After brilliant days exploring Honolulu and Oahu, I knew it was going to get better with Kauai, based on what everyone who had ever been told me. As a non-athletic type, I wasn’t going to Kauai for aggressive hikes and surfing. I prefer soaking in nature, reading poetry and taking walks on beaches, and, of course, searching for great local… Read more →
I sample dozens of spirits, wines, beers and beyond in any given month. If there are tasting events (and there are), then multiply that a few times. Here are the ones that rose above, recommends for everyday sipping (and beyond): COCKTAILS LOCANDA, 557 Valencia Street between 16th & 17th, 415-863-6800 I am sad not to see the talented Brian MacGregor… Read more →
SHIMO, 241 Healdsburg Avenue at Matheson, 707.433.6000, dinner only Not even weeks after I dined there, Shimo changed from its high-priced steakhouse menu to a noodle house. For the sake of (recent) history, here’s my recap and photos of my steak experience. Though I think the casual space is better suited to a noodle house, there are dishes I’d love… Read more →
SOURCE, Potrero Hill (11 Division Street near DeHaro, daily for lunch and dinner, weekend brunch, 415-864-9000) Yes, I’m a meat eater. I want animals treated humanely, with loving care and long lives. But I personally don’t feel I could possibly be a full-fledged food writer and not eat virtually everything. Food prejudices are not allowed. My motto is: if any… Read more →
Last year’s Passport to Dry Creek festival was quite the weekend hopping between wineries in Dry Creek Valley. How is this different than any of the dozens of wine events in Wine Country at any given time, you rightfully ask? Unlike barrel tasting weekends mobbed with drunken carousers and not-yet-mature wines, or smaller events where you gain merely a handful… Read more →
The sweetest thing in all my life has been the longing — to reach the Mountain, to find the place where all the beauty came from — my country, the place where I ought to have been born. Do you think it all meant nothing, all the longing? The longing for home? For indeed it now feels not like going,… Read more →
Top Tastes is not a list of all-time favorites, rather it’s about the best tastes of the last two weeks (since my last newsletter), often from new openings. MID-RANGE NOJO, Hayes Valley (231 Franklin Street at Linden, 415-896-4587, Sun-Mon/Wed-Thu 5-10pm, Fri-Sat 5-11pm) – Amazingly realized in its opening weeks, Nojo stands out in the glut of izakaya openings we’ve been… Read more →
After a dreamy week in Hawaii, I have a slew of recommendations to share with you in a multi-part series. I’ve covered farmers market street food in Honolulu and on the North Shore of Oahu, and Honolulu’s cocktail scene. Now we dine in Honolulu, on the hunt for the best. Next time, Kauai. Though I arrived with romantic Blue Hawaii… Read more →
Here are two of the best new lunch spots in town. SoMa residents/workers are lucky to have both, but they are worth a trek from anywhere in the city. ZARE’S GRILL & GRAIN – SoMa, 606 Folsom Street (at 2nd St.), 415-243-0580, lunch is weekdays only, 11am-2pm There’s no chef quite like Hoss Zare. All heart, skill and love, Hoss’… Read more →
Drink A couple recent Oakland nights included drinks at the relaxed, new Dogwood (with decent but not stand-out cocktails or atmosphere), and the following return visits: ADESSO, OAKLAND (4395 Piedmont Avenue, Oakland, 94611, 510-601-0305) – You last heard me talk about Adesso in the Guardian and here in 2009. It has been one of Oakland’s best bars since opening with… Read more →