Category Archives: Restaurants

Six Courses at the Fifth Floor, Plus an “Iron Chef” Champ

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Gerald Hirigoyen's squab basquaise with spring vegetables.

Monday night’s James Beard Foundation dinner at the swank Fifth Floor Restaurant in San Francisco featured a who’s who of chefs behind the burners: Laurent Manrique of the Aqua Development Corp. of San Francisco; Ariane Daguin of D’Artagnan Foods; Jean Pierre Moulle of Chez Panisse in Berkeley; Gerald Hirigoyen of Piperade and Bocadillos, both in San Francisco; and Jennie Lorenzo and Lionel Walter of the Fifth Floor.

(Left to Right): Ariane Daguin, Jennie Lorenzo, and Laurent Manrique

But it was another chef who was merely a guest that night who received another big round of applause: David Kinch of Manresa in Los Gatos, whom everyone in attendance that night put their hands together to honor his triumphant victory the night before on the Food Network’s “Iron Chef America” show.

For those who missed the televised battle that was filmed months ago, Kinch trounced Iron Chef Bobby Flay by a whopping 10 points, mesmerizing the judges with his creative, elegant dishes spotlighting the secret ingredient of cabbage.

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A Taste of Nantucket at Marche

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Clams and mussels with chorizo. (Photo courtesy of Chris Ayers)

Enjoy the flavors of Nantucket without having to fly to the East Coast.

Menlo Park’s Marche restaurant brings the impeccable seafood of that region to you for a special dinner on March 20. This will be the restaurant’s sixth annual “Taste of Nantucket” soiree.

Nantucket fisherman Stephen Bender will be flying directly from Nantucket with just-harvested Nantucket Bay scallops, Polpis Harbor oysters, freshly dug clams, and a wealth of other fish and seafood.

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San Francisco’s Bong Su Restaurant Closes

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 Empress rice. (Photo courtesy of Bong Su restaurant)

After three years in business, Bong Su, the chic, modern-Vietnamese restaurant in San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood, closed its doors after Saturday night’s dinner service.

Proprietors Anne Le Ziblatt and Tammy Huynh said they made the fateful decision because of concerns that the economic crisis would continue to worsen over the next year, and because of an on-going dispute with their landlord.

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Pastry Chef Goes Savory

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Spring garlic risotto with monkfish, as cooked by a pastry chef.

Diners at Parcel 104 restaurant in Santa Clara know all about Pastry Chef Carlos Sanchez’s dainty, exquisite desserts that end any dinner there on a sweet, memorable note.

But what you might not know is that the Colombian-born Sanchez also can handle the savory side of a meal.

Foie gras with candied kumquat.

This past Saturday, he hosted his fourth “Pastry Chef Goes Savory” special dinner there. In the past, he’s limited the guest list to about 35. This time around, though, he opened it up to the entire restaurant. More than 90 eager diners, including yours truly, enjoyed a six-course meal ($65; additional $34 for wine pairings), that was orchestrated from start to finish by the humble, soft-spoken Sanchez.

Crispy prawns with pineapple chutney.

Why does he choose to step into this atypical role one night a year?

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Deals

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Waterbar in San Francisco. (Photo courtesy of Val Atkinson)

Save a few pennies when you dine out. Here’s where:

Waterbar in San Francisco: An oyster of the day is $1 all day. Happy Hour, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, features a $5 “A Spa in Cabo” specialty drink (José Cuervo Reserva De La Familia Platino Tequila, cucumber).

Quattro Restaurant and Bar in the Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley in East Palo Alto: Every Friday except holiday weekends, enjoy free corkage when you bring in your own bottle of wine. Sundays, indulge in a family-style dinner. Price is $25 per person for adults; kids under 18 pay the equivalent of their age. And available nightly, a new five-course $55 pre-fixe seasonal, tasting menu.

Morocco’s in San Jose: Tuesday nights are Ladies’ Nights. Every table that has four female diners will get a free bottle of wine.

Bocadillos Tapas and Wine Bar in San Francisco: To celebrate its fifth anniversary, the restaurant is offering a Happy Hour menu of $2 bite-sized tapas or pintxos. It’s available weekdays, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Items include organic kiwi and marinated beets on chevre; tortilla Espanola with Manchego cheese on toast; lambs tongue on pear chutney; and chicken with spicy pickled vegetables. The restaurant also has restructured its wine list into three price tiers: $25, $35, and $45. Wine flights also are available for $12.

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