tanabutler

An Indian man I know from a local farmers market recommends Pasand: locations in Santa Clara and Berkeley. Also, Dasaprakash gets rave reviews from him, and from eGulleteers. One more, no link: Saravana Bhavan 1305 S. Mary Ave. Sunnyvale, CA 94087

Nipples of Nefertiti Cocoa and coconut meringues that melt in your mouth. Brown-breasted confections dipped in dark chocolate. Hollow inside. Dear God, they are good. I make them once a year for Valentine's Day. They require 10 egg whites. I guarantee them.

Burke and Wells on food: though they don't blog per se. "Thirteen Ways of Looking at Chocolate" and "Perfect Scrambled Eggs" are very worthwhile reads. Aside from that, I can't figure out if I like those guys or not. I think I do, but I think their writings both remind me of Ignatius Reilly in A Confederacy of Dunces with advanced degrees. They also go to Paris. I just want to give them both a hot dog cart and see how they do.

Where do you live, Naguere? And how much does your friend spend on wines?

I know this is written in English, but it makes no sense to me. "Too much food"?

Are you kidding me? He can bring his wife to Santa Cruz (down Highway One, a gorgeous drive) and see not only the dramatic California coastline, but enormous redwoods, as well...less than an hour and a half from San Francisco. There are two redwood parks in the county, and one is only 15 minutes from the ocean. That would be Henry Cowell State Park (that is a clickable map that opens up QTVR scenes): the tallest tree is nearly 300 feet tall and 16 feet wide. The oldest trees are 1400-1800 years old. You could stop in Pescadero (two miles inland, about 40 miles south of San Francisco), which is the town that time forgot. A visit to Archangeli grocery store nets you artichoke bread and Harley Farms Goat Cheese, which just won six national prizes. (You could tour the farm, as I did last week, but a European might have already seen more goats in her lifetime than she wants to.) If it sounds quaint, it is. Pescadero is lovely. Santa Cruz is relaxing and casual, though you can dress for dinner if you like. "Relaxing" as opposed to Carmel, which I find unbearably stuffy, if not downright haughty. There are so many good little bistros serving the best of California's seasonal/organic produce. (Oswald, Ristorante Avanti, Gabriella Cafe, Sestri...and now I am told that the new chef at Soif, Chris Avila, is kicking butt, too. So sayeth chef David Kinch, who frequents Soif now.) Downtown Santa Cruz is a shopper's mecca: it's got galleries, one of the best kitchen stores I know, bookstores, coffee shops, movie theaters, tons of clothing stores: everything. There are so many beaches, and so many places for exquisite views....like up at UCSC, which has a view to Monterey. There are sloughs filled with egrets and water fowl, rivers and creeks, and the rolling golden hills. While there is plenty to do, there is also plenty of nothing to do. Plenty of spacious beaches, plenty of trails to hike or bike, plenty of places to spread a blanket and have a picnic overlooking the Monterey Bay. Should you come on Thursday afternoon, there is a sweet little farmers market down in the village in Capitola-by-the-Sea, and it is by the sea. It's also just down the hill from Gayle's Bakery and Rosticceria, which any eGulleteer who's been there will praise. Well, that's my two cents. Come to Santa Cruz, just over an hour away. Who wants to spend all day in a car?

Outstanding in the Field Farm Dinners & Tours will have Christopher Tracy of Channing Daughters Winery as the guest winemaker at a farm dinner and tour at Quail Hill Community Farm in Amagansett on Sunday, September 26. The guest chef is Seth Caswell, of Nick and Toni's, as recommended by chef Dan Barber of Blue Hill. Channing Daughters provided some of the wine at the OitF dinner at which Dan Barber was guest chef last October at Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Sleepy Hollow. Time/cost details are at the OitF site, linked above.

Fun sounds good, and I'm glad to hear it.

I hadn't seen that before: it's wonderful reading.

