Busy Beth's Blog

Lake Mead, The Orleans, & Craft Beer

2012-01-21T19:18:00.001-08:00

It was to be our last night at our friends' place in North Las Vegas, and we decided to take advantage of their proximity to Lake Mead.

Located near the Arizona border, Lake Mead is a 110 mile reservoir created behind the Hoover Dam in 1936 known for a variety of recreational activities, not the least of which is fishing. Striped and largemouth bass, bluegill, perch, channel catfish, black crappie, and carp are some of the species which abound there.

It was named for Elwood Mead, commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation during the time that the dam and lake were created. The controversial Boulder Canyon Project forced the evacuation of a number of communities, and the ruins of St. Thomas, Nevada are sometimes visible when water levels drop below normal.

We took a trail down to the water from one of the vista points, and I relaxed, listening to the abundant quail, while Jaime fished. The water was beautiful and we could clearly see the enormous fish swimming all AROUND the pole that Jaime had cast. It was a fantastic place to eat our lunch, at any rate, and we got to enjoy an exquisite sunset.

The next day we headed to our room at The Orleans. The Orleans is a large off-strip hotel known for its reasonable rates and plentiful entertainment. It's a great place for families to stay because, in addition to the usual grown-up entertainment you'd expect, they also have a movie theater, bowling alley, arcade, and food court.

I like the fun yet creepy look of The Orleans. The enormous heads, masked mannequins, and glowing animals at the various bars (Gator bar, Crawfish bar, etc.) are fun, and the slots fairly loose. I came up $30 while conservatively playing pennies and nickels.

We had been there before to play, but it was our first time staying. If you're looking for a deal, it's hard to beat. Besides the normally inexpensive rooms, there are deals throughout the year for club card members.

Membership to the "B Connected Club" is free, and gets you discounts on the buffets at their various hotels (including my favorite downtown brunch buffet, Main Street Station), in addition to invitations to stay free during their off-season. This particular trip offered a buy-1-get-1 offer on their rooms, so our grand total for two nights was $50.

The room was a nice, clean, and comfortable (and located down the longest hallway I've ever seen! It took a minute and a half to walk from the elevators to our room!) with a little view of the Rio and included a room safe, though the lack of mini-fridge was disappointing.

One of my favorite experiences there was the Craft Beer Tasting. It was an adventure finding it, and a perfect example of how ridiculous things can get when you have too much stuff going on.

It started out simply enough…we saw a poster in the casino/lobby area advertising a "Bourbon Street Craft Beer Sampler." A man who works for The Orleans was passing by, and I asked him if he knew where it was. He looked at the poster blankly, read and reread it, and said he had no idea. No problem. We called the front desk to find out the details. They'd never heard of it, so connected us to the concierge who spent a while looking it up and found nothing about it, so connected us to food and beverage,where we left a never-to-be- returned message.

Since it had to be SOMEWHERE on the premises, we started out by asking at the bar/restaurant nearest the poster. Nobody in there was even aware that such a thing existed. We pulled one of the guys from behind the bar to come look at the poster, and he was then able to direct us to the place. Turns out Bourbon Street is the name of the actual bar, not just the name of the beer sampler.

It was front and center in the casino.

So we moseyed on over and looked at the brew menu. Plenty of craft beer, so this was definitely the place, but no mention of the sampler was written anywhere. We ordered it anyway. A deer-caught-in headlights look passed quickly over our bartender, and then he asked us what we wanted to try.

"How many do we get to taste, and how much does it cost?" I thought was a reasonable thing to ask.

"Um…..hang on. I need to find the book."

So he disappeared for a while, and another bartender came over to see if we'd been helped.

"We're waiting to find out abut the beer tasting. He's looking for 'the book.' Do YOU know how many beers we get or what it costs?"

He shrugged, "Probably five or six for five or six bucks. There's a book?"

"Has anyone ever ordered this before?"

He shrugged again, "Not while I've been here."

At last our bartender returned with the news that it was, in fact, $6 for 5 tastes, so with 2 tastings we were order to order all but two of the beers on the menu. We'd already tasted two of them, so it worked out perfectly.

The only problem (besides the fact that nobody knew about it) is that he just poured them in the order they appeared in the menu, which had nothing to do with the order in which they should be tasted. So, using our best judgement, we had to try to figure out the order in which to drink them.

I highly recommend going to the Bourbon Street Bar and ordering the tasting. The beer's good (I especially liked the Gordon Birsch Marzen and Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat White Ale...HATED the Harp Lager), and it's fun to watch them be so confused over something that the hotel/casino advertises, but nobody actually knows anything about.

That particular bar is also located in front of a stage that has different bands each night. The first night we were there, there was a TERRIBLE band that badly covered some of my very favorite hair band songs of the '80s and '90s. The singer made me mad. The night we did our beer tasting, however, the band was a crew of older gentlemen with a younger lady drummer rockin' the oldies. I liked them very much. So, I guess it's hit or miss.

Our time there passed in a happy blur of slots, Keno, free cocktails, bowling, and eating. Their buffet, though not exceptional, isn't bad, and has a HUGE selection. You're bound to find something you'll like, and the price is right. We spent less money there and enjoyed it more than the food at their 24-hour cafe, which I cannot recommend at all.

Next stop: El Cortez, downtown, with some fun along the way.

Our New Year in Vegas

2012-01-12T20:19:00.000-08:00

After a few days of eating and drinking in Central Cali, and an overnight on a Greyhound back to L.A., I was immediately back in a car heading to Las Vegas to celebrate the New Year.

Aside from the moment in which I thought I had fallen asleep at the wheel and we were going off the road and about to die because Jaime decided to pull over to take a picture and that horrifying sound on the shoulder woke me up with a start, grabbing for a steering wheel I wasn't controlling, it was a rather uneventful and traffic-free ride.

We hit Trader Joe's, grabbed some champagne and stuff for dinner, then headed to our friends' place in North Vegas where we were staying our first few nights.

After contemplating whether to head into the melee downtown or watch the fireworks display from our friends' balcony, we threw on our pajamas, watched Sister Street Fighter, then headed to the patio to see the Strip's spectacular light show from a distance while listening to the claps of gunfire all around.

It was an early night, what with the severe lack of sleep (courtesy of Greyhound), but since we conked out early, the next day was perfect to get a reasonably early start and go to Red Rock Canyon.

Less than half an hour from Vegas, straight up Charleston (going west), the solidified sand dunes are an awesome thing of beauty to behold. The colorful rock formations offer vast recreational or meditative possibilities, and are a geologist's dream come true.

If you were up all night gambling or are completely hungover, you can simply do the drive, which is 13 miles of a winding, one-way road with expansive views and plenty of places to pull over and take in the sights.

If you have the energy and inclination, there are many hikes of varying difficulty that you can embark upon. Depending upon the season, you may visit a waterfall or springs. There are cave drawings, and plenty of opportunities for rock scrambling…or climbing, if that's your thing.

I've yet to complete a trail, though I have started along several of them. The further in you go, the more expansive it seems, and every turn takes you to a new vista. Once you get right out of the main pull-offs, it's easy to get away from people and simply enjoy the quiet.

The High Point Overlook is, well, the high point, and if you can time your hikes or drive to be at that point right around sunset, you won't be disappointed. From there you can not only see the astonishing rocks, but also the glittering city below.

After enjoying all that nature, we went back into what may be the most unnatural city in the world to enjoy some giant slushy drinks and cover bands on Fremont Street.

We grabbed our refillable football cup and headed to La Bayou for the alcoholic slush (refills are cheaper, and they seem to be the strongest around...I recommend sticking to the creamy versions as the fruity ones are really acidic), then met my friend, Rhonda, who was on Fremont Street to see the U2 cover band, L.A.vation.

After a few songs, Jaime and I meandered to see what else was going on, and came across Led Zepagain tearing it up at the center stage. The next stage had some Kenny G. guy that we couldn't get by fast enough. The note he was playing as we walked past made my head want to explode and ears beg to bleed.

Back at the first stage, U2 was replaced by a super-energetic Red Hot Chili Peppers band that did quite a few numbers from the Blood Sugar Sex Magic album, which was my jam.

We slowly depleted our football and whittled away the hours on penny slots and nickel poker until, in that kind of daze that only Vegas can produce, we lost $5 and headed back to bed at some ridiculous hour. It was only the beginning...

My Greyhound Experience

2012-01-11T11:34:00.000-08:00

It had been a lovely few days driving through Wine Country with my friends Gregory, Joey, and David, but they were off to an adventure in Reno, and I had my own plans for the new year. A bus back to L.A. was the most economically feasible option. Speaking of....why in the world does a TRAIN cost almost twice as much and take almost twice as long as a BUS? At any rate...

There was a pretty long line of people at the Greyhound station heading to Los Angeles from Oakland. I got there around 11:15PM for my 11:30PM ride, but was quite disheartened to hear them still calling people onto the 10:30 bus as it didn't really bode well for an on-time departure.

Heeding the warnings of my boyfriend's teenaged cousins ("Don't sit in the back of the bus! It's where the weirdoes are!"), I grabbed a seat within the first 5 rows from our driver when we finally boarded (a mere forty minutes after we were supposed to have left). I thanked my lucky stars to be by myself because there's no armrest in between seats (what's up with that, Greyhound?), and the only way I could finally get comfortable was to put my bag on the seat next to me and lean my arm on it.

Unfortunately, Blurting Man (in the back of the bus) made it tough to actually get rest. It went something like this...quiet, quiet, quiet, quiet, AAAAHHHHHH!, quiet, quiet, quiet, quiet, BLEH! BLEH!, quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet quiet (ah, drifting off to sleep) quiet quiet, HUH! HUH!. You get the idea.

At around 2 AM, Blurter had finally settled down and I was finally almost asleep when the most awful, bright lights were unceremoniously thrown on with the gruff announcement that if we were too comfortable we'd better scoot over, because the bus was about to fill up in San Jose. Our driver had the subtlety of a mack truck. He was an amalgam of the meanest school bus drivers of my youth.

The bus did, in fact, fill up, and there was some excitement at the back of the bus that required a security guard to come on for a time ("That's my seat, OME-BRAY. I told you not to take my seat," "Sit down, man, what's wrong with you?" and such), but at last all were seated and we got rolling.

On my end, at least, it could have been much worse. I was away from the back, and the man who sat beside me was quiet, odor-free, and of average girth. Still, an armrest between us while we tried to sleep would have been really handy.

When at last our big stretch and bathroom stop occurred, it was at a 24 hour Burger King in Coalinga. Now I don't mean to sound like I don't appreciate a shit-smeared bathroom with no toilet paper, but, well, I don't. It frightened my pee back in.

Although we had thirty minutes at the stop, the bus driver sufficiently scared me with his warning of leaving us there to wait six hours for the next bus if we were a minute late. I was within ten feet of the bus the whole time.

Incidentally, all those buses sitting there with their engines idling for half an hour is gross. Where's your commitment to the environment, Greyhound? I'm pretty sure the buses can be turned off.

A plus is that they do offer internet and plugs for your electronic devices. Of course, the internet was so slow, I was asleep by the time it connected.

I think it may have been slightly more pleasant if we were not overnighting it. Maybe.

At last, seven hours and change later, we pulled in to the North Hollywood station and I grabbed my things and ran as quickly as my sore back and cramped legs would allow into the car with Jaime waiting to take me….to Vegas. Five more hours in a car...

Nifty Napa (Road Trip Day 4)

2012-01-08T21:21:00.001-08:00

Last Day of Wine Tasting...

After the best sleep I'd had in days, we were up at the crack of 9 to grab some free hotel breakfast and head to St. Helena for our 11:00 appointment at David Fulton Winery.

We strategically planned to get to St. Helena at 10:30 for the opening of Gott's Roadside (formerly Taylor's Refresher) so we could grab some lunch to eat later since we had almost no time between tasting appointments.

At David Fulton we were greeted first by Trigger the friendly dog, and then her friendly owner, winemaker Stephanie Zacharia .

David Fulton is a family-run winery only makes Petite Sirah. That's it. And, as they've been doing it for many years, it's pretty gosh-darned amazing. Velvety, fruity, sexy, wonderful Petite Sirah. Pardon my drool.

Anyhow, tastings there are by appointment only, as they are with most of the wineries we visited, and you can imagine that with only one wine to taste, the tasting can be very short. To stretch it a little further, they also pull out some of their neighbor's wines to try. We tried several from Jana Winery and a nice cab from Calafia. They were all pretty good, but they definitely saved the best for last: their own.

We tried their 2007, 2008, Petite Sirahs, and 2008 Sweet Petite. Previously, I had been in love with the 2004 vintage, and I think the '08 is closer than that to the '07. The '07 has an edge to it that I think would be beautifully rounded out with food, whereas the '08 is so smooth already I just want to bathe in it.

After a quick tour of how and where the magic happens, we tried the '08 Sweet Petite. Now I would never, in a million years, think that anything minty could ever go with wine. So when Stephanie pulled out York Peppermint Patties to go with our luscious dessert wine, I thought perhaps she was trying to get rid of us.

What I learned that day is that there is, in fact, a wine for everything. Even York Peppermint Patties. They and that Sweet Petite sang a beautiful song in my mouth, and I'll never doubt Stephanie's wine pairing suggestions again.

I also learned that there's a palate cleansing water, San Tásti, which may sound like hooey, but actually works amazingly well. It makes tasting so much easier, and I wish every winery had a splash to give you between tastes. Next time, I'll carry a bottle of it around.

Good thing our next appointment at Titus Vineyards was only 5 minutes away, because we spent a little too much time chatting and buying bottles.

Titus Vineyards is another family-run winery and holds their tastings in a charming little house along the Silverado Trail. This one was recommended to me by Rich Reader of VineBuzz because he knew of my love of Petite Sirahs, and said they made a good one. They do.

Christophe Smith, associate producer of Wine Biz Radio in addition to his Titus duties, was kind enough to squeeze us in although he was holding down the fort alone during the holidays. He took us through a nice flight in which even Gregory liked the Sauvignon Blanc.

I enjoyed their Zinfandel, which balanced fruity and spicy quite well, and their Cabernet Sauvignon was lovely. Not as big and tannic as I'd expected, but mellow and rather easy to sip. As predicted, I loved the Petite Sirah the most, though, and took a bottle of it home.

Finally we had a few minutes in the car to scarf down our cold burgers that we'd ordered in the morning from Gott's and as a testament to how good their food is, I've got to tell you that they were still delicious. The ahi burger is my favorite, and the turkey burger with chutney was pretty fantastic, too.

From there we headed to Calistoga for an appointment with Emil Tedeschi at Tedeschi Winery.

Emil's grandparents emigrated from Pisa, Italy and settled in the Calistoga area in the 1920s. His father, Eugene, first planted grapes on his property in the 1960s, and Emil is back in Napa running the show after having been in Hawaii since the 1970s, making pineapple wine on Maui.

Somewhat shy but very friendly, Emil gave us a small tour of the facility, and brought us into their enticingly rustic tasting room. There he poured a few tastes and teased us with a dessert wine that we couldn't actually buy yet. Oh, well.

The biggest surprise for me there was the Rosé. In general, I'm a little snooty about Rosé and scoff at the idea of it even really being wine. However, I had once before had one that I liked (from Chateu Julien), and now I've had another. It's hard for me to pinpoint exactly what it is I liked, but I'll say this: It was the summertime-on-the-porch-easy-drinking that you always want from a Rosé, but hardly ever get because they're too yucky and not really wine. Present company excepted.

With my tongue feeling like it was carpeted, we headed to Heitz Cellar. I've always loved their Cabs, but this time I was so overwhelmed with wine already, it was harder going. I still liked everything, but didn't LOVE it the way I had previously. Naturally, my taste leaned toward the $70 bottle instead of the $45, so I had to forgo the Cab altogether. I'm of the opinion that-as a general rule- it's hard to justify spending more than $50 on a bottle of wine. I did, however, splurge on some Port. They make an awfully good one.

With a little time to kill before dinner, we meandered along Main Street in St. Helena. Wine shops, Woodhouse Chocolate, and olive oil tastings were a nice way to pass the time. If you're looking for olive oil, try tasting at St. Helena Olive Oil Co.

Our reservation for dinner was supposed to be at Rutherford Grill, but since we enjoyed Mustards Grill so much the night before, we changed our reservation to eat at another of Cindy Pawlcyn 's restaurants, Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen. Another win.

Our waiter, Tim, patiently answered all of our questions about the dishes, and aided us in our difficult food decisions. Our appetizers were Polenta Fries and Oysters Bingo (parmesan cheese, garlic, and spinach).

For libations, I enjoyed a spicy Thai-GIn-Tini (Tru2 Gin, fresh squeezed lime juice, & a cayenne rim), while Joe sipped on a delicious Sidecar Named Desire (Belle De Brillet Pear Cognac Liquer, Cointreau, & fresh squeezed lemon juice), and David took on a classic Mojito Monte (Meyer's Platinum Rum, fresh mint, fresh squeezed lime juice, & club soda).

Though we went round and round with what we wanted as main courses, it was finally decided that I would get the famous Chinatown Duck Burger with house made shitake mushroom 'ketchup' and fries, Joe would get the Pasta Del Giorno (which in this case was a sort of grown-up mac n' cheese), Gregory would go for the Mighty Meatloaf with horseradish barbecue and garlic mashed potatoes, and David would give quail one last chance to make him happy with the BBQ Quail, honey glazed cornbread & apricot BBQ sauce.

As we had come to expect based on our meal the night before, everything was fantastic. I especially loved my duck burger which had a delicate hoisen flavor and was topped with mushrooms.

The Warm Pineapple Upside Down Cake (with house made vanilla ice cream, rum-caramel, and pecans) was recommended highly by Tim. In fact, he said he'd marry it. I would, too.

It was a perfect way to end the Napa portion of our trip, and now it was nearly time for us to split up. Gregory drove us back to Oakland where I was left at the Greyhound Station to embark on a whole other adventure while they drove off on theirs.

Crap. Overnight on a Greyhound...

Wino Heaven: Our First Day in Napa (Road Trip Day 3)

2012-01-02T16:36:00.001-08:00

The Road Trip Continues...
Bright and early the alarm went off after a sleepless night dreaming of raccoons getting in the house every time the cat door opened at my friend Mira's, which was often. I've never had problems sleeping there before, but knowing they'd had raccoons make it through the cat door a couple of times wigged me out just enough to be certain in my half-asleep state that the furball curling up next to me was a rabid, clawed beast.

The boys picked me up precisely at 8AM and we were off to an early start to get to beautiful Napa. We were making great time, well on our way, passing through Castroville, the Artichoke Capital of the World, when I realized I'd left my camera battery charging in Mira's kitchen.

Though I may have told me to go to hell, Gregory obligingly headed back, despite his intense dislike of ever turning around. Since we were back in the neighborhood, it was decided that we should eat at Breakfast Club once again.

I've only ever eaten breakfast there, so I decided to change it up and order a little lunch. The Tuna Melt with Grilled Onions on Sourdough was very good, but didn't knock my socks off. I'll try other lunch things there, but so far would definitely recommend breakfasts over lunch.

Fully fortified, we finally made it to lovely Napa and went immediately to taste wine.

Our first appointment that day was with Hendry Winery. It's one of the highest rated wineries on Google, and there is definitely a reason for that. However, we were early, and so drove up the road five miles to Hess.

One of a growing number of wineries to tout environmentally sustainable practices, The Hess Collection is a fourth-generation, family-owned winery on a lovely property, and includes a little sculpture garden in front of, as well as an art musem above the tasting room/gift shop. $10 gets you four tastes off the menu. Our favorites were the Malbec and Muscat, though we didn't really give our tasting the time or attention it deserved since we were trying to get ...

Back to Hendry.

George Hendry is an engineer who builds cyclotrons but grew up tending to the animals and plants on the Napa property where he still lives today. Up until the 1960s, much of the property - like much of Napa - had a larger prune than grape crop due to the aftermath of Prohibition. Presently, with the help of a seemingly tightly-knit group which includes family, friends, and a crew that has been with them for an average of 20 years, they not only make delicious wine, but really make you feel the wine 'experience.'

The formal, sit-down tasting lasts about an hour, and if you can get in on a tour as well, add another hour to that.

Fellow engineer and cyclotron man, Jeff, was our tasting and tour guide. He has been with the winery since its beginnings, and gave the most informative yet entertaining presentation about all aspects of wine making and enjoying that I've ever had. He also wants you to know that, as scientists and wine makers who never want bad wine, they love the little breathable discs that are used with screwtops because they are much more reliable and never ever "cork," or go bad.

I also really loved that they have a basket full of sunblock in the bathroom for people who are taking the tour of the grounds. A thoughtful little detail.

After our super-duper awesome tasting and tour at Hendry we ended up at Napa Cellars and Folie á Deux to do some comparison tastings. Both labels are owned by the same family, and both were good, but Napa Cellars was consistently our favorite. Pictured here is the Chardonnay that was named "Best Chardonnay in the World" by someone other than themselves.

Dean, our wine pourer extraordinaire, was personable, knowledgable, and brought us out some chocolatey cookies which made us like him even more. Gregory and Joe bought something like a million bottles.

After chillaxing at our hotel for a few, it was finally time for dinner. The only reservation available was a pretty late one, but it was sooooo worth the wait.

Mustards Grill in Yountville is run by executive chef/owner Cindy Pawlcyn who, along with executive chef Dale Ray and what I can only imagine are magic cooking elves, makes little miracles happen in the kitchen. Our appetizers were Ahi Tuna Crackers, wasabi crème fraiche, soy vinaigrette and Crispy Calamari with curried slaw and fresno chilies. Both were exceptional, but I especially loved the calamari. The dressing was fantastic and the slaw so fresh.

Our friendly and funny waitress, Mo, helped us choose our entrees, and made the evening that much more enjoyable. We weren't drinking wine (for once!), but wine director and general manager Patrick Kellaher made his rounds to make sure everyone was happy.

For entrées, I had the Lemon and Garlic Chicken, local vegetables, lemon vinaigrette which was served with mashed potatoes. The garlic sauce was INCREDIBLE, and the chicken was cooked to perfection...nice and moist with a crisp, flavorful skin. Gregory wanted an entire plate of it. The chicken skin, I mean. Better than popcorn.

David's Half Pound Niman Ranch Hamburger with Maytag Blue Cheese was just about the best burger ever, and his side of brussels sprouts was buttery, shalloty goodness.

Gregory had the most popular dish...Famous Mongolian Pork Chop, sweet & sour red cabbage and housemade mustard. It was an excellent pork chop, rivaled only by a potential plate full of crispy chicken skin.

