Category Archives: General

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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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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Posh New Look for Carmel Valley’s Marinus, Williams-Sonoma Chef Demos & More

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Spring risotto at Marinus restaurant. (Photo courtesy of the restaurant)

Marinus Restaurant at Bernardus Lodge Gets A Modern Redo

Marinus, the signature restaurant at the luxurious Bernardus Lodge in Carmel Valley, debuted a brand new look late last month.

Gone is the Old World-feel. In its place, a new, elegant, coastal California look with an over-sized farm table with a profusion of flowers underneath hand-forged iron chandeliers and French sconces.

Chef Cal Stamenov remains at the helm with a new menu, emphasizing the bounty from the enlarged on-site organic garden that includes more than 250 varieties of fruit-bearing trees, bushes and vines.

The elegant new dining room at Marinus. (Photo courtesy of the restaurant

The menu is divided into the categories of: “Farmed & Forged,” “Seasonal” and “Traditional.” Both a la carte dishes and a five-course prix fixe ($125) are available. Enjoy such dishes as black chanterelle risotto, and Monterey Bay wild King salmon with English peas and celery root puree.

Save room for desserts by Pastry Chef Ben Spungin that includes a “Chocolate Terrarium” of chocolate mousse, hazelnut cake, chocolate streusel and strawberry sorbet.

Gear Up for SF Chefs

The annual San Francisco extravaganza of food, wine and spirits known as SF Chefs doesn’t roll around until July 30-Aug. 5. But tickets are already on sale to the multifaceted event that takes place in and around Union Square.

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