Hest88
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I think everyone covered the usual suspects---but when I was in Paris I was delighted to discover these slender dry salami sticks in every butcher. I called them salami Slim Jims and they were great portable snacks. Even better were the "chorizettes" we found at Le Bon Marche which were like chorizo Slim Jims.
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Digest: San Francisco Chronicle Food Section for Wednesday, April 25, 2007
LOCAL WATERS CLAM UP, Olivia Wu
The tiny, sweet shellfish boost coastal environment and diners' seafood choices
Recipes:
Clams Tarragon
Chile Clams with Basil
Chorizo & Clams
Red Clam Chowder
Homemade Gigante Beans
Fussy bean is worth the effort, Karola Saekel
"There is no getting around it: Fava beans are a labor-intensive vegetable. But to aficionados, the time their preparation requires is well spent, and the appearance of favas -- usually in mid-April -- is a sure sign that summer's bounty is just around the corner."
Move over, milk -- almonds are headed for pasteurization, Carol Ness
"Starting Sept. 1, under industry-written rules adopted March 30 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, almost all almonds sold in the United States will have to be treated, either with short blasts of steam or dry heat, or with a carcinogenic chemical that's used to make bowling balls and foam seat cushions as well as insecticide."
Taster's Choice, Carol Ness
Frozen blueberries fail to wow panelists
The Working Cook, Tara Duggan
It's OK to tinker a tad with tradition
Recipes:
Pasta con le Sarde
Quick ’n’ Dirty Red Beans & Rice
Seattle chef caters to West Coast tastes, Carol Ness
"In his fun and user-friendly new cookbook "West Coast Cooking," Seattle chef and food writer Greg Atkinson starts out by asking if there even is such a thing -- and if so, what defines it."
Recipe:
Pacific Ponzu Salmon
- Restaurant Openings: Spork and Izzy's Steak and Chop House
- Pipkins Pit BBQ sausages
- Artisanal Iowa pork
Star chefs gala...Cabs for a cause...Staglin music festival
Restaurants
Dining Out, Michael Bauer
Lively scene with tapas and drinks to match at Oakland's Cesar
(This review appeared Sunday, April 22, 2007)
Dining Out, Karola Saekel
Ethiopian fusion food comes to Oakland
Dining Update, Michael Bauer
A taste of France on Grant Avenue
Tires prove irresistible to Taylor's. . . Italy on Minnesota. . . Bacar on hiring spree. . . and more.
- Restaurant Openings: Spork and Izzy's Steak and Chop House
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Nice to see I'm in good company. Once or twice a year I indulge in a Sausage & Egg McMuffin, usually on cold winter days.
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How pretty. It's shaped like pictures of yellow passionfruit pictures I've seen, but I didn't know they came in orange.
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Wonderful account. Thanks! (BTW, Golden Flower happens to be my favorite pho place, so I'm glad you liked it---even if you didn't get pho.)
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Digest: San Francisco Chronicle Wine Digest and 96 Hours section, Friday, April 13, 2007
East of Napa: Inside Yolo County's emerging wine scene, Georgeanne Brennan, Ann M. Evans
The county has a diverse climate. The western side, where Yolo abuts the Coast Range and the border of Napa County, is hot. It's also hot in the east, along the Sacramento River, but cooler evening breezes flow through the river delta from San Francisco. The soils vary from the clay and gravel of the Dunnigan Hills to the loams along the river in the Clarksburg area.THE SIPPING NEWS:, Jon Bonné, Camper English
- What we've been drinking
- Wine disasters averted!
