Monthly Archives: June 2012

After 22 Years, San Francisco’s Acquerello Still Soars

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Save room for the fun candy cart at the elegant Acquerllo in San Francisco.

San Francisco’s Acquerello is a place you dine for a special occasion.

Or readily make up an occasion on the fly just to justify indulging in the sumptuous experience you’re afforded here.

That’s how memorable it is.

With the economy still stuck in neutral, this 22-year-old restaurant is a throwback to the days of gilded dining, when burgers and pizza didn’t rule our dining-out budget. Inside this former chapel, with its vaulted wood-beamed ceiling adorned with ornate wrought iron, you’ll be seated in a dining room bathed in a rosy glow from copper sconces. Upholstered stools provide a resting place by each table for ladies’ purses. A glass-enclosed cheese cart makes its way to tables just before another cart, laden with all manner of homemade chocolates, cookies and candies. Resistance is futile, of course.

The lovely dining room, with tables set far enough apart so you can actually converse.

Warm ricotta puffs and two-bite arrancini get the palate going.

Sit back, as you’re in good hands here, as I can verify from a recent experience when I was invited to dine as a guest of this landmark Italian restaurant.

Choose from tasting menu options that range in price from $70 to $135 and touch on classic dishes that have become signatures over the years, as well as more seasonal offerings.

Chef-Owner Suzette Gresham-Tognetti oversees the kitchen as always, but now also has the assistance of talented Chef de Cuisine Mark Pensa, who is all of 28 years old. We put ourselves in their hands, letting them create a menu that spanned the best of past and present.

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The Taste of an Italian Specialty — In A Clif Bar

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The new Clif Bar has the taste of a famous Italian confection.

Clif Bar, everyone’s favorite on-the-go, organic, energy recharger, turns 20 this year.

To celebrate that momentous anniversary, the Emeryville company has created a new, limited-edition bar: Gary’s Panforte.

Yes, it’s inspired by the the famous Italian confection of fruits and nuts. Company Founder Gary Erickson decided to create this version in honor of his early cycling adventures over Northern Italy’s Passo di Gavia.

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A Jacques Pepin Dish Fit for Father’s Day

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A lamb steak that any Dad is sure to love.

We cook for many reasons.

Because we’re famished. Because it’s more economical. Because it can be relaxing or satisfyingly challenging. And because we take pleasure in pleasing others.

But we also cook for the memories it evokes. For flavors that are indelible, and for the times lived and shared with those we love, which we never ever want to forget.

Often, when I try a new recipe, it often makes me think of someone who has touched my life. This lamb dish by the one and only Jacques Pepin is no exception.

It’s from his newest tome, “Essential Pepin (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), of which I received a review copy. It’s filled with more than 700 timeless Pepin recipes. It also comes with a fantastic DVD with demos of fundamental cooking techniques.

One bite of “Lamb Steaks with Soy, Vinegar and Garlic” has me back in my childhood home in San Francisco, watching my Dad in the kitchen preparing steaks in a sizzling frying pan.

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San Francisco Magazine’s “Best of the Bay,” Father’s Day Pig Roast & More

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Salmon crudo bites at last year's "Best of the Bay.'' (Photo by Dana Underwood)

Party Hardy at “Best of the Bay” with A Food Gal Discount

San Francisco magazine will celebrate its 12th anniversary with a major bash, 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. June 28.

Get ready to nosh, sip and shimmy at its annual “Best of the Bay” party at City View at the Metreon in San Francisco.

More than 40 restaurants will be dishing up gourmet eats, including Central Kitchen, 1300 on Fillmore, Wo Hing General Store and Waterbar. Participating wineries include Ceja Vineyards and Envolve. DJs and bands will play as you can dance the night away.

The event is a benefit for Family House, which provides a home away from home for families with children undergoing cancer treatment at UCSF Children’s Hospital.

Plates of Asian slaw at last year's soiree. (Photo by Marcie Franich)

General admission tickets are $100; VIP tickets are $175 (which gives you access to the party one hour early, plus entrance into the VIP lounge and cigarillo bar, and a digital swag bag). Food Gal readers can get a special discount: $90 for general admission tickets or $160 for VIP tickets. Just use the code: FOODGAL. Deadline for the discount is midnight June 18.

Presidio Social Club Celebrates Father’s Day with A Grand Pig Roast

Treat dear ol’ Dad to a most memorable barbecue dinner at Presidio Social Club in San Francisco.

On Father’s Day, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. June 17, the restaurant will host its sixth annual “Pig Roast Soiree.” Not one, but two Yosemite Valley pigs will be roasted on the back patio in Caja China box grills.

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Seamus Mullen’s Favorite Blueberry Cake

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Good-for-you blueberries shine in this easy cake.

Chef Seamus Mullen was working grueling hours just after opening his Boqueria restaurant in New York, when he woke up one night with hip pain so agonizing that he had to dial 911.

The then 32-year-old chef spent the next three days hospitalized, with doctors running every test conceivable until they discovered the cause: rheumatoid arthritis.

The auto-immune disease causes the body to produce too many white blood cells and attack itself, causing painful and debilitating inflammation.

For a chef who works long hours on his feet, it was devastating news. But Mullen vowed he would not let it get the best of him. Not even when he competed on “The Next Iron Chef” three years ago, making it to the final three. The frenetic experience, though, led to another rheumatoid arthritis flare-up, leaving him unable to move quickly around the set. He was eliminated, and returned home in a wheelchair.

But Mullen fought his way back, making changes to his life, including in his diet. He doesn’t believe that food can cure illness, necessarily. But he does believe that what you eat can improve your sense of well-being.

To that end, he’s written “Hero Food” (Andrews McMeel), of which I recently received a review copy. Arranged by the seasons, it spotlights the 18 ingredients that have made a dramatic difference in his life, including almonds, parsley, fish and olive oil.

It’s no surprise that blueberries — rich in Vitamin C, manganese and antioxidants –make an appearance in the book. Specifically, in “Mutti’s Blueberry Boy Bait,” a cake that his grandmother started baking for him when he was just a tot. It’s based on a recipe by a 15-year-old girl who competed in the junior division of a Pillsbury baking contest in the 1950s.

I couldn’t resist the name, which appears to be apt, given that my husband was as endearing as can be after having a slice warm from the oven.

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