by Christina Waters | May 24, 2010 | Home |
Cool as a cucumber and tart as Serena Williams, my new favorite cocktail can be found at Oswald. I’m calling it “Rites of Spring” and it definitely leads to spirited behavior.
The secret ingredient of this crisp, unsweet, distinctive drink is…..cucumber. Specifically English cucumber. Muddled into the the goblet, first cucumber slices and then a fresh strawberry. Add a fresh lemon and ice-cold vodka. Amazing.
Actually, I encountered the cucumber recently as the secret weapon in another cocktail, the Bellevue, at Hawg’s, where it is joined by ginger liqueur and Hendrick’s gin. Also killer.
by Christina Waters | May 24, 2010 | Art, Home |
Dirty Dozen: Amy Boewer, one of the twelve Irwin Scholars for 2010, puts the finishing touches on her military industrial altar site in time for the exhibition opening and reception, this Thursday May 27 at 5pm.
Filling the gallery’s three studios with innovative (don’t miss Carrie Ferguson‘s high-tech hygiene installation) and haunting (Cahill Wessel’s anime-meets-graffiti illustrations) artworks, the show includes pieces by Rosie Chesney, Calen Barca Hall, Nathan Dickersin-Prokopp, Leonel Diaz, JJ Campanaro, Kenny Srivijittakar, Bridget Ho, Laurel Maha and Martha Rodriguez.
Come see what the new wave looks like; reception and awards ceremony, May 27. The show runs through June 12 at the Mary Porter Sesnon Gallery, Porter College, UCSC.
by Christina Waters | May 20, 2010 | Home, Wine |
Cabrillo College’s culinary students teamed up with the Surf City Vintners for the first annual Dare to Pair food and wine challenge on May 22. And in a nutshell, we came, we munched, we sipped.
Teams of culinary students paired with wine from each of the 12 Surf City wineries took the challenge to dream up dishes that exactly matched the flavor tones of the wines. Then they came to the wineries and did a little “remote cooking.”
It was one of those sensual events that made for delicious flavors, plenty of quality schmoozing and more than a little culinary education. The student chefs (more…)
by Christina Waters | May 17, 2010 | Home, Movies |
The first time around, it was Robert Downey Jr. I was watching. And even with this second installment of the Marvel Comic hero, Downey is an endlessly adroit chameleon, able to pivot moods in micro-seconds. Yet, somehow—especially since most of the film reduces to a series of high-tech explosions—it’s Mickey Rourke I’m watching this time around.
No man sports tattoos better than Rourke, who’s made a performance piece out of his scars, unfathomable hair and more-macho-than-thou dress code. He could make tattoed feet a global fashion statement. But obviously the key to his seductive loser’s swagger lies elsewhere.
Seemingly free of pretense, he appears grittier, more real than the very screen he explodes upon. When he unleashes whips of fire and electricity, he’s believable. The metal teeth, the gutteral Russian accent, the unnaturally swollen fingernails that attack keyboards in order to reprogram satellite software—I submit, utterly, to whatever it is this guy’s selling. (more…)
by Christina Waters | May 17, 2010 | Home |
Make plans for this Friday’s opening reception. Art for Art is positively packed with new works by some of our best painters, printmakers, and mixed media mavens. I’m especially looking forward to seeing what Charles Prentiss, Hildy Bernstein, Sara Friedlander, Bridget Henry, Ann Wasserman and Daniella Woolf have been up to.
They will be joined by (more…)
by Christina Waters | May 5, 2010 | Food, Home |
In his glory and surrounded by a) adoring culinary fans, b) terrific music, and c) spicy aromas of garlic, chile and ginger, Joseph Schultz ascended the stage/altar and wok’d and wok’d until no plate was empty.
It was a May Day afternoon devoted to gado gado, Dragon chicken (very mild), Calamari two ways (the djawa was superb, just like the old days), Pad Thai (glorious texture and temperature, invisible flavor), and never-better lashings of Hibiscus Cooler. While Irene Herrmann plus the ubiquitous Rangells filled the courtyard nextdoor to the restaurant-in-waiting with mandolin melodies, the crowd ate its fill.
Astonishingly enough the entire outdoor, makeshift, camp cooking operation went smoothly. (more…)
