Mussels, monkfish, goat cheese.

Heirloom tomatoes, Washington state raspberries, Kobe beef.

Planked trout. Tender risotto. Scallops. Veal.

Oh, the ecstasy! The agony!

These were among the ingredients used by chefs participating last week in Savor Pittsburgh: A Celebration of Cuisine. The fundraiser, for the American Respiratory Alliance of Western Pennsylvania, drew a crowd to the SouthSide Works center court for tasting and dancing.

Along with the other judges, I had the job of evaluating 46 dishes -- appetizers, entrees and desserts -- to select the best of each category and the Dish of the Year. It's the first time I've done this. Criteria included presentation, creativity and flavor; I was advised beforehand to taste with restraint and pacing.

Seated at tables in a corner, we judges were given a dozen or so each of stainless forks, knives and spoons, bottles of water, a glass of wine (or two or three over the three-and-a-half hour judging).

The food flew.

Students from the Pennsylvania Culinary Institute presented food from 21 restaurants for us to ogle. It came on planks and oval platters, in tiny soup pots, on spoons. Colors were red, orange, green, the darkest chocolate, the whitest white. It was foamed, squared, bruleed, folded, planked -- spindled in a case or two.

Sauteed Laughing Bird Shrimp. Butter-Poached Scallops over Grilled Peaches with a Peach Riesling Coulis. Viennese-Style Monkfish Schnitzel (my favorite name of the evening). Plain old cannoli (plain my eye). Seasoned Shrimp on a Sugar Cane Stick.

On and on it came. Dish One. Dish Twenty. One 10-minute break between the appetizers and the entrees.

I took small bites, then a sip of water, then tasted some more. It was hard not to be impressed with every dish. Even if the taste was off, the presentation was lovely, or the creative effort evident.

The crowd outside the judges tent mingled and tasted, casting ballots for People's Choice, drinking and dancing to No Bad Ju Ju as the sun slipped slowly down over the adjacent Mon River and the evening cooled.

It was a heady atmosphere indeed, with such luscious food and drink and great company (the amiable Chris Fennimore to my right, the vivacious Marlene Parrish to my left).

Oh, the bad luck in tasting dessert last. This required resolve, as my mitochondria rebelled, uncharacteristically, against more food.

Then . . . Opera Torte. Espresso and Dark Chocolate Terrine.

Milk. Chocolate. Cashew. Bombe. (Oh, sorry. That's one name.)

The End.

The band played "Let's Get it On."

Are you kidding me?

I could barely move.

The winners:

People's Choice restaurant: Tamari, Lawrenceville. Best appetizer: Dirty Shrimp with Sweet Potato Grits and Avocado and Chili Oils, McCormick & Schmick's. Best Entree: Planked Laurel Hill Trout, Tree Tops. Best Dessert and Dish of the Year: Milk Chocolate Cashew Bombe, Tusca.

Congratulations to all who put on a great event, and to those who assisted the alliance and its programs by attending. More than $76,000 was raised.

Flavors of Pittsburgh, benefiting the Allegheny Division of the American Liver Foundation, will be held at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 20 at the Westin Convention Center hotel, Downtown. You don't have to judge this one. Just enjoy the work of the 2009 Chef Rock Stars, from Anthony Zallo, Bigelow Grille, to Keith Fuller, Six Penn Kitchen. Tickets: $225 per person. Details: Kara Hartner, 412-434-7077, khartner@liverfoundation.org.

Meet the "Soup Nazi," actor Larry Thomas from the TV series "Seinfeld," from 8 to 10 tomorrow at Tom's Diner, East Carson Street, South Side. Have soup, including Roasted Red Pepper Chicken Bisque. Dinner starts at 6; reservations, 412-488-8108, eatatfolinos.com.

More soup, as Soup Sega! begins Saturday at the Bulgarian Macedonian National Education & Cultural Center, West Eighth Avenue, West Homestead. From 9 a.m to noon every day through May; bmnecc.org. This year select soups also will be sold at Schwartz's Market, East Carson Street, South Side. Free samples from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the market, while supplies last.

"Juicing for Health" begins at 1 p.m. Saturday at Sunny Bridge Natural Foods, 130 Gallery Drive, McMurray. 724-942-5800. Also, Sunny Bridge will hold a talk on honey-making on the 19th.

Mid-Atlantic Mushroom Foray, North Park, beginning with registration at 7:30 a.m. Saturday. Features Gary Lincoff, author of the "Audobon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms." wpamushroomclub.org. Club motto is: Fungi, fun, friends. . . . It is National Mushroom Month. See winning recipes from the Mushroom Council and Taste of Home's contest at mushroominfo.com.

And, when you're done with the day's events, sip a Tealtini at any of 14 restaurants in Pittsburgh to support the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance. The event kicked off Aug. 28 to mark National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. A list of participants is at ovariancancer.org, where you can learn more about this deadly disease and the alliance's work to eradicate it. The Tealtini was developed by Women Chefs and Restaurateurs, womenchefs.org.

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If you can't make it to a local pub to purchase a Tealtini, make one at home and raise a toast to women who have fought the battle.

-- Margi Shrum

• 2 ounces vodka
• 1/2 ounce sweet and sour mix
• 1/2 ounce pineapple juice
• 1 teaspoon Gelatin Mix

Mix and . . . cheers!

Gelatin Mix

• 1/2 package of lime Jell-O
• 1 package of blueberry Jell-O

For a non-alcoholic version substitute Sprite for vodka.

-- Women Chefs and Restaurateurs