- Bay Area bartenders invade the Interweb
- eBob gets a dose of Brit wit
- 7 whiskey survival tips
The Tasting Room: A warm welcome from Duckhorn's Philo sister, Olivia Wu
Sit down and look out toward the front, where a bubbling stone fountain and path lead up to French doors, but more surely, your gaze will be pulled by the perfect, geometric rows of vines in back of the house. The rows themselves form a lovely design incorporating precise straight lines, vertical shoot pruning and drip irrigation, now common in Mendocino, but new when the Duckhorns of Napa Valley brought the technology into the Anderson Valley nine years ago.Cantillon, a brew for wine lovers, Derrick Schneider
Barley, wheat and neutral hops go into the quiet, musty Brussels brewery; beer as tart and complex as any wine comes out. Its sour taste is so unusual that brewer Jean Van Roy says, "We get many visitors each year who like wine and not beer."Letters To Wine: Hall of Fame talks back
Giants crush A's in wine pairing, W. Blake Gray
Why drink an $8 beer when you can have a $7.75 cup of wine? The Giants don't serve cult Cabernets, but their wine list has improved enough in the last three years so that there are several ballpark food-friendly wines worth having.LETTERS TO WINE: The good, the bad and the sorry, W. Blake Gray
A Gorgonzola souffle bold enough for Cabernet, Amanda Gold
Recipe:
Gorgonzola Dolce Souffle
The Chronicle's Wine Selections: Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons $36-$50, W. Blake Gray
Caña de Oveja exceptional in every way, Janet Fletcher
The snow-white, fluffy coat of mold that develops on Caña de Oveja -- the so-called bloomy rind -- arises because the fresh milk is inoculated in the vat with selected mold spores or, in some cases, because the young cheese is sprayed with these spores. These are good molds. They ripen the cheese from the outside in, which explains why Caña de Oveja is softest and creamiest just under the rind, like the French Bucheron it resembles.Bargain Bite: Sushi Sam's, Olivia Wu
“From tempura to grilled and teriyaki dishes (beef and chicken) to rice-based dishes and bowls of noodle soup, the prices generally stay under $10. Especially good is the saba shioyaki, grilled mackerel ($8.50 lunch, $9.50 dinner) whose skin is crisped to perfection, sealing in the moist meat underneath.”
Bar Bites: Di Bartolo, Karen Solomon
“Like a glowing lighthouse on a dusty block of old coffee shops -- including the decade-old Cafe di Bartolo next door -- Jon Di Bartolo's namesake western Mediterranean restaurant has made a splash in Oakland's Grand Lake area.”
- What we've been drinking
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I'm in the middle of choosing granite. Polished will be by far the easiest to take care of, unless you get a dark granite with little movement that shows every fingerprint. Honed granites have a reputation for easily staining, but again, if you get a granite with a lot of movement that may not be visible. Antiqued or satin finish (I guess different companies use different terms) is an in-between finish that's not as smooth as polished and not as matte as honed. It also *may* have more of a leathery finish.
ETA: in addition, of course, all of this depends on how dense your granite is or how well-sealed.
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Digest: San Francisco Chronicle Wine Digest and 96 Hours section, Friday, April 7, 2007
Matt also didn't want a winery handed to him, but he got one anyway. Justin was diagnosed with late-onset Type 2 diabetes in the late 1990s and his health was failing. He wanted to set Matt up in a winery. So when his son came home during breaks from his undergraduate work in biology at Lewis & Clark College in Oregon, the elder Meyer would drive him around the North Coast to look at wineries for sale. Matt resisted, but his father was a hard man to refuse.- A wine to jeer
- The perfect wine for Easter eggs
- Heavy medals
- Passover palate cleanser
- New to the mix
IN OUR GLASSES: What we've been drinking, Jon Bonné
Our new regular feature, In Our Glasses, will showcase wines and other drinks that The Chronicle's Food & Wine staff has recently tasted.There's a taste of Turkey in every Praguetive, Gary Regan
The Praguetive is a drink created by Joe McCanta, an American mixologist who specializes in using organic and homemade ingredients in his cocktails. McCanta is presently a barman and sommelier at Saf Organic Bistro & Martini Bar in Istanbul, Turkey. There are no organic ingredients in the Praguetive, but it does call for a very unusual liqueur called Becherovka, an intricate herbal potion from the Czech Republic.Letters To Wine: Two different takes on spring break drinks
THE CHRONICLE'S WINE SELECTIONS: Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $35 and under, W. Blake Gray
When we did the big unveiling of 49 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons priced at $35 and under, we noticed that many of our favorites were made by people who have been doing the same thing for decades.BELLY UP TO THE BARN: Santa Cruz Pinots star at Savannah-Chanelle, Carol Ness
The vibe: High-energy clusters of 20- and 30-somethings crowd the long tasting bar. There are lots of perks for members of the two wine clubs (especially tastes of the better Pinot Noirs) and lots of wine paraphernalia, like "Wine Princess" T-shirts and cookbooks interspersed with a few choice antiques.Cherry-picked goat's milk cheese hails from Southern Italy, Janet Fletcher
Cheesemaker Giovanni Samela uses pasteurized goat's milk only from his own and his brother's herd. The disks weigh about a pound and have a bloomy rind dusted with gray mold underneath their crispy leaf coat. They ripen under Samela's care in Avigliano, near Potenza, for about 20 to 25 days before being shipped.Rustle up steak for Napa Cabernet, Joyce Goldstein
Recipe:
Grilled Flank Steak in Churrasco Marinade
The Chronicle's Wine Selections: 2005 Cru Beaujolais, Jon Bonné
Bar Bites: Frisson, Jane Tunks
“The vibe: The lounge is very midcentury, with low-slung sectionals scattered throughout the dark space, which is awash in shades of brown. It opens up onto the circular dining room, where patrons dine under a gorgeous dome that emanates orange light. On most nights, a DJ spins anything from jazz to house after 7 p.m., adding considerably to the urban ambience.”