Joe ordered the variable Truckstop Deluxe (Always meat, often potatoes, rarely vegetables). That evening, it was a hunka hunka steak with mashed potatoes and greens. He also had the cocktail of the evening, The Sidecar, which was excellent.

For a group that was filled to the brim, we sure threw down on desserts.

We felt absolutely obligated to order the meringue beast that was showing up on everybody else's table. It's the sort of thing that small children can get lost in, so it's perfectly understandable why the "Our Famous Lemon-Lime Tart" (ridiculously tall brown sugar meringue, candied lemon peel) is so popular.

The creme brûlée was a perfectly good creme brûlée, and the cookie served with it was a perfectly good cookie. However, I've had good creme brûlée and cookies before, and these didn't offer anything that stood out from others. It was actually extra good when you had a piece of cookie WITH the creme brûlée, but there wasn't enough cookie to do that throughout the dessert.

We also tried the dessert of the evening which was cardamum ice cream on a waffle. The cardamum ice cream was the kind of thing that I could eat all day long.

Overall, I liked their food better than the desserts. Nothing wrong with the desserts, just more eye-rolling and pleasurable grunts from the food food than the sweet food.

We finally rolled back to the hotel, I got the best sleep I'd had in days, and I even won a dollar in the scratchers. Take that, non-winning MegaMillions ticket!

Benedict, Bloated Seals, & Candy: Another Day of Fun

2011-12-30T22:00:00.000-08:00

Day 2
Breakfast!! My favorite place to eat in Monterey is The Breakfast Club. The Crab Cake & Avocado Benedict and Bananas Foster French Toast are a treat every time, and I've never heard anyone say anything bad about anything from there. Currently, the Costco in Seaside offers $100 worth of gift cards for The Breakfast Club for $80. So worth it.

We then headed to Pacific Grove to walk a bit of the meal off. Meandering along the hike and bike trail is always gorgeous, and the bloated seal corpse floating near the children frolicking in the water at Lovers (of Jesus) Point was just an added bonus. (Yes, that's what you see floating there on the right in front of the seaweed).

After climbing the rocks and enjoying the view (watch for the deep, leg-sized hole hiding among the rocks near the top), we walked back by the Cannery to watch the sausage-like seals sun themselves then walk through Candy World in the nearly deserted mall. Incidentally, that mall is a great, clean place to use the restroom.

Since doing lots of walking, we were ALMOST hungry again, so drove over to the wharf to do a bit more walking around and partake of the clam chowder offerings used to lure hungry tourists into restaurants. It's a great way to eat a light, free lunch. Sometimes we even buy a bowl. But not today. My parents and sister decided to take a jaunt up north, so we met up with them there.

We had to hurry over to the Monterey Museum of Art before their 5:00 closing time to enter their Miniatures fundraiser drawing.

An annual community favorite, the Miniatures exhibit consists of 300 tiny pieces of art donated by local artists. Beneath each work of art is a small box into which museum visitors can put raffle tickets (purchased for $5 each, or 7 for $30) in the hopes of winning the piece. All proceeds benefit the museum.

By that time the guys were hungry again (where do they put it?), so went to dinner and to their hotel while we returned to Mira's for a rest, then off to Candy Cane Lane in Pacific Grove.

Candy Cane Lane is a an area of several blocks off of Forest Ave. beginning on Morse Ave. that sports lights aplenty, and hand painted cutouts of beloved cartoon characters that often look like either they-or you-are on some serious drugs. It's a completely charming display that includes a decorated square which features extra photo-ops like Christmas cut-outs for your head to come through. Love it.

Next:Napa Ho!

Roadtripping With the Boys

2011-12-28T22:16:00.000-08:00

I'm heading to Monterey and then, even more importantly, to Napa with my friends Gregory, Joe, and David. Though we didn't get very far out of town, the first stop on our road trip was a happy maker.

Camarillo, known for insane asylums and outlet malls, is also home to Brendan's Irish Pub. This little gem has traditional fare like Shepherd's Pie, Fish and Chips, and amazing Irish Reuben and Corned Beef Sandwiches . The onion rings are crisp, delicious, and the size of my face, and the sweet potato fries were thickly cut delights.

If I lived closer, I'd join their Whiskey Club. My understanding of it is that $99 gets you a little "whiskey passport" with about 60 different types. You get a 20% discount on your whiskey purchases there, allowing you to more easily work your way through the higher-end stuff, and invitations to quarterly whiskey pairing dinners. I THINK the first one is free, then you have to pay something for the others.

On the menu is a Whiskey Bread Pudding which I was too stuffed to eat, but look forward to trying at a future date.

We then rolled along in the traffic that lasted through Santa Barbara, and there made an important Trader Joe's stop to pick up Drambuie for the evening's Rusty Nails.

I found it hard to believe that none of my travel buddies had ever stopped at The Madonna Inn, so insisted that everybody use the bathroom there, as it is the best bathroom stop in the world. It may also be the only place on the planet that has a better mens room than ladies room. I'd love your comments if I'm wrong about that.

After immersing ourselves in its fancy pinkness-which is kicked up a few notches by the holiday decor-we headed into town for a small supper of mediterranean food at Jaffa Cafe. The pita bread was warm and fluffy and quite good, but overall it was meh. Don't get the falafel.

It was after dinner that I discovered, much to my chagrin, that I am not the new MegaMillions winner. My dreams of staying in the Madonna Suite have been dashed.

Finally, we made it to my friends' place. Rusty Nails and good cheer all around, followed by sleep at long last.

Luscious Libations and Culinary Treats

2011-12-21T23:23:00.000-08:00

RESERVE & NEW RELEASE TASTING

One of my favorite things about the two Reserve and New Release Tastings that I've attended at The San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival (besides, of course, the fantastic wine and cocktails) is the varying milieu. Last year's was a blast on a boat, and this year topped it at the Air and Space Museum.

Opened in 1963, the San Diego Air & Space Museum is one of the premier aerospace museums in the country. It not only houses heirloom relics of aviation, but it's got an interesting history of its own which includes a devastating fire shortly before the museum was to move to its present location, and the amazing efforts of the community to rebuild it.

It was our pleasure to sip wine and cocktails while meandering through the history of air travel. Over a hundred wine and cocktail vendors poured their wares while gorgeous antique planes loomed overhead, and the ambiance couldn't have been more pleasant.

Though I'm typically more of a wine enthusiast, the cocktails and hard liquors held more allure for me that evening. Perhaps because earlier in the day we'd attended three classes which all featured wine prominently. Of course, that's not to say I ignored them completely at the museum! Here are some favorites from the event:

St. Petersburg Vodka is one of the cleanest vodkas I've ever tasted. Dangerously so. Almost too easy to drink.

Anchor Distilling Company had a lot of different spirits that they were showcasing and making cocktails with. I can't remember exactly which we tried, but I was quite impressed with all of them, so check out their products and try out your favorites as made by them!

Fox Barrel was showcasing some of their flavored pear ciders, including Rhubarb & Elderberry and Ginger & Blackcurrant. They make a wicked good cider.

A St. Germain cocktail is always a pleasure.

Twin Pomegranates Wine is the pomegranatiest wine ever. If you love pomegranates, you can't go wrong. It is tart, tangy and tastes JUST like the fruit. If you like pomegranate but not as a super-strong flavor, the effervescent one is a bit milder and still delicious.

The chocolate/port pairings courtesy of Chuao Chocolatier and the Center for Wine Origins were hard to get enough of. The chocolates also went awfully well with Corrido Tequila!

Bouchaine's 2010 Bouche d'Or Chardonnay is a lovely dessert wine. Sweet without being syrupy, this dessert wine is light and unique.

The Silent Auction that evening benefits AIWF.

GRAND TASTING EVENT

The next day was the Grand Tasting Event. Embarcadero Park, behind Seaport Village, is filled with tents serving all manner of food and drinks from the San Diego area and beyond.

Press and VIP ticket holders get to enter an hour earlier (11AM) than the general admission holders which is great because, although there are still a few short lines, it is still possible to walk around comfortably. Shortly, that luxury will be nonexistent as throngs of people make their way in, and longer lines snake through the walkways.

Although you'll be shoulder to shoulder with people, the mirthful mood makes it all okay, and there are plenty of booth-free areas on the grass where you can get away from the crowds.

I'm sorry to say that following the copious amounts of alcohol from the night (and day) before, it was impossible to enjoy the many wine and spirits booths at Saturday's event. The bright side to that, however, is that I had more time and calories to spend on exploring the food.

Truth be told, I seem to recall the food being more to my liking overall last year ("Maybe because you were drinking last year," quipped my sister), but there were still some fabulously tasty bites to be had.

My absolutely favorite thing there was the giant scallop prepared by Jake's Del Mar. It was cooked to unadulterated perfection. The scallops were sweet and succulent, and my mouth is watering just remembering those flavors.

Buster's Beach House provided us with scrumptious ahi poke served in a crispy wonton shell with avocado and seaweed salad.

Truluck's was handing out some succulent crab legs with an excellent dipping sauce. I guess the seafood was my favorite this year.

The Chef of the Fest winner was Chef Daniel Barron of Blue Point Coastal Cuisine. I'm not sure where he was hiding, because the winning dish of Crispy Laughing Bird shrimp with curry-glazed sous vide pork belly, cauliflower polenta, and roasted ginger and kaffir lime air sounds delightful, but I don't remember coming across it. I guess you really can't get through it all.

I also really enjoyed Fiscalini Farmstead Cheese, and Sweet Cheeks Baking Company, winners of Food Network's Cupcake Wars, provided some delectable desserts.

With its lovely views of the water and the city, and tantalizing culinary delights, the San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival once again made me a happy camper.

What I Learned at the San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival

2011-12-07T16:08:00.000-08:00

The San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival is a five-day+ event which includes parties, classes, wine dinners, tasting seminars, and plenty more. The Grand Tasting Event is the piéce de résistance, but the Silent Auction and Reserve Tasting the night before is just as much fun!

We drove in Friday morning to the San Diego Wine & Culinary Event Center to take advantage of some classes being offered. The classes aren't that grab-an-apron-and-go type...they're more cooking demonstrations with recipes and tasting. There were three we took that day: A Taste of the Middle East with Chef Billy Strynkowski ($65), Master Sommelier Blind Tasting with Master Sommelier Joseph Spellman ($85), and Super Chef All Stars presented by Alaska Seafood featuring three former Top Chef Contestants ($85).

Each class catered to different crowd, but we found that the best bang for your buck was A Taste of the Middle East. Billy Strynkowski is the Executive Chef for Cooking Light, and packed a lot into our hour-long class. What I loved most about him was the profusion of general cooking tips that he shared while showing us how to prepare the delectable dishes placed in front of us. He also just threw a couple of simple recipes at us that weren't part of the course, and expounded upon the virtues of having aleppo pepper, sumac, and za'atar in our pantries.

The vegetarian sides/starters were, in both taste and texture, delightful. Get those recipes by clicking here. The lamb kebabs and turkey patties were seasoned PERFECTLY, and nearly melted in my mouth. It was actually some of my favorite food we tasted at the whole festival.

We then ran to the next room for the Master Sommelier Blind Tasting. According to the Court of Master Sommeliers, there are only 112 who hold that title in North America. When Joseph Spellman was certified in 1996, there were only around 30. As interest in wine grows, so does interest in becoming a sommelier, and the numbers are growing exponentially. Mr. Spellman was joined by three local sommeliers (Megan Yelenosky of Hilton Bay Front, Will Costello of Addison at Grand Del Mar, and Myres McDougal of Market in Del Mar) all of whom will be attempting master sommelier status.

The purpose of this class was to share with us the criteria used by sommeliers to identify the varietals of wine during a blind tasting. Joseph Spellman picked 6 wines (3 white, 3 red) that were on the table in a particular order when we walked in. He took us through the steps of looking at the wine, then smelling it, and led us in a discussion about what the visual and aromatic cues might tell us about the wine. After finally tasting and narrowing down the possibilities even more, class members ventured to guess what we were drinking, as did the sommeliers.

It was an interesting class which I enjoyed, but to get the most out of it you really need a pretty extensive knowledge of wine from all over the world to begin with. I was also hoping for some sort of basic instructions or helpful tips to take with me, but there was only one copy of such a sheet per table, and the person that got there first snatched it up, so not everyone could benefit from it. The main thing I think we all came away with was this: If you want to develop your palate as the sommeliers do, drink a lot of different wines, and really pay attention to what you're drinking.

We then went across town to Macy's School of Cooking for the Super Chef All Stars. Chef Brian Malarkey (finished 4th in Top Chef, Season 3) hosted and was joined by Chef Eli Kirshtein (finished 5th in Top Chef, Season 6) and Chef Kenneth J. Gilbert (finished 8th in Top Chef, Season 7).

Brian is an energetic host who literally ends up running up and down the aisles for a Q & A at the end of the demonstration. This class definitely caters to fans of the show, and the price and popularity are more about Top Chef than anything. It's very entertaining, but it's really just watching the chefs cook and talk...no real cooking tips or culinary epiphanies.
As a recipe, Chef Brian shared a simple Salmon "Pizza" with Tomato, Basil Pesto, and Goat Cheese in which the salmon served as the "crust". It tasted fine, but it's similar to things I've done on my own with fish, so I didn't feel like I got a new recipe or learned anything new.

Chef Kenny shared a Milk Poached Cod, Dukkah Tomato Broth and Squid Spaetzle, with Ricotta Salata Cheese and Toasted Hazelnuts recipe. There were many components to the dish, but only some of them worked for me. I LOVED the cod, and the spaetzle was really creative and tasty, but I didn't love the tomato broth that covered it, and found the bitterness of the rapini was overwhelming.

Chef Eli shared a recipe for Cured Alaskan Salmon, Beet Salad, and Tahini Cream, which was a nice appetizer. The beets were extremely simple, but quite glorious.

Click here for Beet Salad, Squid Spaetzle, and Milk-Poached Cod recipes.

Next week: The Reserve & New Release Tasting, and The Grand Tasting Event!

Top Chef Recipes: Beet Salad, Milk-Poached Cod, & Squid Spaetzle

2011-12-04T11:51:00.000-08:00

During the San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival in November, we took a class sponsored by Alaska Seafood featuring former Top Chef contestants sharing some of their favorite seafood recipes. Some recipes had several components, and I pulled out my favorites to share with you here.

Beet Salad (by Chef Eli Kirshtein)

1 large red beet
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons sliced chives
salt
pepper

1) Lightly salt the beet and wrap in foil.
2) Roast at 425 degrees until tender (let cook in the foil).
3) Peel the beets and cut into 1/8 inch slices
4) Combine remaining ingredients and lightly coat the beets in the dressing.

Chef Eli served this as part of a larger dish of Cured Alaskan Salmon, Beet Salad, and Tahini Cream. It's such a simple and delicious side, it would go nicely with any number of things.

Milk Poached Alaskan Black Cod (by Chef Kenneth J. Gilbert)

8 oz. Alaskan Black Cod
1 quart half and half
2 bay leaves
1/8 tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. pink peppercorns

1) Place half and half into a pot along with bay leaves, salt, and pink peppercorns.
2) Place fish into simmering milk mixture until fully cooked.

Squid Spaetzle (by Chef Kenneth J. Gilbert)

1 pound squid (cleaned)
6 egg whites
1 cup flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
pinch of kosher salt

1) Bring salted water to a boil.
2) Place squid and egg whites in a blender; puree until smooth
3) Pass mixture through a strainer or tammycloth
4) Slowly add flour, cornstarch, and salt. Mix until smooth.
5) Place mixture into piping bag and cut tip.
6) Pipe mixture into boiling water.
7) Cook until spaetzle begin to float, then about 2 minutes.

Chef Kenny had these as part of a larger dish of Milk Poached Black Cod, Dukkah Tomato Broth, Squid Spaetzle, Rapini, Ricotta Salata Cheese, and Hazelnuts. The tomato broth and rapini didn't really work for me when I tasted it, so I'm only sharing the pieces of the recipe I liked. The spaetzle would be great with a light cream, butter, or lemon sauce. The poached cod can be served flaked on top (as it was in his original recipe, pictured above), or as a main dish....it was delicious.

Muhammara & Middle Eastern Eggplant Salad

2011-11-19T22:32:00.000-08:00

At the San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival we took a few classes, our favorite of which was A Taste of the Middle East taught by Chef Billy Strynkowski from Cooking Light Magazine. We tasted Lamb Kofta with Harissa Yogurt Sauce, Chicken and Feta Tabbouleh, and some delicious vegetarian starter/sides.

Chef Billy was quite emphatic that three must-haves for the pantry are za'atar, aleppo pepper, and sumac. None of these ingredients were written into the recipes we were given, but he added it to the food we tasted, and I've added it into these recipes of the vegetarian dishes for you.

MUHAMMARA

3 red bell peppers**

1/4 cup toasted walnut halves

1/4 cup plain, dry breadcrumbs

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 garlic clove

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon honey

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (aleppo pepper, if you've got it)

sumac and za'atar to taste

1. Preheat Broiler

2. Cut peppers in half lengthwise, discarding seeds and membranes. Place them, skin sides up, on a baking sheet and flatten with your hand. Broil 20 minutes or until blackened.

3. Seal in a ziplock. Let them stand 20 minutes, then peel peppers and discard skins.

4. Place 4 pepper halves, 3 tablespoons of walnuts, and other ingredients EXCEPT lime juice into a food processor and blend until smooth.

5. Add remaining pepper halves and pulse unti coarsely chopped.

6. Spoon dip into bowl and stir in juice. Top with the remaining walnuts.

7. Serve with carrots, radishes, bread, meat, or pretty much anything. It was delicious.

EGGPLANT SALAD

2 medium red bell peppers**

1 medium tomato, peeled and seeded

3 tablespoons of no-salt-added tomato paste

2 tablespoons of water

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

Dash of ground red pepper (aleppo is preferable)

1 thinly sliced garlic clove

1/4 cup olive oil

1 pound eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1 or 2 tablespoons of chopped green onions

sumac to taste

1. Preheat broiler.

2. Cut peppers in half lengthwise, discarding seeds and membrane. Place them, skin sides up, on a baking sheet and flatten with your hand. Broil 12 minutes or until blackened.

3. Seal in a ziplock. Let them stand 10 minutes, then peel peppers and chop.

4. Place tomato in blender and process until smooth. Add tomato paste, water, 1/4 teaspoon salt, sugar, garlic, and aleppo pepper. Blend until smooth.

5. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. (The higher the heat, the more oil you'll need, and eggplant is like an oil sponge). Add the eggplant and cook for at least 30 minutes, or until the eggplant is tender. Stir frequently.

6. Once eggplant is tender, add the bell pepper and tomato mixture. Cook for 5 minutes, and stir in the remaining salt, pepper, and green onions.

7. For more interesting texture, blend half of the mixture in a blender or food processor, then mix back in with the chunky half. (optional)

8. Serve as a side alongside grilled or roasted meats, or as a dip with crackers or flatbread.

Enjoy!!

** If you are feeling lazy or need to save time, you can buy a jar of high-quality roasted peppers, use the appropriate amount, and skip to step 4.

That's Deep! (Lovely Lake Tahoe)

2011-11-02T10:30:00.001-07:00

Fast Facts

*Lake Tahoe is the second deepest lake in the U.S., and tenth deepest in the world.
*It is the highest alpine lake in the U.S., and second largest alpine lake in the world.
*Maximum Depth: ~1,640 feet (500 meters)
*Average Depth: 1,000 feet (305 meters)
*Length (N-S): 22 miles (35 kilometers)
*Width (W-E): 12 miles (19 kilometers)
*Capacity: 39 trillion gallons

A Little Bit About It...

Lake Tahoe had long been considered a sacred spiritual site by the Washo Indians before the first white explorers came upon it in the middle of the 19th century (Kit Carson and John Fremont in 1844). From then, it wouldn't be long until pioneers settled in and silver was discovered. There went the neighborhood.

Fortune seekers rushed in and forced the natives out. Within thirty years, (1860-1890) the beautiful forests surrounding the lake were all but destroyed to satisfy the sudden and massive need for building materials and fuel. Even so, the area was breathtaking.

Word of the natural beauty of the area spread, and Lake Tahoe soon became a summer playground for the affluent families of California, particularly San Francisco. Posh hotels sprang up, and palatial estates soon followed. Many of these mansions of yesteryear are now kept as museums and open for public tours during the summer months.

Conservation and Pollution

Present-day Lake Tahoe is not only devoted to historical preservation, but natural rehabilitation as well. Its popularity has led to some dire environmental consequences. Aside from the aforementioned deforestation, there is also a problem with algal growth.

In the 1960s, scientists began measuring the clarity of the lake. At that time, visibility was greater than 100 feet. It is now at about 64 feet. Urban runoff, car and boat exhaust, and accelerated erosion have increased the amount of phosphorus and nitrogen in the area which creates an algal abundance. In turn, the water becomes murky. Destruction of wetlands is also taking its toll, as those wetlands have historically worked as a "filter" for excess sediment and nutrients. Now, these things flow more directly into the lake, feeding the algae. If this trend continues, the lake will become a swampy marsh, then a meadow. Such a process (called eutrophication) usually takes millions of years to occur, but human activity is accelerating it at an alarming rate.

There have also been a number of non-native species introduced to both the water and land, wreaking havoc on the ecosystem.

Efforts to curb pollution and aid forest growth are a priority for the area, but it's a juggling act filled with too much compromise when the economy relies so heavily upon tourist money and so-called 'growth.'

What to Do There...

Most of what follows in this section are summer activities, because that's when I was there. Winter is a whole other ballgame. Tahoe becomes a winter wonderland, and sports like skiing, sledding, snowshoeing dominate. Many of the mansion tours are summer only, so be sure to check for their availability if you're heading there during the cold season. But, assuming it's warm...

Bicycling
Most of us aren't going to circumnavigate the enormous lake, but there are plenty of trails all over the place. The Forest Trail is an easy stretch perfect for families and people looking for a relaxing, scenic trail without the worry of cars. It runs about 5 miles round-trip from around Pope Beach to just past Baldwin Beach, and takes you through the beautiful Tallac Historic Estates, as well as to the entrance of Rainbow Trail at Taylor Creek. There, you can park your bike and walk along a pretty, self-guided tour through Tahoe's aquatic ecosystems.

