Indulgence
Think how many souls you could have sprung from limbo with this block of butter! Fifty-five pounds of butter, to be exact. This is only one of dozens of butter blocks that will be carved into pastry, frosting, cakes and cookies at Gayle's Bakery on any given day. I...
Tapenade
My on-going grazing tour of La Jolla continued last week with lunch at the very smartly decorated Tapenade, a few blocks off the seaside village main drag of Prospect Street. Pale yellow walls, handsome floral design and attractive waiters all set a positive tone to...
The Secret Life of Candy: Part I
How long will it take for someone to notice the red gummi bear sticking to the front of the clock? Whose hand is furtively moving away from the clock? What mystery culprit licked the back of the candy bear and stuck it onto the clock face? These are only some of the...
Soif’s Up!
Two recent visits to Soif put me in direct contact with flavor dazzle, starting with small plates of those addictive roasted Marcona almonds and crostini topped with tangy boquerones and aioli (shown left). An appetizer of fresh Dungeness crab salad joined by a...
Julie’s in Alameda
Along Park Street, the main - and only - drag in atmospheric (read: funky) Alameda, there are dozens of bars and an increasing number of coffee places. My favorite is Julie's - 1223 Park St., - where the house specialty is scones and home-made clotted cream, aka...
Artistic Abstractions
Abstractions - an ambitious and colorful exhibition of original artwork opens this Friday at a quartet of Santa Cruz County Banks throughout the county. Inspired by energy, emotion, and the environment, seven women artists explore the expressive qualities of line,...
Piece of Cake
In a room that smelled like paradise I watched a woman adding intricate lettering to the top of a freshly-made birthday cake. Find out where I was. In the March 5, Metro Santa Cruz.
A16 in San Francisco
To Die For!: Giving new meaning to the word “chocolate,†was a spectacular chocolate budino tart I shared with friends on the night of the recent lunar eclipse. The place was A16 (see the current Condé Nast Traveler), on Chestnut Street in San Francisco. A long,...
Maderos @ Gabriella
Recent paintings by Tom Maderos - plein air and still life specialist - will fill the interior of Gabriella Cafe starting on March 10. The show, which continues through May 5, will show off Maderos' expressionistic skills with oil on canvas. If Diebenkorn had painted...
Oscar Mop-up
Did I call it, or what? Well, almost. I was wrong about Julie Christie, but otherwise . . . An all-European quartet of major Oscar-winners surely made a statement, though I'm not quite sure what it was. It's hard not to be moved at Javier Bardem's jubilation (AP...
Heritage Birds et al.
At Avanti last week, Jack feasted on his beloved meatballs with ribbons of pappardelle (they are killer) , while I roamed the range looking for some new flavor hit. Big fun arrived in the form of a roast half Poulet Rouge, one of those deeply flavored, heirloom French...
Oscars
Not glued to the tube during this year's Oscar telethon — I'll be at a wine class for two of the three hours — I will nonetheless remain in solidarity with all the Red Carpet bling, AND the award-winners. These will include: Daniel Day Lewis for Best Actor - his...
Ying Fever
China — its art and history, inspired a new museum-wide exhibition opening this weekend at the Museum of Art & History, in downtown Santa Cruz. Based upon relationships brokered by curator Susan Hillhouse, the ambitious network of presentations involves...
Heirloom Recipe
Gramma Gouin's WWI Applesauce Cake: This recipe for an exceptional tea cake comes from my Aunt Virlyne Gouin, a terrific cook and baker, who learned this recipe from her mother-in-law, Annie Gouin. It was a favorite war-time dessert as "eggs were hard to get," says my...
Cruz in the News
Our very own downtown enoteca Vinocruz, was showcased in Friday's Wall Street Journal. And for good reason. This little gem of a tasting depot - tucked behind the Octagon on Cooper Street - offers 185 wines from 64 area wineries, some famous and celebrated, others...
Happy 30th!
Stay tuned - you might just find this delightful anniversary image on a tote bag very soon!
Newsflash: Gabriella for Sale!
No kidding - Paul Cocking told me that he's interested in moving on, changing the pace of his life — the exhausting hours involved in restaurant work! — and perhaps even changing careers entirely. Gabriella Cafe is definitely for sale, so if you can put together a...
Wine Wonk
John Locke - not the British Empiricist philosopher but the mischievous Santa Cruz wine wonk - is setting a brisk pace in Soif's upper room with his Sunday evening wine classes. After taking Locke's high-powered wine and cheese workshop last fall, I was more than...
Earth to Hillary: It’s Makeover Time!
Come on – even anorexic starlets have handlers and trainers who make sure they’re ready for their close-ups. Why can’t the powerful and brilliant Mrs. Clinton get herself some consultants on image, attitude and rhetoric? Hillary – it’s time for your...
The Past is So Yesterday
Or at least that’s the rhetoric du jour being hustled in the O-Ring. Like many demagogues, the tall, dark candidate is a Rorschach for the disappointed entitlement of the masses. (Is there a Leni Riefenstahl in the house?) He appeals to “those who want to...
Coffee Cat
The man at the helm of the mighty Diedrich coffee roasting technology — located inside the sleek, aromatic Coffee Cat coffee house in Scotts Valley — is Rory Phares. Here he's checking on the roasting temperature for a batch of Colombian beans. You can smell the...
Cafe Society
If you look around you might just spot a 21st century Simone de Beauvoir or Jean-Paul Sartre sitting and scribbling something deep at one of the little tables on the deck of River Cafe, at 415 River Street in Santa Cruz. The perfect spot to soak up a bit of winter...
Get Smart About Food
Trends and Issues in the Food Industries is the title of Shirley Tessler’s exciting new Cabrillo College culinary arts class exploring contemporary issues involved in the production, processing and sale of food products. Starting next Tuesday, Feb. 12, the class...
A few choice bites…
Limoncello, O'mei, Shadowbrook: Three of us checked out the very tempting $19.47, three-course dinner at Shadowbrook last night. Yum, in a word. The price is a budget-friendly reference to the founding year of this landmark - and to celebrate 60 years of hospitality...