That Esther Psarakis, owner of Taste of Crete, is busy, busy busy! Register for some of her classes, like “Eating Chocolate is Healthy!” on October 28 ($20) and “Making Your Own Dolmas” ($30) on November 4, and visit her lovely store in Hillsborough. (And you never know, she may have room at her two Oct. 21 events, A Taste of Greece Lunch and a repeat of her Vegetarian Fusion Class in the evening, with bonus Yoga class.)
More classes are always being added. I sent my Aunt Alice a birthday jug of olive oil from the store, with an olive branch in it – hey, what a great make-up gift that would make! – and it got raves. They packed and shipped it for me, very reasonbably.)
Also, Mediterra hosts a Terra Burdigala Bordeaux wine dinner October 21. I went to one with the same winery (a group of wineries, actually) at Eno Terra last year and loved it. These dinners are a great value and a lot of fun.
Happy 2nd birthday to elements; their celebratory $85 tasting menu is available through October. Some of the dishes created for the celebration include Squash Soup with an intriguing combination of caraway ice cream, corned beef, and cabbageand Local Skate with a mouth-watering mélange of pumpkin, raisin, curry, cauliflower, and almond. Diners are also invited to toast to elements’ success with a complimentary glass of bubbly (wine pairings with meal $40 extra).
On Nov. 1, the March of Dimes will hold its ninth annual Signature Chefs International Flavors fund-raiser at the Hyatt Regency Princeton. Tickets to each are $100. Among the restaurants confirmed to participate in the Princeton event so far is the acclaimed Eno Terra in Kingston
A dizzying array of food world luminaries has visited Princeton lately and now we have this:
Panel on “The Politics of Food and Health Care” November 10, 2010. McCosh 50, 4:30pm. Stafford Little Lecture Fund
Marion Nestle and David Kessler, with Ruth Reichl
Marion Nestle is Paulette Goddard Professor in the Department of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University. David Kessler, M.D. is Professor of Pediatrics and Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). He served as Commissioner of the United States Food and Drug Administration from November 1990 until March 1997. Ruth Reichl, former editor-in-chief of Gourmet, is joining Random House as an author and editor at large. She also is a regular host with Leonard Lopate for a live monthly food show on WNYC radio in New York.
Also, welcome to Cross Culture Indian Cuisine in the Princeton Shopping Center! They opened months ago, but I just haven’t had time to visit yet. But I will soon, I promise! They don’t seem to have a Princeton website yet, but they do have a good one for their Doylestown location.
NJ SPICE 
Your mention of Greek foods reminded me that back in the summer it was mentioned in a Time Off restaurant review that Pithari Taverna would be opening a Greek restaurant “just north of Princeton” in the fall. Any updates?
I’ve not heard a word, but was thinking/hoping (along with many others) that it could be the place on 206 in Montgomery that used to be Dakota grill etc. Doesn’t seem the Asian place there ever panned out, so…We really need good Greek food in this area, don’t we? I just called the restaurant to ask, but got voice mail.