Destination: San Francisco

review: olio…

I wanted to catch up with two friends whom I hadn’t seen in a while. Anticipating that I wouldn’t be particularly peckish (there was a whole lot of eating going on those few days in San Francisco), I was more fixated on my good company than the venue. They suggested Luce, the newly Michelin-starred restaurant […]

Continue

review: olio…

I wanted to catch up with two friends whom I hadn’t seen in a while. Anticipating that I wouldn’t be particularly peckish (there was a whole lot of eating going on those few days in San Francisco), I was more fixated on my good company than the venue. They suggested Luce, the newly Michelin-starred restaurant […]

Continue

review: sanglant, mais pas bleu…

I’m fairly certain I was whining about the demise of the daringly bloody roast beef sandwich when chuckeats told me about the one at Il Cane Rosso, Daniel Patterson’s walk-up eatery in the Ferry Marketplace in San Francisco.  It could be a quick lunch option, he suggested. We made it happen.

Continue

review: sanglant, mais pas bleu…

I’m fairly certain I was whining about the demise of the daringly bloody roast beef sandwich when chuckeats told me about the one at Il Cane Rosso, Daniel Patterson’s walk-up eatery in the Ferry Marketplace in San Francisco.  It could be a quick lunch option, he suggested. We made it happen.

Continue

review: the asian laundry…

“You’ll feel like you’ve left the city,” someone told me when describing their experience at benu. I didn’t understand what he meant by it then, but I understand it now. You’ll see benu’s kitchen through the big, picture-windows on a quiet stretch of Hawthorne Street in San Francisco’s SoMa district.  If you arrive after nightfall, […]

Continue

review: the asian laundry…

“You’ll feel like you’ve left the city,” someone told me when describing their experience at benu. I didn’t understand what he meant by it then, but I understand it now. You’ll see benu’s kitchen through the big, picture-windows on a quiet stretch of Hawthorne Street in San Francisco’s SoMa district.  If you arrive after nightfall, […]

Continue

review: damn the torpedoes…

Abalone Aqua, San Francisco This review is moot.  You’ll see why in a second. To the best of my ability, a timeline: 1991: Aqua opened at 252 California Street in San Francisco with George Morrone as the executive chef. 1993: Michael Mina took the reins in the kitchen as executive chef.  He also assumed ownership […]

Continue

review: damn the torpedoes…

Abalone Aqua, San Francisco This review is moot.  You’ll see why in a second. To the best of my ability, a timeline: 1991: Aqua opened at 252 California Street in San Francisco with George Morrone as the executive chef. 1993: Michael Mina took the reins in the kitchen as executive chef.  He also assumed ownership […]

Continue

best of 2009, the restaurant edition…

Corton New York, New York The course of any meal unfolds in a highly personal and circumstantial way.  Evaluating any restaurant experience devoid of personal context (e.g. company, mood, and personal preferences) is an impossible task. Though I like think that I can be scrupulously objective, I know that emotion trumps reason, personal preferences cloud […]

Continue

best of 2009, the restaurant edition…

Corton New York, New York The course of any meal unfolds in a highly personal and circumstantial way.  Evaluating any restaurant experience devoid of personal context (e.g. company, mood, and personal preferences) is an impossible task. Though I like think that I can be scrupulously objective, I know that emotion trumps reason, personal preferences cloud […]

Continue

best dishes of 2009…

Petales de Melon Confit Pierre, Hong Kong 2009 arrived on the heels of an incomparable eating tour of London, Paris, and beyond.  I can’t believe a year has gone by since I stuffed myself silly with macarons, cheese, bread, butter, and truffles. As memorable and impressive as my eating itinerary was last year, I can’t […]

Continue

best dishes of 2009…

Petales de Melon Confit Pierre, Hong Kong 2009 arrived on the heels of an incomparable eating tour of London, Paris, and beyond.  I can’t believe a year has gone by since I stuffed myself silly with macarons, cheese, bread, butter, and truffles. As memorable and impressive as my eating itinerary was last year, I can’t […]

Continue

best dishes of 2006…

#10: Hot Potato at alinea Originally uploaded by ulteriorepicure. From a second visit to the newly named number one restaurant in the U.S., Alinea (according to Gourmet Magazine), to snacking from street vendors in China, I’ve had a pretty amazing year of eating.  I visited Jean Georges on two continents, Thomas Keller on both coasts, […]

Continue

best dishes of 2006…

#10: Hot Potato at alinea Originally uploaded by ulteriorepicure. From a second visit to the newly named number one restaurant in the U.S., Alinea (according to Gourmet Magazine), to snacking from street vendors in China, I’ve had a pretty amazing year of eating.  I visited Jean Georges on two continents, Thomas Keller on both coasts, […]

Continue