Category Archives: Wine

See’s Candies Exclusive Tour, Anthony Bourdain Comes to Town & More

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See's Candies summer-time suckers in root beer flavor. (Photo by Carolyn Jung)

Win a Chance to Visit the See’s Candies Factory

See’s Candies will celebrate National Lollipop Day on July 20 in a big way.

First, stop in at any one of more than 200 See’s locations that day to get a free See’s lollypop.

Second, for an entire week, July 16–23, See’s will be putting all its lollypops on sale at 30 percent off. A box of 30 will sell for $12 (regularly $15.80) and a box of 12 will be $5.75 (regularly $7.15). The cube-shaped lollys come in chocolate, vanilla, cafe latte, butterscotch and the special summer flavor of root beer.

Lastly, you and a guest can win a VIP tour of See’s South San Francisco candy factory, which is not normally open to the public. As one who has had the sweet pleasure of going on such a tour, take my word that it’s an unforgettable experience. Included in this prize package is round-trip airfare for two, four nights at a San Francisco hotel, ground transportation and a $100 per diem per day. Entrants also will have a chance to vie for $50 See’s gift cards. Contest is open through July 23. Winners will be selected in a random drawing.

The one and only Anthony Bourdain comes to Oakland. (Photo courtesy of the Travel Channel)

Anthony Bourdain Comes to Oakland

Culinary bad boy and host of the popular, award-winning show, “No Reservations,” Anthony Bourdain will be making a one-night appearance at the Paramount Theatre in Oakland at 8 p.m. Oct. 21, in which he’ll be lobbing his trademark barbs and thought-provoking insights in a lecture-style setting.

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Anzu Gets A Fresh Look, New Campbell Eateries, Half-Off Wines & More

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Anzu's new glam look. (Photo by Matthew Millman)

Restaurant Anzu Gets Glam

The Hotel Nikko’s Restaurant Anzu in San Francisco has debuted a chic new look with its bold citrine, black and white decor.

Jewel-like chandeliers, beaded pendant lighting, a black wall treatment, heavy, damask curtains and oversized white banquettes add an even more luxurious feeling.

You can still enjoy an array of sushi there, but the restaurant also has added a new emphasis on prime meat with  Kurobota double pork chop ($33), local rack of lamb ($34) and Wagyu beef that’s cooked tableside on a sizzling hot Japanese river stone ($34).

Campbell Welcomes Tasty, New Businesses

Downtown Campbell is hopping lately with new foodie places, including an intriguing Austrian-California restaurant, Naschmarkt (pronounced “nash-marked”), which just opened.

Long-time South Bay foodies may fondly remember the now-shuttered Cafe Marcella in Los Gatos. Those owners, Alain and Martine Staebler, have partnered with their son-in-law, Austrian chef, Matthias Froeschl, to open this restaurant that is named for Vienna’s largest open-air market.

Look for classic wiener schnitzel with lingonberry sauce, Hungarian beef goulash, steamed Scottish salmon with baby artichokes, and apple strude — but of course.

Soda pop buffs will get a kick out of Rocket Fizz, which also just opened downtown. Owners Chris Dunn and Lisa Pelgrim sell more than 500 varieties of soda, including more than 50 root beers. They’re all sold in glass bottles, which can be purchased individually, by the pack or by the case.

Don’t miss the candy selection, either, that boasts more than 2,000 kinds from around the world.

Finally, if that wasn’t enough sugar for you already, wander over to the new downtown Frost Cupcake Factory.

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Chef Richard Blais Cooks In A Peach Orchard, Whole Foods Fund-Raising Days & More

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A beautiful Suncrest peach. (Photo courtesy of Frog Hollow Farm)

A Peach of a Time with “Top Chefs Masters” Champ Richard Blais

Get ready for “Peaches & Tango: A Dinner in the Orchard’‘ on July 23 at Frog Hollow Farm in Brentwood.

Farmer Al Courchesne, owner of the organic Frog Hollow Farm, has always dreamed of pairing his juicy, wonderful peaches with the drama of tango. Now, he’s doing just that — with the help of recent “Top Chef Masters” victor Richard Blais.

Meet Chef Richard Blais. (Photo courtesy of the chef)Blais will cook a feast using locally grown produce, featuring such delights as beet tartare with candied wasabi, grilled pork belly with cauliflower and peaches, and liquid nitrogen ice cream cones. Sit down to enjoy it all in the orchard, amid rows and rows of Suncrest peach trees.

