Gastronomie

The Dog? He Blogs.

Technorati Tags: Dogs | Blogging | French Bulldog | San Francisco | Oakland

Plune Brogging... I mean, Prune Blogging!

No, this isn't some weird fetish post about staying in the bath so long your skin turns pruney.

Rather, it's one man's (neurotic) quest to "Give Prunes Their Due!"  I don't really know what prunes are due... maybe a better name? I did notice that the nice folks over at Sunkist are calling them "Dried Plums" now. Anyway.

Of course, because I love and adore David, and think he's the neatest thing since Pierre Herme macarons, I couldn't pass up the chance to partake in this neat event. Then, a funny thing happened.

I rediscovered one of my very favorite Persian recipes: Toss Kabab (or Tas Kebab, as you wish). My nanny used to make this dish many moons ago, and the taste of it is utterly comforting to me. C put this on the "top 10 dishes" list, so I hope it's not just my childhood memories.

WBW Reminder

One week and counting... just a reminder that Wine Blogging Wednesday is next week. That gives you a WHOLE WEEKEND to round up a wine that's produced in quantities UNDER 250 cases.

I know a few of you are having a really hard time finding something within your budget, so here are a few suggestions:

1. Don't forget to look at "stickies" (dessert wines). A lot of late harvest bottlings are produced in quantities well under 500 cases. Keep an eye out for Australian stickies, in particular.
2. If you find something that really intrigues you but it's, say, 275 cases, by all means, GRAB IT! The purpose of this WBW is to ultimately to introduce you (hopefully) to a producer you might not otherwise have found because of its size.  Just keep with the spirit of the theme, and do the best you can.
3. If you're really, really, really hard up... read on to get my little "cheat-sheet" -- wines I know the production of, and that are priced well. There are a couple over $40 on this list, but most of them are well under $20.

Everett & Jones, back on the upswing?

When C & I were in escrow on our place in Jack London Square, one of the things that kept us sane through the process was the knowledge that Everett & Jones Barbeque would be right down the street from us.

Sadly, not long after we moved in, quality and service went downhill--WAY downhill. The brisket was frequently overcooked, and the ribs were more gristle than meat. Everything was drowning in sauce, and heaven help you if you needed your waitron. Once the food was unceremoniously dropped on your table, you weren't likely to see him or her again.

The incident that broke the camel's back happened about a year ago. C & his best friend went in on a Friday night for a pretty early dinner. A meal that should have taken an hour or so was drawn out... and out... until 2.5 hours after they'd been seated, they finally asked for their check. It never came. 30 minutes later, they got up and walked out.

But lately, the rumor mill has been buzzing with word that E & J had cleaned up their act. That they'd lost more that just these two regulars, and that the family was getting more involved again. Still, could we risk a sit-down dinner? One more really bad experience, and we might be put off forever. Could we afford that?

So last night, we ordered our usual "Combo #9" ($19.55) for take-out.

Ribs, Links & Brisket, dry. Medium sauce on the side. Cornbread, Greens & Macaroni Salad. Come to mama, sugar.

My Delivery Woes

I love living in Oakland. I really do. Places like Old Oakland's Ratto's and Caffe 817, La Farine, Heinold's, Hangar One and Luka's make living here a joy. And, I probably get 25% more space for my mortgage dollar than I would in the city. Add to that the fact that I'm 6 minutes to BART and 6 minutes to the Ferry (I actually get to the city faster than my friends in the Richmond or Sunset), and I wouldn't live anywhere else in the Bay Area.

That said...

DELIVERY OPTIONS IN OAKLAND SUCK!

C and I spent 35 minutes calling one restaurant after another trying to find delivery that isn't gross. In that amount of time, I could have MADE dinner. I mean, seriously, not even Round Table or Pizza Hut delivers to Jack London Square.

At the end of the ninth fruitless phone call, I finally said, "f*ck it, I'm cooking".

Anyone have any good tips for Oakland delivery? PLEASE?

Technorati Tags: Food | Food & Drink | Delivery | Restaurants | San Francisco | Oakland

Manresa... All of it is True

Last night, we joined two dear friends for our first visit to Manresa.

We didn't bring the camera, and we didn't take notes. It wasn't a meal to blog about, but an evening to catch up, chat, drink and laugh.

But I can't help but tell you--EVERYTHING you've heard about Manresa is true.

The attention to detail, to texture, to the interplay between hot and cold, sweet and salty... it's all there. We all ate something last night that pushed the boundaries of our palates, and we enjoyed them.

The service is impeccable.  The room is beautiful. And Chef Kinch is a gentleman and genius.

Whatever excuse you've been using to put off a visit (ours was the travel time, and it took less than an hour from Oakland), lose it. Make a reservation. Today.

Technorati Tags: Food | Food & Drink | Manresa | Los Gatos | San Francisco | Bay Area

Cafe Rouge, Berkeley

Café Rouge has long been one of those "ladies who lunch" places for me; whenever my mom is in town, we invariably end up there or at the Rotunda at Neiman-Marcus (aka, "Needless-Markup") for refreshment after a few hours of power-shopping.

But in all honesty, I can't remember the last time I actually had dinner at Rouge, which explains why I've never written about it. Because, after all, a restaurant can't be judged on Salades Nicoise and white wine alone.

This past Saturday night, after hemming and hawing for hours over what we felt like eating and how far we wanted to drive, and never actually making a reservation at the one place C's parents really wanted to go (House of Prime Rib), we narrowed our choices down to Eccolo and Café Rouge. As it happened, Rouge had a reservation at the time we wanted to eat, so off we went. Turned out to be quite a fine choice.

A couple of glasses of Bortoluzzi Pinot Grigio ($7.50) for Mom and me, with a Trumer Pilsner for C got things started. Tasty but slightly tired Pains Epi were brought to the table along with sweet butter while we perused the menu and the room.

The room, which I'd never been in after dark, was really pleasant to be in. Fun lighting and warm paint colors made the rather vacuous space seem cozy, and despite the high ceilings and full room, it never got too loud.

What is it, #7

OK, this one is fun. Really fun. There are a couple of people out there who I think might get it...

The reveal happens tomorrow (Friday) at noon PST.

Guess Who's Hosting WBW #15?

That's right, yours truly!

The theme? Well, that image up there is your first clue.

Your second clue might be my complete lack of prejudice for a particular varietal, region or style of wine.

Finally, consider my love of the underdog, the little guy, the specialist...

Papa's Restaurant, Berkeley

My latest for KQED is up... I finally made it to Papa's Restaurant in Berkeley.

Not my favorite Persian restaurant, but certainly good enough for those days when we need a "fix", and don't have it in us to drive across the bridge. One of these days, we're going to have to do a crawl of the place in Fremont I've been told about.

In other news, it's been a VERY busy couple of weeks between our travels, C's folks being in town and our car's radiator saying "sayonara"--HUGE props to C for negotiating us a GREAT deal on a FAB new car.

At any rate, stay tuned for reviews of the following:

• Brunch at Tamarindo
• Dinner at Cafe Rouge
• House of Chicken & Waffles
• Penelope's in Estes Park

Technorati Tags: Food | Food & Drink | Persian | Berkeley | Iran | San Francisco | KQED