Anderson's Bicycle Rental is a family-owned rental stand that's been right at the beginning of The Forest Trail since 1978. We found them knowledgeable, helpful, and reasonably priced for the day. They'll provide you with good bikes, maps, helmets, locks, and recommendations. Get there early for the best bike selection.

Swimming
I love swimming, and the gentle currents of the giant lake make it feel like taking a dip in a serene sea. A serene, arctic sea. After about an hour of swimming, my arm grew numb, and I'm well insulated. Consider yourself warned.

Our favorite beach (and we hear it's a local favorite, too) was Baldwin Beach. Gorgeous scenery, BBQ and picnic areas, and shockingly clean and non-smelly bathrooms make this beach hard to beat.

Boating
I have not yet taken a boat out on Lake Tahoe, but there are plenty of places from which to rent them. Going out on a boat is the only way to visit Fannette Island, the only island on the lake, which houses the ruins of the old Vikingsholm Tea Room. Fallen Leaf Lake is minutes away from Tahoe, and is also a very popular place for boating. Nestled just behind Fallen Leaf Lake is Glen Alpine Falls. The beautiful cascade is easily accessible, and worth the jaunt.

Diving
Near Fannette Island is Emerald Bay Underwater Park, which is a spot for divers to see and explore all manner of submerged artifacts dating back to the area's heyday between the late 1800s and mid-1900s. From piers and boats to sinks and toilets, there's apparently a treasure-trove of fun down there.

Gambling
Modern-day Tahoe is not just about natural beauty and historical preservation. There are plenty of opportunities to try your hand with Lady Luck. World-class casinos can be found all around the Nevada side of the lake. The most popular on the south side is the small band along the right near the California border which includes Harrah's, Harvey's, Mont Bleu, and Horizon.

In the north, Crystal Bay is the home of four large casinos, including the Tahoe Biltmore and the famous Cal-Neva. This landmark was built in 1926, rebuilt after a fire in 1937, and was once owned by Frank Sinatra (along with his associates "Wingy" and "Skinny").

The Tallac Historic Site

Baldwin Estate
Elias "Lucky" Baldwin was quite a character who left an indelible mark on his adopted state of California. Baldwin Park in Southern California is named for him, and he opened the Santa Anita Racetrack. He led one of those lives that makes you think, "Dang, I've gotta do more," and is worth learning more about. At any rate, he had a 6-acre chunk of real estate holdings in Lake Tahoe which he left to his daughter Anita upon his death in 1909. She, in turn, gave it to her daughter, Dextra Winter (aka Dextra McGonagle, after a later husband) who, in 1924, had this home (and guest homes) built. Two years after her death in 1967, the title was given to the government, and now we are able to visit this lovely old residence- cum-museum.

The Pope Estate
Her neighbors to the east were the Popes. The Pope Estate is the oldest and largest estate in the Tallac Historic Site, and it belonged to other wealthy families before the Popes took it over in the 1920s, beginning with George P. Tallant, who had the house built in 1894.

Only five years later, the house was sold to Lloyd Tevis, the founder and director of Wells Fargo. He died shortly before escrow closed, and so the property fell into the hands of his son. He added on to the home significantly and built most of the structures you see today. Sadly for him, financial setbacks eventually necessitated the sale of his beloved home to the Popes.

Although Pope Resources (originally Pope and Talbot) was and continues to be one of the most successful lumber and shipping businesses in the country, the family transferred the land and buildings to the Forest Service in 1965 to ensure the preservation of the estate for generations of visitors.

Valhalla Estate
Valhalla is the third of the Tallac estates. Named after the the great hall of the Viking afterlife, the mansions was built by Walter S. Heller in 1922. So loved was the house and the lake, for 20 years after their divorce in 1936, he and his wife alternated weekends there.

The Ehrman Mansion (aka The Hellman-Ehrman Mansion)

Isaias W. Hellman was born in Bavaria and moved to Los Angeles to work at his cousins' dry goods store. Six years later, he 'accidentally' became the city's first banker when a scuffle erupted over some valuables he had stored in his safe as a courtesy to his customers. The incident prompted him to be more formal with his banking practice, and issued deposit books to his customers. He and a partner then opened L.A.'s second official bank in 1868, and a few years later went on to open another one.

All of his successes allowed him to invest in water, gas, and power, as well as transportation. He helped bring the Southern Pacific Railway to Los Angeles, thereby ending the relative seclusion of the city, and he and Henry Huntington partnered to form the Los Angeles Railway and Pacific Electric Railway.

Truly an instrumental player in the growth of Los Angeles, Hellman was president of B'nai B'rith when the congregation built the city's first temple in 1872.

Not surprisingly, Hellman owned a lot of land in Southern California, and so was one of three prominent members of the community to donate land for the area's first University, the University of Southern California.

In 1890, Isaias moved to San Francisco to help save the floundering Nevada Bank. In 1897, he purchased a large plot of land in Lake Tahoe, and went about building his vacation mansion, Pine Lodge, on the 2,000 acres. It was completed in 1903, and was left to his daughter, Florence Hellman Ehrman,and she and her husband spent many years entertaining summer guests there. It is currently known as the Ehrman Mansion, or the Hellman-Ehrman Mansion in Sugar Pine Point State Park.

The property is astonishing in its breadth, and includes a childrens' house, boat houses, ice house, butler's cabin, tennis courts, and a pump house. You can see the exterior of these buildings, though the actual guided tour only goes through the main quarters.

Genoa, Nevada

Less than 30 minutes from Lake Tahoe is the first settlement in what was the Nevada Territory. This quaint town's main drag runs about two blocks, starting by the famous Mormon Station trading post, and ending by the state's oldest saloon. In between are cute shops and restaurants in well-preserved buildings to give you a feel of the old west.

The Gourmet Experience 2011

2011-10-23T20:54:00.001-07:00

The inaugural year of The Gourmet Experience was a well-organized, extremely fun event for gourmands and people into 'lifestyle' accoutrements. Read about last year's event here. This year, only its second, it was even better.

Favorites like last year's cooking demo stage and a scaled-down version of the "That's the Spirit Pavilion" made reappearances, while new things, like a cake-decorating competition and a kids' area with cooking demos, cookbooks, and utensils geared toward kids, popped up.

My biggest complaint from last year was the lack of substantial food available...we were surrounded by things to appeal to our finer tastes, but when it came to a real meal, only the crappy fair food was available for purchase. This year, that was remedied.

Inside the pavilion, things like sushi and cobbler were for sale. What's more, the whole outside area in the front was surrounded by food booths, food trucks, and an "Outdoor Grilling and Entertaining Pavilion" in which they presented a competition with the exciting name Fish Taco TKO Throwdown. Seven local restaurants known for their fish tacos were pitted against each other. Each chef made tacos for the panel of ten judges, and the winner was Juan Munoz of The Fish Shop. I'll be visiting them my next trip south!

There were many familiar products and brands from last year, but just as many new ones I was pleased to discover. Some of the most notable were:

PORTAFARM- Available for indoor or outdoor use, the PortaFarm is an 'aquaponic', portable garden. The fish tank below the garden floods the base of the veggies several times per day with its 'nutrient rich' (aka fish-poop-filled) water, quickly growing any variety of fruits and veggies organically and with little maintenance.

ELIXIR- All-natural, delicious mixers for any number of uses. Available in four floral flavors, each bottle comes with its own cocktail recipe booklet. You can also add them to champagne, sparkling water, yogurt, ice cream, desserts, even butter for a flowery, tasty treat. A fabulous, unique gift idea, too.

SALTY SISTERS- Delicious, all-natural salted toffee and caramels handcrafted in small batches. Island Style Macadamia Nut Toffee, Salted Milk, Dark, or White Chocolate Caramel, and Pure Salted Toffee Bliss are just a few of the delicious flavors you can order.

LUWAK STAR COFFEE COMPANY- One of the rarest coffees in the world, this sweet and mild Indonesian coffee is eaten by civets- sort of a mongoose/cat type mammal- then, um, passed through its digestive tract and harvested after it has been partially digested. Don't worry, they wash it thoroughly.

SISAR CREEK OLIVE OIL- Pretty self explanatory, I think. Delicious, organic olive oil.

KING FROSCH WINERY- Known for the low sulfite and histamine levels of their wine, they're known as being a "no headache wine." I love their semi-sweet and sweet wines. My favorites were the SemiDry Dornfelder, SemiSweet Dornfelder, NobleSweet Merlot, Ortega TBA, and Scheurebe Icewine.
PALOMAR MOUNTAIN SPRING WATER- I'm not usually a sparkling water person, but their sparkling water was phenomenal. Not overly bubbly, it was just completely refreshing and delicious. Too bad they're not yet available in L.A.

M5 CORPORATION- Though to me the name connotes hired assassins, M5 Corporation is actually a family-owned business of food importers started by people who love to travel and eat, just like I do! Their quality foods support local farmers and families in the regions the food comes from. The olive jam kinda blew my mind.

FUSION GLASS- They carried a large variety of glass products for a large variety of budgets, from simple pendants to embellished cutlery. I, naturally, have impeccable taste, and fell in love with some thousand dollar necklaces...

PACIFICA CULINARIA-I bought some of their oils last year, and needed more. Their deliciously infused avocado oil is healthy and delicious, with a higher smoke point than olive oil. I especially like their Toasted Onion and Key Lime infused flavors.

BARI OLIVE OIL- Their oils, both plain and infused, were delicious. The thing that made them stand out to me most, however, was their Tandoori flavored olive oil. Yum! I didn't see it on the web site, but the rep told me it was a new flavor.

This foodie experience is just the 'appetizer,' if you will, to the BIG San Diego event, San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival, happening November 16-20. Visit their website now for a complete list of events and tickets. Read about last years event here.

The Gourmet Experience
Del Mar Fairgrounds
Escondido, CA

Oldfield's Liquor Room

2011-10-21T16:30:00.000-07:00

If you come to Culver City thinking you'll find an updated Saints and Sinners, you'll be in for quite a shock. Gone are the flaming shots, velvety walls and shagadelic decor ("It's like an awesome bordello!" I once heard gleefully exclaimed). The jewel tones and sparkle have been replaced with bright tiles and light wood. Coupled with the aprons and bow-ties of our fine mixologist bartenders, it's look is more reminiscent of a soda fountain of yesteryear than a bar. But don't be fooled…there's nothing soft about these drinks.

Still owned by 1933 Group -whose bars include The Bigfoot Lodge, The Thirsty Crow, Little Cave, and Bigfoot West- Oldfield's Liquor Room cocktail menu had been created to include new twists on classic flavors. The menu will vary seasonally. Some favorites of the night included:
The Oakshade ($12-pictured here)- Bulleit Rye, Walnut Liqueur, Averna Amaro Carpano Antica, Chocolate Chili Bitters

The Cactus Derby ($11)- Del Maguey Vida Mezcal, Chartreuse, Fresh Lemon, Egg White, Strawberry

Lovetta ($11)- Berkshire Mt. Greylock Gin, Campari, Fruitlab Orange, Limoncello, Egg White

No.999 ($12)- Talisker 10 yr Scotch, Fresh Lemon, Housemade Grenadine

Two that sounded great to me but, in order to be kinder to my liver, I did not have a chance to try:

Peerless ($11)- Miller's Westbourne Gin, Apricot Liqueur, Apricot Nectar, Fever Tree Ginger Beer

The Vanderbilt Cup ($12)- Hendrick's Gin, Port Reduction, St. Germain, Peach Bitters, Fever Tree Ginger Beer

The bar is named for early 20th Century showman and race car driver Barney Oldfield. He started out as a bicycle racer, and his fate took a turn when a gasoline-powered bicycle led him to meet a little-known Henry Ford. Although he'd NEVER driven a car before, Ford know of Oldfield's bicycle racing prowess, and invited him to test drive two cars he'd readied for racing.

Neither would start.

Luckily for the racing world and Mr. Ford, Oldfield was not deterred, and bought the test vehicles. The famous No. 999 was the first of these vehicles to debut at the Manufacturer's Challenge Cup in 1902. When Oldfield beat the current champion by a half-mile, both he and Ford became household names. He was even the star of his own silent film, Barney Oldfield's Race for a Life in 1913 in which he races a train to rescue a heroine tied to the tracks.

Owner/ designer Bobby Green is a race car builder and driver himself who specializes in land speed racing. Having received numerous world land speed records in recent years, it's an exciting opportunity for him to have a chance to honor one of his lifelong heroes.

The manager, Jared Mort, brought in some fine drink-mixing talent. The man taking care of our side of the bar was Armando Conway from La Descarga and The Abbey. He was great to watch, and made music with the shakers. The other bartenders are Robin Jackson from Club Mallard, and Aaron Stepka from A-Frame and Rivera.

Tasty sandwiches created by local chef and author of The Cheesemonger's Kitchen, Chester Hastings, with such unique flavors as
 *Thick-cut Fra' Mani Ham with Black Cherry Jam and Farm Butter
*Challerhocker Cheese with Rosemary and Apricot Mostarda, and
*Valhrona Bittersweet Chocolate with Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Sea Salt
will be available daily until they run out.

To make our experience even more enjoyable, there was a woman on the smoking patio rolling cigars for us. That will not be a regular part of the bar, but it sure was fun while it lasted!

Oldfield's Liquor Room
10899 Venice Boulevard,
Los Angeles, CA 90034
(310) 842-8066

Townhouse Bar & The Del Monte Speakeasy: Boardwalk Empire in Our Own Backyard

2011-10-19T12:23:00.001-07:00

Caesar Menotti opened Menotti's Bar in 1915 and when Prohibition was enacted in 1920, he put a grocery store in its place and called it Menotti's Buffet. Upstairs, at least. Downstairs, the party rolled on. I use the term 'downstairs' loosely...the way to the bar was through trapdoors with little two-person, rope-operated elevators.

Menotti was a man of 'connections' and had booze boated in from Vancouver. According to bar historian George Czarnecki, the large liquor ships stopped short of the U.S. territorial waters (which at the time was only 3 miles), and sent smaller boats to run the booze beneath the enormous pier that once stood at the end of Windward. A large steam and utilities tunnel which serviced all of downtown Venice ran from the base of the pier through the basement of Menotti's, and that's how the liquor was run into the speakeasy. Once his bar was stocked, he ran surplus over to the hotels that lined the street. It was through this bar that all of Venice Beach was supplied with liquor during Prohibition.

After the repeal of Prohibition, the saloon went through several ownership and name changes, but always remained a bar, making it one of the oldest continuously-running bars in Los Angeles. The bar is now known as Townhouse, with the lower level called The Del Monte Speakeasy. Louie and Netty Ryan took it over in 2007, and have done major renovations to return it to its former prohibition-era glamor and glory. They worked especially hard on the downstairs speakeasy which re-opened this past summer.

To renovate the drinks, they brought mixologist and bourbonmeister Brandon Ristaino on board as general manager and beverage director. Known for helping create and revamp menus at such bars as Thirsty Crow and Bigfoot West, Brandon is bringing a seasonal menu to Townhouse which will be heavily influenced by a combination of classic cocktail ingredients and seasonal offerings from the local Farmer's Market. Their juices and syrups are house made, which speaks volumes for their quality.

Don't head there in your flip-flops and bathing suit expecting a quick drink...these cocktails are a work of art, and require lots of measuring, muddling, and aerobic ability. I couldn't stop thinking of the Shakeweight as I watched the men behind the bar shake with an unparalleled ferocity. These are libations for a leisurely cocktail experience. Our awesome mixologist, Ryan, was nonstop, but we still had to sometimes wait upwards of 15 minutes just because of the work that goes into each drink.

My sister and I diligently worked our way through the entire left side of the menu, which included eight House Specials ($12; Suntory Time and Boardwalk Broad pictured here) and two Seasonal Punches. We liked them all. A few of our favorites included :

Suntory Time - Yamazaki Single Malt, House-Made Honey Syrup, Angostura Bitters, and Orange stirred old-fashioned style

A Gala Affair (based on a cocktail designed by Alicia Walton of Elixir, San Francisco)- Genever, Yellow Chartreuse, Farmer's Market Gala Apple Juice, and Lemon all shaken vigorously

Boardwalk Broad- Bourbon, Kiwi, House-Made Chamomile Syrup, Lemon, and Egg White all shaken with love

Harvest Moon- Reposado Tequila, Cisco, Farmer's Market Red Grapes & Lime, Mint, and Cinnamon prepared Caipirinha style over ice.

To help us remain standing and intelligible through our tasting, the event was catered by Venice Beach Wines. A spectacular array of cheese, freshly-made hummus, and other tasty bites made me want to head back to the westside to visit them and see what else they've got going on.

For our listening pleasure, they brought the eclectic jazz stylings of The Kyle Crane Group to the intimate setting of The Del Monte Speakeasy. The speakeasy is only opened on select nights and entertainment varies, so check their schedule to see what's going on.

Townhouse Bar & The Del Monte Speakeasy
52 Windward Ave, Venice, CA 90291
(310) 392-4040

Urban Jungle Dating Dilemmas...a web series!

2011-10-17T15:13:00.000-07:00

After months of joy, heartache, frustrations and triumphs (it only sounds melodramatic...it's actually true), our web series is alive and kicking! It's not over yet, and there's plenty of laughing and crying left on the project, but it has been an amazing lesson in teamwork and communication among many other things. We've all pushed ourselves in ways that may have driven less hearty folk to quit- or at least to drink quite heavily- but we've persevered, and I'm so glad we did!

Last month's launch party was an unqualified success. With the help of family and friends, we transformed the fantastically versatile and centrally located Studio/Stage into a whimsical wonderland apropos of our protagonist, Tessa. The great kitchen space at Studio/Stage, enabled us to feed and quench our guests with things like yummy punches (both boozy and non), delectable dips, and Pizza Rosa (possibly the best pizza in the world), from Palermo Italian Restaurant.

Guests were encouraged to mingle and solve a mystery for prizes, share bad date poetry, and find their "perfect match" of people from the series. At any time (once we got it working, that is!) they could duck into a side room to watch Episode 1 on a continuous loop.

There are now three episodes to watch on our website, UrbanJungleDatingDilemmas.com , and more to come every 2 weeks. We've got six in the can, and two more to shoot. I've even learned a new skill- editing!- for the upcoming episodes.

Working on a shoestring budget with a skeleton crew has been a challenge, and we've relied heavily on the generosity of virtual strangers and friends alike. We still need to raise money to shoot episodes 7 and 8, so if you like what you see and have a couple bucks burning a hole in your pocket, kindly visit our site and click that donate button!

Even if you can't hit the donate button, visit our site to meet daydreamer Tessa as she stumbles through the dating scene in L.A., and takes a hiatus from her pet-grooming job to pursue a new life as a bumbling detective. With the help of her best friend, Allison, cousin Paul, and his accidental new BFF, Sara, Tessa navigates some sticky situations.

My heartfelt thanks to all of the people who have donated time, food, and money to this project. Thanks especially to the indefatigable team of Alicia Lara, Samm Hill, Jason Farell, and my very own sister, Lara Fisher for making this an extraordinarily memorable exploit. It may not be perfect, but by golly, it's something we can all be mighty proud of!

The Gourmet Experience 2011-Coming Soon!

2011-10-05T19:25:00.000-07:00

I'm pleased as punch to check out the second year of The Gourmet Experience in San DIego for two reasons: 1)The cooking and home entertaining showcase was really well put-together last year (read about it here) and it sounds like it's gotten even better, and 2) It's the precursor to the huge San Diego Wine & Food Festival November 16-20.

There will be plenty of cooking demonstrations, including a Fish Taco TKO competition on Sunday. Last time I recall there were lots of samples of fantastic condiments like gourmet oils and vinegars, but more cooking and household items than actual substantial food. Wonderful, but not enough to handle the "That's the Spirit Pavilion," which held some grown-ups captive the whole day. This time, I'll eat a big breakfast to ensure my spirit-tasting abilities are up to par.

Tickets are $25 for one day, $40 for both. Enter GOURMET10 at your online check-out, and receive $10 off.

See you there!

Eating in Kona on Hawai'i (The Big Island)

2011-09-18T10:48:00.000-07:00

Everyone thinks Hawai'i is expensive and I suppose that compared to the middle of the country...it is. But, coming from Los Angeles - or any major metropolitan area - prices are comparable. As with anywhere, you can spend lots of money dining, or not.

If you're staying in a timeshare or rental house (there are some GREAT deals on rental houses out there, by the way), you'll have a kitchen. You'll save a lot of money by cooking at least a meal a day. You'll also save money by eating like a local. We hit some farmers markets and bought 6 papayas for a dollar. Locally caught fish is delicious and inexpensive. On the other had, everything non-local needs to be imported, so costs more.

If you are insistent upon wheels of brie and 'mainland' brands, Costco on the Kona side is your cheapest bet. For local goods, besides the farmers markets that pop up all over the island (the largest of which is on the Hilo side), KTA is a good chain. Both KTA and Foodland have some tasty, local poke and quick, cheap snacks/meals like musubi, shu mai, or even huli huli chicken.

Of course, many of us look at vacationing as an excuse to eat out...and here's what I found on that front.

RESTAURANTS

Here's a short list of restaurants/bars that we tried out on the Kona side of the island, and what we liked or didn't. Restaurants and bars on other parts of the island coming soon!

Tante's Restaurant

One of the best places we found that combined fantastic ambiance, quality food, and really reasonable prices is Tante's Restaurant. This ocean-facing, open-air restaurant located in the heart of downtown Kona specializes in local favorites, fresh seafood, and Filipino foods.

My parents ate there one morning, were enamored of the ukelele player (she's only there in the mornings) and the Ali'i Breakfast, and brought us back there for dinner. A large plate of perfectly made coconut shrimp with rice and macaroni salad (incidentally, the best macaroni salad we ate on the island) was only $10 during the Early Bird Dinner Special (from 5-6). We ended up eating dinner there three more times.

Fresh orchids on every table, a view of the ocean right across from the Kailua-Kona Pier, and the friendly staff (which includes some of Tante's family) made it easy to keep going back. Tante himself creates the recipes and, having had a restaurant in the local bowling alley for many years and a Filipino restaurant before that, his food has been a Kona staple for quite a while.

Their Fried Opelu was a treat!

Also known as Wahoo or King Mackerel, it's traditionally served with the head on. Ask for it to be removed if you don't like the fish looking at you. As you may have guessed, it's a whole fish, so there are bones. If you're uncomfortable picking the meat off the bones, you're missing out, but this isn't the dish for you. "Chili water," which kind reminded me of a watery tabasco, is the usual condiment. I LOVE dipping sauces, so they brought a variety of them. The chili water ended up being my least favorite, so ask about your dipping options!

