“… some wines and beers and spirits are among the most finely crafted foods there are, the best that the world and care have to offer. Their flavor can be so rich, balanced, dynamic, and persistent that they touch the mind not with release from the world, but with a heightened attentiveness and connection to it.” – Harold McGee, “On… Read more →
Commonwealth Chef Jason Fox’s Latest Creations
I’ve written of the Mission’s Commonwealth many times since opening, including it in my best openings of the year in the Guardian and The Perfect Spot. I wrote about Chef Jason Fox’s uni dish last week and am ever dreaming about those brilliant foie gras bon bons. Here’s photo highlights of my recent return to a restaurant that just keeps… Read more →
Cocktail-ing at Gitane, 15 Romolo, Clock Bar & Wine at Commonwealth
GITANE, Financial District/Downtown – With new (since last Fall) bar manager Alex Smith helming the bar, there’s some beautiful things happening at Gitane. Sherry remains prominent, in keeping with the restaurant’s Spanish influence, while horizons expand in everything from chorizo bitters (house-infused with actual chorizo, of course) to salted maple syrup. La Convivencia ($12) fills in as an aperitif with… Read more →
Top Tastes
Top Tastes, rather than a list of all-time favorites (another thing altogether), are among the best eats since my last newsletter, often from new openings. Many don’t make the cut, being a revisit previously written about or simply not as stand-out as dishes mentioned. CHEAP EATS DYNAMO DONUTS, Mission – Sure, Dynamo Donuts is old news and I’ve tried most… Read more →
Around the Bay: Upscale Indian in San Mateo & Farm-to-Table in Oakland
Intriguing bites and openings in other parts of the Bay Area? All Spice is a new, upscale Indian restaurant in San Mateo. Though still working out kinks with some dishes not yet fully realized, the space is romantic and service engaging in a cottage I adored in its former iteration. Oakland’s Camino is a space I love for different reasons:… Read more →
Touring Long Meadow Ranch in Napa’s St. Helena
Long Meadow Ranch Winery does it all in Wine Country: grass-fed beef, heirloom fruits and vegetables, eggs from their chickens, lush olive oils, and, of course, wines. Seeking to grow everything used in their restaurant and winery, they continue to push boundaries, currently exploring a dairy and cheese-making. I’ve written a few times about Farmstead, their restaurant, helmed by delightful,… Read more →
February 1, 2011
“Music melts all the separate parts of our bodies together.” – Anais Nin This issue, Top Tastes savors “sushi burritos”, coffee and affogato in Parkside, dishes from Fifth Floor’s new chef, impeccable (and affordable) sushi, truffled egg and salmon, heartwarming French and Roman fare. The Latest delights in Austrian food and wine at brand new Leopold’s. Around the Bay visits… Read more →
Top Tastes: Of Sushi Burritos, Fine Dining, Italian & French Neighborhood Gems
Top Tastes, rather than a list of all-time favorites (another thing altogether), are among the best eats since my last newsletter, often from new openings. Many don’t make the cut, being a revisit previously written about or simply not as stand-out as dishes mentioned. I’ve started the new year eating a lot (how is this different from any other year?)… Read more →
Leopold’s Brings Austrian Warmth to Russian Hill
With the words Treffen (meet), Trinken (drink), Essen (eat) painted under the name, Leopold’s offers something with no parallel in our city: an Austrian restaurant. Leopold’s opened quietly this past Friday night in a cheery, bright space on Polk Street housing animal heads, Austrian art, pine wood tables and booths. Here, the relaxed warmth of a neighborhood beer haus (with… Read more →
Around the Bay: Previewing Berkeley’s German Newcomer, Gaumenkitzel
GAUMENKITZEL, meaning ‘delight for the taste buds’, opens later this week (if all goes as planned) in an open, sunny space on San Pablo Ave. in Berkeley. Owner Anja Voth brings restaurant and patisserie experience from Hamburg and Berlin. Her husband Kai Flache constructed and designed the restaurant with his local firm. They operate as a gracious, complimentary team. A… Read more →