You’ll be amazed - and possibly uncomfortable.

The deYoung’s outstanding restaurant obliged with a textbook double espresso, fresh-baked walnut and carrot cake, and centerpiece of Dutch-inspired lunch plate complete with three kinds of cured fish, smoked salmon, deviled eggs, gherkins, potato salad, rye bread and pickled onions. It tasted as good as it looks!

This show is loaded with some of the finest exemples of the 17th century Dutch Golden Age—the Rembrandt etchings alone are worth the scenic drive up the coast. It runs through June 2. Be there.

Besides, it’s so much easier for Mr. and Mrs. Front Porch to understand crimes of passion than to demand answers about political decisions — CIA, Department of Justice—these require actually digging for facts and being able to understand implications.

Our refusal to think is going to pound that last nail into the sinking ship that is our collective culture.

But that’s just me.

For $3 I had a sensation that was positively Roman in its voluptuousness. Quail egg, adorned with choice crisp pancetta, atop a yellow plinth of polenta. Slick of unctuous basil purée on the side.

A minerally Sancerre did the rest. Roughly $10 for a consciousness-raising bit of gourmet retail therapy.

Soif. Tuesdays. Tapas. Three dollars each.

But as you know, Outstanding in the Field has gone viral in the most delicious possible way. In fact adventurous diners will want to quick pounce on some of the available places at the Secret Sea Cove dinner on July 5.

Here’s why.  H&H seafoods, fresher than a just-baked croissant, will form the centerpiece of the dinner. The ocean, surf, sand, and sheltering cliffs will form an unforgettable background. And, in a rare return to Santa Cruz, Justin Severino will bring his eye for detail and gift for culinary glory to the table as featured chef. Yes, that Justin Severino. Formerly of Severino’s Community Butcher, formerly of Manresa, and now chef/proprietor of his own award-winning place in Pittsburgh, PA, called Cure (as in charcuterie….). It will be worth the $240 price of multi-courses and wines to hear über-fisherman Hans Haveman do his fish talk. Fabulous stories of harvest on the high seas! Rush to the website for your reservation!

And a new dinner @ Fogline Farm in Soquel has been added for Monday May 27, starting at 4pm, with host farmers Johnny Wilson and Caleb Barron, plus guest chef Greg Dunmore of San Francisco’s Nojo. $220.

At Fogline guests can expect perfect afternoon weather. The farm sits in the sweet spot between the cool ocean breezes and the hot inland weather, hence, The Fogline. In this idyllic location farmers Johnny Wilson and Caleb Baron raise succulent pigs and chickens and grow diverse fruits and vegetables which reach the community at local restaurants, farmers markets and the Fogline CSA.

Expect to be dazzled by chef Dunmore’s chops, if you’ll excuse the pun. I’ll see you there! Make your reservation at the Outstanding website. Do it now!

What a catchy brand slogan!

This vibrant Mediterranean block party benefits the Prophet Elias Greek Orthodox church, and rocks the corner of Center & Church St, Friday from 5-10pm, Sat. 11am - 10pm, and Sun noon - 8pm. This wonderful event is FREE, loaded with live Greek music—yes, you WILL get up and dance—everybody is welcome (except for pets).

The takeaway for me was that I was being aggressively nudged into spending money. No one today—well maybe with the exception of Richard Brandson or Gwyneth Paltrow— “enjoys” parting with their money.

Okay, if you can’t relate to that, try this:
Last month I had a wonderful, accomplished,delicious lunch at a certain restaurant. A few nights ago we returned for dinner. Whoa, total sea change in terms of ambience (Marie Callender’s meets Outback Steakhouse), service (none, absent) and quality of the food (overseasoned in one case, and not completely cooked in another).  I don’t like raw carrots and “just opened the can” flavor in my slow-simmered stews. Sorry. That’s just me.

How could these two experiences coexist within the span of a mere month?

I’m guessing the restaurant is without a resident chef. Perhaps as a result of sequestration cost cutting.

(That was a joke.)

But the lost $75 was no joke.

The glistening tension

Rarely performed, this ambitious collaboration of the Monterey Chamber Orchestra, the Cabrillo Symphonic Chorus, Cantiamo!, Cabrillo Chorale, and the Cabrillo Youth Chorus—one hundred+ voices—performs a piece Britten composed to honor the re-dedication of England’s Coventry Cathedral.  Heavily bombed during WWII, the cathedral became a symbol of spiritual hope against all odds. Britten, one of the masters of modern symphonic composition, used poems by World War I pacifist Wilfred Owen set to key moments of the traditional requiem mass.
In this masterwork, war and peace drive the words and music of loss, despair, hope, and ultimately consolation.

It is a thundering, whispering, utterly difficult and gorgeous piece of music—and under the guiding genius of Cabrillo’s Cheryl Anderson, the choirs are up to the challenge.  All you have to do is show up and be moved to tears. Tenor Jake Williams and soprano Tanya Harris are among the soloists sure to create lasting impressions.

The War Requiem by Benjamin Britten - under the direction of John Anderson - Saturday April 27 8pm at the Sunset Center in Carmel; Sunday April 28 7pm at the Crocker Theater, Cabrillo College in Aptos.

Cabrillo College Box Office — 831.479-6154.

Avanti for lunch. A delicious idea.

The Dinner Parties: Art & Agriculture

The opening reception—replete with gorgeously prepared foods—for this intriguing interweaving of cuisine, ideas, and documentation begins at 5pm today, and the displays featuring social vignettes, dining strategies and agricultural communities will remain on exhibit through May 11.

The adventures of Jim Denevan, founder of “Outstanding in the Field,” Chez Panisse chef Jerome Waag, and SF-based artist Chris Sollars will be documented, as well as works by EG Crichton and Susan Working, Chelsea Wills and Leif Hendendal.

Admission is free! but best make plans early—the parking lot at Porter College will fill up fast! Be at the Sesnon @ 5pm today.

 Valdo Prosecco

Festive to the max, the charming event spilled forth on the patio of host emporium, La Sirena—loaded with gorgeous antiques, jewelery, and humans all gathered to give thanks for Venice (the title of the new book, published by Cafe Margo, and priced @ $20), the Bottoms duo, and old friends among Santa Cruz literati who lingered long over good conversation and the highly drinkable Valdo Prosecco.  Eleven dollars and change. Can your prosecco do that?