Previewing Sparklers
Some people taste-test tortilla chips, we sample sparkling wines. My self-imposed assignment was to find out just whether a really cheap sparkling wine could be a decent tipple, as opposed to something you'd pour for out-of-towners at your second wedding, or at a...
Megamind! Intelligent Eye Candy
Will Ferrell is the voice of big-headed Megamind, the pale blue skinny super-villain who still dreams of conquering Metro City. But things aren't quite that easy, because Metro Man — Brad Pitt's voice in a sleek, muscle-bound package — is the darling of the...
La Honda’s X Wine
From winemaker Ken Wornick comes this very confident red wine - Exponent - created of an intriguing blend of syrah, cabernet sauvignon, sangiovese and merlot. At $19 a bottle (@ VinoCruz) and 13.8% alcohol, it has the stuff to take on holiday ham, roast beef, raviolis...
Silk Road Dining – Laili on Cooper Street
I've already been getting emails about this new place — Laili — across from Annieglass on Cooper Street in downtown Santa Cruz. Billing its menu as "silk road flavors" - I'm feasting my eyes on a menu loaded with foothill India, Pakistani and Afghan flavors. Beef...
Small Bites
By now you all know that Charlie Parker is leaving The Cellar Door's exhibition kitchen to work at Daniel Patterson's new Oakland eatery Plum. A big loss for all of us who had been pampered by Parker's nuanced dishes at the Bonny Doon Vineyard cafe. . . . Rocco's on...
Seeing John Malkovich
Before I dive into the one-man circus of insanity that is John Malkovich, let me quickly set the table. If you don't like Bruce Willis, you will not like Red. He's on-screen 200% of the time, doing a variety of improvisations on the theme of John McClane two decades...
how much do you miss this?
Nopales and Eggs @ La Mission
For under $8 - including beans, rice and pico de gallo - this fabulous plate full of creamy, cheese-infused, cactus & eggs absolutely cannot be beat. La Mission is next to Yogizmo (sensational organic yogurt) on Mission Street. You knew that.
Domingo Still Soars
The vehicle for legendary tenor Placido Domingo's final salvo with the SF Opera, was a rarely-performed Cyrano de Bergerac. Composed in 1936 by Franco Alfano (a second tier workman known best for his underwhelming completion of Turandot after Puccini's death), the...
Delicious Post-Op(era)
Appetites at full throttle after the drive up and back to the city, my opera companion and I hit Gabriella Cafe last Sunday like cross-dressed longshoremen after a 20-hour shift. Gabriella complied with glasses of Smith Madrone Cabernet Sauvignon (full of cassis and...
Cabrillo Wine Dinner
The lovely Pino Alto dining room at Cabrillo's historic Sesnon House, formed a graceful backdrop for some cool jazz and exciting food and wine pairings last Wednesday evening.The highlights for me were the elegant sounds of Hot Club Pacific trio (who also hold down...
a tale of two operas
I refer to The Marriage of Figaro - live at the San Francisco Opera House - and Das Rheingold, via HD simulcast from the Metropolitan Opera in New York. One experience involved a procession of time, travel, anticipation, the entrance into the great hall, the darkened...
Live Oak Cafe
A dead-ringer for author and film critic Lisa Jensen was seen last week noshing on some fruit-filled pastry and swilling coffee at the Live Oak Cafe, a surprisingly serene oasis tucked into an industrial park off Soquel Drive. The cafe is open for coffee, pastries,...
Grapes and More Grapes
Last Friday I watched one of many busy forklifts in the immediate vicinity of Kelly's, gently placing its load of pinot gris grapes down at the front door of Pelican Ranch Winery. Offered a taste, I savored the robust sweetness of this future 2010 vintage, grapes...
Open Studios – Last Weekend!
And that means a chance to check out the paintings by Charles Prentiss, Sat & Sun, October 16 & 17 from 10am until 5pm. To find out details and directions to Prentiss' oceanview studio, go here.
TLC No More
For six years the source of astounding eggs, pastured pork and an organic paradise for happily and humanely-raised livestock, TLC Ranch has become a casualty of the economy. Jim Dunlop and Rebecca Thistlethwaite, TLC owners, explained in a long newsletter narrative...
Wonder Wine: Windy Oaks Terra Narro
Considered one of the top American pinot noirs under $30, Windy Oaks Estate Terra Narro, vintage 2007 is lovely beyond belief. Soft without ever becoming ephemeral, the 13.9% alc. creation exudes depth, spice, bottom notes of cola and a long suspension of minerals all...
New Leaf Celebrates 25 Years
Whoa! Where did the time go? Back in the late 70s Scott Roseman was your basic UCSC student. Then he got involved in the Food Co-op located on the Westside of Santa Cruz. Next thing you know, there's the Westside Community Market which in turn morphed into the mighty...
Harvest Wine
That rich, sweet, musky aroma you smell this week is wine grapes overflowing their fermenting bins all over the Santa Cruz Mountains. Why not visit some small wineries and see how the crush of 2010 is going? This weekend, October 16 and 17, the Summit Harvest Festival...
Octoberfest @ Soif
A ruby rosé Kalmuck Zweigelt 2009 made the perfect partner for a hearty plate of duck sausage, sauteed napa cabbage and roasted figs at Soif last Sunday, part of the special Octoberfest menu at the popular downtown boite, er, Weinstube.
Liquid Retrospective: 25 Years of Cigare
Bonny Doon Vineyard will host a special dinner to commemorate the recent bottling of the 25th vintage of Le Cigare Volant. Taking place on Friday, October 15, at the Cellar Door Café in Santa Cruz, the menu will include retrospective wine flights of library wines and...
Eloise Pickard Smith Gallery
Make plans to come visit the Eloise Pickard Smith Gallery at UCSC's Cowell College, where two visually opulent shows will open on October 12. Astonishing large-scale images by visual technologist Peter Harris, Flowers in the Digital Age will be shown in the Main...
Art Attack: First Friday
Sensitive figure paintings from a trio of top local artists, Tom Maderos, Barbara Downs and Claire Thorson, will be on exhibition through October 29 starting First Friday at Michaelangelo Gallery. The Artist's Reception - Friday, October 1, 6-8:30pm - will be held at...
What You Need to Know
Report from the Vineyards: Yes, it's true that wild man winemaker Richard Alfaro has cut his locks — "I donated a 15-inch pony tail to Locks of Love," he revealed a few days ago. (You can see why I didn't pry any further.) Alfaro also says he's experiencing a...