Dish from the Farm
Think you can’t love collard greens? Think again! Here’s a seasonal specialty from Jim Leap, Center for Agroecology Farm Manager and organic grower extraordinaire. Farm Managers Favorite Collards Collard Greens as Plate Ingredients: . Freshly harvested collard...
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...
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,...
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...
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...
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...
Gayle’s Turns 30!
Unbelievable - but true. While the actual celebration happens on February 14, the glorious bakery and rosticerria is offering oodles of great reasons to come to Gayle's starting right now. Pictured here is a lunch we took home last week — luscious rosti from the...
Aptos Au Midi
The Chocolate Creation of the Year: Yearning for some authentic French cooking? You will want to sample the handiwork of chef Muriel Loubiere, who along with husband Michel has opened Au Midi, a small, charming place devoted to a small menu of French culinary hits....
Oswald Update, etc.
First off, there are changes on Water Street. Il Trullo is changing hands - and soon to become something called Limoncello. The word on the street is that Giovanni di Maiao, chef of the original Cafe Bella Napoli, might be coming back to the kitchen. Mangiamo, and...
Condiment of the Week
That would be the "Original California-Style" hot pepper sauce known as (ta-da!) The Pepper Plant. We discovered this zippy hot sauce at Margie's Diner in Paso Robles on the way back from the Mojave last week. Made in Gilroy, this all-natural product is saucy and...