Category Archives: Dining Outside

The Taste of the Sea Is Better Than Ever at La Mar Cocina Peruna

Posted on by Leave a comment
Cebiche tasting (front to back): Clasico, Nikkei, and Victoriano.
Cebiche tasting (front to back): Clasico, Nikkei, and Victoriano.

On a summer evening when the sun lingers long even in typically foggy San Francisco, there are few better places to dine than outside at La Mar Cocina Peruna.

Located on the Embarcadero waterfront with sweeping views of the Bay, this modern Peruvian restaurant by acclaimed Chef Gaston Acurio just underwent an interior refresh, too. Its Executive Chef Victoriano Lopez also has updated the menu.

I had a chance to check out both when I was invited in as a guest of the restaurant recently.

Opened in 2008, it is one of 10 La Mar restaurants around the world, including the original one in Lima.

The bar.
The bar.
New fresh seafood display.
New fresh seafood display.

The San Francisco one glows in deep indigo hues. The bar features a giant squid art piece hanging from the ceiling. The dining room boasts light fixtures reminiscent of jellyfish, as well as a new display case of fresh seafood.

The covered patio has new planters, glass walls to guard against the wind, and plenty of heaters so the space is comfortable even when the evening chill descends.

Read more

The Napa Valley’s Newest Patisserie Is A Stunner

Posted on by 2 comments
The beautiful pastries at Under-study.
The beautiful pastries at Under-study.

As if the Napa Valley didn’t already boast an overabundance of fine eats, along comes the new Under-study patisserie and cafe, which opened with a splash in St. Helena at the end of May in the former Dean & DeLuca building.

It’s from the team behind Michelin-starred Press restaurant just a few yards away, which includes its Chef-Partner Philip Tessier, former executive sous chef at The French Laundry and the first American chef to ascend to the podium of the prestigious international Bocuse d’Or Competition; and acclaimed Executive Pastry Chef Frank Vollkommer, a former pastry instructor at the Culinary Institute of America. So, you know this isn’t your run-of-the-mill bakery, but one with some of the most exquisite pastries around.

Executive Chef-Partner Philip Tessier (left) and Executive Pastry Chef Frank Vollkommer (right).
Executive Chef-Partner Philip Tessier (left) and Executive Pastry Chef Frank Vollkommer (right).

I finally had an opportunity to visit a few weeks ago, when I was traveling through the valley. Under-study is right off St. Helena Highway, though, it’s not easily spotted from the road. When you see Press, you know you’ve landed in the right place. To the restaurant’s left is the new MAC, the Napa Valley Museum of Art & Culture, with its very thoughtful and creative Julia Child exhibit that shouldn’t be missed. Head around the left-hand side of the MAC, and you’ll find the entrance to Under-study.

Read more

Bubbelah Dishes Up Deliciousness

Posted on by 2 comments
Bubbelah's khachapuri made with Che Fico's impeccable pizza dough.
Bubbelah’s khachapuri made with Che Fico’s impeccable pizza dough.

Gone are the shelves of specialty cheeses, imported crackers, fresh seafood, pricey meats, and farm-fresh local produce. In its place are Middle Eastern specialties that are pitch-perfect.

When San Francisco’s Che Fico restaurant opened a sister location, Che Fico Parco Menlo, in the Springline development in Menlo Park last year, it also debuted a nearby gourmet market, Il Mercato di Che Fico.

Trouble was that surrounding residents never became regular shoppers there. So, about a month ago, the market was jettisoned for Bubbelah instead.

The revamped space.
The revamped space.

A Yiddish term of endearment, this fast-casual restaurant leans into Chef-Owner David Nayfeld’s Jewish-Italian heritage.

Read more

The Enchanting Angele Restaurant & Bar in Napa

Posted on by Leave a comment
Pate de Campagne at Angele in Napa.
Pate de Campagne at Angele in Napa.

With beautiful mountain ranges and sweeping vineyards galore, the Napa Valley doesn’t have to work hard to enrapture visitors. So, it’s a rare restaurant there that somehow manages to outdo that bucolic setting and transport you elsewhere.

That establishment is Angele Restaurant & Bar in downtown Napa, where dining feels like a blissful getaway to the lovely countryside of France.

Owner Bettina Rouas opened the restaurant on the banks of the Napa River in 2002, naming it for her grandmother.

The welcome sign at the door.
The welcome sign at the door.
The roof over the outdoor patio.
The roof over the outdoor patio.

The comfortable warmth you feel at Angele is no accident, not when Rouas hails from a family renowned for its hospitality. Her father Claude Rouas owned legendary L’Etoile in San Francisco and opened Auberge du Soleil in Rutherford.

Read more

A Visit to Charlie Palmer Steak and the Archer Hotel in Napa

Posted on by Leave a comment
The Flannery ribeye at Charlie Palmer Steak in downtown Napa.
The Flannery ribeye at Charlie Palmer Steak in downtown Napa.

The Flannery ribeye at Charlie Palmer Steak in downtown Napa.

Celebrated Chef Charlie Palmer operates a variety of restaurants from coast to coast. But he has only three Charlie Palmer Steak restaurants across the country: New York, Reno, and downtown Napa.

Recently, I had a chance to check out the Napa restaurant inside the Archer Hotel, when I was invited in as a guest of both establishments.

The swank boutique hotel that opened in 2018 on First Street is a perfect place to stay when you want to be in the thick of things, as it’s as easy walk to a variety of tasting rooms, retail stores, restaurants, the wonderful Moulin bakery, the lively Saturday farmers market, the CIA at Copia and Oxbow Public Market.

The hotel is a convenient walk to so many Napa attractions.
The hotel is a convenient walk to so many Napa attractions.
Steph Curry's bourbon whiskey is featured.
Steph Curry’s bourbon whiskey is featured.

The soaring hotel lobby includes a showcase of Steph Curry paraphernalia touting the Gentleman’s Cut Bourbon Whiskey curated by the Warriors point guard that’s a featured spirit at the bar.

Read more
« Older Entries Recent Entries »