Both the sashimi and poke were fresh and FANTASTIC. It was hard to order different things every time we went in, because I kept wanting those.

Macadamia Nut Crusted Rack of Lamb. Need I say more? Okay. Delicious.

Since Tante had a Filipino Restaurant before, I had to try a couple of Filipino dishes. The Chicken Adobo was delicious, and the Chicken Papaya Soup was simple and fantastic. They were actually out of the papaya that day so used a squash instead. It was the kind of thing I imagine my grandmother would make if I had a Filipina grandmother.

Desserts include a giant hunk of Kona Coffee Mud Pie, Kalua Cream Pie, Lilikoi (passionfruit) Cheesecake, and Haupia (Hawaiian Coconut Pudding). We tried and really liked them all. The Mud Pie was the overall favorite. Haupia is a somewhat acquired taste, and it's not very sweet. My mom and I loved it, my dad and sis not so much. If you like to try new things, give it a shot.

They have a small wine and beer list, and limited cocktails. It's more a place to eat than drink, but we had plenty of Mai Tais there.

Big Island Grill

This place is almost always packed. I discovered them last time I was on the island because I attended a luau where the food was actually GOOD (most luau food, in my experience, is mediocre at best...you're paying for the mai tais and entertainment). When we asked about it, we learned that the usual kitchen was closed, so they had it catered by the Big Island Grill. We found the restaurant and ate there a few times.

This trip, I wanted to eat there, but couldn't remember the name (though I knew I'd know it when I heard it...). I was thrilled when we asked locals where to go, and it was recommended by more than one.

The menu is extensive at this casual diner, but it's all about the local fare here. Their enormous Loco Mocos can be made with a variety of things including chicken katsu, fried shrimp, Spam, and traditional ground beef. My sister and I split one and were full. People rave about their lau lau, and my mom said their corned beef and cabbage was among the best she's eaten.

Our waitress was fantastic, and steered us toward the right dessert...they, too, have an enormous Kona Coffee Mud Pie, and it didn't stand a chance against four Fishers, full though we were.

No booze.

Quinn's Almost-By-The-Sea

I do love this name. Everybody raved about their Fish 'n' Chips...and they WERE good (with the exception of an undercooked one I had), but they didn't knock my socks off. In fact, I enjoyed the Fish 'n' Chips just as much if not more at Tante's (see above).

Deep-frying is definitely what they do best...we ordered Macadamia Nut Encrusted Ono, which was only okay, but they have excellent french fries and onion rings. My favorite thing there was the Crab Stuffed Mushrooms...just what it sounds like, and deep-fried to perfection. Super-yum.

The service was marginal. The waitress messed up our order not once, but TWICE. We'd ordered one cocktail, and she brought us another. Every single place I've ever been that's done that has said keep it, and brought the right one over. Not there...she whisked it away before sips had been taken.

As a main course, we'd ordered fish with onion rings, and she brought them with fries. She was taking the whole plate away, but we were hungry, so asked her to just bring the onion rings. We were charged for the extra order of onion rings. THEN she even charged an extra .50 because we'd asked for more ranch. It's not an experience that made me want to rush back.

They have a full bar and make a very good Mai Tai and Chi Chi.

Lava Java

This coffee house boasts a great view of the sea, and fresh, yummy food. They're open for all three meals, but are known for their breakfasts. Their enormous cinnamon buns and "pull-aparts" are ridiculous and sell out early. Their salads and sandwiches are enormous, and everything is made from fresh, mostly organic, local products. The coffee's quite good, too!

Coffee, not liquor.

Kona Brewing Company

This is, first and foremost, a brewery. They offer tours twice a day which conclude with beer tasting. It's quite a way to start your day if you do the morning tour!

It's also a very popular restaurant open for lunch and dinner, with occasional concerts to boot. They've got both an indoor restaurant, and a huge outdoor patio. The menu is very extensive, and includes enormous sandwiches and salads, as well their very popular pizza.

The pizza we got there was soooooo good. I was expecting it to be okay, but it surprised me . The Puna Pie...get your mind out of the gutter!... was a garlic infused olive oil base, mozzarella & smoked mozzarella,gorgonzola, chevre, and roasted garlic. I've thought about that pizza many times since. Might have to try making my own.

The Big Wave Shrimp Melt sounded AMAZING ("Tender shrimp braised in Big Wave Golden Ale and garlic. Topped with our homemade avocado aioli, parmesan and provolone cheeses, roasted garlic, fresh spinach, and tomatoes), but was a big disappointment. There WAS a good amount of shrimp on it, but we all felt like compared to the description, the real thing fell short. It was like getting an $8 sandwich, but we had to pay $14 for it. In fact, it left me yearning for the sandwich I'd hoped it would be...so I went back to the timeshare and made it. Mine was better.

It goes without saying, there's lots of beer here. The Longboard Lager is their flagship, but I find it boring and it's by far my least favorite. It's kind of their answer to Bud or Coors (but, of course, better than that swill). I love the Wailua Wheat, which is brewed with passion fruit, and the Pipeline Porter. They've also got a fine IPA. I didn't get to try it, but I get the feeling I'd love the Koko Brown Ale, which uses toasted coconut to bring out a "nutty, toffee flavor."

JUST DRINKING

Okolemaluna

The place that you HAVE to go to get your tiki on is Okolemaluna. Literally "ass in the air," it translates roughly to "bottoms up."
It's only been open for less than a year, but owners Brice and Lisa Ginardi run a quality establishment. So much so, in fact, they've already been named one of the Top 10 Tiki Bars by Imbibe Magazine.

Brice was busy tending bar while we were there, but took time to come over and say hello. Our waiter was great...attentive, friendly, and helpful. The decor includes a nice mix of vintage pieces and local art that come together to create the feel of a bygone era when tiki reigned supreme, and the music keeps the mood.

The drinks are FANTASTIC. I think a lot of people are turned off by tiki drinks because they think of them a sickly-sweet yuck with cheap rum....not here! Their ingredients are all top-notch and locally sourced whenever possible. Nothing was "syrupy" or TOO sweet. It was all just right. I especially loved the Wicked Wahine.

They've also got a small, tasty menu so you can munch on things like these chicken bites...make sure not to try these drinks on an empty stomach!

I also appreciate that they've done everything 'green.' From the building process to having all straws and paper products biodegradable, they are doing as much to preserve the environment as to preserve the art of the tiki culture.

Verandah Lounge

Verandah Lounge at the Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort has a full bar, and good Mai Tais. The menu was too minimal and overpriced to even mention.

The thing that makes this place is the view. You are RIGHT on the ocean. It's a perfect place to watch a sunset...time it right, and you'll make Happy Hour, too!

Yosemite: Wow!

2011-09-06T11:35:00.000-07:00

A LITTLE HISTORY & SUCH

The word Yosemite means “among them there are killers.”

Despite the mean name (which is a bastardized Native American word used to describe the The Ahwahneechee, who lived in Yosemite for thousands of years before they were violently displaced by European settlers in the mid 1800s), Yosemite is a 12, 000 square mile natural wonderland known for its waterfalls and bears, but which also boasts beautiful meadows, wondrous peaks and valleys, an abundance of wildlife, and many places to witness the gentle ebb and deadly flow of the Merced River.

Once a long, treacherous journey by horseback or stagecoach, Yosemite is now visited by nearly 4 million people each year. Although it's just a very small portion of the park, most of the park's visitors are there to visit Yosemite Valley. Consequently, the valley has a LOT going on.

In addition to free shuttles to destinations throughout the valley, there are complementary museums, movies, and tours to enjoy. Information abounds at the museum and visitors center. From its Native American inhabitants who migrated between the valley and the mountains there for thousands of years, through the European trappers and miners who claimed it, on to Yosemites's present incarnation as a year-round, international tourist destination, they cover it all.

I was interested to learn that the U.S. Army laid down the blueprint for modern-day park management. Until 1913, the Army-including around 500 Buffalo Soldiers (so-called by the Native Americans they fought either because of their tireless strength in fighting, their hair reminded them of the buffalo's pelt, or some combination thereof) - took care of Sequoia and Yosemite. At the time, there were plenty of outlaw types roaming the land, and the soldiers had what it took to keep order.

Just as state and national parks were hitting their stride and being a park ranger was becoming an official job, World War I was underway, and there was difficulty finding men who fit the bill. It was in Yosemite in 1918 that Clare Marie Hodges became the first female ranger in the U.S., prominently adding herself to the list of many pioneering women there.

But I digress.

You can also visit an old cemetery, photography shop and gallery (Ansel Adams, of course), and supermarket/tourist knickknack haven in the village. Be warned, though: the valley has NO GAS, and the few gas stations within the park (all about an hour round-trip from the valley) charge you dearly for it. Fill up in one of the towns before you get into the park!

Probably the easiest and most popular "hike" there is to lower Yosemite Falls. I put hike in quotations because it's really just more of an easy walk. Yosemite Falls is the tallest in North America, and to stand at the bottom of that force is a truly awesome thing. What's even more awesome is stepping off the main trail into the woods and, after a five minute scramble over a few (somewhat slippery) rocks, you can view the ENTIRETY of the falls, and encounter almost nobody. Very peaceful. It's especially refreshing on hot days. The wind and water drop the temperature to where it's almost downright chilly. Careful with your cameras!

Hiking to the top of the falls is something we didn't get to do this trip, but I've heard that the ideal thing to do is camp at the top to enjoy the beauty at the top in relative seclusion the next morning. Camping by the waterfalls and at places designated 'wilderness' within the park require a special permit. Click here for more information.

Although the valley is by far the most popular and a great place for first-timers to visit, get out of there at least a little bit and explore some of the other landscapes and views the vast park has to offer. There are over 60 properties within the park listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and countless places of loveliness to be awed by.

One spot that you MUST visit (though it won't cut down on crowds) is Glacier Point. Right out of the parking lot you'll see simply breathtaking panoramic vistas along the 1/4 mile walk to Glacier Point which overlooks the valley, including unrivaled views of the Vernal and Nevada Falls. It's an excellent place to get the lay of the land and get a feel for what's out there.

WHERE TO STAY

Hotels

If you're looking to stay in a hotel, there are a number of them within the park. The ones in the valley fill up first, and all of them require WAY advance reservations for the spring and summer months. You can find everything from "fancy camping" to luxury accommodations here.

There is also an abundance of hotels, motels, and timeshares located just outside of Yosemite National Park (your paid entrance to the park is good for 7 days). To find out more about places to stay outside of the park, visit Yosemite.com.

Camping

If you're willing to stay a ways outside of the valley, there are plenty of walk-in campgrounds that should be able to accommodate you. There's also wilderness camping, with a permit.

Similarly, if you don't mind staying outside of the park, Yosemite.com has the info.

The campgrounds that take reservations can and should be reserved 5 months in advance. It's an online system that leaves something to be desired. Check their site for more info. Here's how it went for us: We got on the website, fingers poised for clicking, at 6:50 AM. At 7:00, sites became available and we clicked away. At 7:00:07, we blinked disbelievingly at our screens when we saw all sites were gone.

If a reservation hasn't been completed within a certain amount of time, it reverts back to the system, then gets snatched up immediately. With the system as it is, many people change campsites everyday for multiple nights. We managed to get one night in one spot, the next night in another site, nothing for nights 3 and 5, but another site for night 4 which we had to cancel (for a $10 fee) since we had nothing for night 3. Bah. Not to mention, moving camp every day is a big ol' pain. We decided to try our luck at a walk-in camp.

Camp 4

We headed to Camp 4, the fabulously located walk-in camp popular with climbers and car-loving bears, which is run like a medium security prison. If you're willing to put up with what can be a 4-hour ordeal, and are okay with sharing the fire pit, table, and general area with people you don't know to get a site in the pulsing heart of the valley, this is the spot for you. Get there early. Mid-week might be a little easier, but when we went on a Thursday, there were plenty of people in line who didn't get in.

Here's how it's different from other campgrounds I've been to: Every site holds six people, and every day they fill up those sites. When people check out, that opens up new spaces. It's not like other "first come first served" spots where you grab a site that may hold up to six but there are only two of you and it's yours. If there are only two of you, you're sharing a space with four others. If you are in a larger party, you may be split up into different sites, 'cause that's the way the cookie crumbles. In that regard, it's a pain.

Getting in can also be annoying. Here's how that worked: A couple of us arrived at 7:00 AM to stand in the line. The first day we did that, we didn't know that EVERYBODY IN YOUR PARTY MUST BE PRESENT, WITH PHOTO IDs. So, we left, gathered the troops, and went back the next day. The rangers show up at 8:30 to tell us how many spots there are, count off the people in the line, then- very slowly- start the checking-in process.

When we arrived at 7:00, there were about 20 people in line ahead of us, which seemed very promising. Despite signs that you may not hold places in line, those 20 turned into 50 by the time the ranger showed up. I felt my blood pressure rise in direct correlation with the increase, particularly as the one person in front of us magically multiplied into a family of 12 by 8:30. Luckily for them, we (just barely) secured spots, so it was unnecessary for me to open up my can of whoop-ass.

Once they counted the people, the rangers made announcements about NOT leaving the line, or, they'll give your spot away. Then they tell you that you need your license plate number ready when you get to the window. That, of course, sent representatives of each party running to their cars. The ranger then actually gave their spots away, despite protests of "but you said to go to the car…" from their friends and families. Luckily, there were enough people to have a mini-revolt, and those people (including 2 in our party) got their spots back. It was then another two hours of a creeping line, waiting to get checked in. Everyone camping gets a tag which goes on his or her tent, and they WILL check.

Word to the wise: Don't buy a ticket off of anyone, or try to sneak people in. Unlike every other campground I've ever been to, the rangers come around several times throughout the day and night counting people, checking tent tags, even looking in tents. A couple of guys there while we were got fined $175 each for using another person's tag.

Not to discourage you…it's a beautiful campground from where you can see part of Yosemite Falls, and its location is central without being in the highest-traffic spot of the valley. Just across the road is a calm section of the river with a little beach and picnic area, in the parking lot begins the hike to the top of the falls, and the lower falls hike is minutes away. Camp 4 is also one of the places included in the National Register of Historic Places for its significance in rock climbing. Once the hassle was over, I really liked it!

Yosemite is just one of those places that you've got to get to. It's-quite literally- AWESOME.

As with anyplace in nature, just remember not to do stupid things. The river can be dangerous, rocks get slippery, and falling down a waterfall will kill you. There are bears there...don't eat crackers in your tent.

Hawaiian Holiday Cocktail

2011-08-10T01:52:00.000-07:00

Spending time in a tropical paradise is quite a treat...and we decided to treat ourselves a little better with this little doosie we named the Hawaiian Holiday.

Ingredients:
1.5 ounces of Gold Rum
1.5 ounces of orange juice
3.5 ounces of passion fruit/guava juice
1.5 ounce of dark rum

Pour them over ice in that order, and enjoy. If you're not sipping through a straw, give it a stir...the dark rum looks lovely as a floater, but can put hair on your chest if you sip it off the top directly.

Aloha!

Stuff for Summer Trips

2011-07-16T11:14:00.000-07:00

'Tis the season for road tripping and camping!

Every trip brings a new purchase or two of things designed to make the trip easier, and some really work! What follows is a post from July 19 of last year about some handy and affordable, space-making accessories which I've been using again and falling in love with once more. But first, here's what else I've discovered:

BUY A HAND/FOOT PUMP! Nothing's a bigger pain in the butt than trying to inflate your bed or raft and hearing the dying whir of the pump when you're not filled up! Handpumps are soooo much more reliable than the battery operated ones...and quieter, too! In my experience, even the best brands of electric pumps have a VERY finite life. The hand pump just keeps on going...and you get a bit of exercise!

FIRESTARTERS I don't know how we've gone this long just using regular lighters and matches. For fire starting, there's no replacing these "hardcore matches" that can be found at any sporting goods store, or the camping section of most supermarkets. Strike like a match, and they burn for 7 minutes. I'm buying some for my earthquake kit, too.

And now, last year's blog:

When four of us went last year for a week long Vegas/Grand Canyon trip, it was difficult to find the children in the back seat beneath the sleeping bags, pillows, and various things that wouldn't fit in the trunk.

This year, a two week trip driving from L.A. to Portland required even more stuff, and for whatever reason, the kids didn't want to be buried for the 32 hour round-trip. Go figure. Thus began our search for roof racks and car top carriers.

If you've never shopped for racks before, let me tell you: they're expensive if you want a reliable name brand (ordinarily, I don't care about such things, but when I'm strapping a bunch of crap on my car and driving on freeways for thousands of miles, I want something I've heard of). You have to pay for the bars themselves ($50-$80), and the "system" to get them to stay on your roof ($150-$200). Then there are locks so people can't steal them from your roof ($15-$30 each), and many have roof-specific padding thingys that insure a proper, scratch-free fit. You need four of those, and they run about $35 a pop.

So, you've spent hundreds of dollars on racks, but you still don't have anything to put on them. Now you have to look at carriers. Again: expensive. The smaller hard carriers (which weigh in at about 40 pounds and hold 15 cubic feet of stuff) start at around $300. I was ready to cry. It was practically going to be the entire budget of my trip spent on stuff for the car.

Enter (with golden lights and angelic singing) the Sherpak Go!

I do not want to imply that this is a perfect product, because it most certainly is not. However, it was nearly perfect for our purposes. It works kind of like a backpack for your car.

WHY YOU'LL LOVE IT:

-Requires NO RACKS, but you can use it with racks if you have them.

-It costs only about $110.

-Totally and actually weatherproof.

-Soft, so it's easy to store.

-Light, so it's easy to take on and off, and gives you better gas mileage than heavier, bulkier racks.

-15 cubic feet of space is a nice amount.

WHY YOU WON'T:

-Since it requires no racks, you're limited to the weight that your roof can handle (on my Hyundai Elantra, it's 120 pounds).

-You're tall, and the straps in the car hit you in the head (the tallest of us is 5'8", and we weren't bothered).

-It's soft, so you can't put pointy things in it, and it doesn't offer the same "security" as hard packs.

-The clips break (so bring extras). **Since we now know to be GENTLE with tightening the clips, there have been no more breaks on our more recent trips. We still carry extras, though.**

We used it to store the tents, sleeping bags, inflatable mattresses, blankets, extra jackets, and bulky, light things like that. The zipper holes are large, so we threw a little lock on it for extra security. It freed up an amazing amount of space.

As I said, though, the straps are seriously like backpack straps and clips, and twice the plastic clip snapped while being tightened. Jaime had to pull apart some additional straps that we luckily had to fix them up. Next time, I'd bring a bunch of the clips along (you can buy them at sporting goods stores) just to be safe.

Now, bike racks:

We once borrowed a bike rack that kept sagging and dragging just driving surface streets from Los Feliz to the Hollywood Reservoir. That being my only bike rack experience, I was more than a little freaked by the prospect of driving so far on the freeway with three bicycles strapped to my trunk. So, again, though not usually a label whore, I wanted a name known for this kind of thing.

Because it was on sale and had good reviews, we went for the Yakima SuperJoe 3.

For about $100, this rack is strong and has lots of straps and things that made me feel less trepidatious. By the time we were in Santa Barbara and the bicycles had done no more than bounce a bit, my confidence and speed increased, and my faith in bike racks was restored.

You'd be well advised to take the pedal off of the bike nearest the car, and to put something where its tire is touching the bumper. It will scratch the paint off if you don't.

Happy travels!

Random 'Holidays'

2011-06-30T13:52:00.000-07:00

Since finding out that today, June 30, is National Mai Tai Day, I got to thinking about all of the "holidays" that exist as an excuse for drinking, eating, or doing stupid things. There are plenty. If you can think it, it has a day. Here are just a few of my favorites, beginning with July so you can be sure to make the most of them. Get out your pens and calendars...these days don't come pre-printed.

JULY

7/3 Is both Stay Out of the Sun Day, and A/C Appreciation Day, so you may appreciate staying cool while being indoors.

7/18- National Caviar Day

7/19- Flitch Day An old holiday wherein a flitch (now known as a side) of bacon was awarded to any married couple that could prove they had lived harmoniously-and with fidelity-for the past year. Very few were able to "bring home the bacon," as it were. Apparently still celebrated sometimes in some places.

7/20- Ice Cream Soda Day and Creative Ice Cream Flavor Day ! I'm looking forward to a creative ice cream soda...

7/22- Rat-Catchers Day Is there a card for that?

7/29- National Lasagna Day

AUGUST

8/3- National Watermelon Day

8/4- National Champagne Day

8/5- International Beer Day

8/6- Root Beer Float Day

8/19 is both Potato AND Soft Ice Cream Day. French fries dipped in soft swirl?

8/25- Whiskey Sour Day

8/30- National Marshmallow Toasting Day

SEPTEMBER

9/4- Eat an Extra Dessert Day Well, okay.

9/5- National Cheese Pizza Day I think everyday is cheese pizza day...

9/11- National Hot Cross Bun Day & International Day of the Nacho

9/19- Talk Like a Pirate Day

9/20- National Rum Punch Day These last two should be on the same day. I want to speak like a pirate while drinking the rum.

9/30- National Mulled Cider Day

OCTOBER

10/4- Toot Your Own Flute Day Good luck with that.

10/12- Moment of Frustration Scream-Day (scream for 30 seconds) I feel like there should also be a specific TIME attached to this day...

10/14- Bald is Beautiful Day Go on, rub it.

NOVEMBER

11/2- National Deviled Egg Day

11/3- National Sandwich Day

11/6- National Nachos Day a.k.a. I Love Nachos Day (not to be confused with the International Day of the Nacho on September 11).

11/12- National Pizza with the Works (Except Anchovies) Day I like the specificity.

11/14ish- Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day What's that smell?

DECEMBER

12/4- Wear Brown Shoes Day

12/5- Repeal Day The day Prohibition was repealed. Drink up!

12/8- Brownie Day

12/14- Monkey Day

12/16- Stupid Toy Day & World Food Day

12/18- Wear a Plunger on Your Head Day I really think you should.

JANUARY

1/12- Feast of Fabulous Wild Men Day What more can one say, really?

1/21- Squirrel Appreciation Day

1/23- Measure Your Feet Day

1/28- National Kazoo Day

FEBRUARY

2/3- Carrot Cake Day

2/18- Thumb Appreciation Day & Drink Wine Day

2/23- International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day (really),
National Rationalization Day (what?), and Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day

MARCH

3/1- Plan a Solo Vacation Day

3/3- What if Cats and Dogs Had Opposable Thumbs? Day A day of philosophical contemplation.

