Junk Food Nation – well, yesterday’s Brazil game was awkward, wasn’t it? Yeah…I can’t even think of a snide remark to say, because Twitter and the internet basically broke yesterday with all the memes and wisecracks.  Jeez Louise.

Let’s all distract ourselves with the final part of my Summer Fancy Food Show, Day 2 Recap.  Thanks for hanging with me, Nation! I hope you’ve enjoyed traveling down memory lane with me…from one week ago.

OMG, Junk Food Nation, even after two GIGANTIC floors of the show, there was still a THIRD ROOM PACKED with more treats. Holy cow.  The exhibitors in the 3rd Room know – by the time you’ve reached the third room, you’re pretty much delirious.  Then you see products like this and can’t stop laughing:

Hair King drink?  Designed to help you grow new hair, like…drinkable Propecia?  And in Lemon Lime flavor???  What the. Why did they put it in 5-Hour Energy bottles?  I did not drink this.

The messaging on this Hair King drink is amazing. “JUST DRINK IT.” “HAVE NO SIDE EFFECTS.” I am scared for my well being.  I ran away from this booth, fast.

One of the coolest things I saw at the Fancy Food Show was a few companies doing 3-D Printing of food!  Or, rather, 3-D sugar printing.  I watched the printer “print” a bunch of different sugar shapes.  The jar above was full of them.  My friend Jen grabbed one too:

Jen popped this sugar cube in her mouth…it wasn’t great.  OK, maybe 3-D printed sugar isn’t the tastiest invention in the world…but it’s a start!  Plus, the printer made other cool shapes like this:

This ISH WAS CRAZAY.  Seriously, what is the use of this?  Who knows, BUT IT’S COOL.

OK, back to some actual GOOD food.  Another AMAZING company who happened to be a first time exhibitor at the show was Olive & Sinclair – a company I was unfamiliar with but who had apparently been voted best chocolate in the country by Southern Living Magazine, which is pretty huge. I tried a whole BUNCH of their strange combo confections: their sea salt & vinegar caramels, their salt & pepper buttermilk white chocolate.  Some of the best candy I’d ever tasted.

And they were nominated for (and eventually won a SOFI for) their Bourbon Nib Brittle, pictured above.  Just incredible stuff if you like brittle (WHICH I DO).  Olive & Sinclair, you are officially on my radar.  Good on ya.

Room 3 was THE PLACE for frozen treats apparently, starting with these JC’s Pie Pops. Ice Cream Pops designed to taste like your favorite classic pies? Um, yes please. This Key Lime Pie one was my favorite.

Do you like fruit sorbettos/gelatos? Well, then check out DIVINO – a company that basically takes fresh fruit, hollows it out, makes a pure flavored gelato out of it, and stuffs it back into the fruit.  WHAT.  Incredible.  The Black Diamond Plum was DIVINE.

Bar Gelato was back (one of my favorites from last year). This year, they had an amazing Gelato bar made with Blue Bottle Coffee that tasted like the best frozen coffee I’d ever had.  My JFG crew stared at me, wondering how I could eat even MORE ice cream after the Pie Pops and DIVINO. How could I NOT??

Did you watch my video of last year’s Fancy Food Show? Then you’ll recognize Phin & Phebes, a Brooklyn based ice cream company that is on the rise.  Their Vietnamese Iced Coffee ice cream nails it.

I initially walked right by this Chloe’s soft serve fruit pop until my friend Rob insisted I go back and try it.  I’m so glad he did – with frozen fruit purees on the rise in popularity, the people at Chloe’s are doing it RIGHT. This company is based right there in NYC. In their soft serve fruit, only three ingredients – fruit, water, and sugar.  I’m down with that.  And now they have their amazing flavors in pop form – awesome. I wish I could’ve taken this whole bowl with me.

But what if you’re not in NYC, and you’re in Atlanta, and you want some awesome fruit pop action? Look no further than King of Pops – an Atlanta based company with amazing flavors like this Pineapple Habanero pop.  It was awesome – tasted like legit real pineapple with a perfect spice kick.

At one point, Jen and I wandered over to the KOREA section of the SFFS14, and they had this wheel (shown above). “Spin the wheel and win a prize” the lady running it said.  Hooo kay. We didn’t recognize anything on the wheel, but spun anyways.  Some of the wedges had company names and pictures of food below them.  Our wheel landed on 405 – a nondescript wedge with no picture of food.  “Head over to Booth 405 and claim your prize!”  Hooo kay.

We walked over to Booth 405, where three random ladies were gabbing.  “I’m….uh….here to collect my prize?” Jen asked.  They looked at us quizzically. “What?” one lady asked. “Uh…the lady up there said to come here and get a prize.” Jen repeated.  The ladies looked at each other with shifty eyes.

“They didn’t give you a slip or anything?” the same lady asked.  Jen and I looked at each other.  “Uh…no.”  I wasn’t sure what to think.  I mean, honestly – did they think we were lying? Trying to pull a scheme?  Approach some random booth and ask for a prize?  Jen and I both shrugged and laughed nervously.

Finally, the lady exhaled and said, “O….K….” and reached under the table and pulled out…

A HUGE BOX OF SEAWEED SNACK.  Whoa.  THAT was unexpected. Luckily, Jen loves seaweed snack, but WHAT THE HELL.  I was at a loss for words.  People stared as Jen walked out of the KOREA section with this box.  “Where did you get THAT?” some random dude asked. “I WON IT!” Jen chirped happily.

It was the most bizarre part of Day 2.

There Korean Burritos were sampled before we escaped the Korean section.  Surprisingly good, rice tortilla and all!  I’ve searched all over online – I have no idea where you can buy these.  If you can discern from the photo an online place to purchase these, please let me know; I’d like to order 100.

Rick Bayless’s Frontera Grill food line was of course present at SFFS14, and this year they were simmering their red chile barbacoa slow cook sauce for everyone to try.  Serving it in tacos at the show?  The smell was incredible, and there’s a reason there was a LINE for this stuff.  Hot food – always good at the SFFS14.

Following my nose, I was also drawn to ANOTHER hot food favorite of mine, and they were a favorite last year too – the Hancock Gourmet Lobster Co.  Simply put, the Hancock Gourmet Lobster Co., winners of TONS of SOFIs, makes THE BEST from-the-store packaged lobster entrees in the US.  Period.  I know I know – lobster from a box or can? That CAN’T be as good as the real thing! DUDE. I AM TELLING YOU. We embarrassed ourselves going back to this booth not once, not twice, but thrice to try their amazing lobster mac & cheese.  Seriously. If you can try this line of products, DO IT.

A couple more sidenotes – Entenmann’s getting into the pod-coffee space?  Getting into something OTHER than pastries??  Interesting…

The last bite I ate at the SFFS14 was, of course, fois gras.  This creamy bite from Three Little Pigs was extremely tasty. Just smooth, sweet, meaty, fatty – everything you want in some good fois. This literally was my last bite…a piece of bread covered in duck liver.  Sigh. At this point, my heart exploded.

So THAT IS IT.  My Summer Fancy Food Show 2014 experience!  The JFG Crew and I had a WONDERFUL time…and in another year, we’ll be ready to go again!  So, to recap, the themes I saw:

1. Hibiscus EVERYWHERE.

2. Tea infusion is trendy.

3. Frozen fruit purees with few ingredients are the way to go in frozen treats.

Ok, I’m done. Braindead. Just looking at these photos over the past week have made me full and fat again.

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