Category Archives: Restaurants

“Battle Cabbage” To Be Re-Created at Manresa

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Savoy cabbage at Love Apple Farm, where Manresa Chef David Kinch finds his muse.

You asked for it; you got it.

Bowing to overwhelming demand from diners, Chef David Kinch of Manresa in Los Gatos has decided to re-create his stunning dishes that earned him a tremendous victory recently on the Food Network’s “Iron Chef America.”

David Kinch of Manresa. (Photo by Chris Ayers)

In his first time in Kitchen Stadium, Kinch trounced Iron Chef Bobby Flay by a whopping 10 points in “Battle Cabbage.”

On three consecutive Sundays — May 10, May 17, and May 24 — Kinch will feature his winning dishes in a prix fixe “Iron Chef” menu at Manresa for $135 per person, exclusive of wine, tax, and gratuity. The dinner will include his five “Battle Cabbage” dishes, along with a special dessert. And in case you were wondering, nope, that sweet finale to the meal will be sans cabbage.

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Second Annual Pebble Beach Food & Wine

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Chef David Kinch's garden green veloute with stone-ground mustard cream.

4 filling days.

250 wineries pouring exclusive vintages.

60 of the world’s greatest chefs cooking an array of spectacular dishes.

That all adds up to the second annual Pebble Beach Food & Wine extravaganza, April 16-19.

Although ticket sales are admittedly slower this year due to the lackluster economy, event co-founders Robert Weakley and David Bernahl still say they hope to draw at least 3,000 foodies, (the same number as last year) to a bevy of cooking demos, reserve wine tastings, luxurious lunches, and one-of-a-kind gala dinners. As a further incentive, prices remain the same as last year, with cooking demo prices starting at $100; a one-day pass to the grand tasting tent (where 200 wineries and 25 chefs will be doling out their best) going for $165, and a seat at the grand finale dinner costing $1,250.

Last Sunday, the two hosted a dinner at Manresa in Los Gatos to trumpet the event to local bloggers and food writers, including yours truly. Weakley was the former organizer of the grand Masters of Food & Wine at the Highlands Inn in Carmel, which was forced to curtail that event at that location when the hotel was converted to a time-share property. Weakley then stepped out on his own to launch the Pebble Beach event last year.

Among the chefs participating this year are Thomas Keller of the French Laundry in Yountville, Michael Cimarusti of Providence in Los Angeles, Eric Ripert of Le Bernardin in New York, Chris Cosentino of Incanto in San Francisco, Nancy Silverton of Osteria Mozza in Los Angeles, and Masaharu Morimoto of “Iron Chef America.”

Kid goat with curds and whey.

Speaking of “Iron Chef America,” recent victor David Kinch, chef of Manresa, gave a sneak taste of one of his dishes — suckling kid goat with curds and whey — which he will be serving at the luxe Cristal dinner at the Pebble Beach affair. Never before has any meat tasted this meltingly tender.

Cabbage and caviar.

Fresh off his Battle Cabbage victory on “Iron Chef America,” Kinch couldn’t help but present a cabbage dish to us that night, either: “Cabbage and caviar,” in which a leaf of one of the humblest vegetables was enveloped in a creamy sauce starring one of the world’s priciest ingredients. Talk about a playful “rich man, poor man” dish.

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A Dreamy Meal of Pizza and Soft-Serve

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Pizzeria Picco's Margherita.

We came for the pizza. We stayed for the soft-serve.

After all, when no less an authority on Italian cuisine than Mario Batali declares in a national food magazine that the Margherita pie at Pizzeria Picco in Larkspur is the best in the country, well, one must high-tail it over there to try it pronto.

My hubby and I finally did (hey, it is a hike from the South Bay).

A cyclist, my hubby got a kick out of how so many of the pies are named after bikes, including the “Specialized” (Hobbs’ pepperoni, house-made sausage, tomato, mozzerella, and basil), and the “Seven” (oyster mushrooms, mozzarella, parmesan, pecorino, and oregano). Since his nickname is Meat Boy, he opted for the “Cannondale” (house-made sausage, roasted peppers, spring onion, mozzarella, and basil; $13.50). I, of course, went for the Margherita (tomato, basil, house-made mozzarella, parmesan, and De Padova extra virgin olive oil; $10.95).

Vanilla soft-serve with olive oil and sea salt. Unbelievably good!

Since the pizzeria itself is teeny-tiny and it was a beautiful, warm evening in Marin County, we sat outside at a wrought-iron table. The Pizzeria is adjacent to the larger Picco Restaurant, which has a more expansive menu. Both were started by long-time Bay Area Chef Bruce Hill.

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Passover Celebration and Wine Events

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Executive Chef Staffan Terje of Perbacco. (Photo courtesy of Frankie Frankeny)

Last year’s Passover celebration at Perbacco Ristorante proved so popular, the San Francisco restaurant is doing it again this year on April 10.

Chef and cookbook author Joyce Goldstein will join Perbacco Executive Chef Staffan Terje to create an Italian Jewish Passover dinner that includes antipasti, desserts, and side dishes served family-style, along with your choice of primi and secondi. Entree choices include seabass with a sauce of artichokes, and lamb shoulder braised with olives.

The four-course dinner is $49 per person. For reservations, call (415) 955-0663.

Tonight, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., enjoy a free wine-tasting lesson at Bistro Luneta in San Mateo that will be taught by Master Sommelier Reggie Narito, one of only three Filipino-Americans to hold that prestigious title.

This will be the first in a series of wine tasting sessions this year at the modern-Filipino restaurant. To reserve a spot, call (650) 344-0041.

Tasting Pinot at last year's Pinot Paradise. (Photo courtesy of the Santa Cruz Mountains Winery Association)

If Pinot is your thing, head to the fifth annual Pinot Paradise on March 28-29 to discover the flavors and terroirs of six recently defined sub-regions in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

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Mighty Fine Monday Meatballs

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Meatballs so good you might want to make them every day of the week.

Shhhhhhh.

I made “Monday Meatballs” on a Sunday.

Hopefully, the Meatball Police don’t cite me for that infraction.

But honestly, these are so succulent, so ethereal, and with just the right kick of spiciness, that you’ll want to make them any day of the week.

The recipe is, of course, from “A16 Food + Wine” (Ten Speed Press) by Nate Appleman and Shelley Lindgren. I say, of course, because the Monday-night special of meatballs is now legendary at this popular San Francisco restaurant specializing in the flavors of Campania. A16 has featured the meatballs for years. It once tried to curtail the Monday tradition, only to be bombarded with pleas from unhappy diners to bring it back. So, the restaurant did.

Although I’ve dined at A16, I’ve never managed to be there on a Monday night for the meatballs. But making them at home is a cinch, and so worth the time and effort to do so.

In the book, Chef Appleman explains that classic Italian-American meatballs tend to be denser in texture because of the preponderance of meat. But in the old country, meatballs were a way to stretch the larder. So, they were traditionally made with more bread in the mix than is used nowadays. Doing this gives them a fluffier texture that makes biting into them such an unforgettable pleasure.

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