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On our last night of the week of the fancy food show, My wife and I ate at, BARAKA... Located in Portrero Hill... Great ambience, wonderful food and great service.... Our best value meal of the week after draining our bank account at Chez Panisse, Gary Danko and Slanted Door... A sort of Morrocan/Spanish combo kind of tapas kind of thing... Highly recomended... and oh yeah, A great wine list with very good by the glass selections...

I will swerve recklessly and come to a blinding halt from excessive speeds anytime I pass a flea market or roadside sale if I think there is any possibility of reaping the benefits of a great Le Cruset piece or perfectly seasoned Lodge or similar cast iron pan... My kitchen is full of such triumphs... I have never bought either of these new... You know, you can get replacement knobs for those dinged up pieces of LC... Oops, minor edit

Susan, Craig really nails it... With such a huge amount of land under vines, differing micro-climates and various(modern/traditional) vinting techniques, the ability for winemakers to express the wide ranging attributes of the tempranillo grape are endless. Possibly a good way to develop a sense of this is is to ease into your appreciation of the grape with some blends... There are many available that will not set you back an arm and a leg and are readily available at any good wine shop... Three come to mind: Abadia Retuerta Rivola Sardon de Duero (Ribera del Duero) $10 to $15 Two by Bodegas Nekas (Navarra) both around $8 to $12 Vega Sindoa Tempranillo/Merlot Vega Sindoa Tempranillo/Cabernet Two 100% Temp suggestions are: Albet y Noya Tempranillo (Penedes) Domino de Eguren Codice (Rioja Alta) These are also great values in terms of what you get for what you pay, and are all from different areas of the country. As a bonus, all are great food wines... I mean, what else can you say about a country with a National Museum of Ham!!!

If you have never been, you should treat yourself to a wonderful evening at Sandor's... The best restaurant in Northern Florida by far... Very European in style and tradition...

Can you buy wine at retail in San Francisco on Sundays? Also, can anyone recommend a good wine shop in Union Square?

In no particular order: Alton Brown's Gear... witty, informative, entertaining etc. etc. Best Food Writing 2003...ed. Holly Hughes... great collection (as are previous) Tom Colicchio's Craft of Cooking.. Sure everyone says the restaurant is wildly expensive, but the book will only set you back a partial fraction of a meal there, and wow, a chef's cookbook with actual recipes people can try at home. ( although I am not so sure about the porcetta which calls for brining a whole pig saddle, head and legs removed for other purposes... Sure would be fun to try though!) El Bulli 2003-1998, but only in my dreams...

Here's one... Gosford Park... There are some great scenes in the downstairs kitchen where the staff gathers and we get a great glimpse of the rigidity of British culture at the time... There are also great scenes at table from both the perspective of the owners and the servants... I have worked on movies as a props person doing large dining scenes... What a nightmare in terms of continuity... You know, in one shot an actor has a glass of wine in front of him or her, then a quick cut and back and its gone or is white wine instead of red... That sort of thing...This is a movie with great food scenes to be truly appreciated from a historical and technical aspect...

Castle Rock has two superb offerings in the $12-$15 range... One from Carneros fruit and the other from Russian River fruit... These are both fantastic values in this price range...

Don't forget to put aside some time at the new Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, you can always pick up some great stuff for your hotel room between the show and dinner...

Certainly Babette's Feast applies, especially for the demonstration of the proper manner in which a quail head should be eaten...