Gastronomie

Ferry Plaza through a Visitor's Eyes

A couple of weeks ago, one of my colleagues came to San Francisco for a couple of days of training. Fortunately, Sarah is one of those people that I'd be friends with even if we didn't work together, so it was a great chance to hit a few favorite places for lunch and dinner, as well.

Her first day here, Skye and I took her to the Ferry Plaza for lunch. It was fascinating seeing the Plaza through a non-locals' eyes. Although I never take the bounty of the Farmer's Market for granted, I often forget how amazing it is that San Francisco can sustain, for example,  a shop like Far West Fungi. I mean, how many cities have a storefront that sells ONLY mushrooms??

Anyway. Sarah was craving a grilled cheese sandwich, so off we went to Hog Island.

Skye and I ordered a dozen oysters to share, a clam chowder for her and an oyster stew for me. Sarah ordered a salad plus the grilled cheese -- one of my favorites in town.  I ordered us a bottle of Vietti Arneis, which was really perfect with all our dishes.

As Sarah was marveling at the wonder that is the Ferry Building, it reminded me that I'm so blessed to be able to take an hour out of my day, in the middle of the week, and enjoy a lunch like this.

Yeah, this is another one of those reasons I pay through the nose to live here.

Technorati Tags: Food | Food & Drink | Hog Island | San Francisco | Oakland

This is it, folks, and I'm sweetening the pot!

We're in the home stretch of the Menu for Hope II Fundraiser.  We've raised a mind-blowing $15,316.32 as of 3:11pm, PST.

That means the raffle closes in LESS THAN 6 hours from this very moment.

But, see, here's the thing. We food bloggers are an overachieving bunch. So, with that in mind... whoever donates the LARGEST sum in aggregate (it can be in multiple "gift" donations, or one single large donation) from now until the close of the raffle, will get themselves one of these containers of saffron. And, if the total $ amount exceeds $100, I'll also include a copy of my favorite Persian cookbook.

So, come on folks... let's do this. Let's bring this thing home like champs, shall we?

Happy Holidays to You & Yours... across the globe or across the street.

Phineas Frogg is Home!

I am thrilled to report that last Thursday morning, I delivered one Mr. Phineas Frogg to his new mom in Denver.

I could not have CREATED a better home for Finn. His new mom is a vet tech at a great specialist hospital in the Denver area, which means she gets amazing discounts on everything from boarding to surgeries to specialty food. With all of Finn's ear troubles,  that's going to come in very handy.

He has a new beagle-mix brother, Howdy, and they're already rough-and-tumbling around. He sleeps with his mom's roommate, whom I consider his "surrogate dad", and has his own couch, beds, toys... even a snazzy black and white jogging suit for those chilly Denver mornings.

Finn is so beyond happy that it's made it easier to live with the palpable void he's left behind in the loft. And, of course, Stella & Bo are happy to have us all to themselves again.

So this year, Christmas is in honor of Mr. Frogg, who lived with us for 5 1/2 months, filling our lives with sadness and anger (at the people who'd left him in such awful condition) but more importantly, joy and wonder (at his ability to forgive, love and be loved, without a moment's glance backwards).

Happy Holidays to you all...

A Christmas Menu for Two

This year, C and I are staying home for Christmas and we're not entertaining, either. It's really... weird. I'm just not used to these small little holiday dinners, and I hardly know where to begin. I mean, it's not like I can cook a prime rib roast, because anything under three ribs just isn't worth cooking -- and three ribs easily feeds five or six people.

Right now, I'm leaning towards Beef Wellington, but haven't found a recipe that I really trust yet. Does anyone have one?

C is also requesting Nannie's Party Potatoes, though I made them for Thanksgiving with these guys, and while they are awesome, they're a dish you can really only make once a year (under threat of immediate myocardial infarction). But, knowing me, I'll end up making a small batch anyway.

Though it's definitely a little weird to be having such a quiet holiday, it's really fun to start our own traditions, blending the ones we both grew up with. 

So, tell me, what are your holiday traditions? Oh, and if you have a Beef Wellington recipe you love, throw that my way, too!

Update to Menu for Hope - Persian Pantry

Wow. I'm so impressed, and honored to be part of this amazing group of people.

In well under 72 hours, you've pledged nearly $5,000 towards assisting the people who suffered tragic losses in Kashmir.

Meanwhile, my lovely mama has committed a product that will perfect your Persian Pantry. Can you guess what it is?

It's a 4.6 gram package of Saffron, direct from Khorasan, hand-carried from Tehran less than a month ago. Just that one item is worth $20, bringing the total value of the Pantry to well over $75!

Menu For Hope II

On October 8th, 2005, a devastating earthquake ravaged the Northern region of Pakistan, leaving over 70,000 people dead, and another 100,000 injured.

This says nothing of the 3 million people people whose villages were utterly decimated, and livelihoods destroyed. Now, two months later, the casualties are set to rise again -- exposure and starvation as a result of the bitter cold of winter are challenging the relief efforts and threatening to kill countless more people.

And so it is that the Food Blogging Community brings you a Menu For Hope. All the money we raise will benefit Unicef, and earmarked specifically for the earthquake region.

I'm thrilled to be participating with TWO items up for dibs this time around.

Blackbird Restaurant, Chicago

In the past couple of years, I've gradually "learned" how to be a single diner without feeling awkward, and without hiding behind a book. Still, though, going to an upscale restaurant can be hit-or-miss.

Some restaurants consider single diners, especially women, bothersome and not worth the trouble. Others revel in a chance to show off their best dishes to someone who is clearly there just for the experience. Blackbird restaurant in the West Loop of Chicago elevates the latter to an whole new level.

I had called the week prior for a reservation, and when I arrived, I was asked if the bar would be to my taste, or if I preferred a table. One look at the packed restaurant told me that sitting at the bar would be the kind thing to do; had I known that smoking was allowed at the bar, I might have asked for a table, but fortunately, my meal wasn't terribly affected by the smoke.

After spending a few minutes with the menu, I asked my server (who actually turned out to be a co-owner of the restaurant) if there was anything on the entree menu that I simply couldn't miss, since I was hoping to order three appetizers instead of an entree. Donald told me the "kitchen has a way with pork belly", but asked which three apps I was looking at. Then he told me I should go ahead and stick with my original game plan.

10,000 Miles of Food

With all the traveling I’ve been doing (literally 10,000 miles in under 6 weeks), it’s been hard to get motivated to sit down and write a few posts. Certainly, it has nothing to do with a shortage of meals to write about.

I’ve had two dinners in Colorado that are quite blog-worthy, and two in Chicago – one of which it would be a great disservice NOT to write about.

And of course, there have been some fun events here at home – an Open House at Hangar One, our first Outstanding in the Field dinner, plus a fabulous brunch at L’Artiste Patisserie in Los Angeles.

As I sit here on my flight from Oakland to Chicago and then on to Hartford, I can hardly decide where to start. So, I think I’ll start at the beginning – in Colorado.