The Sweet Life: La Dolce Vita Recap
The beautiful people of Austin gathered on the lawns of Laguna Gloria, where the Italian countryside meets Lake Travis, for more than 50 food and dozens of wine and spirit vendors. The 19th annual La Dolce Vita sent us into a food coma with all the rich and savory bites, and with a Bacchanalia theme this year, the decadence of the Roman Empire was detailed in the décor and costumes of servers. A rotund Roman emperor sat atop his throne and DJ Manny spun tunes while thousands of Austinites roamed past rows of food booths in search of the sweet life.
We especially loved all the seared tuna bites, of which there were many, but our favorites were III Forks' sesame-seared tuna on a garlic croute with a chipotle balsamic and wasabi sauce, as well as Flemings', which came on top a crispy fried wonton with a spicy mustard sauce. The rich food definitely drew us in with samplings of Sullivans' filet with horseradish mashed potatoes and NoRTH's osso bucco on white polenta (disclaimer: some of us don't mind politically incorrect meat). We rounded out our meat fest with our absolute favorite dish: Portabla's giant stuffed crouton with braised pork and a fennel puree, and followed that up with Sweet Tempered's exquisite gingerbread spiced cake topped with an almond swiss buttercream frosting.
While the emphasis of La Dolce Vita is certainly on the food, the night was beautiful with the crisp lake breeze, beautiful décor, and incredible setting. Proceeds from La Dolce Vita go directly to supporting the AMOA’s art exhibits and education, showing us that gorging yourself on food has consequences other than the negative ones on your waistline. The sweet life, indeed!