3/9- Panic Day

3/25- Sleep Day

3/28- Something on a Stick Day I really appreciate the vagueness of this one.

APRIL

4/6- Jump Over Things Day

4/12 or 14 (depending on the site you look at) Look Up at the Sky Day

4/26- International Pretzel Day

4/16- National Eggs Benedict Day

Go Fly a Kite Day is the third Sunday in April

May

5/3 is a busy one! Not only is it Lumpy Rug Day, but it's also National Anxiety Disorders Screening Day (for those anxious about the lumps in their rugs), and National Meeting Planners Appreciation Day.

5/6 It's a good thing that this is No Diet Day, because it's National Hoagie Day and
National Beverage Day, as well.

5/14- National Dance Like a Chicken Day (to help you work off those hoagies and drinks)

JUNE

First Friday in June is Doughnut Day

6/4- Cheese Day and Old Maid's Day

6/16- National Fudge Day followed by...

6/17- Eat your Vegetables Day

Well, America, we've got a lot of celebrating to do! Let me know if I've missed your favorite!

Palermo Italian Restaurant

2011-06-17T22:51:00.000-07:00

So perhaps this isn't the best restaurant to review right before bathing suit season, but this homey restaurant on Vermont in Los Feliz has long been a family favorite.

Maybe it's the effusive greetings you receive upon entering, maybe it's the walls of wine and Christmas lights that stay up all year, or maybe it's the fried cheese balls and homemade ranch. Whatever it is, it's one of those places that I really miss and CRAVE when I haven't been there in a while.

This restaurant isn't for everybody. If you're on a super health kick, don't bother. Likewise, if you want fancy gourmet, this is not your place. But when you're craving happy-making, stick-to-your-bones, made-to-order comfort Italian food....this is totally the spot. It's great straight off the menu, but they're always happy to make substitutions or omissions, and - if you want to be really 'wrong' about it - you can ask for anything to be "baked." That's when they throw some cheese on top and bake it 'til it's brown and gooey.

I can't vouch for all the food here, because I haven't eaten it all. But, here are some things that I can recommend with certitude:

Their pizza in general is fantastic. I love the plain cheese, and their Pizza Rosa is possibly some of the best pizza IN THE WORLD. Really. With a slightly thicker and sweeter crust than their regular pizza, the Pizza Rosa is topped with tomatoes, mozzarella, feta, and parmesan, and the crust is just perfect for dipping in their spectacular ranch. Try it topped with garlic and/or eggplant.

As I've already mentioned twice, their ranch dressing is AMAZING. I think it's some of the best ranch ever. It has spoiled me and now I don't eat it anywhere else.

The calamari here is fried to perfection, and served with a slightly spicy tomato dipping sauce (their version of a cocktail sauce). Even my non-calamari-loving sister loves it.

The fried cheese is ridiculously yummy. Rather than the traditional cheese sticks, this is a platter of deep fried cheese balls. They come with a marinara dipping sauce, but I personally like them dipped in the calamari sauce and/or - yes- ranch.

My favorite sauce is the Tony Sauce. It's a creamy tomato sauce with mushrooms and green onions which you can have put on any pasta. I like it on everything, but especially the chicken ravioli. Baked, if you feel indulgent.

Their vegetarian lasagna is terrific, and I've heard from reliable sources that the meaty one is, too.

Their Chicken Diane is one of the richest things I've ever eaten. Tender pieces of lightly fried chicken in creamy white sauce (probably their Alfredo). If you like garlic, have them throw some in. I had some wonderful, evil friends order it baked. It's like a delicious heart attack on a plate. Eat only when you've earned it.

Like all of their sauces, the desserts (with few exceptions) are homemade. The cannoli and tiramisu are my favorites. I've eaten a lot of cannolis in my day, in many cities and on both coasts, and theirs is one of the best.

Sometimes they have a wine tasting, but it fills up fast. If you can get in on it, it's an awesome deal: $35 gets you 12 (good-sized) tastes of QUALITY California wines (mostly reds), and a buffet-style lunch (with a glass of wine). Not to mention the chunks of cheese out to "cleanse the palate." It's one of my favorite things to do. It's always on a Sunday at 2 PM.

In conclusion: GO. Even if only to order a slice and plastic cup o' boxed wine to sit outside and people-watch with. I kinda wanna go right now...

Let Someone Know You Care...& Get Free Angels Tickets!

2011-05-31T12:57:00.000-07:00

Brandman University is having a contest wherein people can nominate an MVP (Most Valuable Person) who has made an impact on their lives or communities.

As a thank-you for nominating someone, you AND your nominee will receive a voucher for 2 Free Angels tickets to a game this season...just in time for summer!

Nominations close on June 15, 2011. Before then, simply visit Brandman's Facebook Page. You'll be prompted to tell in 100 words or less why you've chosen that person as your MVP, and that's it!

If you don't have a Facebook account, you can nominate your person here .

After nominations close, voting begins. The top 5 MVP winners will be recognized at an Angels game, and win a VIP package.

My MVP stands for Most Valuable Parents. Totally cheeseball, I know, but true. Not only have they always supported my sister and me in our endeavors and encouraged a love of life and learning, but they have also done much of the same for the community. As teachers they have touched more lives than most of us can imagine, and my mother helped send more children to Science Camp during her years of service at Selma Avenue School than any teacher before or since.

Mom and Dad, I don't know how you could spend so much time with little rugrats, then come home to your own and do such an amazing job of it, but you did! Thanks for everything you do for your own children, our friends, and the children of others. You're the best!

Who's your MVP?

Frank Lloyd Wright and Taliesin West

2011-05-23T11:09:00.000-07:00

Frank Lloyd Wright was born Frank Lincoln Wright in Richland Center, Wisconsin in 1867. Supposedly, his mother, Anna Lloyd Jones, always knew he would become a great architect and always encouraged that pursuit. From her choices in decorating the nursery, to buying educational blocks which could be assembled in a myriad of ways to create different formations, she was molding an architect. Whatever she did worked. Her son became one of the most famous architects in the world, both during his life and historically. In 1991 he was named the “greatest American architect of all time” by the American Institute of Architects, and thought rather highly of himself, as well: “Early in life I had to choose between honest arrogance and hypocritical humility. I chose the former and have seen no reason to change.”

Frank attended high school and university, though did not receive a degree from either. In 1887 he arrived in Chicago, and landed a job as a draftsman for an architectural firm. He felt that being a draftsman was a waste of his talents and changed jobs several times in a short period.

In 1889 Wright married his first wife, Catherine Lee "Kitty" Tobin, while working for the architectural firm Adler and Sullivan. He built them a home in Oak Park, Illinois where they raised their six children.

Wright had a reputation around town as a philanderer, but it was still a shocking scandal when- after 20 years of marriage and half a dozen kids- he left the country to elope with Mameh Cheney, his neighbor’s wife. Their respective spouses refused divorces, so Frank and Mameh left them and their children behind to move to Europe.

Upon his return to the U.S. at the end of 1910, Frank Lloyd Wright acquired some land from his mother in Spring Green, Wisconsin (just 20 miles from where he was born), and set about building himself a new home. He called the home Taliesin, which means “shining brow” in Welsh, and is so named because it was built into the brow, rather than crown, of the hill. Wright believed “No house should ever be on a hill or on anything. It should be of the hill. Belonging to it. Hill and house should live together each the happier for the other.”

Only three years later, while Frank was on business in Chicago, tragedy stuck. A servant named Julian Carlton, hired several months earlier, set fire to the living quarters of Taliesin, and murdered seven people with an axe while the fire burned. Among those killed were Mameh and her two children. To the surprise of many, Wright decided to rebuild.

His first wife, Kitty, finally granted him a divorce in 1922, enabling him to marry his then-girlfriend, Miriam Noel. It was short-lived, however, and her addiction to morphine caused them to live together for less than a year.

In 1924, at the age of 57, Wright met Olga (Olgivanna) Lazovich Hinzenburg and soon moved her into Taliesin. Shortly thereafter, the 26-year-old was pregnant with their daughter, Iovanna, and the living quarters caught fire yet again (faulty telephone wires). Again, Frank rebuilt.

Since both were married at the time they met, Frank and Olgivanna were accused of violating the Mann Act, and were not able to marry until 1928. She then became his third and final wife.

Frank and Olgivanna founded the Taliesin Fellowship, an architectural apprenticeship program, in 1932, to “provide a total learning environment, integrating all aspects of the apprentices' lives in order to produce responsible, creative and cultured human beings.”

They lived year-round at Taliesin until 70-year-old Frank contracted a life-threatening bout of pneumonia, and was persuaded that it was wise to winter in a warmer clime. Hence, Frank, Olgivanna, and the apprentices moved to Scottsdale, Arizona to begin construction on their winter home, Taliesin West.

Taliesin West remains the main hub of the Taliesin Fellowship, though students continue to head back to Taliesin in Wisconsin when the desert summer becomes unbearable. It is a National Historic Landmark and, together with Taliesin East (as it’s now sometimes referred to), is on the Tentative List for becoming a World Heritage Site.

Frank died in Scottsdale at the age of 91, and Olgivanna continued to live there and run the Fellowship until her death in 1985.

In another odd turn in Wright’s life…er, death…although he had been buried in Spring Green, Wisconsin for over 20 years, Olgivanna arranged for his body to be exhumed, cremated, and relocated to Scottsdale to be with her and her daughter from a previous marriage. The headstone in Spring Green remains, but the grave is empty.

There are several tours of Taliesin West to appeal to a variety of interests. We were on the most popular tour, a 90-minute walk through buildings and gardens, called INSIGHTS. An evening tour, Night Lights, is a 3 hour “Behind the Scenes” which is the apparent favorite of architectural buffs. I’m also interested in the Desert Shelter Tour of student’s desert dwellings. Mr. Wright believed fully in integrating and experiencing the natural environment (“Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature. It will never fail you.”), so all new students in the Fellowship spend their first several months in Sheepherders tents to bond with the desert, and then are allowed to build more elaborate shelters.

Tour times and availability vary by season, and they offer student,senior, military, and youth discounts. There are also deep discounts/freebies attached to becoming a member of the Frank Lloyd Wright Association. This option is great for families or people who will return more than once within the year.
From perusing online, it seems that most people were very happy with their guides. Our tour guide, Jim Becker, was chock full of great anecdotes and information. I also discovered that he writes a travel blog geared toward seniors, but the information is useful at any age. You can check that out at SeniorCitizenJournal.com

To see more photos of Taliesin West, the beautiful Arizona Biltmore, and our time in Arizona during Bike Week for the Phoenix Film Festival, visit the album Film Fest, Fun, and Frank Lloyd Wright.

I'll leave you with one of my favorite Frank Lloyd Wright quotes:

"The physician can bury his mistakes, but the architect can only advise his client to plant vines - so they should go as far as possible from home to build their first buildings."

Taliesin West
12621 North Frank Lloyd Wright Blvd.
Scottsdale, AZ 85259
(480) 627-5340

For GPS Directions use:
12345 N. Taliesin Dr.
Scottsdale, AZ 85258.

Barred

2011-04-26T22:47:00.000-07:00

I'll admit that, though not at all adverse to trying new things, I am very much a creature of comfort and familiarity. Thus, if I have money to blow on eating and drinking out, I'm more likely than not to go places I already know I like. One of the benefits of writing the blog, however, is that sometimes I'm invited places that I've never been, and get to find new favorites. If the initial impression of these places is at all accurate, here are four of my new favorite bars:

1) THE THIRSTY CROW. They've just celebrated their 1st anniversary, but this home of fine whiskey and embellished cocktails has an old soul. Patience is Virtuous states a sign at the back of the bar, and that's because you'll have to wait. These cocktails are made with love, sweat, and even unicorn tears. Their namesake, The Thirsty Crow, is a favorite, as is the refreshingly sweet Strawberry Fields Forever. There's a happy hour with select (less labor intensive) $5 drinks. They also make a mean Manhattan. (Daisy Buchanan pictured above)

2) VILLAINS TAVERN. Somewhat removed from almost everything else, this bar is well worth getting lost to find (as I did). Gorgeous indoor space, a big, beautiful patio, and tons of free parking make this spot almost irresistible. The great drinks and yummy food seal the deal. Trivia nights, live bands (who are loud enough to hear, but not so loud that you can't have a conversation), and guests in the kitchen like Great Balls on Tires (try the Ballywood Balls!) make this a no-lose destination. The Loki Cocktail has been getting a lot of buzz, and I liked it alright, but my absolute favorite of their Spring Cocktail Selection by Dave Whitton is the Geryon. If you're going with a group, Osiris' Punch (above left) is a delicious deal. Just beware that there may be a big wait on Friday and Saturday nights. And look up directions. Don't just look at a map and think you'll find it.

3) HARVARD & STONE. I was invited to their opening party during my cleanse, so I wasn't actually drinking, which was pretty tough there, I've gotta tell you. So if I haven't actually tasted the goods, how can it be a favorite? Well, the place looked great. A big open bar in the front, a smaller one in the back, and some upper-level quasi-outdoor space. The cocktails looked BEAUTIFUL, and I had to hear lots of 'mmmmm' and 'yum' comments with my keen, non-drunk hearing. I haven't yet had the chance to get back there, but I look forward to it. Opening Night Jitters pictured.

4) MALO. Unlike the others, this is not one I'd been invited to, but arrived of my own accord. I'd been meaning to check them out for a while, but I generally hate lines and there always seems to be one there. Around 6:00 on a Thursday, though, was just fine. More importantly, it's Happy Hour. I love this Happy Hour because it includes a nice variety of $2 tacos, with a couple of great vegetarian options. Their most famous, though, is the one filled with beef and pickles. House margaritas-which are freshly made and fabulous- are only $5. We even stayed at the bar rather than moving to a table because our bartender, Billy Bob, was terrifically informative and attentive. They've got one of the largest tequila and mezcal selections I've ever seen.

Rhythm & Vine Benefit

2011-04-13T21:27:00.000-07:00

Rhythm & Vine just had its third year of music, food, wine, fun, and silent auction to benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Greater San Diego. The timing was perfect because my friend, Alicia, wanted to get away for her birthday, and I needed a camera person for vlogging....so away we went!

This year's event was held at Westfield North County Mall, and included a stage apiece for the folkey, alternative sounds of Simeon Flick, flamenco guitarist Anthony Garcia, and headliners and cover band extraordinaire, The Clay Colton Band.

Wine and spirits - especially wine - were plentiful, and included Ahnfeldt, Hearthstone, Challis Lane, Stone Brewing Company, and many, many, many more.

You're not in danger of going hungry at this event...some personal favorite bites included North County Tavern + Bowl's Pesto Chicken Crostini, Cupcake Love's AMAZING Chocolate Peanut Butter Ecstasy cupcake, Godiva's Chocolate-Covered Strawberries (available only in the VIP area), and Rubio's Fresh Mexican Grill's little cheesy shrimp tacos (sans bacon). There was also lots of fresh, delicious bread from Sadie Rose Baking Company.

Since I mentioned the VIP area, it was nice, too, because (of course...) it was the only area to offer tables and chairs to relax in, and had yummy cheese not available to the "general" attendees. There were also gift bags there, but they consisted basically of mardi gras style beads and ads. Honestly, they would have been better off saving the time and money that went into putting those together and putting it toward the charity.

Delicious oils, vinegars, and dipping sauces were available to sample, and some of our favorites came from Best Ever. The 25-year-old Balsamic was like candy.

I already have a few of Pacifica Culinaria's infused Avocado Oils in my cupboard (picked up at last year's Gourmet Experience), but that didn't stop me from trying them all again! They really are fabulous to cook with, and add a pungent flavor to your food.

There was even free glass engraving (you keep your wine glass), with a donation jar to go towards the Boys and Girls Club (Sadly, Alicia got hers engraved and left it behind...)

The 3 hour event (longer with VIP passes) was small enough to get through everything, but large enough to be satisfying. A very fun time!

Win Stuff, and Go Places!

2011-04-07T16:37:00.000-07:00

Tonight is the Opening Night for L.A. Comedy Shorts Film Festival, and it'll go 'til Sunday. Check them out for VERY reasonably priced and super-fun parties, screenings, and festival badges. This evening's party will be at J Lounge, and tomorrow night's is at ESPN Zone with games set to free play! Click here for tickets and info.

Saturday I'm heading to Rhythm & Vine in Escondido. It's a festival of wine, food, and music to benefit The Boys and Girls Club of Greater San Diego. There's still time to buy your tickets online for a discounted price!

Finally, the bareMinerals skincare people sent me their new Firming Eye Treatment ($28 value) to try, and have offered some for two of my lucky readers. I'm going to make this contest as easy as possible. And, yes, it's all about me...

To enter, you must:

1) Visit Facebook.com/BusyBethsBlog and hit the "like" button.
2) Visit Twitter.com/BusyBethF and hit the "follow" button.
3) Visit YouTube.com/BusyBethF and click on the "Subscribe" button.
4) Promise to write a short review-good, bad, or indifferent- about the product within two weeks of receiving it.
5) Live in the U.S. (their rule, not mine).

Contact me no later than Monday, April 11 to let me know you've done that, and you'll be entered to win! Please include your Twitter handle, and YouTube and Facebook names. You may contact me through Facebook, Twitter, or at BusyBethF@yahoo.com.

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Eating, Drinking, and Getting Your Groove On for Charity and Fun

2011-03-23T16:04:00.000-07:00

Yeee-Haaaaw!

Just back from nearly two weeks in Austin, and looking at fun stuff to do a little closer to home. Here are a few upcoming events that caught my attention:

A "Booze Clues" scavenger hunt through Santa Monica's Main Street this coming Saturday, March 26, promises a "dazzling variety of fun and games that will tickle your mind while you pickle your liver." Forty bucks gets you in the game and a drink at each of four bars (exact locations TBA), though they pledge to have plenty of drink specials throughout the afternoon. RSVP is required. The event starts at 3PM.

Also on Saturday, and for a mere $15, you can check out The Aussie BBQ at The Echo. A beloved SXSW event now makes it to the coasts (they're doing a show in NY, too). An all day line up of eclectic Australian bands is sure to please...and talk about bang for your buck! First band at 12:30, last band at 8:30. And, yes, there is BBQ.

Nilbog is a horror-film-score tribute band ready to bust out some spooky sounds at The Cinefamily (aka the Silent Movie Theatre) on Fairfax this Tuesday, March 29th. Following the performance will be a screening of the 1979 sci-fi flick, The Visitor. Nilbog at 8PM, movie 9:30ish.

For my fellow nerds and Hawai'iphiles, Sarah Vowell (often a contributor to This American Life, and the voice of Violet in The Incredibles) will be discussing and signing her new book, Unfamiliar Fishes, which chronicles the history of Hawai'i. The discussion/signing is free at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena on Wednesday, March 30, at 7PM. 132 N Euclid Ave., 91101.

If you're looking to hop down to San Diego, April 9th will mark the third annual event of Rhythm & Vine. It's a festival of wine, food, and music to benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Greater San Diego. Top restaurants, wineries, spirits, and music including Clay Colton Band, Simeon Flick, and flamenco guitarist Anthony Garcia will make it an event to remember!

Many of the same folks involved in The Gourmet Experience and San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival are also involved in putting this together, so I can pretty much guarantee from my own experiences that your time there will be SPECTACULAR. And you get to help a charity!

Regular tickets are $75 in advance, $100 at the door. Students and Military who use promo code "2011VIN" during online pre-sale get 2 tickets for $99! VIP and "designated driver" tickets also available. Click here to purchase.

There's also a new "WineRave" Series in San Diego geared toward younger wine enthusiasts. Sort of a club atmosphere with a tasting room education, is how they're setting it up. $45 in advance or $65 at the door gets you 20 tastes, appetizers, a "high-energy DJ" and discounted bar drinks in case the 20 tastes just aren't enough. The series kicks off at Fluxx on April 28.

Have fun!

Velvet Room & House of Nanking: More Eating in San Francisco

2011-03-10T21:49:00.000-08:00

When last I wrote, I was telling all about my eating adventures in the bay area, and left off drinking at St. George Spirits in Alameda. Immediately following the spirit tasting, I headed to San Francisco to meet my friends Samm and Keith (also up from L.A. as part of the Maybeland posse) for a late lunch before the Fringe lottery.

We ate at House of Nanking, which is one of my favorite Chinese restaurants ever. It had been years since my last time there, and the restaurant has expanded and "fancied up" quite a bit. I was so excited, I completely forgot all about taking pictures and notes about the food. Here's a picture I remembered to take on my way to the restaurant. Guess I'll just have to go back.

The Fried Shrimp Cake (basically the Onion Cake, but with shrimp) is scrumptious. This crispy "pancake" is served with a peanut sauce that makes me want to lick the plate.

Nanking Chicken is fried and served with sweet potatoes, all in their special sauce (which is kind of sweet and reddish-orange, but tastes nothing like Sweet and Sour or Orange Chicken).

Their House Noodles are unexpected. Almost more Italian than Chinese, they were al dente flat noodles tossed in a garlicky green sauce. I enjoyed them, but still prefer their Chow Mein, which is among the best I've ever eaten.

I then had the good-no, GREAT- fortune to have my evening plans change, thus giving me the chance meet Dwayne and Kevin (with whom I was staying in Alameda) at the Velvet Room in the swanky Clift Hotel. Kevin works there, so it was business for him, but for Dwayne and me it was pure pleasure...

We started (and middled, and finished) with cocktails, some of my favorites being Huck's Fizz, Manzanilla, and the Moscow Mule (made with Hangar One in honor of our earlier trip to St. George Spirits).

The only one I didn't care for- and it surprised me, 'cause I thought it would be among my favorites- was the Mandarin Lemongrass Martini. Eh.

On to the food...

Previously fusion restaurant Asia de Cuba, The Velvet Room now offers an elegant farm-to-table dining experience with a menu that focuses on local, organic, seasonal, and sustainable fare from Chef Ewart Wardhaugh.

Despite the fact that I still wasn't even that hungry from my earlier lunch, I wanted to order one of every appetizer and side. That didn't happen, but we did get a pretty good sampling of the offerings.

My favorite of the appetizers was the Woodland Mushroom Flatbread with Caramelized Onions and Ricotta Cheese, but I also loved the California Yellowtail Tartar with Edamame, Pine Nuts, and Hearts of Palm. And, of course, it's hard to go wrong with gigantic Shrimp Cocktail.