To top the evening off, Trio Garufa, a company of contemporary Agentine tango dancers, will be performing, then teaching guests how to do the tango, themselves.

Tickets are $200 per person. Proceeds benefit the Chez Panisse Foundation and the Edible School Yard, both dedicated to fostering school curriculum and lunch programs in which students learn to grow, cook and share food at the table.

Whole Foods Community Fund-Raising Days

At least four times a year, each Whole Foods store sets aside a day in which 5 percent of the day’s net sales goes to a non-profit.

For June 22, the San Jose Whole Foods, 1146 Blossom Hill Road, has chosen as its recepient, the San Jose Police Foundation, which is the prime source of private support for the San Jose Police Department. And if you’ve been following the city’s budget woes of late, you know those funds are needed more than ever.

For those who live in San Francisco, if you shop on June 23 at any Whole Foods locales in that city, 5 percent of net sales will go to Project Open Hand, which provides meal and nutrition services.

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Wines to Take Along Anywhere

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A fun and handy wine pouch from the family that invented Clif Bars. (Photo courtesy of Clif Family Winery)

How cool is this handy wine pouch?

It’s made by St. Helena’s Clif Family Winery, the founders of whom also invented Clif Bars. So, they ought to know what works and what doesn’t in the great outdoors, right?

It’s light, unbreakable, and supposedly has an 80 percent lower carbon footprint than two glass bottles, and 90 percent less waste and less landfill space than two glass bottles.

There’s even a built-in handle so you can hang it from a tree when you’re out camping or just wanting to free up table-space in the backyard.

Each pouch holds the equivalent of two 750-ml bottles and keeps the wine fresh for as long as a month after opening. Each pouch is a bargain $16.99, too.

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Il Cane Rosso — A Tiny Spot That Delivers Big

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The staff at Il Cane Rosso inside San Francisco’s Ferry Building like to joke that they don’t have a real kitchen or dining room.

But what they’re able to create inside this tiny space that was once a takeout rotisserie is fairly miraculous. Cane Rosso’s open-face, warm egg salad sandwich with anchovy garlic butter is legendary. And its regular $25 three-course dinners have earned loyal fans.

Chef Lauren Kiino, who named the place after her three-legged rescue dog, Cody, opened the restaurant in 2009 in partnership with Chef Daniel Patterson of Coi in San Francisco. When that business relationship fizzled this year, Kiino took complete control of Cane Rosso.

A restaurant named after a chef's rescue dog.

The friendly staff and tiny kitchen.

She’s also been scouting locations in the Bay Area and Los Angeles to open another restaurant. Meantime, Cane Rosso has started doing a series of pop-up restaurants, in which the cooks borrow another establishment for a night to do a special prix fixe dinner. May 19 and May 20, they’ll be hosting one seating each night at 7 p.m. in honor of Mariquita Farm in Watsonville, which supplies a lot of Cane Rosso’s produce. Farm owner Andy Griffin will be on hand each night to talk about his farm as Kiino cooks up such dishes as crispy pork belly with Mariquita Farm roasted nettle and fregola salad. Crates of freshly picked strawberries will be available for purchase, too. The dinner, to be held at Coffee Bar in San Francisco, will feature four courses for $40, plus an additional $15 for wine pairings. To reserve a seat, email: info@canerossosf.com.

June 5 , Kiino will take over the Slow Club in San Francisco, for seatings at 6 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. The $55 three-course prix fixe (which includes cocktail pairings) will feature slow-cooked spring lamb with chicories and black olives. For reservations, email: info@canerossosf.com.

A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of being invited as a guest of Cane Rosso to its first wine dinner. The dinner spotlighted Romililly Wines of the Russian River Valley, which was started in 2006 by brothers, Aaron and Jesse Inman. The duo leases land from their uncle, Joe Briggs, who started August Briggs winery in Calistoga, which makes a fabulous Pinot Meunier, which I fell in love with a few years ago.

The name, Romililly, is an amalgamation of the three siblings’ middle names, Jesse (Ro)bert, Aaron (Mi)chael and sister Susan Lilly, who’s still too young to drink legally. The dinner was a chance to taste the creations of newbie winemakers, including an earthy, leathery, rich 2009 Romililly Piinot Noir made from 40-year-old vines.

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