EVENT: The 2018 Magic City Wine Fest

The Birmingham Restaurant Raider

It's that time again! 
The 2018 Magic City Wine Fest is approaching and wine lovers from near & far will convene at The Birmingham Zoo on May 12, 2018. 

Presenting sponsors Jaguar of Birmingham & Land Rover Of Birmingham welcome you to this 2nd annual event benefiting The Birmingham Zoo which will feature wines from across the world. Wines will be provided by International Wines & Craft Beer.

There will be food available for purchase from a variety of Birmingham area restaurants. 
According State law and ABC regulations there will not be “unlimited free samples.” Therefore, the ticket price is your admission to Magic City Wine Fest. Once inside the festival, you will be charged $0.01 for each one ounce serving.  This "Penny a Pour" donation will be collected at each wine table where guests can drop a penny in for each drink.

Entertainment will be provided by jazz legend, Vann Burchfield, a musical Guinness World Record holder. 

This is a rain or shine event. No one under 21 will be allowed. 
The event will take place from 5:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Ticket categories available will be  as follows:

• GENERAL ADMISSION $49.00
• VIP $69.00
• DESIGNATED DRIVER $20.00

*Fees & taxes will be additional. This event WILL sell out.

 DRINK RESPONSIBLY🍇🍷

 Purchase tickets: http://www.magiccitywinefest.com/Tickets

The Birmingham Zoo
2630 Cahaba Road
Birmingham, AL 35223

Tour The Vineyards of the World At The Magic City Wine Fest!

#MagicCityWineFest

Wine lovers unite!!!
On Saturday May 13th at the Birmingham Zoo, Jaguar of Birmingham & Land Rover of Birmingham will present the first annual Magic City Wine Fest.

Come get your FREE souvenir glass (with paid admission) & be a part of the most massive wine tasting event ever to hit the city of Birmingham. Patrons will be taken on a tour of the world's finest wines.

The cost of the event is $45.00 for general admission. A portion of every ticket sale will go to our beautiful Birmingham Zoo!  Once inside of the event, attendees will be charged a "Penny-A-Pour"  $.01 cent donation. Due to Alabama ABC board regulations, unlimited free wine samples is a no-no.

All wines will be provided by International Wines , a family-owned wholesale beverage distributor based in Birmingham, Alabama.

In addition to live music by Clinton Babers & GoodFellas, there will be food available for purchase from a variety of local food vendors. 

Along with Jaguar & Land Rover, the event will be sponsored by a host of great radio stations and a variety of other businesses.  

The Birmingham Zoo is located at  2630 Cahaba Rd Birmingham, AL 35223
Advanced tickets can be purchased by going to http://www.magiccitywinefest.com/Tickets
*Tickets will be $55.00 the day of the event.
This is an event for adults 21 & up. Bring your valid ID.
Use the hashtag #MagicCityWineFest 
 (Please no children) 👶
Enjoy!
Thanks for reading & sharing!
~The Birmingham Restaurant Raider
#RaidBham 

Oak & Raleigh- "How To Put the "D" In Different"

I'm always excited about trying new concepts. This new budding restaurant is aiming to "redefine local".  They are a family owned restaurant in the center of Homewood just few minutes away from the Oxmoor road exit. After reading the menu for Oak & Raleigh I was highly intrigued and ready to chow down on some of their modern & unique dishes.



Atmosphere: The atmosphere at Oak & Raleigh is vintage/contemporary (if that makes sense). As we approached the restaurant, we got a complete view of the inside through the front of the restaurant as it is completely glassed in. There are three large televisions above the bar area, a comfortable open lounge area and several bistro tables. There is a beautiful wooden wine rack that sits in a corner, along with shelves of a variety of brews. The simplicity of the restaurant is what makes it special in my opinion. They have an extensive and impressive beer & wine list including Alabama's own Morgan Creek. Oak & Raleigh also offers free WI-FI. There are also video games inside for your enjoyment.

The Meal:  From the bar menu, we had one of the recommended shareable item's, the  pâté, Pig & Pickle: a dish of sliced baguette bread, house-made chicken liver pâté, Genoa salami, house-made pickled vegetables with herb infused cream cheese. The vegetables are all locally grown by the chef. This dish is probably like nothing you've ever tasted. Your taste buds will thank you. We also decided to try some sandwiches. My dinner companion had the New England roast beef: slices of succulent roast beef on a delicious onion roll (my fave), house-made BBQ sauce, mayo, cheddar & jack cheeses with potato chips & a side of loaded potato salad. This potato salad is everything dreams are made of. I tried the Pâté "B" & "J": Oak & Raleigh's signature house-made chicken liver pâté, bacon, slices of fresh green apple, seasonal preserves (strawberry) spread on white bread with chips & a side of broccoli & cauliflower salad. I never would have imagined that any of those items would taste good together on a sandwich, but boy was I wrong. They blended extremely well. They also have several brews on tap. I also had the pleasure of enjoying a sample of the extremely aromatic and flavorful Nitro Coffee by Seeds Coffee in Homewood, AL . They even have a kids menu for kids or finicky eaters.

The Staff: After getting an informative but short bio & vivid descriptions of some of the food we eventually chose, it was evident that they have a staff that is passionate about selling the concept as well as the food. I love it when I get the opportunity to hear a bio of the restaurant and preparation details. That is a huge plus. 

The Prices: I was very impressed with the prices. The shareable bar food items range from $6 to $10 dollars. The salads with house made dressings are priced $10 dollars and under, meat toppings are optional.Their unique, but amazing sandwiches range from $7.50 to $11 dollars. From what I have tasted and witnessed everything is well worth the price. 

Room for improvement: No issues that I could determine at this time. This is a new restaurant and I'm sure they will experience normal growing pains. Right now, the fact that they are staying away from elaborate, over-the-top, expensive gimmicks will definitely work in their favor. 

Overall experience: Had a great time! Loved the atmosphere and the food. Will definitely return in the near future. Next time I plan to try the Croque Monsieur. 

*Sending out a special hello to Amber Schreckenbach! "Hey Amber" =)

Follow Oak & Raleigh on Instagram at https://instagram.com/oakandraleigh 

Follow them on Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/oakandraleigh
Follow them on Twitter at @OakAndRaleigh

Thanks for reading, 

The Birmingham Restaurant Raider

 "Anonymously Raiding A Restaurant Near You" 

The  Pâté, Pig & Pickle from the "Bar Food" menu

The New England Roast Beef  w/ loaded potato salad

The Pâté "B" & "J" w/ broccoli & cauliflower salad

Seeds Nitro Coffee