Bargain Bite: Roadside Barbecue, Amanda Gold
“Barbecue lovers from every region will find something to eat here, whether it's the Texas brisket, a Memphis pulled-pork sandwich or chicken doused in spicy Carolina vinegar sauce.”
- A wine to jeer
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I'm Chinese, and when I'm with a small group and want to linger I just do what Shalmanese does. The waiters are being efficient by clearing my table, but I don't necessarily feel I have to leave (unless there are people waiting for my table).
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Last Oct, security let me bring a bag of Bon Marche chorizettes (like little pepperoni sticks) through. It's possible things might have changed in four months or the person may have just encountered a particularly grumpy security agent.
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I love hearing about other Asian mom/grandma's methods. I was taught to put in my rice, wash it, then shake it until the rice was basically level. Then to stick my finger into the rice, mark how high it reached on my finger with my thumb, lift my finger out of the rice, set it on top of the rice, then fill the pot with water up to the "mark." I guess that means basically a 2:1 ratio!
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Well a tight fitting lid of course means you are steaming your bird, not roasting so no you can't get a crispy skin like that.
Yep. You just can't get crispy skin with a tight lid.
I've also brined my turkey year after year. I roast it on a rack, uncovered, and get moist flesh and crispy skin.
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I glanced thru the course and Q&A...
--There's no real point in spending big bucks on thermally responsive cookware when using an electric stove because the slowness of the heat source negates any of the cookware's inherent advantages. Hence, almost any curved sauteusse evasee type pan (of which a flat bottomed wok is one) would work reasonably well for stir frying on an electric cooktop.
See, I guess the weird thing to me is that I think of a wok as basic kitchen equipment while the course assumes that I'd more likely have a Sauteuse Evasée and have to go scouting around for an exotic wok to make my exotic Chinese food.
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Many great chefs have doubtless learned to cook with good quality pans from day one
Maybe, but I've heard many stories of those great chefs learning at the knees of their grandmas, so I suspect they learned on what we'd considering highly inferior tools.
I also agree, though, that there's no reason to get a stainless steel pan when a carbon steel wok is so cheap---whatever kind of range you have. It really is about learning to use the tools you have.
I watched my relatives in China make great food with cheap electric stoves and traditional woks. I grew up watching my parents use a round-bottomed wok on something like a Magic Chef stove, thus teaching me how to stir-fry with an unbalanced, wobbly wok without spilling a thing. Now I have a gas range, but a cheap 70s one. I'm hoping to get a Blue Star later this year when we re-model the kitchen, but until then I have an underpowered stove with a 15 year old Cantonese style wok with "ear" handles, a virtually non-stick interior, and a few rust spots on the outside that I haven't gotten around to scrubbing off.
There's one other advantages to a wok other than what Gabriel Lewis cited: for those of us who are klutzes, the higher sides means we can swirl the oil around and toss food about with less of a chance of things spilling or flipping onto the floor!
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From a customer's perspective---I think the spillage is indeed the restaurant's fault. Clumsy waiter, spilled wine. It could just have easily slopped onto the patron's shirt as opposed to the coat and if the coat weren't on the back of the chair it might well have hit the patron.