Our sides, served family style, included delicious Caramelized Brussels Sprouts, wonderful Wilted Fall Greens, perfectly Creamed Spinach, and fabulous French Fries. It was an awesome way to get our veggies.

For my main dish I had the yummy Pan Seared King Scallops, which were perfectly browned and had a firm yet buttery texture. They were served with a Citrus Vierge, but I also liked them dipped in the sauce that the Rack of Lamb was served with.

Speaking of the lamb....OMG! I don't even eat lamb, but I tasted Dwayne's and it was AMAZING. Lamb fans- get that!

We finished off the meal by ordering one of every dessert, aside from the cheese platter (there were five of us dining, and four desserts, so it's not quite as bad as it sounds...). They were all really good, except for the "Apple Cobbler" which was really NOT.

I put "Apple Cobbler" in quotations because that's what the menu calls it, but I've never seen a cobbler like this. It's more apple with granola thrown on top, with some unexpected spices that weren't entirely pleasing. The ice cream on top was great, but there wasn't enough of it. All of the other desserts on the table were gobbled up, but the so-called cobbler remained practically untouched.

To see the rest of our yummy food, click here.

After dinner, we stuck around for their recently added music night, Clift Sessions. The best part is that shows are free with an RSVP, and there's no drink minimum! It seems they're trying to get a couple of shows in per month...

Just before 10PM, large double doors were opened to the adjoining Redwood Room, an historic bar legendarily carved from a single redwood tree. That was the "holding area for guests who were not eating dinner in the Velvet Room. The crowd streamed in to groove to the rhythmic beats of the soulful, eclectic band, Fool's Gold.

Each show brings a its own genre and vibe, but you can't beat the price and the ambiance. It's a great way to find new music! They've got the same thing running at Mondrian in Los Angeles (I think at Skybar), so check their upcoming schedule if you live in SoCal.

VELVET ROOM (CLIFT HOTEL)
495 GEARY ST
SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102
(415)929-2300

also mentioned:

HOUSE of NANKING
919 KEARNEY ST
SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94133
(415)421-1429

Busy in the Bay

2011-02-25T17:54:00.000-08:00

There were many fantastic eating and drinking opportunities to be had a few weeks ago. So many, in fact, that I'm presently not eating very much or drinking at all. But, ah, it was so worth it...

I headed north to be there for the San Francisco Fringe Festival lottery. It's the only Fringe that I know of that selects their participants that way, and we had our fingers crossed to get Maybeland into one of the fifteen non-local slots. It worked! We're in, and will be heading to San Francisco to perform our dark family comedy in September. Yay!

On my way up, of course I had to stop over in Monterey to visit my friends and adorable god daughter! I was only there for a day, but had a chance to eat a quick lunch at Sapporo Japanese Steakhouse on the "working wharf."

Sapporo has a beautiful view of the marina, and fantastic appetizers. I can't vouch for their full meals, but their calamari sticks are tender, panko-breaded yum-yums. They also have good tempura (should be hard to mess up, but you'd be surprised...), and an extensive cocktail menu (we weren't drinking there, though). Basically, it seems that they do a bang-up job of deep frying, and it's hard to hate that.

I can't recommend the OMG Roll. It's not that it tasted bad, it's just that it was almost entirely radish inside, and way too expensive. So we were like, "OMG! Did we really just spend all that money on RADISH?" The spicy tuna roll was good, but nothing to write home about.

A couple of hours later, I was with other friends in Alameda. Just a few miles from Oakland, Alameda is a tiny island city with virtually no crime, a small town vibe, and lots of good things to eat.

For dinner we hit the "main drag," which is really cute and tiny, and ate at Ark Chinese Restaurant, known for making their noodles fresh everyday. There's a dude who stands there in front of the kitchen, but behind a big plastic "sneeze guard," looking bad-ass and pulling noodles for all to see.

There we ate Mushroom Noodle Soup which, as it's name may suggest, is LOADED with various mushrooms in a mild but tasty broth. With some of the delightful oily hot sauce thrown in, it was perfect. It seemed that everyone around us had a "dry" noodle plate, however, and that makes me want to go back to try one out...

They also had some unique baked rice dishes. We tried the Baked Rice with Seafood and Cream Sauce. It's not at all what I was expecting...more of a floury cream sauce than a creamy cream sauce...but it was good. For my palate, though, it needed the hot sauce, too. Next time I think I'd try the one with the satay sauce.

The Sweet and Sour Chicken was really good, too. I mean, you know, it was Sweet and Sour Chicken, but the sauce was not too thick or cloying, and the chicken pieces were succulent and very well fried...crisp, but not greasy.

Just yards away from Ark is Tucker's Ice Cream Parlor. They've been around since 1941, and I can see why! Their ice cream is SUPERCREAMED (whatever that means) and really delicious. There were lines even on a chilly night. My favorite flavor was the Apricot Ginger, but that's apparently limited edition. The Salted Butter Caramel was delightful, too.

The next day after a spectacular breakfast made by Dwayne, he and Kevin took me to the other side of the island to St. George Spirits for a tasting. Located on an old military base, their tasting room and distillery offer great views of San Francisco and the Bay Bridge.

For only $10, you can taste a fantastic selection of their SPECTACULAR liqueurs, whiskey, and famously smooth Hangar One vodkas. For $5 more, you can also enjoy a taste of their Absinthe Verte, the first domestically distilled absinthe in almost a hundred years.

From the waiting room (and there WILL most likely be a wait) and their tasting room you can see their beautiful copper stills, and on weekends they offer free tours of the distillery.

I absolutely loved this tasting. The employees were friendly and informative, and the spirits themselves were divine. St. George's distillers still make everything by hand in small batches, work with local ingredients, love what they do, and the quality is evident.

Then I went into San Francisco and ate and drank a lot more...

To see more pics of Monterey and Alameda click here.

Zombies and Tigers and Nerds, Oh My!

2011-02-22T16:18:00.000-08:00

I know, I know...the better part of a month is too long to go without writing a blog. I have, at least, been staying current with Facebook and Twitter updates and keeping, er, busy by running around and doing lots of good stuff! Here's some of what's been going on...

Nivea for Men has been throwing a series of parties all over the place to promote their "Look Like You Give a Damn" campaign. My sister and I went to one in a fancy Beverly Hills mansion owned by some big-deal jewelery designer for the Golden Globe nominees and lots of actor types.

There were a few things promised in the invite (make-overs, and mani-pedis, for instance) that did not occur, which was kind of a bummer, but we still managed to have a great time.

My favorite thing, of course, was the food. Catered by my world on a plate, there were different and delectable food stations that included sushi, a mashed potato bar, and meat carving station. Upstairs was the "burlesque" dessert bar, which included lots of yummy sweets, my favorite of which was the chocolate covered brownies on a stick. I'm not sure why it was burlesque, but it was, and there were two very nice women dressed as though they were to perform a burlesque show who just had to stand there posing in pictures.

Another "I don't know why" is the tiger they had there. That's right, a tiger. He wasn't there for very long, but people lined up to take pictures with him. (He was gone by the time we decided "what the hell, we should get a picture with a tiger"). One of my most exciting party moments ever came when- with no warning at all- the tiger was suddenly walked through the living room just a couple of yards away from where we were standing. It didn't appear to have a muzzle on, and there was a little dog walking with it as though to distract it. Hmm.

They sent us home with nice gift bags. My boyfriend likes the shaving cream just fine, but thinks the facial wash smells too much like bad cologne.

Click to see more of the NFM party pictures.

Lara and I also had a chance to check out a premiere for GOLD: Night of the Zombie King at Meltdown Comics.

GOLD is a comedic web series created by David Nett about a bunch of gaming nerds and the effects of the gaming on their lives. Night of the Zombie King is the second installment- sort of a Season 2- of the gaming series. This one stars my friend Stephanie Thorpe as the lone female gaming geek in this reunion of gamers who played together many years ago, until drama tore the group apart.

If you have ever played D&D or Magic, or know anyone who has, you will find this hilarious. I was never a gamer myself (unless you count "video"), but I have known and loved and been thoroughly irritated by these people. After watching this series, I plan on attending at least one of the free D&D "classes" they hold at Meltdown on Thursday nights.

More Night of the Zombie King pictures here.

The Revenants is a Visceral Company show that recently opened in North Hollywood at the Whitmore-Lindley Theatre Center. Directed by my friend Dan Spurgeon and starring my sister, Lara Fisher, it's an unexpected and really enjoyable zombie play. Though I think the writing could have been a bit tighter, I found the show engrossing. The four actors all did a great job, and it looked fantastic!

I'm not just saying this because my sister's one: the zombies were AWESOME! As an actress myself, I just kept thinking of how impressive it was that they were able to maintain their "zombiness," with absolutely no break, throughout the 90 minute show. It would have exhausted me. And, though I know there's a fourth wall, I got a little nervous sitting in the front near them!

The show begins at 8PM on Friday and Saturday nights through March 19th.

More of what's been going on is coming soon!

How It's Made, Colonial Williamsburg Edition

2011-01-31T09:55:00.000-08:00

The London Company (also known as The Virgina Company) was sent to the New World by King James I. Their job was to establish an English settlement, and so they did. It was named Jamestown to honor the king.

Jamestown was the often-unpleasant center of colonial happenings from 1607 until 1699, when the capital moved to nearby Williamsburg (named for King William III). It became Great Britain’s wealthiest and most populated colony.

The Virginia Territory eventually encompassed the land all the way to the Mississippi in the west and up to the Great Lakes in the north, and Williamsburg was its prosperous core of culture and politics. It was here that our country- before it was even ours- had its first theater (that’s right…the way shows now open in New York then move elsewhere…well, they used to open in Williamsburg!), and it was there that our country’s founding fathers got together to discuss the ideas of an independent country and raise a little heck. It was from the front of the Williamsburg courthouse that Benjamin Waller proclaimed our Declaration of Independence in 1776.

Williamsburg remained the capital until near the end of the Revolutionary War in 1780 when Thomas Jefferson thought it wise to move it to the more centrally located Richmond. Once the seat of the government moved, Williamsburg turned from a hotbed of vitality to a quiet college town (it is the home of William and Mary, the second college in the colonies), and so remained for almost a hundred and fifty years.

As one would expect, many buildings were lost to time, and those that remained were privately owned. When the Reverend Doctor W.A.R. Goodwin was made rector of Bruton Parish Church in 1902, he wasn’t the first to have thought of restoring the town to some of its former glory, but he was one of the first to act upon it. Despite some resistance, he successfully raised money to restore the historic church where our forefathers worshiped.

Reverend Goodwin moved to Rochester, New York shortly after the renovations, but went back to Williamsburg in 1923. During those lapsed years Goodwin had never forgotten his dream of rebuilding the old capital, but Williamsburg had “desperately tried to keep up with the 20th Century, and its antiquities seemed doomed to become parking lots and cheap eateries…Yet there were still enough early buildings to stir Goodwin’s bounding enthusiasm.” (from “My Dream and My Hope” by Edwards Park)

It seemed that if he didn’t act quickly, an important piece of our history would be lost forever. It was a hard-won victory, but Dr. Goodwin was able to secure an audience with and win over John D. Rockefeller, Jr. So persuasive was Goodwin, in fact, that reconstruction began on the buildings in 1926, and Mr. Rockefeller was personally involved in the project until his death in 1960 (Reverend Dr. Goodwin died in 1939).

There were over eighty original structures to restore, and they painstakingly rebuilt the remaining houses using anything they could get their hands on: old drawings, photos, architectural plans, and old journals. After many years, they succeeded in restoring about eighty-five percent of the original colonial area.

Presently, the restored eighteenth century capital is the largest “living history museum” in the world. There are over 300 acres of restored, reconstructed, and historically furnished buildings wherein you can learn from “costumed interpreters” the triumphs, trials, and tribulations of the period. Places to visit include the wigmaker, silversmith, cooper, apothecary, and capitol building.

As in colonial times, the men and women working at each craft must apprentice for a number of years. They are truly artisans. Every reproduced brick, book, bit of clothing, weapon, utensil, and piece of furniture is made exactly as it would have been 250 years ago. In each of these buildings you may ask questions of the artisans and tour guides, or just observe them going about their tasks and sharing information. Some of my personal favorites included the bindery (because I’m a big book nerd and loved learning exactly how they were made), the blacksmith (no place looked cooler than the blacksmiths’ workshop, with all the fire and hammering and whatnot), Charlton’s Coffeehouse (because they end it by giving you hot chocolate…the way it would have been served in the 1700s), and, naturally, the taverns.

There are several taverns there: some for eating, and some for touring. In eating at the taverns, you get to enjoy some treats that are similar to what would have been eaten back then, including peanut soup, ham relish, and pickled watermelon rinds.

We ate at two of the four taverns that are open for dining. Christiana Campbell’s was reportedly George Washington’s favorite tavern and is known for its seafood. King’s Arms Tavern is known for their southern-style food, and is the peanut soup spot. The food in both taverns was very good, but you’re not just going for the food, you’re going for the experience.

As you eat your spoon bread and sip your syllabub, musicians come through, playing music of the period (though at the time, it would have been much more constant and raucous), and “costumed interpreters” come through and chat or give little speeches as customers or proprietors of the taverns. The taverns are a good time, but book them early: all but Chowning’s require reservations (I’m not certain that Chowning’s has the accompanying “show”) and they have very limited hours.

In touring the taverns there, you can contemplate with wonder that, in the days of few showers and body lice aplenty, men rented space on a bed that they shared with two or three others whom they did not know. And the beds were not California Kings. These days we don’t even like to share a bathroom, but back then there were just bedpans and a “business seat” out in the room (recognizable by the “skirted” bottom). Hm.

We were lucky enough to be there just before Christmas, and Williamsburg is world famous for their Christmas wreath decorations. They would not have actually been found on doors in the 18th century, but the tradition was adopted when Mrs. Louise Fisher was put in charge of Christmas decorations for the newly restored area. It was a look becoming popular with America’s wealthy near the beginning of the 20th century and in 1939, under her guidance, Colonial Williamsburg popularized it with a wreath-making contest.

The contest caught on like wildfire, and worked like an advertising charm. Thousands of people flocked to the newly renovated area to admire the wreaths that had been getting such great publicity in the decorating magazines.

Though they are not at all “authentic” to the time, they must be hand-made by natural materials that would have been available to colonists. Plus, they bring so much revenue, you can bet they’re not going anywhere! Check out more wreaths in my Colonial Willamsburg Wreath Album.

Colonial Williamsburg is a treat. I’ve heard many say you can do it in a day, but that’s only possible if you rush through and make it a chore rather than a pleasure. It’s such a fantastic way to learn about our history and how things were done.

Though not a very large place, it’s easy to spend a good amount of time in each building learning about various crafts and people (if the “costumed interpreter” is good). If you only have one day, it's still worth going, but I'd try for more. We spent five days exploring (my family likes detail), and it was perfect: just a few hours each day so we were never too exhausted. I had just as much fun this time as I did twenty years ago when my grandma took me as a kid.

The winter was cold, but most places (even bathrooms!) were heated. Summers there are akin to hell, and also very crowded. That would be my last choice as far as a time to visit. For information on tickets click here. Teachers get a discount!

My Christmas Vacation

2011-01-22T18:07:00.000-08:00

Mom decided to head home for the holidays, and we all went along. Our folks are from New Jersey, so with them, my sister and I headed east to visit the relatives.

I know no one likes a complainer, but I've got to get this off my chest: The plane ride to and fro was super stinky. I've decided I now hate Continental (even though I loved them once, long ago, when my Uncle Wally worked for them). Their so-called "eco-fleet" is just a way to make you more uncomfortable than ever.

If you're sitting near the back of such a plane, you're going to have butts in your face and against your shoulder the whole trip while people wait in the bathroom line. Remember when there were bathrooms in the front and back of the cabin, and there was that little area back there where you could stretch your legs during a 5 hour flight? No more. Just two bathrooms in the back, a constant line, no place to stretch, and smaller aisles so there is literally NEVER a place for you to move without being in someone's way.

Oh, and headsets are free now, but if you'd like to watch anything, be prepared to swipe your credit card for six bucks. Yuck.

Now that that's out of the way...

We had just about a day hang out with my mom's cousin Debbie, her husband, Larry, and her mother, my great-aunt Florence (who makes a wicked-good Cornflake Chicken recipe) before hitting the road.

Because it just wouldn't be a proper family vacation without the four of us yelling at and laughing with each other while stuffed into a car for an excruciating length of time, we rented a car from Newark and headed for Williamsburg, Virginia. (Props to the Enterprise people at Newark Airport. Great service, and they let us upgrade our car for a very reasonable price).

Prior to our departure, my mom scored a tour of The White House for us on our way south. We received many e-mails reminding us that there was NO PHOTOGRAPHY. People taking photographs would be escorted out. Blah blah NO PICTURES blah blah.

To make a long story short, everyone and their mama was taking pictures because we'd somehow been put on a very rare tour that allowed photography. I don't know how all of those people were well-informed while we were told NO CAMERAS, but anyway, suffice it to say that The White House was beautiful and beautifully decorated, but you won't be seeing any pictures or videos about it from me because we were misinformed. Oh, well.

One word of warning for the "self-guided" tour: They won't let you backtrack. Nobody tells you that until you want to go back and look at something. Take your time to appreciate everything as you walk through, because it's your only chance.

We had a great time exploring the Ellipse and all of the Christmas trees therein. If you've never been there around the holidays, it's like this: There's the gigantic National Christmas Tree with an awesome set of trains running around the base. All around it are the small State Trees, decorated by some privileged class or school from each state or territory. There's also the Yule Log and an area to meet Santa. At night, it's a truly awesome display of lights on the National Tree.

After our tour we grabbed an early dinner at the historic Old Ebbitt Grill. Established in 1856, the Old Ebbitt has been in its current location since 1983. It has been a favorite of many presidents and statesmen throughout its incarnations, and is still a FANTASTIC place to grab a bite or a drink. Their menu is seasonal. See more pics of D.C.

On to Williamsburg.

We arrived late at night to the Ford's Colony Marriott, located about fifteen minutes from Colonial Williamsburg. Tucked away amid mansions on the outskirts of a private community, the manor-style brick buildings were the prettiest timeshares I've seen yet.

Our five-day experience in Colonial Williamsburg was uncanny, fun, delicious, educational, and definitely requires its own article. It was that kind of good time.

The drive back to New Jersey seemed long without a tour of D.C. to break it up, but we made it back just in time to enjoy Christmas Eve with relatives that we hadn't seen in many years. My great-aunt Fran made a ridiculously large and delicious dinner that included at least four courses.

Since we just can't seem to get enough of each other in tiny, enclosed spaces, my immediate family hopped back in the car to spend Christmas in Pennsylvania with my mom's sister, Barbara. Our cousins and uncle were finishing their meals when we got there, so we took second-shift of dinner. She sure can cook! Fantastic shrimp lasagna, pork with red cabbage, and brisket were on her menu.

After a quick breakfast with Uncle Bill the next morning (at a diner so inexpensive, I thought about moving), we tried to beat the blizzard back to Jersey. We failed.

What took about ninety minutes going took over four hours getting back. We passed by eight terrible accidents, and fourteen cars that went off the road. Lara and I were supposed to go to Hoboken that night, but we were grateful to make it back in one piece to Wayne. That's where we were snowed in with our folks, Aunt Fran, and cousin George for a couple of days. What an experience! I'll save all the family drama for my screenplay.

We were finally able to get to Hoboken- which was a blast- and you can read about it by clicking here.

Because we got to Hoboken a couple of days later than planned, Lara and I only had one afternoon in Manhattan, but it was a fun one! We met up with our old friend Alexis at the bottom of the Empire State Building, and she showed us a couple of her favorite bars and restaurants around town.

Legends had a very inviting interior and extensive menu. Alexis said they've got good perogies, but none of us were hungry then, so stuck to cocktails. The French Kiss, Empire State Bellini, and Red Manhattan were all delightful. The music on their website bugs.

After meandering a bit, we landed at Stout NYC. The enormity of this place was astounding...two levels filled with rooms, filled with people. It was nicely decorated for Christmas and, as you may have guessed by the name, there were hundreds of beers to choose from. The service left something to be desired, but they had the BEST Spinach Artichoke Dip Appetizer that I've ever eaten in my entire life.

You know how everyplace has an appetizer like that, and it's always decent, with a cream cheese base, and tastes about the same as everywhere else? Well, that's what I think we were all expecting, but the dip that came out was CHEESY and melty and more of a fondue than what I'd expect a Spinach Artichoke Dip to be. I loved it. It made up for the crappy service.

It was great fun just walking around in that insane energy of New York. If you've never been to Manhattan, it's kind of impossible to explain what it's like to be around that many people. Picture yourself at a crowded concert where you're standing on the floor around the mosh pit, shoulder to shoulder with those around you. Now imagine you all decide to go for a walk. That's kind of it.

Of course the whole city isn't like this, but in certain areas at certain times (and around Christmas around Macy's is DEFINITELY one of those places and times), it is. It's wonderful, annoying, exciting, and claustrophobic all at once.

A must see is the Toys R Us in Times Square. Stories tall with an enormous Ferris Wheel in the middle, it's just nuts. See more pics of New York here.

We got back to L.A. on New Year's Eve, and headed out the next day for Palm Springs, because we are nothing if not hardcore.

And that was, in a nutshell, my Christmas vacation:)

Heaven, Hell, or Hoboken

2011-01-10T15:46:00.000-08:00

It’s got history, fame, groundbreaking firsts, and a ton of great bars and restaurants packed into one itty-bitty square mile (well, two if you count the area underwater, but nobody does).

Just across the Hudson from Manhattan, Hoboken, New Jersey is the fourth most densely populated area in the United States, and has been newsworthy since before it became an “official” city in 1855.

Despite the blizzard (or maybe in part because of it), my sister and I loved it while we were there, and I have grown to love it even more while researching it. I’m sure our location didn’t hurt: our cousins, Heather and Erin, were kind enough to put us up at their place, which has an unobstructed view of the Hudson River and Manhattan skyline. I guess it was kind of love at first sight.

In my mind, Hoboken is like the Napoleon of cities… tiny, but it packs a mean punch.

HOBOKEN IS:

A City of Firsts:

-The first North American Brewery was built in Hoboken at Castle Point . One site said it was opened in 1643 by Aert Van Putten, and another credited Nicholas Varlett with opening it in 1663. Either way, it was the first, long ago, and in Hoboken.

-The modern zipper was developed in Hoboken in the early 20th Century.

-The first recorded baseball game was played at Elysian Fields between the Knickerbocker Club and New York Nine in 1846.

