Thanks to my sister for forwarding this essay to me ( Read more... )

Last night I went to Sotto Sotto for half price wine night. Had an amazing Brunello di Montalcino, 1997 - apparently the best year in Tuscany in a century. Had mozzarella di bufalo with roasted yellow peppers and anchovies, risotto with shellfish appetizer, and swordfish with arugula. All standard Sotto Sotto fabulous ( Read more... )

This past weekend I took a road trip to Williamsburg and the Colonial Virginia area. I had never been before and have wanted to go. Aside from the intense 100 degree heat and relentless sun, it was a very fun trip. I arrived at the Hospitality House after a 9 hour drive. The hotel was very nice and very convenient, and not very expensive. It ( Read more... )

This past weekend Brett, Emerson, and I decided at the last minute to take a road trip to Mammoth Cave in Kentucky ( Read more... )

Tonight I went to ONE Midtown Kitchen and experienced the resurrection of the genius that is Chef Richard Blais. The small plates have always been more interesting than the main courses, and now they are even more so. For instance, this evening we ordered a series of small plates: fresh figs on whipped parmesan, with diced olives, prosciutto, ( Read more... )

What happened in London today is sickening. Infuriating. Disgusting. We must ask ourselves, why? Why is this happening? Why are we no safer today than we were before 9/11/01? The horrifying events of that day served notice to the world that al-Qaida had declared war on western civilization. What followed was an unprecedented outpouring of ( Read more... )

Marc, Mikey and I arrived in San Francisco on Thursday night. After a noisy night at the Hotel Diva, we rented a car and headed to Napa Valley. This is my first trip there since I started drinking wine, and is a follow-up to my trip to Sonoma last year. Napa has more of the big-name wineries, high-end producers mostly noted for Cabernet ( Read more... )

Saturday I went with Marc, Brett, Russ, and Chris to the Oakhurst Wine Crawl. This is a fun event, perhaps a little too much fun. There were about 20 or so businesses in the neighborhood that had wine tastings, from the shoe store to the video store, the laundry, the acupuncturist, and the automotive care, among many others. All I can say is ( Read more... )

I am very lucky to have such a wonderful restaurant in the neighborhood. It is quite an amazing place. As you first walk in, the ambiance is colored by the aroma of the wood fired oven, low lighting and well selected music. It is a very cozy, rustic, warm place, with wonderful low-key service that is as helpful as you want them to be ( Read more... )

I remember when Harvest opened about 10 years ago, in an old house on North Highland that was previously a pool supply company. The owner, who is from New Zealand, created a popular and high quality restaurant, and then he sold it. He then opened another restaurant across the street, called Dish. For some reason I have not visited Harvest very ( Read more... )