However, it's obvious that the restaurant performed all the necessary service gestures and now the outcome if the patron's fault. If the patron had accepted the dry cleaning offer and the wine didn't come out I can see a case for the restaurant replacing the coat, but now that the patron has tampered with the stained coat (thus arguably affecting the cleaning outcome in a way the restaurant can't control), AND the restaurant has offered the goodwill gesture, I don't see why the restaurant should be further liable. Unless the patron is J.Lo. I think a "I'm so sorry, but we can't do anything further" is all that is required from the restaurant.
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Flats! Totally! But I, like some of the others piping in, pretty much only eat chicken for the skin and bones. I hate how snipping off the wing tip is supposed to be the refined way to make wings when it's my favorite part of the wing!
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Digest: San Francisco Chronicle Food Section for Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Growers ready for run on avocados, Stacy Finz
"The avocado industry says it's expecting football fans to buy 53 million pounds of Hass avocados this week for Super Bowl Sunday, rivaling Cinco de Mayo for the day of the year when the most guacamole is consumed."
THE ROVING FEAST, Marlena Spieler
An ode to cottage cheese
Recipes:
Pasta with Cottage Cheese
Cottage Cheese Latkes
- Unusual brunch fare
- OPENING: Miette opens Hayes Valley candy store
- Recent openings
Kitchen (not so) confidential, Carol Ness
San Francisco's restaurant scores are more public now -- but are they improving food safety?
Dungeness crab stars at events and restaurants next month
"The city's signature shellfish will be saluted and savored at neighborhood events and at restaurants throughout February."
Clown Alley makeover...Kuleto's sold...new "gastro bistro"...and more!
TASTER'S CHOICE, Carol Ness
DiGiorno pizza enters Hall of Fame
SOUTH TO NORTH, Jacqueline Higuera McMahan
Ancient chile at home in modern dishes
Recipes:
Chipotle Roast Pork
Cuban Sandwiches
Restaurants
Dining Out, Michael Bauer
A mini-vacation in Half Moon Bay at Sam's Chowder House
(This review appeared Sunday, January 28, 2007)
Dining Out, Mandy Erickson
Mandaloun in Redwood City provides mix-and-match Mediterranean
Dining Out, Michael Bauer
Desserts set the bar high at Tartine restaurant
- Unusual brunch fare
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Huh, lemme think. There are foods I dislike that I attribute to texture, but come to think of it it's how the texture affects the taste. I don't like foams or whipped cream or the like, but it's actually more because I dislike the diluted taste that foam creates and not because of the airiness.
OTOH, I also gravitate *towards* foods of a certain texture. I love anything with a jellyfish or cartilage-type crunch.
But yeah, I don't think any of my relatives have ever rejected a food because of the texture.
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Sorry, regardless of its provenance, the term makes me want to vomit. Blech.
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I certainly have not seen anybody insinuating Bryan was looking to get buzzed.
On the contrary most if not every post states they seen no harm in his having a glass of wine at all.
What people are objecting to is casting blame at the server and calling him inexperenced for doing his job regardless if the laws enforsed or not.
Exactement. Concisely said.
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I'm going back to the very beginning. From what I gathered, the initial point was that an underage drinker believed that not being served alcohol was a *service* issue and not a legal issue. I understand all the squishier arguments being thrown around, but I think they all camouflage the fact that the only certainty *is* the legal issue--and in terms of legalities the waiter was squarely in the right.
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This has been quite an interesting conversation and I'm sorry I didn't see it earlier.
I've got to equate the situation to me driving over 65---frequently. And most everyone on the freeway driving over 65 frequently. Highway patrol rarely pulls one over merely for following traffic, so I've never gotten pulled over for driving 68-70 or so. Yet, I'd like to think that if a CHP officer *did* I wouldn't be miffed at him when I was the one clearly breaking the law.
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Steamed with butter for two; stir-fried with ginger and scallions for the other. (Well, that would be my choice, least!)