- The first central A/C in a public space was installed in Hoboken Terminal.

- The first Blimpie was opened in 1964 by students of the Stevens Institute.

- The first electrified train was driven by Thomas Edison from Hoboken to Montclair.

- I couldn’t verify this, but several sites claim that soft-serve ice cream and Oreo Cookies originated in Hoboken.

Cool and Famous:

-Frank Sinatra was born there. (Doesn’t get cooler than Frank!)

-Many films, including Julie and Julia, Funny Girl and, a personal favorite, The Station Agent filmed at Hoboken Terminal.

- On the Waterfront starring Marlon Brando was filmed in Hoboken.

- The Cake Boss is there at Carlo's Bakery, bringing ridiculous lines to Washington Street. (I didn’t actually wait in the line to try it, but I heard from many different people that it looks better than it tastes, and isn’t worth the wait if you’re after flavor. That’s just what I heard.)

Smart:

Stevens Institute of Technology is one of the oldest technical universities in the country. Opened in 1870 and founded by Edwin A. Stevens (with money left for such a purpose after his death) at the site of his family’s former estate, the school is especially renowned for preparing their students to go on to medical school.

Historic:

Besides the “firsts” mentioned above and the tug of war that occurred between the Lenape and the Dutch until the English just finally took it, Hoboken’s been through a lot.

In the early 19th Century, Inventor Colonel John Stevens (whose son left the money for Stevens Institute of Technology) developed it waterfront as a resort for wealthy New Yorkers. The Colonel, among many other things, is the founder of the Hoboken Land and Improvement Company, which designed the street grid and some buildings which still survive.

By the late 1800s, Hoboken was a thriving port town with shipbuilding and other successful factories. Through WW I it remained busy with millions of doughboys passing through. In fact, almost all of the troops sent to Europe went through Hoboken (With the phrase “Heaven, Hell, or Hoboken” their mantra for an early return by Christmas, 1917).

It also thrived through WW II since its various industries were crucial to the war efforts. Following the war, jobs were plentiful and unions were strong. Hoboken was a picture-perfect blue-collar town.

By the 1960s, when trains and boats were no longer the primary means of transportation, the city began to decline. Much of the industry and jobs moved, and many families headed for suburbs. Hoboken became rundown.

Beginning in the late ‘70s, gentrification started taking hold. Fueled by speculation and Section 8 incentives, the brownstones were bought up and a new generation of artists, musicians, and yuppies moved in, thereby changing the face of Hoboken yet again.

Multicultural:

After the area was purchased from the Lenape, the population was largely Dutch, then English. Eventually, the main population was German (probably in large part because of the Hamburg-American Lines having their piers right there), but they were driven out during WW I.

Following the war, the population became mostly Italian, with a large number of Irish. Around the 1960s, the population became largely Puerto Rican.

Currently, about 80% of the population considers themselves “White,” 5% “Black,” 5% “Asian ,“ and 7% “Other.” Of these groups, about 20% call themselves “Hispanic.”

Corrupt:

New Jersey in general and Hoboken in particular have this reputation. The biggest recent story is that political star Peter J. Cammarano, campaigning as a reformer with zero tolerance for criminal conduct, was in office barely three weeks as the youngest-ever mayor of Hoboken before an FBI sweep netted him along with the two other mayors, judges, rabbis, and dozens of others in New Jersey’s biggest ever public corruption roundup. Yikes!

Delicious and Thirst Quenching:

There are nearly one hundred bars there, and more restaurants than that. I was only there for a couple of days, so didn’t have an opportunity to eat and drink as much as I might have liked, but I thoroughly enjoyed what opportunities I had.

Our cousins showed us around and took us to some of the places they like to frequent.
Here’s what we ate and drank:

Sushi Lounge was our delicious first meal there. They have a Happy Hour with $5 selected martinis and half-off certain rolls and appetizers. The prices seemed a little steep off the regular menu, but at half-off, it was just right.

We tried the Super Kani, Optimistic, Hoboken, and Fantasy rolls. All but the Hoboken were great, and the trio of dipping sauces that accompanied the Optimistic made me happy.

The Hoboken (which I pushed for) was the only one that tasted at all “fishy.” The eel (which I normally love) didn’t seem fresh enough. But, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt…we were there during the huge blizzard, and I’m sure they hadn’t had their expected deliveries.

Their martinis were yummy. My overall favorite was Japanese Beauty (premium sake, plum wine, and fresh cucumber).

After sushi, we walked over to McSwiggans Pub where we enjoyed various concoctions put in front of us by the fabulous bartender, Amanda. It was a nice, relaxing vibe there, but we had to move on to Game Night/Taco Tuesday at the Village Pourhouse.

Game night consists not of trivia and such, but instead games like Twister, Jenga, and Flip Cup. The Pourhouse was enormous, and pretty packed. My cousin’s boyfriend, Mike, is one of the investors in the sports bar, and, seen here in cartoon form on the left, is one of the Flip Cup Guys (that's his partner, Scott, on the right). I’d never heard of this cup flipping phenomenon. Guess I've been out of college too long. Still, I made it through the first round!

After sucking back blue fishbowls full of booze (blue was a little sweet for me…I think they have other colors, too) and filling up on tacos, we were down for the count.

The next morning we headed for Stacks, a pancake joint that delivers. Even though it was a weekday, there was still a little line.

To share, we ordered their Cinnamon French Toast made from Challah and served with cinnamon bun goo instead of syrup. It was delicious, though a few parts were dry. Next time I’d order extra goo!

I ordered what struck me as the most unique thing on the menu: a breakfast wrap with eggs, cheese, and turkey wrapped in a big pancake instead of a tortilla. No, not a crepe… a pancake. It was a bit strange and actually quite good. But it’s the kind of thing where everyone tastes it, cocks and eyebrow, and goes “hmm...”

Later that night we ended up at Mikie Squared Bar and Grill. We happened in during $5 Martinis, so tried a few of those. My favorite was “A Lovely Bunch of…Coconuts” Martini.

The food there was really tasty, also. My sister and I shared a turkey burger with fries, a side of garlic mashed potatoes, and a corn and shrimp chowder. My absolute favorite thing was the chowder. It was seasoned perfectly, and had a lot of shrimp in it. Yum!

After dinner we trudged through the snow (my sister and I giggling all the way) to Willie McBrides for our final stop at Trivia Night. Since they’re a little off the beaten path, they will apparently send a limo to pick up parties of six or more who are feeling too lazy to walk the 4 or 5 blocks.

The next morning was our last in Hoboken, so we had to make it count. We ate at La Isla, where they made some of the best French Toast I’ve ever eaten in my life. In fact, Bobby Flay lost a Throwdown to Chef Omar’s Stuffed French Toast. “Thick egg bread filled with strawberry and guava cream cheese, dipped in cinnamon batter, and coated with corn flakes and almonds.” That’s all I have to say about that.

Following breakfast, Lara and I had a quick afternoon of fun and friends in Manhattan before heading back to L.A. We’ll miss you, Hoboken!

To see more photos, check out the Hoboken Facebook album.

If you're going to visit the area, Hoboken411 and Hoboken-bar.net are your best bets for up-to-the-minute info on what's going on there.

Happy Christmastime!

2010-12-24T20:48:00.000-08:00

I've been away in Colonial Williamsburg with my Mom, Dad, and sis for the last week, and am now back in New Jersey for the next week to reconnect with family that Lara and I haven't seen for seven years or more!

It's been great seeing everyone, and Colonial Williamsburg was a blast! Some highlights so far have included a holiday tour of the White House on our way down to Virginia, checking out the beautiful and creative wreaths throughout Williamsburg, and eating (of course!)old-fashioned meals in the taverns. Just getting to know our way around the streets of Williamsburg was awesome... I was starting to feel like I lived there, and am missing the slow 18th-Century pace.

Check back here in a couple of weeks for photos and an article about the trip.

For regular updates and a few more details about what we've been up to, check my Facebook or Twitter feeds.

Have a beautiful Christmas!

Bringing Milky Back

2010-12-14T15:20:00.000-08:00

Recently, I was invited to a cocktail party hosted by the Got Milk? folks at Bar Lubitsch featuring renowned mixologist Duggan McDonnell. Together, they're bringing milky back.

At one time more prominently featured with booze (you know...for health reasons! Ben Franklin had a 'healthy' milk punch recipe), milk has recently resigned itself to White Russians and Grasshoppers.

The friendly, charismatic mixologist and owner of Cantina in San Francisco, Duggan, was happy to prove that milk still has a place in cocktails...especially during the holidays!

One of the great things about the recipes he shared is that you can throw everything together in a punchbowl...no individual "shaking," which becomes a nuisance at large parties. Here are a few of my favorites:

CINNAMON SAKE HORCHATA
Serves 8

Ingredients:
1 quart milk
1 1/2 cups Nigori Sake
1/2 cup cinnamon syrup*
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tbsp. almond extract
Cinnamon powder to taste

Directions:
Whisk thoroughly in a punchbowl until ingredients are thoroughly integrated. Add ice, dust with cinnamon, and serve.

*Cinnamon Syrup

Ingredients:
6 large cinnamon sticks
8 cups water
6 cups white sugar

Directions:
Bring water and cinnamon sticks to a boil, then simmer for 30 minutes. Add sugar, turn heat up, and boil sugar syrup. Stir thoroughly, remove from heat, and chill overnight. Strain, then bottle for use.

FROTHY VANILLA NOG
Serves 8

Ingredients:
1 quart milk
8 egg whites
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. almond extract
Cinnamon and spicy chili powder to taste

Directions:
Whisk thoroughly until all ingredients are integrated. Spike with alcohol if desired, add ice, and dust with cinnamon/chili powder blend.

BREAKFAST GIMLET
Serves 8

Ingredients:
1 quart milk
1 1/2 cups gin
3/4 cup simple syrup
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

Directions:
Whisk thoroughly in a punch bowl until all ingredients are thoroughly integrated. Add ice and serve.

They were great drinks, but by the time I got home I was craving straight booze to cut the milky coating on my insides.

For these recipes, Duggan used 2% milk, which was perfect because it's not too heavy. But hey, if you're feeling decadent or too skinny, go for a higher fat content!

Thanks to the Got Milk? folks for the fun time, and the fabulous cookies to go with our milk!

For more photos, visit my Facebook photo album.

One Year Ago Today...

2010-12-14T14:13:00.000-08:00

Today is not only my beautiful mother's birthday, but also the one-year anniversary of my first written blog post!

Read that first blog about Porto's Bakery by clicking here.

Thanks to all of you who have helped make my endeavor successful, and thanks especially to Caroline On Crack, without whom I may never have started the writing.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

The San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival Experience

2010-12-04T20:23:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, I had the fantastic fortune to attend The San Diego Wine and Food Festival, a week-ish long event that showcases the finest food in the area, and top-notch wine and spirits from around the world.

This was their seventh year (my first), and almost every attendee I met had been there in previous years. By all accounts, every year gets better and better. A few people told me that the food was lacking during the first few years, but I can assure you that it is now lacking nothing (but time...it's so sad when it's over).

After a kick-off party on Sunday, the first of the major events began on Wednesday, November 17th.

My sister came with me to help me with filming for my video blog, and we arrived on Thursday night for the Industry Insider's Party at newly-opened Searsucker in the historic Gaslamp Quarter. (Just to brag, we TOTALLY scored with street parking right in front of the valet spots! If you're not familiar, this is an area with parking at a premium).

We got to the packed party just before 11, then grabbed some tequila cocktails, delicious shrimp appetizers, and a seat. By the time we ate, looked around, and mingled, the food was gone. After a glass of wine on the front patio to take in the action along 5th Ave., we headed back in, the party had thinned, and the wine folks were packing up. Everything for the party was put away by midnight, though the other half of the restaurant and bar remained lively. Glad we didn't get there any later. But, hey, we all had a big weekend ahead.

The next morning I attended a cooking class hosted by three former Top Chef contestants: the chef/owner of Searsucker seen in season 3, Brian Malarkey, Season 6 contestant Eli Kirshtein, and Season 7 contender Andrea Curto-Randazzo.

This wasn't one of those cooking classes where you throw on an apron and make the stuff yourself. It was more of a demonstration held at Macy's School of Cooking, with a beautiful kitchen area set up in front of rows of counters and comfy chairs for the 'students' to sit in. Three large televisions over the kitchen offered varied close-up views of the action.

This class afforded us the opportunity to watch each of the chefs make a recipe within his or her allotted twenty minutes (chock-full of entertaining banter and cooking tips, of course). More importantly, it gave us the opportunity to TASTE each yummy recipe, paired with wine from Anglim Winery . Copies of the recipes (which included Dirty Grits, "Cold Turkey" Salad, and Chocolate Stout Braised Beef Short Ribs) were handed out, but I've not yet had the opportunity to try my hand at any of them.

After the cooking and eating was over, participants had the chance to ask their burning questions about what really happens on Top Chef, and the three chefs answered to the best of their abilities without making themselves vulnerable to lawsuits. The fans seemed quite pleased!

Following the class, Lara and I had just enough time to freshen up before we had to head to the water to climb on board the Hornblower Inspiration for the Reserve & New Release Tasting. The ship remained docked, but it sure was fun being on the yacht and looking out at the water.

This event far surpassed my expectations and is something I would go back to again and again. It stood out as being a unique wine tasting event for a number of reasons. Of course, there was EXCEPTIONAL wine, which one would expect, but that, coupled with great ambiance and excellent food rounded out the whole experience.

Over 160 wineries and spirits producers were represented by wonderful, friendly ambassadors/wine makers (and it's not just because we were all buzzed...I've been to FAR less friendly wine events).

The gourmet food was awesome ...this was not your typical grapes, cheese, and crackers spread. Not to disparage the delicious cheese that was there (lord knows cheese is one of my favorite foods on the planet), but so often that's ALL that's offered at wine events.

One of my favorite bites of the evening was Duck with Pomegranate Tamarind Sauce and Carmalized Onion-Brie Grits prepared by Terra.

The ship was huge and, spending most of our time on the middle deck, we barely scratched the surface. The top deck had a cigar lounge, and the bottom deck had not only more wine and food, but also hosted a silent auction filled with goodies to benefit The American Institute of Wine and Food (AIWF).

If you have the means and opportunity...DON'T MISS IT NEXT YEAR!

Last, but certainly not least, there was the Grand Tasting Event. Mmmmmm.

Though rain pelted us for much of the event, it was sooooooo fun!

Let me start by saying that it's IMPOSSIBLE to see/taste/experience everything that they have to offer. I mean, there was too much to see and taste the night before at the Reserve Tasting, and this was much, much bigger.

Basically, everyone that was on the ship the night before was there again. This time, most of them had different or additional wines to taste. There were also over 70 chefs (according to the program...I think it was actually significantly more) sharing some of their top dishes, live entertainment (which was actually really good), cookbook signings, and more.

The event started at 11:00 for media, trade, and VIP, and noon for everyone else. I was hoping that the rain might keep some people away. Silly me. Nobody's stupid enough to stay away from all that yum.

By the time we had parked and waited in line, we got in just before the masses. Good thing, too, because it was CROWDED. We gaily ate and drank our way through the various stands and people, chatting with those we'd met the night before, and mingling with other merry revelers.

Believe me when I say this is just a drop in the proverbial bucket of tastiness, but some of my favorite food stops included the Ahi Poke Taco from Blue Wave Bar and Grill, served in a won ton taco shell (it might not sound that exciting, but it was kind of perfect), R-Gang Eatery's melt-in-your-mouth Duck Fat Fried Tater Tots, and Blood Orange Olive Oil Cake from Chef Trey Foshee of Georges at the Cove. (I was a little stunned by the elegance and flavor contained within those little cakes. I have the recipe.) Ah, joy!

Right around 2:00 is when we started to feel the pain. But, you know, the "hurts so good" kind. It was evident in the eyes of many. It is only possible to ingest so much food and wine before it takes its toll.

I was beginning to feel like I'd taken part in an orgy as I watched glassy-eyed roisterers rub their bellies, searching for a dry place to sit down and recoup their vim and vigor before going back for more.

Because, seriously, you can't just give up with so much wine and food that you haven't tasted!

Thus, onward we strolled, talking about taking a "break"...right after this one last delicious looking morsel. Okay, now we'll just walk around and take pictures...right after we eat this and drink that....

So it went until we barely had enough strength to roll the "Wheel of Mahatma Rice" for rice and prizes.

On our way out we were pulled in to an Airstream trailer by a Votre Vu cosmetics representative. Really, we were just to full to run away, but it turned out that the stop in was just what the doctor ordered.

Toasty and warm inside, we sat there while Kathy, our adorable ambassador to all things skin related, fed us elixers, sprayed us with mists, and soothed us with lotions and creams. It was really kind of the perfect end to the day. We were even able to walk out (as opposed to the waddle in).

From wine and tequila to sushi and cupcakes, this festival had something for everyone. Whether wino, foodie, or both, make sure to be at the next San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival!

See more photos on my Facebook page.

Hop Li Seafood Restaurant-Chinatown

2010-11-28T18:03:00.000-08:00

Ever since I was in elementary school, we've been eating at Hop Li Seafood Restaurant in Chinatown. Since then, a couple of other locations have opened up (West LA and Arcadia), but my review applies ONLY to the one on Alpine in Chinatown. (I've eaten at the one in Arcadia, and wasn't impressed).

Their piéce de résistance, as far as I'm concerned, is the Squid with Spicy Salt. These cylindrical beauties are coated with a delightful batter that we can't figure out how to replicate, fried to perfection, and topped with chopped chilis and green onions.

I've ordered this dish at other restaurants (even one of their own), but none come close to the magic they serve up there in Chinatown.

A close second is their Shrimp with Honey Glazed Walnuts. It's a common thing to see on a menu, but is often too mayonnaise-y, or corn starchy, or the shrimp is too heavily battered. At Hop Li, they do it just right. (Though the shrimp taste great, I found they don't photograph well).

My favorite vegetable dish is the Eggplant with Spicy Garlic Sauce. The Hot Braised String Beans are pretty tasty, too.

I enjoy their Sizzling Fish Fillet with Honey Garlic Sauce, but it's SWEET and not for everyone's palate.

The Slippery Shrimp looked enticing on the menu, but I wouldn't get it again. Similarly-though I loved them as a child-both the Orange Peel and Lemon Chicken dishes weren't anything to write home about. But, hey, it's a seafood restaurant, so stick to that.

There are various specials on the board where you walk in. From that, I once ordered a Honey Pepper Fish that was scrumptious. Sweet- but less so than the Honey Garlic Fish- and it had perfectly cooked green beans mixed in that I couldn't get enough of.

Every time I go in with my family, they order the House Special Chow Mein Sizzling Platter (pictured here with extra straw mushrooms). Crispy noodles are brought to your table on a hot plate and, when they pour the "everything" gravy on it, that's right...it sizzles. The noodles soak up the sauce, so you get a fun mix of soft and crispy textures .

If you like things spicy, make sure to ask for the OILY hot sauce. It's never just out on the table, but it's got great flavor.

WHERE:

HOP LI SEAFOOD RESTAURANT
526 Alpine Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
TEL (213) 680-3939

WHEN:

11:00 AM - 10:00 PM, Everyday

San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival

2010-11-14T18:21:00.000-08:00

Few things make me happier than good food and fine wine, so I'm counting down the days until the 7th Annual San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival.

The five-day event has its kick-off party tonight, but none of the other events begin until Wednesday.

My first foodie function there will be a class on Friday afternoon called Savor the Flavor with Reality Chef Superstars. I'm really excited about it, though it conflicts with another class I wanted to take, called A Taste of South America.

Later that evening, I'm attending the Reserve and New Release Tasting, which will feature over 160 wineries and spirits producers with their finest offerings.

Saturday morning begins the piéce de résistance, the Grand Tasting Event. The event, which sold-out last year, has over 70 chefs, over 700 different wines, samplings from gourmet food companies, live entertainment and charity auctions.

Tickets for some things are less expensive when purchased in advance, and many events will sell out. Click here to purchase tickets.

Cheers!

The Warm Pumpkin Pirate

2010-11-03T18:24:00.000-07:00

For a few weeks now I've been trying to come up with a cocktail using real pumpkin purée rather than pumpkin-flavored liquor (that just seems too easy).

I tried a few variations with vodka, which were okay, but then tried spiced rum, which was even better. On a lark, I picked up some dark rum, and found the winner.

I stopped there, but I'll bet whiskey, brandy, or maybe even tequila would be tasty, too.

Now the problem was the texture...the pumpkin purée has a lot of it. Turns out, the solution was making it a hot drink instead of a cold one. The texture works perfectly for a thick, warm drink.

This recipe makes one small mug.

INGREDIENTS:

- 1/4 cup pumpkin purée
- 1/4 cup milk (I used organic whole milk)
- 1/4 cup cream (I used organic soy creamer)
- 2 teaspoons Agave sweetner
- 2 ounces dark rum (spiced works, also)
- 1/8 cup apple cider
- cinnamon and/or nutmeg topping
- whipped cream (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

- Mix ingredients-except topping- together in a small saucepan. Use a hand blender or whip well with a fork.

- Over medium heat, stir mixture until it's hot (about a minute). DO NOT BOIL.

- Pour into mug, and top with whipped cream and/or cinnamon nutmeg topping.

Cheers!

Let me know if you try any tasty variations!

Halloween in Vegas

2010-10-27T18:12:00.000-07:00

Though this year we'll have children with us and plan on a relaxed Halloween with little more than Trick or Treating, last year was a rip-roaring good time in Las Vegas. Here's what that was like.

BBM Lounge/Mark Salling Record Release

2010-10-23T15:38:00.000-07:00

Despite my lack of a BlackBerry (or any smart phone, for that matter), I somehow got on the BBM Lounge list (BBM is for BlackBerry Messenger...kinda like texting within the realm of BlackBerry land). Though I was dubious and the evening got off to a somewhat shaky start, I have to admit that the party was FUN.

In conjunction with Xomad, these BlackBerrry events are held at various locations throughout L.A. with different celebrity guests at each. This party was also a record release for Mark Salling from Glee.

I've been invited to several of their events so far, but have been busy during each. Finally, I was free for this one, and my sister LOVES Glee. I figure I'd finally see what this BBM Lounge is all about, and she'd get her Glee on. Perfect.

Okay, so I mentioned I was dubious. Here's why: they always use the gimmick of not announcing where the party is going to be until the night before or day of, and a very big deal is made about VIP. I know it's supposed to make you all the more curious and excited and special feeling, but I just find that it annoys me and makes it hard to plan my time. I'm not so concerned with special treatment...I just want to have a good time. But anyway...

