Category Archives: Great Finds

The Return of Cyrus

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A perfect cube of succulent pork belly served with a zingy ale aged with cherry blossoms at the new Cyrus in Geyserville.
A perfect cube of succulent pork belly served with a zingy ale aged with cherry blossoms at the new Cyrus in Geyserville.

After a seemingly interminable odyssey, the wait is indeed over.

Cyrus, the acclaimed fine-dining restaurant that closed in Healdsburg in 2012 after a landlord dispute, finally reopened again last September in a striking new iteration in Geyserville.

Chef-Owner Doug Keane, co-owner Nick Peyton, and their team couldn’t be more relieved and thrilled to be back at it again. Neither can their legions of fans, so many of whom considered the original Cyrus their favorite restaurant.

The original Cyrus garnered two Michelin stars. The new one already scored one star — barely two months after opening.

At the entrance.
At the entrance.

Keane spent a decade searching high and low through the Alexander Valley, which was founded by the restaurant’s namesake Cyrus Alexander. He had all but given up when this site came available. Though this sleek contemporary glass, steel and concrete building is the polar opposite of the restaurant’s original Old World provincial aesthetic, it’s hard to imagine a more fitting place in this new age and time. At least, that’s what I found when I finally had the opportunity last week to dine here.

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Going Bonkers For Sesame-Crusted Tofu with Spicy Dipping Sauce

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Your new favorite way to enjoy tofu.
Your new favorite way to enjoy tofu.

“This is like fried chicken!”

That was the startling remark my husband exclaimed upon digging into “Sesame-Crusted Tofu with Spicy Dipping Sauce.”

And if you know his nickname is Meat Boy, then you know that is truly saying something about this entirely plant-based dish.

Crispy as can be, these pan-fried, sesame seed-coated planks of tofu get dunked into a spicy, garlicky sauce for a dish so addictive that even those wishy-washy about tofu will clamor for seconds and thirds.

This fabulous recipe is from “The Woks of Life” (Clarkson Potter, 2022), of which I received a review copy.

It’s the first cookbook by Bill, Judy, Sarah, and Kaitlin Leung, the New Jersey family who shot to fame with their eponymous The Woks of Life blog. It started out in 2013 as simply a personal way for them to document their family history through food. It has since turned into a sensation, growing into the most popular online English-language resource for Chinese cooking.

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Canned Tuna and Salmon Get Globally Inspired

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Freshé Sicilian Caponata tops fresh kale.
Freshé Sicilian Caponata tops fresh kale.

Henry and Lisa Lovejoy take seafood seriously and responsibly, having founded EcoFish in 1999, a New Hampshire company that sells sustainably-caught frozen and canned seafood nationwide.

It was the first seafood company certified by the Marine Stewardship Council. Its seafood advisory board also includes some of the globe’s leading marine conservation scientists.

Freshé is the company’s line of single-serve, easy-open, tinned seafood designed to be a protein-packed small meal to take on the go to enjoy wherever and whenever.

They are all built around either certified sustainable tuna or certified sustainable aquaculture salmon.

They come in six international varieties, which I had a chance to sample recently: Provence Nicoise (wild tuna), Sicilian Caponata (wild tuna), Barcelona Escalvada (salmon), Moroccan Tagine (salmon), Aztec Ensalada (wild tuna), and Thai Sriracha (wild tuna).

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Dining Outside at Momosan

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The "Tokyo Chicken'' ramen at Momosan at Santana Row.
The “Tokyo Chicken” ramen at Momosan at Santana Row.

Few things satisfy in winter like a bountiful bowl of ramen. If you’re still primarily dining outdoors, you’ll be glad to know that Momosan, which opened at San Jose’s Santana Row last year, is equipped with patio dining to enjoy your noodles al fresco.

“Iron Chef” Masaharu Morimoto’s new restaurant is the perfect place to people-watch on the Row as you slurp your noodles. The outside tables at the side of the restaurant sport compact awnings, enough to shield you from light rain, but probably not ample enough in anything heavier. The tables also have overhead heaters and free-standing ones to keep things fairly comfortable even when the wind picks up.

The bar inside the restaurant.
The bar inside the restaurant.

Given this ramen joint’s celebrity panache, it’s no surprise that prices here are on the higher side with ramen bowls going for $18 to $29. In comparison, Ramen Nagi’s bowls start at about $15. Still, there’s no denying that the ramen, and rest of the food here, is superlative.

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My Top 10 Eats of 2022

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Whether enjoyed outside, inside or as takeout, restaurant food has never felt more special.

I am so grateful to restaurants for weathering all that they have in the past few years, and managing to come through it all to keep nourishing us in body, spirit, and soul.

Here’s to them, and to all that they provide, including these most memorable eats, in no particular order, that made my Top 10 for the year:

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