Category Archives: Restaurants

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

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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.

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The Napa Valley’s Newest Patisserie Is A Stunner

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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.

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Bubbelah Dishes Up Deliciousness

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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.

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Get Ready for A Good Time at Horsefeather

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Seared tuna brushed with beet ponzu at the new Horsefeather in Palo Alto.
Seared tuna brushed with beet ponzu at the new Horsefeather in Palo Alto.

It’s been so long since I’ve seen a new restaurant sport a menu with entrees mostly in the twenty-something-dollar range that at first I thought I was looking at a mirage at the new Horsefeather in Palo Alto.

But nope, the newest edition to the Town & Country Village has debuted with a price point that’s relatively comfortable in these economically challenged times.

Opened last month, it’s a sister restaurant to the one in San Francisco’s Nopa neighborhood, and it’s already packing in eager diners, as I found when I dined as a guest of the restaurant last week.

The bar and dining room evokes a mid-century '70s ambience.
The bar and dining room evokes a mid-century ’70s ambience.

Think mid-century modern “That ’70s Show,” as the interior features plenty of warm walnut wood, brass track lighting, and smoked glass dividers.

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Michelin Three-Starred Benu Celebrates 15 Years

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The unforgettable mussel at Benu.
The unforgettable mussel at Benu.

Just before you’re escorted into the kitchen at Benu in San Francisco, you’ll spot a formidable column decorated with autographs from a who’s who in the culinary world: David Kinch, Michelin three-starred chef of now-shuttered Manresa in Los Gato; Chef Sang Yoon of Father’s Office and Helms Bakery, both in Los Angeles; Fuchsia Dunlop, James Beard Award-winning food writer and Chinese cuisine expert; the late-Charles Phan, founder of the Slanted Door restaurant in Napa and San Ramon; the late-Chuck Williams, founder of Williams Sonoma; and so many more.

Because since its opening in 2010, this fine-dining, tasting-menu restaurant has attracted everyone who’s anyone to its minimalist dining room for its elegant fare that blends East and West with incredible finesse.

It was the first San Francisco restaurant to receive three Michelin stars in 2014. It has maintained them ever since, too.

Opened by Chef Corey Lee, former chef de cuisine of Michelin three-starred The French Laundry in Yountville, Benu is also the first restaurant that Thomas Keller ever invested in that wasn’t his own.

The courtyard entrance.
The courtyard entrance.
A view into the kitchen.
A view into the kitchen.
Crocks of house-made soy sauce.
Crocks of house-made soy sauce.

While I’ve dined several times at Lee’s casual Korean restaurant, San Ho Won in San Francisco, which has a Michelin star, it’s been many years since I’d last been to Benu. And since my cousins, who are huge fans of San Ho Won, had never been to Benu, I figured it was high time we all went together.

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