Small Bites, Big Flavors: Part II

by Christina Waters | May 24, 2013 | Home | 0 comments

Unikyu, hamachi nigiri, saba nigiri, and—of course—tekka maki with shiso leaf.

Sushi smiles of a summer night. At Totoro on Mission St.

Small Bites, Big Flavors: Part I

by Christina Waters | May 24, 2013 | Home | 0 comments

O’mei’s menu continues to re-invent itself, producing sudden new spices and fresh seasonal responses to this or that bit of culinary influence.

For example this new small plate offering. Bearing a trans-metaphysical resemblance to empanadas, Cornish pasties, and a wide range of dim sum, this incredible bit of rock’n’roll baking was feather-light and filled with a spiced mix of pork and cabbage (from the Polish sector of Szechuan?). Black sesames on top. Fabulous, especially with a splash of fiery chile oil.

Vineyard Roots that Rock! 2 weekends in June

by Christina Waters | May 23, 2013 | Home | 0 comments

Don’t miss the chance to visit small wineries, sample new releases, chat with vintners and find out what makes the Santa Cruz Mountains winegrowing district utterly unique and distinctive.

So – to do that – you need to get some tickets ($40 per) for the 24th Annual Vintners’ Festival, AKA Roots that Rock. They’re available online. Not only winery touring, but your ticket also gives you access to the Downtown Santa Cruz Street Fair – June 9, on Pacific Avenue (between Locust and Walnut Streets), where you’ll rock to music, artisan foods, more wines and loads of live entertainment.

So if you’d like to tour the wineries on the “other side of the hill” – plan to hop in the car the weekend of June 1 & 2, from noon to 5pm.

And to tour the participating wineries in Santa Cruz County, get set for the weekend of June 8 & 9, and then head over to the June 9 street fair from 11am until 3pm.

All you really have to remember is “the best locally-made wine” – and those two weekends of tasting. The intel on the SCMWA website will walk you through the rest.

Salut!

Eye-Opening re: Green labels

by Christina Waters | May 20, 2013 | Home | 1 comment

Thanks to Dee Vogel for sending me this very (very) interesting link—a huge flow-chart tracking the mega-corporate owners of all those “natural” food labels you love.

You’ll be amazed – and possibly uncomfortable.

Dutch Treat @ the deYoung Museum

by Christina Waters | May 10, 2013 | Home | 0 comments

After an arduous morning of soaking up Netherlands’ finest painters and printmakers—including several matchless Rembrandts, the peerless Carl Fabritius, and of course the beautiful if over-hyped Vermeer “Girl with the Pearl Earring,” we needed some food.

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.