The Culinary Timeline is a side-project that I've been working on since October. I'm hoping to have most of it complete by the end of January, with any luck. Until then, updates around here will be weekly, rather than twice weekly. Do stay tuned.
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Hana's Ken Roll: Spicy tuna, atop shrimp tempura and avocado
Although I’ve had some pretty decent sushi right here in the Napa Valley, when I’m facing really pent-up sushi cravings, I’m always compelled to drive over to Hana in Sonoma County. Over the years, I’ve found that when sushi is the objective, it always pays to go all in, especially when the merits of the cuisine rely so heavily upon the sheer quality of the ingredients. In these situations, I’ll gladly go out of my way to put myself in good hands (the fact that I’m willing to [... read more ...]
Fries? Check. Coleslaw? Check. Optional fried egg add-on? Check.
I woke up about an hour outside of Pittsburgh last Sunday, turned on the television in my hotel room, and watched the final round of the British Open as I packed to leave. Like most people, I felt that the Open lost a bit of its luster when Tiger Woods failed to make the cut, but the return of Tom Watson restored all sorts of drama to the tournament, and then some. I remained glued to the TV as I assured housekeeping — on three different occasions — that [... read more ...]
A four-hour layover at JFK is just enough time to enjoy a seven-course lunch at Marea in Midtown Manhattan (for the record, this daring excursion afforded me just 20 minutes of leeway). That said, I will gladly risk missing a connecting flight for the opportunity to have a great meal in the Big Apple. After all, it’s all about priorities. Some said that it couldn’t be done, but I had complete faith in the New York subway system, and the E train was good to me.
Below is a trio of photos that highlights my favorite dishes of the [... read more ...]
Something old, something new: "Heston's Feast"
It’s been about three years since I’ve lived with a television, although I must admit: living without television today is much less of a sacrifice than it was 10 years ago. These days, I can catch lots of shows online, and DVDs now contain entire seasons of television programs, for long, uninterrupted, commercial-free viewing. None of these options were available back in 1999. Even something like YouTube, which has quickly developed into a mainstream entity today, was completely non-existent.
But even though I can now do reasonably well without cable, I’m woefully [... read more ...]
I got on a pizza kick about a month ago during an impromptu visit to Pizzeria Delfina down in the Mission District (the Bi-Rite Creamery, also near 18th and Dolores, was my overt destination). It may sound a little backwards, trekking into San Francisco just for a scoop of ice cream, then deciding to stop in for a quick Margherita pizza, since I was in the neighborhood. But I’m an opportunistic eater, and these are the diversions that I’m likely to take. Although the pizza at Delfina was pretty good, the salted caramel ice cream at Bi-Rite Creamery remains [... read more ...]
With a friend in town from my Hyde Park days, lots of food and wine was on the agenda last weekend. In essence, it was about three solid days of eating and drinking, all jump-started by the Fourth of July, which was super-gluttonous in its own right (and highlighted by a giant lamb leg, slow-roasted in a Caja China). Since then, the festivities have kept me from blogging, up until now (as I type, life is pretty much back to normal). Frankly, I have so many things to cover, it’s daunting. I’ll definitely have a restaurant recap from Terra on [... read more ...]
As a former Angelino, I like to peruse the Los Angeles Times and the LA Weekly on a semi-regular basis, just to keep tabs on things (specifically, I like to read Jonathan Gold for the best food journalism on the planet). To my surprise, the Times actually shifted some of its focus up to the Napa Valley this week, and I felt that the newspaper’s assessment of downtown Napa provided a solid “backstory” to my piece about Morimoto’s impending influence on the downtown Napa dining scene.
Of course, the reason why I call the Times article a “backstory” is [... read more ...]
Yesterday, the first phase of a new California law went into effect, which requires fast food restaurants (chains with 20 or more locations) to disclose the nutritional information of their products. Thanks to Senate Bill 1420, spearheaded by Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), restaurants such as Applebee’s and Taco Bell must now provide brochures containing nutritional information. This law becomes much more stringent in 2011, when these same restaurants will have to list basic nutritional data on their actual menus and menu boards. You can read the full details here.
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