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Digest: San Francisco Chronicle Wine Digest and 96 Hours section, Friday, December 22, 2006
Pinot Noir beefs up: Big-bodied Pinots confound sommeliers as they delight fans, W. Blake Gray
Elegant Pinots still exist. But they seem outnumbered on store shelves by new styles of Pinot Noir that are unabashedly big-bodied, fruit-forward and high-powered.- SF trumps NY in number of master sommeliers
- Rockin' Trockenbeerenauslese
- Mike Ditka creates line of wines
- LABEL WATCH: Prince Charles
- Mike Grgich bobblehead available
Silver Oak buys Roshambo Winery
Roshambo Winery near Healdsburg is selling its Westside Road winemaking facility and tasting room to Silver Oak Cellars.Roche Winery sold out of bankruptcy, Cyril Penn
The sale of Roche Winery to HP Land LLC for $7 million closed last week.Alcohol-free alternatives keep the party sparkling, Tara Duggan
Luckily there are plenty of interesting nonalcoholic sparkling juices as well as wine-grape juices around to make things a little more fun for those who abstain.- Auction for education
- Benefit for wishes
The Professor risks his job for a drink, Gary Regan
"Vermouth, an 'aromatized wine' that's flavored with a variety of botanicals such as wormwood, chamomile, orange peel, rose petals, calamus root, elderflowers and gentian, is a very important ingredient to the cocktailian bartender. In the late 1800s, when vermouth was first utilized by masters of the craft, a whole new category of drinks came into being, spawning cocktails such as the Manhattan, the martini and the Rob Roy. Bartenders today continue to employ vermouth regularly in new creations, as well as in the classics."
Chilly weather prescription: Cab and brisket, Joyce Goldstein
As a bona fide Jewish mother, I have been preparing brisket for my family for many years, and not just for Hanukkah. It is our favorite pot roast. But when you have been cooking something for a long time, you need some change or diversion from the norm to keep it interesting.Recipe: Braised Brisket of Beef with Pimenton
The Cheese Course: Luxuriously rich, new triple creme from France among best in its class, Janet Fletcher
"Pierre Robert, a triple creme made in the region just south of Paris that also gives us Brie and Coulommiers, is the invention of the esteemed French affineur (cheese ager) Robert Rouzaire. Many professionals rank it among France's best cheeses in this category."
THE CHRONICLE'S WINE SELECTIONS: Cabernet Sauvignon Over $50 — Napa Valley Subappellations, Jon Bonné
Napa's individual subdivisions tend to polarize Cabernet lovers. Some love the warmth of valley fruit from Oakville and Rutherford. Others opt for the refinements of rocky Stags Leap. The unyielding structures of fruit from the mountain appellations make for durable, long-lasting wines.Family winery with a yodeler/Like many Napa Valley wineries: Peju Province is the result of an individual's hard work and foresight., Lynne Char Bennett
Anthony Peju had a landscape architecture business in Southern California before founding his own winery and living out his dream of becoming a winemaker. Peju crafted the winery grounds into something visitors enjoy as much as his wines."The vibe: It's like the '70s B-horror flick "Don't Look in the Basement." The grounds are stunning. Wander through the well-planned gardens; pause in the hidden gazebo to ponder your day of wine tasting. That's free, and well worth visiting. The large upstairs tasting room is crowded but friendly. But avoid the new Enoteca reserve room downstairs -- the tasting fees are outrageous and the staff suffers from "money talks" snootery in their standoffish yet grasping demeanor."
Bar Bites: Junnoon, Mandy Erickson
"Indian-fusion Junnoon, featuring spicy chutneys and tropical drinks, is unexpectedly cozy on a cold, rainy night."
Bargain Bite: Just For You, Jane Tunks
"At this tiny Dogpatch storefront, the all-American coffee shop gets a sassy update -- Day-Glo punk-rock posters deck the wall, and the menu extols the virtues of grits 'like you had in prison.'"
CRITICS' PICKS: Satisfying that sweet tooth/Seasonal local fruits flavor the end of meal, Bill Addison
"The Bay Area's penchant for local, seasonal ingredients pays off come dessert time. Even winter seems bountiful when you can indulge in creations like Meyer lemon tart with creme Chantilly at Cafe at Chez Panisse in Berkeley or warm persimmon budino with caramel at Delfina in San Francisco."
Dining Out: Miss Millie's faves make the move to Somerset, Bill Addison
For 10 years, Miss Millie's was one of San Francisco's most popular brunch spots, but Rizzo wanted his business to be known as something beyond a weekend destination. So, when a promising location in Oakland's Rockridge neighborhood became available, he decided to put his restaurant through a radical change: new East Bay location, new name, different look and a revamped business model emphasizing dinner service. - SF trumps NY in number of master sommeliers
My California Culinary Pilgrimage (Apr. 2007)
in California: Dining
Posted
I'm in awe. Wow, thanks for the photos but I"m just amazed you were able to fit in so much eating into any one day.