Another Great Idea from Gayle’s
Meatloaf. Ready to heat and eat. Delicious and yes, I'll say it: just like mama used to make. I picked some up yesterday, along with a half freshly-baked loaf of traditional Irish soda bread. And for a side dish, a substantial square of feather-light, fresh corn...
Sacred Hearth
Chase the last gloomy nights of winter with a Sacred Hearth. 1 part Cynar 1 part Campari 2 parts gin a squeeze of lemon no ice If you haven't tried Cynar — a high-octane distillation of artichoke — you haven't lived.
Hunter Hill Pinot Noir
From the small Glen Haven estate of Hunter Hill comes this new pinot noir release by winemaker Vann Slatter. And it's a big bold creation powered by dry-farmed grapes grown high above Soquel. Hence the intensity of this 13.5 % alcohol wine. The 2007 Estate Pinot Noir...
Lovely Wine, Affordable Wine
That would be the Chalone Vineyard Chardonnay 2008 from Monterey County decorating the bargain rack at Shoppers Corner. I can't believe this wine doesn't cost twice the price! We liked this smartly-constructed, lightly-oaked wine for its balanced 13.5% alcohol and its...
Nibbly Bits
May Day: Joseph Schultz is set on opening his new India Joze on May 1. Stay tuned.... Oyster bar Mondays coming any minute now to Soif. Stay tuned closely. No more Black China retail/cafe - instead there's now Caffe Tazzina, with an all-new, not entirely vegetarian...
Cojones on the Rocks
We all knew that mountain climbers were a different breed. We just didn't know how different. Now we do, thanks to North Face, which opens next week at The Nick. Never before have adventure junkies gotten so close to the testosterone-drenched thrills of alpine...
Big Bargain White
Wine. Grüner Veltliner. Dry aromatic white wine that is almost unbearably easy to drink. Furthermore, this one — from Biohof Pratsch — is available in a super-size, liter bottle for only $12.99 @ New Leaf. The most widely-planted grape of Austria, GV famously...
Vaughan Williams Concert
Nothing compares with being in the midst of a live performance. The UCSC Concert Choir, conducted by Nathaniel Berman, will perform two musical masterworks by Ralph Vaughan Williams, Friday and Saturday March 12 & 13, @ 8pm. Friday, March 12, the choir performs Dona...
Dessert of the Week
The croissant bread pudding with bourbon glaze at Hollins House. Double OMG.
Windy Oaks @ Soif
Expert interpreter of the pinot noir grape, Jim Schultze of Windy Oaks Estate, will brings some of his supple Burgundian-style pinots to pour, detail and interpret, this coming Saturday, February 27. The informal tasting workshop takes place at Soif, from 2-4 pm, for...
Levitsky @ MichaelAngelo Gallery
On the First Friday artcrawl next week, don't miss the large show of original oil paintings by contemporary realist Burt Levitsky. On display at this show will be 16 paintings representing Levitsky's substantial body of work from the past eight years. (Genevieve...
String Theory @ The Buttery
There they are again, those folkloric musicologists the Rangells, fingers flying in the central windowfront nook at The Buttery last Sunday morning. Along with the area's most sought-after musical collaborator, Irene Herrmann (show at left, Paul center, Emily at...
MFA Exhibition Spotlights UCSC Alum
The precocious gifts of extreme abstract oil painter Ian Pines are on exhibit for the next two weeks down at UCLA's New Wight Gallery. Pines, who graduated three years ago from UCSC with a BA in Art, is completing his MFA degree down south with a new suite of...
El Salchichero Headed to the Westside
When Mark Sanchez of Kelly's Bakery told me that artisanal meat guy Chris la Veque was coming to the Westside, I had to check it out. And it's true! La Veque's amazing hand-butchered cured meats and salames have graced the kitchens of Gabriella, Cellar Door and...
The White Ribbon
A riddle in the key of repression - and destined to win a few Oscars. "Director Michael Haneke believes that one generation’s moral decay is rarely eradicated, but lingers submerged in the collective unconscious until future events trigger its return. In a German...
Weekly Addiction
Here we are again, swilling the sushi and sashimi at Kawa Sushi (corner of Mission & Bay). It's pretty hard to beat the incredible protein & wasabi hit of this menu. Service is outstanding, the tables are generously spaced, and you can actually carry on a conversation...
Bargain Basement Pinot
Harlow Ridge. You've seen it. You've been tempted. You've walked on. Reconsider. For $6.99 you could do worse. And you have. This is a better-than-decent tipple, good for a handful of black cherries, a soupçon of cedar, even a hint of smoke. Light 12.5% alcohol, this...
Something You’ve Been Hungry For
Here's the scoop - This morning many of us woke up to an excited email from Joseph Schultz (see below), who has been involved in private discussions with many in the area about various templates for a new culinary showcase. I'm not sure how this will work, and will...
La Posta Rules
La Posta blew me away last week with the best, most satisfying dinner in town, thanks to new chef Katherine Stern. Don't even think twice, just get over there. Authentic Italian dinners made with complete confidence — amazing value for the moderate pricetag. For...
Quickies
Brad Briske (pictured here) still turns out astonishing dishes at Gabriella, which remains open (thanks to voodoo sacrifices and an astute tax attorney). We were once again rendered speechless by lunch last week showcasing designer pizza, hand-made cured meats and...
Paiement Does Wozzeck
Dynamic maestra Nicole Paiement dazzled packed houses in San Francisco last weekend with a series of ingenious performances of Wozzeck, Alban Berg's stormy psychological opera blending surrealism and modernist atonality. Paiement and company worked with a...
More Valentine’s Dining
In Aptos, Muriel Loubiere has filled her Au Midi Valentine's Eve menu with food for lovers. Foods with a provençal accent. It begins with salad of Dungeness crab & shrimp, with lemon coulis & tomatoes emulsion, followed by wild mushroom crème brulée. Entrees...
Recession Dining
Here's how we handle it, this winter/recession thing. Beans, rice and Italian sausages (all natural pork made by New Leaf). Add a big glass of Bonny Doon Vineyard's excellent Sangiovese, a few candles (yes, David, we still dine by candlelight every night), and...
Award-winning Quinta Cruz
Jeff Emery’s splendid Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard wines just continue to find traction, most lately with the judges of the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. Emery’s robust Graciano 2007 bearing his Quinta Cruz label, took Best of Class & Judges’ Choice...