the stage screaming with a red-faced pallete taking the space as his own for the evening belting out 7 years of old and new tunes that could easily be used for any respectable underground fight club.  The crowd used what they had left creating an all out adrenaline bomb set to go off at Atkins calculated repeated command. The forces of human nature re-opened the pit with toxic human windmills and an old school circular tornado style pattern. They slowly slowed it down to 110 MPH so the kids could regroup. Near the end Atkins said that it was time to give up the ‘rockstar’ life and become mere mortals again getting real job s and spend cherished time with friends and family. Through all the hardships and annoyances of the road the fans made every negative worth it, thanks for listening. He also advised for any of the musically motivated to form a band, play one show and quit.

Atkins roared out a band ending bucket list of favorite tunes including ‘The Life’ the video of which was filmed during their last stop at The Attic. Shiver that has a very moving religious parody video on Youtube, Malevolence giving a how to guide for rock stardom and riches beyond imagination. Along with nine other loud face pounders hitting you like a fist wrapped in granite headache. Two bands, two breakups, one tour and a final tear down the wall curtain call.

Note: originally published at citizenusa.net

 

The Anatomy of Dayton Fashion Week(Part 2): The Success Stories

By Leave a Comment

International Fashion House Azucar

The bar was set high for the Inaugural Dayton Fashion Week, what started out as just a fun idea grew and grew and in the age of social networking word soon traveled outside of the city, outside of the state, and oh yeah outside of the country!!  Who would have thought that little old Dayton, OH would cause such a stir in the Fashion World that even the people at Italian Vogue’s party during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Miami would be talking about us and watching us…after all this was just the first one! The designer submission for DFW 2013 have already started rolling in starting with South Africa’s International Fashion House Azucar who has already signed on!

In this first year, we faced it all controversy, skepticism, criticism, and attempts of sabotage, yet we were lifted up each time by friendships, support, faith, determination, shared visions, encouragement, opportunity, and outreach, making dealing with the negativity from a handful of individuals much easier to ignore and here we stand today with success in our hands.

In the days and weeks leading up to and following Dayton Fashion Week, I experienced a rollercoaster of emotions from a huge sense of accomplishment to asking myself if I ever wanted to be a part of something like this again…especially since I wasn’t in it for personal gain; I was and still in it because I love this city!  Each time I thought about throwing in the towel I was reminded and motivated by those who stood behind me and had my back when we faced adversity, next to me when there was work to be done, and in front of me when it came time to take the lead and show the world just who and what Dayton Fashion week was and is all about.  I found that the support far out numbered the naysayers…and I can proudly look back at our first year with ABSOLUTELY NO REGRETS!!

The success stories that have followed in the past couple of weeks speak for themselves and have made it all worth it, starting with:

“The Face” of Dayton Fashion Week

Celebrity photographer Rich Jackson was in the building during Dayton Fashion Week doing some scouting.  Rich has been credited

DFW Model Olivia Nichols wearing designs by Dlang Ferguson, Jewelry by Serket, photo by Rich Jackson

with discovering some of the today’s top models and entertainers.  During his stay here in Dayton he hand selected 9 models from Dayton Fashion Week that caught his eye during our Kids Couture and Ready To Wear shows. Including Jessica Ventus, Kayla Holts, AjA Howard, Ashley Jones, Grace Langshaw, Dana Langshaw, Erica Skrylac, Jeanne Kinne, and Olivia Nichols who was named “The Face” of Dayton Fashion Week; Olivia has gone on to do other shoots with Rich for national campaigns!

Abercrombie & Fitch signs Dayton Fashion Week Model

Model Josh Reid signs with Abercrombie & Fitch

Joshua Reid was discovered while walking the runway of Dayton Fashion Week by scouts from Abercrombie & Fitch who were in attendance and as of today Josh is officially the newest face of A&F!

“The Hidden Gem”

According to McKinley Pierre, the Executive Producer of Miami, FL based fashion series Inside Couture Dayton designer L’Amour Ameer stole the show! From his creative runway presentation to his multipurpose multifunctioning designs—“Look!  Up on the runway!! It’s a bag, it’s a—wait for it…wait for it…Wow it’s a jacket??”  Mr. Ameer’s  showcase during DFW had  people cheering in their seats and left the people from Inside Couture in awe naming him the “Show Stopper” and “Hidden Gem” of Dayton Fashion Week!

