Monthly Archives: March 2018

Saffron Bistro’s Unique Brunch

Posted on by One comment
Owner Ajay Walia debuts an inventive new brunch pop-up at his Saffron Bistro.

Owner Ajay Walia debuts an inventive new brunch pop-up at his Saffron Bistro.

 

If you’re tired of the same ol’ waffles, scrambled eggs and corned beef hash for brunch, then you’re in for a treat at Jugaad Cafe.

That’s the name of the pop-up brunch offered on Saturdays and Sundays, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., at Saffron Bistro in San Carlos.

Owner Ajay Walia, who also has Michelin-starred Rasa in Burlingame, started this hybrid brunch in March. It features a few classic Americana dishes, but also a bevy of Indian-influenced ones so potently flavorful that they’re sure to jolt anyone to rise and shine.

The name “Jugaad’’ is a colloquial term in Hindi and Punjabi that roughly means “hack.” It’s what Walia did to traditional brunch, turning it on its head.

Who wants hashed browns when you can have masala tater tots instead?

Who wants hashed browns when you can have masala tater tots instead?

He was prompted to create the menu from his own experience of craving a more adventurous brunch on weekends, even if his kids only wanted pancakes with maple syrup. As such, this menu has something for everyone — expected fare like a strawberry-topped Belgian waffles for the kids, plus more unusual items such as savory South Indian lentil beignets with coconut chutney for folks desiring something different. Walia invited me in as his guest a few weeks ago to try some of the dishes.

Read more

Siggi’s Introduces No Sugar-Added Yogurt

Posted on by One comment
All the flavor and body, but less sugar.

All the flavor and body, but less sugar.

 

Siggi’s has been my go-to yogurt for awhile. I love its creamy, velvety texture that’s as thick as all get out. It’s slightly tangy, but not as tart as traditional Greek yogurt. There’s something almost luxurious tasting about it, too.

So when I had a chance to try samples of its new no-added sugar variety, I jumped at the chance.

Right now, there are only two flavors offered in this line: Peach & Mango, and Banana & Cinnamon.

Read more

Carrot Cake Perfection By The Artful Baker

Posted on by 11 comments
A carrot cake recipe that will replace any other you used to use.

A carrot cake recipe that will replace any other you used to use.

 

Simply put, “Carrot Cake with Blond Chocolate Frosting” is perfection personified in every single forkful.

Like the creator of this recipe, the uber talented baker Cenk Sonmezsoy, I, too, was skeptical that a carrot cake made without walnuts would prove completely satisfying. After all, I love nuts in almost anything for their added texture, richness and flavor.

But in his cake, you don’t miss the walnuts at all. That’s because browned butter takes its place, getting incorporated into the batter to add a divine nutty aroma and taste all its own. Moreover, the frosted cake gets ringed with toasted pumpkin seeds, which add a big dose of toastiness and crunch.

Artful-Baker-Cover

This dynamite recipe is from “The Artful Baker: Extraordinary Desserts From An Obsessive Home Baker” (Abrams, 2017), of which I received a review copy.

You may already know Sonmezsoy for his award-winning food blog, Cafe Fernando. If you don’t, it’s high time you got to know this Instanbul-based writer, photographer and food stylist, who received his MBA from the University of San Francisco before going to work for a high-tech PR firm.

Ironically, during his time in San Francisco, Sonmezsoy lived in an apartment so small that he never cooked or baked. It was only when he returned to Istanbul that found himself longing for the food he left behind in San Francisco. So, he began baking like crazy, starting with brownies. He started his food blog in 2006, which took off like mad, capturing the fancy of so many influential bakers and publishers that he quit his corporate job in 2010 to devote full-time to blogging.

Read more

First Look At the Hotly Anticipated Protege

Posted on by 6 comments
Gilded hush puppies on a bed of popped sorgham at the new Protege in Palo Alto.

Gilded hush puppies on a bed of popped sorgham at the new Protege in Palo Alto.

 

After more than a year of permitting and construction delays, Protege, arguably the most highly anticipated restaurant around, finally opened its doors to the public on Tuesday.

Passersby have been peeking in the windows for months, streaking them with hand prints and even nose prints, so eager to experience this restaurant by French Laundry alums, Executive Chef Anthony Secviar and Master Sommelier Dennis Kelly. They are joined by Pastry Chef Eddie Lopez, who also hails from the French Laundry, as well as Grace in Chicago and Vintage Cave in Honolulu.

With that kind of culinary star-wattage, is it any wonder that the night this California Avenue restaurant quietly debuted, there were already half a dozen people anxiously waiting outside half an hour beforehand to be one of the very first inside?

Head Chef Anthony Secviar readying a dish a few weeks before the grand opening.

Head Chef Anthony Secviar readying a dish a few weeks before the grand opening.

The kitchen on opening night.

The kitchen on opening night.

I was one of them, along with two friends, snagging seats at the chic, back-lighted bar, and paying our tab at the end. There are purse hooks underneath, of course, along with some of the most comfy nappa leather bar stools I’ve ever sat in.

Sit on the stools closest to the kitchen and you can peer in at all the activity as Secviar calls out the orders, and the cooks all respond in unison, “Oui, Chef!”

Read more

Chicken with Red Pumpkin Seed Mole

Posted on by 2 comments
A chicken mole recipe that doesn't intimidate.

A chicken mole recipe that doesn’t intimidate.

 

Los Angeles’ food scene has definitely got it going on these days — from the opening of Eataly and Dominique Ansel Bakery, as well as Ansel’s first restaurant, 189, to the jaw-dropping, mind-blowing Vespertine.

Before any of them, though, there was — and still is — one of the most dynamic landscapes for Mexican cuisine in the United States. From taco stands to food trucks to mom-and-pop restaurants to celebrity chef-run fine-dining establishments, Los Angeles has a wealth of places to experience thoughtful, authentic, and cutting-edge food that takes influence and inspiration from every region in Mexico.

One couldn’t ask for a better culinary guide to all of that than Bill Esparza, a Mexican food expert who won a James Beard Award for his exhaustive and exhilarating coverage of the taco scene in Los Angeles.

LAMexicanoBook

His cookbook, “L.A. Mexicano: Recipes, People & Places” (Prospect Park Books, 2017), of which I received a review copy, is filled with profiles and stories of the Mexican chefs and restaurateurs who have made Los Angeles their home and their livelihood, and along the way, made the region all the more delectable.

Read more

« Older Entries