With all due respect, I am just geared to comedy and I can't help it. I would pay money to see out-takes on "Candid Camera" to see how people tried to negotiate this level of The Art of Food. My imagination keeps coming back to this. I have read the comments elsethread (in other Alinea threads) about humor being in place. This speaks to my most primal fear about Fine Dining, which is that it will be like a hushed gallery where no exuberance (and God forbid, laughing out loud) is allowed. "Allowed" is the wrong word. What happens in places like Trio or French Laundry when a comic bit takes place? You all know what I mean...something goes flying off the fork (thin-wired apparatus, lollipop, etc.). Does a wide-receiving waiter go out to catch? Do people laugh, genially? Is it social suicide? Well, hopefully not that, but, well, Grant, can you address this for me? I'm not trying to be a smart-ass. I just don't want to go somewhere where implements might intimidate. I negotiated the escargot apparatus just fine. How does your serviceware compare in difficulty? And I guess this is a two-part question. How do you gauge the ambient noise? How do you set the baffles and chambers to absorb (as opposed to, say, TGIF, who puts in tin ceiling tiles to amplify every single sound in the joint, so it sounds loud and populated and "friendly")? How do you describe the noise level? "Ambient Hollywood restaurant: murmuring with occasional tinkle of glassware and slight audible laughter"? How does one script that? Where there is food, there is comedy, and restaurants are theater. Should I post my noise question in the general thread? It seems all of a piece to me, but I'm willing to be sub-divided if need be.

I have enjoyed the writing in this thread--its realness, and its lack of attitude--quite a lot. Thanks, John Wabeck. Thanks for being so forthcoming, and thanks for being game. (If not downright gamey, at least after 12 hours of par-tay.) I've never been to your neck of the woods, but I intend to look in on you should that occasion arise. Meanwhile, I'll pass the recommendation along to smart family members in the area. Ciao and thanks.

I hope you turn this into a blog of wonder, because the idea of being young and working on a farm is so wonderful. Also, keep your eyes and ears open, and be a scout for a chef here in California, who does "farm dinners and tours." Since 1999, he's been going around the country, visiting organic farms and orchards, and bringing thousands of people to tour them and feast on the farm. I would love to hook you up. I would love to see your blog. Feel free to e-mail me (tana@tanabutler.com) with questions...we need to network. How did you find this group? So wonderful!

These things are great, though I can't help but imagine some of the mishaps...food going twanging across the table, etcetera. Where there is food, there is comedy.

WOWSERS, Al Dente. How was the rest of your trip on the California coast?

I tried to call and was routed into the seventh circle of voicemail hell, but here is the number: (972) 980-9917 That's Brinker International in Dallas, Texas. Ask for someone with Romano Macaroni Grill...she's out of town today but Stephanie at x7285 has voice mail. You can ask her. I don't give out my phone number to corporations like that.

Balmagowry, I happily will receive ANY spare Julia Child cookbooks. I have only one (baking)...and I feel remiss. Empty. A shell of a woman! And I've been terrible, I haven't been to the post office to mail your book, Judiu. Has the address changed? PM me if you like. I have to go today, as I am also mailing my camera back to the hospital.

What's the Zuni recipe like (loosely)?

Right about now is when some New Jersey Italians should weigh in, because that's who was hammering the guys at Happy Boy Farms at the Santa Cruz farmers market last month. "Are these REAL Romanos? Because I know what a real one is, and I haven't had one yet that was the real thing." What recipes do you need? Toss in a pan with some sautéed tomatoes and basil, or tarragon. They're so good. Why not use the yellows? I wish a chef would weigh in here.

Well, and how is our Rancho Gordo doing, Don Pardo? Did he sell his heirloom (hair loom?) beans? Seriously, mon ami, how was the FPM on your first day? Ironically (or not), I went to San Francisco this week, and did not go to the marketplace for the first time in over a year. But I sent friends, so that counts.

It's still your birthday in California, Signore. I'm having prosecco, as promised. To you!

Happy birthday, Craig. Prosecco tonight at Casa Soquel in your honor! (Or, erhm, um, maybe make that sparkling rosé.)

Tommy's blond? My worldview is shaken. I have thought all this time that I was reading a brunette's words. (No, seriously, nice to put a face to the name.) Hey, who in the hell leaves a full bowl of guacamole?

Germantown Café is a $4 cab ride, says owner Chris Lowry. A trusted foodie friend in Nashville likes it there.

Speaking of drinks, nice jugs.

I drove, so don't know about public transportation. Tivoli is about 20 miles from Rome. I ate at La Taverna della Rocca, and loved it. Hotel Sirene link. Be sure to click on the "Internet Specials" link, they have a great bargain which includes a bottle of prosecco, tickets to the Villa d'Este and Villa Adriana, and breakfasts--for €240. From a Tivoli travel site: The Tommy/Italy 101 thread might be helpful. Also the Hook a brotha up! thread. EDIT: Tivoli: Discover the City web site.