Sew Dayton Opens for Business!

What can I say about Dayton designer Tracy McElfresh other than the fact that she was a God send during DFW!  Not only was she one of our most popular designers appearing with us on Living Dayton, FOX 45 In The Morning,  and appearing in F.I.Q. Magazine but when Junda suffered her stroke days before the kickoff of DFW Tracy stepped up, took over some of my duties and became my right hand woman when it came to answering most of the contractual questions being asked of me by designers.  So, I’m super excited for her new business Sew Dayton;  in conjunction with Activated Spaces Tracy and her business Partner Jesy Anderson will open their own clothing shop complete with original designs from Tracy, hand bags designed by Jesy, and they will even offer sewing lessons!  Located in the Oregon District across from Thai 9, Sew Dayton will open its doors this Friday Sept 7!

Sarah Tyrchniewicz of Pretty In Dayton

 

Pretty In Dayton gets invited to the Big Apple

Another God send was Fashion blogger Sarah Tyrchniewicz of Pretty In Dayton, like Tracy, Sarah stepped up and took over some of my duties when Junda fell ill and helped us to keep the ball rolling. And in the process, her honest, sincere, and edgy writing style caught the attention of designers who are participating in New York Fashion Week which kicks off this week!  They invited her to sit in the audience and do what she does best give her thoughts and opinions on the latest fashion trends hitting the runway and the streets!  Though she had to decline the late invites we’re pretty confident that Sarah and Pretty In Dayton will continue to capture the fashion worlds attention!

Photographer of the Year!

Dayton Fashion Week Photographer Lamar Pacley has been nominated for Photographer of The Year for the 2012 Ohio Hip Hop Awards!  Lamar played a huge role in the success of Dayton Fashion Week, from scouting models, shooting the cover of F.I.Q. Magazine, and working with the designers to name a few. Lamar definitely has our vote you can vote for him too at http://survey.websitegear.com/launch/29437/173!

Moving Forward

Photographer Lamar Pacley of Shuttereye Photo

These are just a handful of the success stories that have unfolded in the last couple of weeks from members of Team DFW! I’ve been approached about creating a Designer Incubator for the Midwest, Dayton Fashion Week caught the eye of producers from  Naomi Campbell’s new reality show “The Face” and requested some information about several of our models, Dayton Fashion Week models and designers will be on a big screen near you soon after being cast as extras and stylist for a feature film being shot locally, DFW Events Manager Cindy Gaboury is writing for a new magazine called Envision Chronicle, you’ll also see the work of one of DFW’s models on a national hit show soon, and DFW Designer and CEO of Midwest Fashion Week Berny Martin will be showcasing his Spring 2013 designs during New York Fashion Week Emerge Show just to mention a few more!

The Inaugural Dayton Fashion Week has made its mark in the Fashion Industry and Fashion Weeks from across the country and fashion insiders from around the world have reached out to us for support and to help us grow to make it to the next level!  The 2012 Dayton Fashion Week consisted of a lot of educating, trial and error, lessons learned, adjusting, adapting, communication, and corrections.  Coming into this year we only had 3 people who were familiar with Fashion Weeks– myself, Junda, and one other model– now we have 300!  The planning for the 2013 Dayton Fashion Week is currently underway.  Stay tuned for details on how you can become a part of the planning process! For more information on Dayton Fashion Week be sure to “Like” us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/daytonfashion .

 

 

 

 

New Dinamita Doritos: Where are they in Dayton?

By Leave a Comment

New Dinamita Rolled Chile Limon Doritos -HOT and ADDICTING!

Attention junk food junkies: there is a new Dorito in town, but it is like finding a needle in a haystack.  Why?  Because they are so popular that they sell out within a few days.   They are called Dinamitas, a rolled Dorito snack, and the Chile Limon flavor is so hot and addicting that they are flying off shelves.  The Big Ragu has actually only seen these briefly at Wal-Mart stores , but a couple of days later, they are sold out.  Frito Lay’s website supposedly has a search tool HERE where you can see where they are sold, but the two Speedway gas stations listed in Franklin and Springboro, Ohio did not have them.

But what is this addicting snack?  Frito Lay has teamed up with Mexican snack company Sabritas, to present these little taquito shaped munchies in limited release.  The goal was to capture the essence of Hispanic style snacks in a rolled Dorito.  Mission accomplished.  The product, Chile Limon Dinamitas is one of the best snacks we have eaten.   Be warned, you will get hooked on these.  You will have red fingertips and a burning mouth in no time, but you just won’t be able to stop eating them.  The worst part is you cannot get another fix, because they are so hard to find!