The location was My House in Hollywood. Never having been inside, I knew it only as the place that has the drunken people stumbling out of it and into my car when it's stopped at a red light near there after hours.

Turns out, it's a great looking club.

I was really impressed with the layout of the place and love the way the inside seamlessly spills into their outdoor area. The upstairs area (which was the BBM VIP Lounge) has a giant shower and bed, giving it that "house" feel.

The "shaky start" of the evening began when my sister called to say she'd had just a little too much fun at an earlier taping of Rod Stewart on Jimmy Kimmel, and would probably not be able to make it. She wasn't.

Then I was sent through an alley into a parking garage to check in. We in the "social media" were herded to the side to await our "VIP escort" into the place. As groups of people both in front of and behind me were brought in, I stood there for a good twenty minutes inhaling car fumes. Once I'd realized that the group had dwindled down to about half a dozen of us, I asked someone with a staff badge who told me to keep waiting. After many more minutes of nobody even looking our way, I walked back to the check-in table to inquire. Good thing. They thought we we were with another group, and we might have been standing there all night.

When finally the forgotten few of us were escorted in, all the escort did was walk us to the front door which I could have done by myself half an hour before. Needless to say, I found the "escort" part of the "VIP treatment" entirely unnecessary.

However, my mood improved almost immediately when I saw the hors d'oeuvres and cocktails.

Sponsored by Svedka Vodka- whose commercials feature people doing the robot- they had cocktails with names like Bot Chaser, Hot Bot, and Flirty Bot (a personal favorite, made with Raspberry Svedka, Raspberry Liquor, cranberry juice, and sour mix). Though, on a sour note, I met a couple of women there who weren't drinking, and actually had to PAY for their NON-ALCOHOLIC drinks. With tons of free booze flying around, that seems a bit ridiculous.

Servers walked around with fantastic bites like beautiful and delicious Scallops on the Half with Wasabi Créme Fraiche, Organic Farmer's Market Vegetable Summer Rolls with Blackberry Vinaigrette Dipping Sauce, and Wild Mushroom Risotto with Truffle Créme Fraiche and Chervil.

The VIP section upstairs is where you REALLY wanted a BlackBerry, because from up there you could scan a barcode at your location, then BBM your cocktail or food orders. Within minutes tasty delights including Bali Peppered Ahi Tuna with Blackberry Gastrique, Battered Sesame Chicken with BBM BBQ Sauce, and Duck Shumai made from Steamed Duck Confit with Ginger Gastrique, Orange Browned Butter, and Blackberry Garnish would appear at your table.

I admit, watching all that food go by gave me a twinge of BlackBerry envy.

Happily, I ran into Hemang of gmangoman and met Cassie of iCrashDaily who were more than willing to order up plenty of food to share.

When I was gleefully full (pun intended), it was time for Mark Salling to take the stage. By this time, the once spacious lower level of the bar had become a throng of people eager to see Mark's debut live performance to promote his new solo album, Pipe Dreams.

The eclectic nature of his band really surprised me. From strings and brass to "the ususal", it was a much more interesting sound than I'd anticipated.

After the short performance, he was obliged to come upstairs and take pictures with whomever wanted them. Despite the hordes of folks, he appeared quite gracious and friendly every step of the way. You can see all of the photos at guestofaguest.com.

Gimmicky mystery location and unnecessary VIP stuff notwithstanding, in the end I have to admit, the folks at BlackBerry know how to throw a party.

Sadly, I was futzing around with a new camera that night, and all of my food pics didn't come out the way I'd hoped. Guess I have to study the manual...

To see the rest of my photos visit the album on my Facebook page.
Hemang has great food pics on his site.

The Gourmet Experience 2010

2010-10-11T20:24:00.000-07:00

Need some Blood Orange Avocado Oil and Truffle Salt? Perhaps you're looking to sample some bacon and beer cupcakes. It could be that you're remodeling your home or just need new artisan-crafted furniture and kitchen utensils. Maybe you're just looking to get drunk on fine spirits.

No matter which category you fall into, The Gourmet Experience was there to help. O'Brien Hall at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in Northern San Diego was filled with a variety of vendors to titillate your inner epicure.

I have no "home" to remodel or furnish with fancy things, so my interest was mostly in the eating and drinking. That said, there were many beautiful things that made me yearn for a place to decorate.

The star of the samples was Chef Michael McDonald from Top of the Market Restaurant. Front and center in the pavilion, he was frying up perfect, sweet scallops with butter and pine nuts while his assistants prepared scrumptious Ahi Tartare and Salmon Ceviche (made with coconut milk and other awesome things, it is now one of my favorite ways I've EVER eaten salmon).

The smell of buttery scallops permeated the hall, and the line stretched for over 20 minutes on Saturday.

The most popular area of the event was "That's the Spirit Pavilion."

Situated on a large red carpet near the back of the building, there was tequila (my favorite of which was Alma de Agave), wine (I enjoyed too many to just pick one), and beer tasting (I liked the Oatmeal Stout from Firestone Walker). There was a chocolate/whiskey pairing complements of Sip Smoke Savor, a diet cocktail mixer called refine which was all natural and actually pretty decent considering it had no calories, and a hand-held espresso machine from Mypressi (love that name) that is able to extract the coffee using vodka in lieu of water. Delightful.

There were clearly some folks who spent the entire day right there.

Most of the vendors were local and sell their wares at San Diego's Farmers Markets. The Farmers Market itself was represented with just-picked produce, baked goods (which for some reason they said you weren't supposed to eat there), olives, fresh pasta, and various types of pesto so good that a fight nearly broke out over the last two left to buy.

You could tell when the cupcake samples came out at Pub Cakes or the tri-tip was ready at Jake's BBQ Sauce and Dry Rub booth by the sudden mob would seemingly materialize from thin air and swarm the tables.

A couple of my other favorite foodie booths included Karolina Cacao's amazing macaroons (soft, melt-in-your-mouth, and ridiculously good), and Nature's Agave (the raw one is SCRUMPTIOUS!).

I loved the way people used each others products to enhance their own, or as bartering tools. Cupcakes were exchanged for wine, Nespresso was using the agave, Chef McDonald was using Key Lime Avocado Oil from Pacifica Culinaria and Bamboo Studio's little serving boats for their food on the second day. It had a nice communal vibe.

The cooking demonstrations were well attended and the moments of them I saw were great, but I was just too caught up at the booths to sit and watch one in its entirety.

It was nice to have a two-day pass and see how it changed from one day to the next, but the entire set-up was not all that big, and (unless you want a whole day to drink at the Spirit Pavilion) it could have easily all been seen in one day.

My biggest complaint about the event was the lack of substantial food. With all of these gourmet things to taste- not to mention all the alcohol- it was really disappointing that the only food for sale was from the Midway Café that was in the building...corn dogs, pretzels, and such.

I had gone hungry, thinking that there would be a lot of really yummy food to buy as well as sample, but that just wasn't so. I heard those sentiments being echoed throughout the place, so I know I'm not the only one. I can only assume that there was some kind of prohibitive agreement with the Fairgrounds (hence the "no eating dessert on premises" rule), but it was definitely a let down.

Despite the lack of good food for purchase, I had a wonderful time, discovered some new tasty treats, and met some great people. Throughout the weekend, I was joined at various times by my boyfriend, his kids (12 and under got in free), my parents, and my sister. Everyone enjoyed themselves, and that says a lot.

See more of my photos of the event by visiting my Facebook page and clicking on the album on the left-hand side.

Next month, the 7th Annual San Diego Bay Wine & Food Festival is going on from November 17-21. It appears to be a wino foodie's dream come true (yes, I'm talking about myself), and has so many great looking events it kind of makes my head spin. In a good way.

L.A. to Portland Along the 101

2010-10-09T00:07:00.001-07:00

This is a trip I've always wanted to make and, despite the distance, the amount of time it took, and all the fun places we went, I feel like I didn't do enough and REALLY want the opportunity again. Next time I'll take a lot longer.

For one thing, the number of wineries that I just had to drive right past brought psychological pain so acute it was nearly physical. I only realized that I had been audibly sighing when, "No, Bethy, you can't stop," piped up from the back seat. FINE.

Besides the copious amounts of wine that I will taste, there is an abundance of weird roadside attractions that I will stop at. There must be at least a dozen along the redwood highway, most having to do with giant stumps that have names like The Immortal Tree, The Grandfather Tree, and The World Famous Tree House.

We stopped at one called the Eternal Tree House. Probably if you've seen one you've seen them all, but my curiosity will not be satiated until I know that for a fact.

There are also four drive-through trees in the area and we only went through one called the Chandelier Tree in Leggett. Now you may ask: Do you really have to drive through four different trees? Well, no. But now I want to. Especially since I have the feeling that such attractions may not be around for much longer in light of how environmentally horrifying they are.

I am also enticed by the Trees of Mystery in Klamath, California, watched over by a waving, winking, talking Paul Bunyan and his faithful ox, Babe. I can only ponder at the enigma that lies beyond the guardians.

Happily, we had a chance to stop at a super old-school roadside attraction in Piercy called Confusion Hill. Home of the Chipalope, this fun spot has been confusing people since 1949 with its Gravity House and lays claim to the "World's Tallest Free Standing Redwood Chainsaw Carving." Nifty.

We were also lucky enough to find a great campground, The Emerald Forest, in Trinidad, CA. I will happily go back to stay there and explore what appears to be a beautiful beach town.

And another thing is, (dang...I'm gonna need 6 months for my next trip...) I want to spend more time exploring the small towns that suddenly pop up along the way. It's nice to see places that "time forgot," still without the hideous malls and chains that have taken over the rest of the country.

By the way, they do literally, "pop up." You're going 65 MPH on the freeway, and suddenly the freeway ends and the speed limit is 25. Be warned...it appears that a fair amount of the funding for said towns comes from tourists not paying attention to the signs. Speeding's probably the biggest "crime" around.

Our stop at Jedediah Smith State Park along the Smith River was wonderful, and really made me want to go back to camp there. It is named for Jedediah Smith who was an explorer, trapper, and the first known white man to explore northern California's interior.

Bisected by the Smith River, which is the last major free flowing river in California, the park holds many of the remaining old-growth redwood trees. In fact, it is one of four parks which, when combined, house almost half of the remaining old-growth redwood forests that remain in this state.

Just north of this natural wonderland starts the famed rocky formations of the Oregon Coast. Admittedly, I couldn't stop thinking of the Goonies and their map, but that only added to my enjoyment of the scenery.

The only thing marring the amazing scenery was the whining of, "We're hungry!!" Truly, I was, too, but I guess one of the things about being an adult is you simply become short-tempered and irritable when you're hungry - not all complain-y.

Still recalling our terrible experience at the Eternal Treehouse Café (we had stopped because I was so hungry, I was getting mad at my steering wheel) where we ordered a turkey sandwich and got an onion sandwich on white bread with a sliver of turkey, I was loath to stop at some random spot. Alas, we had no choice.

Thank heavens, fortune this time smiled upon us. In the city of Gold Beach, Oregon, there was a silly sign that caught my fancy. So, we stopped at the Barnacle Bistro, and were pleasantly surprised by the friendly service and yummy food prepared by the owner/chef Evan Boley. There was an appetizer that I LOVED which was mussels in an apple-cider vinegar curry. I don't even like mussels, and it rocked my world. They should serve it with more bread, though, to sop up the tasty juice.

Their website is currently down, but the place is still there!

Still in Gold Beach is the beautiful spot where the Rogue River meets the Pacific. It flows beneath the lovely concrete arches of the Isaac Lee Patterson Bridge (which is part of the 101).

The source of the river is at the base of the extinct Mount Mazama volcano, and it was named by French trappers in the 1800's for the 'bad behavior' of the local Indians who would take fur, food, or other items from the trappers' camps.

Going inland from the 101, there are several options if you're going to Portland. On this trip, I actually had to meet friends in Eugene, which is a couple hours south of Portland, and Mapquest told me to take the 126 to get there.

It's an absolutely beautiful, peaceful stretch of road that winds along the Siuslaw River most of the way. It's mostly single lane, so can be slower moving, but I was happy to enjoy the scenery.

Driving along the Pacific and through the redwoods was one of the most beautiful trips I've ever taken. The breathtaking views and quirky towns eloquently showcased the amazing diversity of our fine coast, and made me proud to be a part of it!

October Offerings

2010-10-02T10:56:00.000-07:00

Halloween is upon us, and there's plenty of spooky stuff going on around town! Here are a few of my picks (if only I could do them all), and some not-so-scary events...

Of course you know about the Halloween Haunt at Knott's Berry Farm, Horror Nights at Universal Studios, Fright Fest at Magic Mountain, and Mickey's Halloween Party at Disneyland, but if you're looking for places to party that have a reputation for being haunted, you've got a lot of other options.

The Haunted Hayride moves to Griffith Park this year. The Old Zoo definitely has a creepy feeling and has long been rumored to be haunted by people and animals alike. Beginning on the 8th, you can be really spooked as the local ghosts team up with whatever terrors the Hayride People have in store.

Pasadena has an Old Town Haunt in the oldest building in town. They let you into the basement which were catacombs of an abandoned mission. Excavations found body parts sprinkled about, and rumors of curses have always been whispered...

Haunted Hollywood Tours takes you to various newsworthy crime and murder scenes like the Tate murders and the OJ crime scene.

In a similar vein, Dearly Departed Tours offers such goodies as The Tragical History Tour and The Helter Skelter Tour.

The Queen Mary's Dark Harbor offers terrifying mazes on and off deck of the ship with bands, food, and cocktails to enjoy between frights. Of course, there are plenty of ghost stories about the place without all the added hoopla.

On October 9, The New Beverly Cinema is having their 3rd annual ALL NIGHT HORROR SHOW & FUNDRAISER!! Seven whole frightening films for $20 sounds like a rip-roaring good time. Check out their calendar for other great films showing throughout the month.

Not into frights but want to celebrate Dia de los Muertos? Hollywood Forever is the place to be on October 30. Honor and celebrate the departed souls from 2PM-Midnight. Ruben Albarran of Café Tacuba will be performing with his new band, Hoppo, at 9.

Looking for non-Halloween Happenings?

Next weekend I'll be in San Diego at The Gourmet Experience. It's the first one of its kind, and is being held at the Del Mar Fairgrounds on the 9th and 10th. This event promises wine, beer, and food tastings for the discriminating palate. Along with cooking demonstrations, there will be a plethora of kitchen gadgets and gizmos to try out. Single day or weekend passes are available, and if you enter coupon code FB10, you can get $10 off of your tickets.

I'm sad I'll have to miss it, but next weekend is also the semi-annual Brewery Artwalk. Admission and parking are FREE, and you'll have the opportunity to see and purchase art from over 100 participating artists at "the world's largest art complex".

Have fun!

Blogger Prom 2010- Hollywood Confidential

2010-09-25T09:26:00.000-07:00

Started last year by a prominent group of L.A. bloggers, (Caroline, Esther, Lindsay, H.C., Maya, Natalie, Tara, and Marni) Blogger Prom is a spectacular event for fun and networking, and the amazing sponsorship they get is a testament to the power of the pen (or, well, keyboard). It also benefited Operation Frontline, a well-deserving organization whose mission is "empowering and educating families to prepare healthy and tasty meals on a limited budget". You may donate to them through the Blogger Prom link (kindly donated by goldstar) until the end of October by clicking here.

The gorgeous and historic Yamashiro restaurant was the perfect venue for this year's glamorous Hollywood Confidential theme. With Pinky Confidential cocktails in hand, beautifully dressed guests glided through the courtyard garden and enjoyed unparalleled views of Los Angeles in the adjoining rooms.

DJ Steve created the soundtrack to our evening, and Heather Kincaid was on hand to take these beautiful black and white "official photos" of us. See more of her work at HeatherKincaid.com/blog

Chef Brock Kleweno had people eagerly awaiting his delectable tacos with fillings such as miso-sake marinated cod and hoisen duck confit, which are available at their Thursday night Farmer's Market (which you should go to).

Our Prom King and Queen (or, rather, Leading Man & Leading Lady) are Neil of Food Marathon, and Jocelyn of JozJozJoz. Well done, you two!

Once we were all fed and watered, the giftbags were presented as folks headed out to the other side of town to the after party at Test Kitchen.
I must dedicate a moment to the gift bags, because they were GREAT! Just the reusable Disney Store tote bag itself made me happy (old-school Mickey Mouse in silhouette filled in with old Disney comics). To make matters better, inside the bag were gifts and certificates from sponsors like

American Cinematheque, Border Grill, Dermalogica, O.N.E. Coconut Water, Pink Berry, and The Grammy Museum, just to name a few. For a complete list of the generous sponsors, click here.

Unfortunately, I missed the after party at Test Kitchen (which I've been eager to visit), but the reason for that was a good one: I stuck around for a couple of hours after the prom ended to get the super-exclusive Ghost Tour.

Restaurant GM David Comfort told just a handful of the abundant ghost stories about the property that has been a home, apartment building, brothel, museum, and sort of zoo in the century it has been there.

Stories included flying plates, lights turning on and off, a woman awaiting her husband's arrival, and a crying girl in a room that should have been empty.

He then walked a few of us around past the table where the ghost woman waits, and on a tour through the basement and other areas where there is purportedly paranormal activity. It was awesome!

To see my photos of Blogger Prom and the Ghost Tour, visit me on Facebook and check out the album.

Viva (Downtown) Las Vegas!

2010-09-15T14:25:00.000-07:00

Aaaahhh, Vegas. Maybe because I grew up going there, to me it's like the comfort food version of traveling. Even though it goes against every decent human value and encourages the worst in our behavior, I love it.

That said, I really only LOVE love downtown. Again, probably because it reminds me of the Vegas I grew up going to, when even The Strip was covered in the lights of hotels like Westward Ho and The Stardust, now torn down to make way for the gigantic, fancy things that have taken over. Or maybe it's because my heart belongs to Hawai'i, and downtown is THE Hawaiian vacation destination. Whatever the reason, it's my spot. Sure there are some older hotels and fancy lobby things I like about The Strip, but that's for another time. So about downtown...

I'll just get it out of the way right now and say that I'm not a fan of the big covered thing (The Fremont Street Experience) that they put up back in 1995. I think it takes away from the great lights of the casinos and was much cooler when it was open (see U2's I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For video). A good thing about it is that it creates shade on the hot summer days. But anyway...

Let's start with this: what is now considered downtown Las Vegas (alternately referred to as Fremont Street) is really the original "Strip." The first hotel in Las Vegas, built in 1906 and now called Golden Gate, still has its original rooms (small, but refurbished) and was the location of the first telephone in town (Phone number? "1").

Du-par's just moved into the Golden Gate, and offers an Early Bird Special. Between 4 and 6 (AM or PM), the time you come is the price you pay on selected menu items (with a drink purchase). $8 (including tax and tip) made me full and happy. The food was surprisingly tasty for the price.

I love that you can walk around on or near Fremont Street and hit over a dozen hotels and casinos in the time it would take to walk to two on The Strip. You can just park your car, grab your slushy drink, and forget about it. That's especially handy in light of the fact that the BEST (and in my opinion, ONLY) place to get those giant slushy drinks is right there near the Golden Gate: Le Bayou.

At Le Bayou, they take cash only. It's true that you can find cheaper slushy drinks, but you won't find any as strong or tasty. One big drink is PLENTY for two. For a few bucks more you can add an extra "shot" (which is more like three) and share with even more people, or literally stumble around all day long with it.

Experience has taught me that the creamier flavors go down better than the fruity ones, which I find too acidic.

CHEAPO TIP: Save the giant cups or footballs, because refills are about half the price.

All that booze making you hungry? The best buffet downtown, and maybe in all of Vegas, is at The Main Street Station, just north of The Plaza Hotel.

I don't say it's the best because it has the best food in the world. It doesn't. But the food is good, and the selection is MASSIVE, so you're bound to find something you really like, even if other things are just "eh." (At the Champagne Brunch, the made-to-order omelettes and mimosas are my favorites. During lunch, I devoured delicious black eyed peas and yummy red beans and rice.)

The reason I say it's the best is the price ($8 for lunch, $11 for weekend champagne brunch) and the ambiance. It is BEAUTIFUL in there. It's modeled after a Victorian Garden, it's bright, airy and is simply one of the most pleasant places to eat. (The dinner buffet varies based on the day, and I've heard "Scampi Night" is NOT worth it).

While we're on the topic of Main Street Station, let me keep telling you why I love it.

The entire casino and hotel lobby are gorgeous, and are filled with antiques from places such as the Lillian Russell Mansion, the Kuwait Royal Bank, and The Figaro Opera House. There's a brochure you can pick up at the front desk to give yourself a tour. They also have train cars that belonged to Buffalo Bill!

The Triple Seven Brewery there has award winning beer, and great a great Happy Hour (afternoon & late night) in which ALL pints are $2. The afternoon Happy Hour also offers food specials.

The rooms at Main Street Station (at least the one I stayed in) are refurbished and spacious, and I had a great time gambling my pennies away in their casino. If you're frugal like I am and generally stick to the penny or nickel machines, they've got a good selection of them (unlike their sister hotel, The Cal, where I always lose my pennies quickly).

While we're talking about The California, they've got a great little restaurant on the second floor called Aloha Specialties. It's perfect for when you're hungry and want something inexpensive and filling, but not all-you-can-eat. There's usually a line, it's cash only, not AT ALL fancy, and the saimin (noodle soup) is THE thing to get. The kimchee saimin isn't vegetarian like it sounds, so be warned (or ask for it without the beef). Their BBQ Bowls were pretty good, but you can skip the poke.

Some of the other great, old-school places down there include El Cortez ("the longest continually running downtown hotel-casino in Vegas"), The Golden Nugget (which has the MOST AWESOME POOL in Vegas...go look at it!) The Plaza (which once housed the only U.S. train station in a casino), and Binion's (where you can take a picture with a million dollars, and they make yummy grilled cheese sandwiches).

Overall, downtown has a grittier feel than The Strip, but that's why I love it. True, the rooms in general aren't going to be as fancy as places on The Strip, but when's the last time you stayed on The Strip for $14 a night? (I got that as a weekday rate at Fitzgeralds).

If you're looking for a fancy time and are interested in shopping and looking at hotel lobbies, stay on the south end of Las Vegas Boulevard. But if you're looking for a more 'authentic,' historic sense of Vegas, come on up to Fremont Street.