Latin Vibes, Tunes, Cocktails & Food with Stunning SF Views at New Rooftop Bar, Cavaña

by  on  in The Latest

Rooftop bars are proliferating in San Francisco these days… brand new Cavaña just opened late January 2023 on the 17th floor of the LUMA Hotel San Francisco. A stones’ throw from the SF Giants’ Oracle Park, you can hear the ballpark (and at times, concerts) din buzzing nearby as you take in stunning city views of blazing sunsets behind Twin Peaks and the Sutro Tower from the south patio with outdoor bar, to the more chill, fireside glow of downtown SF and the Bay Bridge on Cavaña’s north and east sides. Read more →

Boundary-Pushing Asian Food at Two Newcomers: Taiwanese-Inspired Piglet & Co. & Chinese-Venezuelan Cantoo

by  on  in The Latest

This week, I share experiences at two newcomers playing with the boundaries of Asian cuisine. One is a pop-up turned hip, new Mission district restaurant hidden behind a graffitied wall, Bruce Lee films on two TVs above the bar, striking paintings of birds. The other is a fluorescent-lit, Tenderloin spot, half underground, roomy but utilitarian in design. The former just opened early January 2023, the other two days before Christmas 2022. They are dissimilar in most ways but for their surprising interplay of Asian cuisines. Read more →

February 15, 2023

by  on  in Intro Letter

THIS ISSUE:
— Anchovy Bar Reviewed: Tiny fish heaven… With vermouth, wine and sherry.
— Drink Pairing Inspiration from California’s Endless Produce & Grape-Growing AVAs: My interview with Lazy Bear beverage director Jacob Brown.
— Original Joe’s Westlake: Red sauce Italian legend south of SF in Daly City.
— January Eats Checklist: Four Standouts of the Month, from a nature-rich tribute to California’s majestic trees in edible form, to healthy, chic, nuanced at-home delivery food.
— DISTILLER Bottle Column: This month I review amaro, vermouth, tequila, gin, bourbon, non-alcoholic spirits, RTDs (ready-to-drink/canned) and cocktail mixers. Read more →

Red Sauce Italian Legend South of SF: Original Joe’s Westlake

by  on  in Around the Bay, Top Tastes

I’ve been dining at Joe’s sister, Original Joe’s Westlake, under prior owners for the last two decades. Bruno Scatena opened Joe’s of Westlake in 1956, which was eventually run by his daughter, ​Melinda Scatena, who worked there since she was 14 years old, selling it as she ran into health problems. My husband, Dan “The Renaissance Man,” and I adored it in those years and it was perpetually packed as if it were the hottest new restaurant. Read more →

Tiny Fish Heaven… With Vermouth, Wine & Sherry: Anchovy Bar

by  on  in Top Tastes

Opened by Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski of Michelin-starred State Bird Provisions and The Progress in October 2020 on Lower Fillmore Street, The Anchovy Bar was a brave entrant in a brutal year. It was easily among my top few new restaurants of that year — and my top two next to Belinda Leong, Michel Suas and John Paul Carmona’s Routier… Having dined since Anchovy Bar opened, both my late 2022 and my January 2023 visit have been the best yet. Read more →

February 1, 2023

by  on  in Intro Letter

THIS ISSUE:
— Chic New Italian Cocktail & Food Haven Hidden in the FiDi: Bar Sprezzatura.
— January Eats Checklist: 5 Standouts of the Month, from a nature-rich tribute to California’s majestic trees in edible form, to old school American-Italian red sauce comfort, to healthy, chic, nuanced at-home delivery food.
— A Former Laundromat Turned Idyllic Neighborhood Hang: for Detroit pizza, sips & bagels.
— Top 10 Bars Vancouver, B.C.: My Distiller Magazine guide.
— Vancouver Interviews: I interview Satoshi Yonemori of Grapes & Soda and Alayne & Jason MacIsaac of Sheringham Distillery. Read more →