They are simply HOT and ADDICTING .. just like The Big Ragu.  Trust us, Chile Limon Dinamitas are a Food Adventure in a bag !

Have you tried the new Chile Limon Dinamitas?  Please comment below and tell us what you thought about them.  Better yet, tell us where we can buy some more!

“LIKE” FOOD ADVENTURES with THE BIG RAGU on FACEBOOK by clicking HERE !

Celebrating International Bacon Day

By Leave a Comment

International Bacon Day is officially observed on the Saturday before Labor Day in the US.  Canada celebrates it the 2nd Sat in June and in the UK it’s in January.  The way I see it, bacon is stupendous enough to warrant these multiple celebrations!  To me the best bacon is thick cut, hickory smoked bacon, which cooks up straight and golden brown! How best to honor bacon?  Let me offer some suggestions:

Chocolate Covered Bacon

Ingredients

  • 12 thick-sliced bacon strips (about 1 pound)
  • 12 wooden skewers (12 inches)
  • 6 ounces white candy coating, chopped
  • 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1 tablespoon shortening
  • Optional toppings: chopped dried apple chips, apricots and crystallized ginger, finely chopped pecans and pistachios, toasted coconut, kosher salt, brown sugar, cayenne pepper and coarsely ground black pepper

Directions

  • Thread each bacon strip onto a wooden skewer. Place on a rack in a large baking pan. Bake at 400° for 20-25 minutes or until crisp. Cool completely.
  • In a microwave, melt candy coating; stir until smooth. Combine chocolate chips and shortening; melt in a microwave and stir until smooth.
  • With pastry brushes, coat bacon on both sides with melted coatings. Top each strip as desired. Place on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Refrigerate until firm. Store in the refrigerator. Yield: 1 dozen.

 

Bacon Infused Vodka

Fry up three strips of bacon. Add cooked bacon to a clean pint sized mason jar. Trim the ends of the bacon if they are too tall to fit in the jar. Or you could go hog wild and just pile in a bunch of fried up bacon scraps. Optional: add crushed black peppercorns. Fill the jar up with vodka. Cap and place in a dark cupboard for at least three weeks. At the end of the three week resting period, place the bacon vodka in the freezer to solidify the fats. Strain out the fats through a coffee filter to yield a clear filtered pale yellow bacon vodka. This makes one pint of Bacon Vodka.
If you don’t want to wait you can buy Bakon Vodka.  Though last I heard it wasn’t selling well in Ohio and the Ohio Division of Liquor Control put it on sale back in May, which often means it may actually be discontinued from the state stocking list by now. So it may take a roadtrip across state lines or even mail order to get your hands on some.

  Or try some Bacon Infused Bourbon

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkBoXXyEhLs&feature=player_embedded#!’]

 

Bacon wrapped hot dogs make perfect sense, especially for your Labor Day Cookout, and you may want
to have some Baconnaise on hand, just perfect to spread on a hamburger bun.  And then how about some Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies, Bacon Lollipops, and for a  crunchy, savory, sweet treat you’ll want some Bacon Peanut Brittle or maybe the Bacon Cheddar Popcorn will be more to your liking.
There are entire websites devoted to bacon, and some of the most unusual bacon items you can imagine:  bacon toothpicks, belts, bacon flavored coke, bacon scented air freshners and more.  I’m not kidding- check out some of these and these. 

 

I’ll leave you with a recipe combining two of my favorite flavors:

 Dark Chocolate Bacon Cupcakes

Ingredients

  • 12 slices bacon
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 cups white sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup cold, strong, brewed coffee
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder, for dusting

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, 3/4 cup cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in the eggs, coffee, buttermilk and oil. Stir just until blended. Mix in 3/4 of the bacon, reserving the rest for garnish. Spoon the batter into the prepared cups, dividing evenly.
  3. Bake in the preheated oven until the tops spring back when lightly pressed, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in the pan set over a wire rack. When cool, arrange the cupcakes on a serving platter. Frost with your favorite chocolate frosting and sprinkle reserved bacon crumbles on top. Dust with additional cocoa powder.
I know, I didn’t even get into the bacon replacement – like turkey bacon- they’ll have to get their own day!