Team In Training _ Big Time

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As if Yountville didn’t already boast an unseemly number of top chefs (it has more Michelin stars per capita than any other city in the world), now it’ll get even more.

Thomas Keller of the French Laundry in Yountville has teamed up with New York superstar Chef Daniel Boulud to establish a non-profit organization aimed at giving young American chefs a leg up on competing in the Bocuse d’Or, the legendary culinary Olympics in which the United States historically hasn’t fared very well.

Keller and Boulud will help choose eight young chefs who will compete in a September cook-off in Orlando at the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival. The top winners will go on to comprise the American team that will compete in the Bocuse d’Or in Lyon, France in January 2009 against 19 other teams.

The American team will get some serious training, October through January, at a special facility set up in a house in Yountville next-door to the French Laundry.  Not only that, but the team’s techniques will be perfected by none other than Certified Master Chef Roland Henin, whom Keller worked for early on in his career and who remains one of the chefs he most admires.

Popchips Addiction

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Yes, I have one. But that’s not a bad thing. Not when Popchips are all natural, not fried, have no trans fat, and zero saturated fat (well, except for the wonderful cheddar cheese version that has a pittance).

Never heard of Popchips? Get thee a bag now (about $1.50 for a 1-ounce one). The San Francisco product, which debuted a year ago, is now available in nearly 3,000 retail stores in the Western United States including Safeway, and Whole Foods. A 1-ounce serving has 120 calories, compared to 160 calories for the same serving of Ruffles Original.

Made with potatoes, organic white corn and whole grain brown rice, the Popchips are made using heat and pressure. The resulting chips are light and crispy in texture. They come in nine flavors, including new “salt and pepper” (with a subtle seasoned taste); and “sea salt and vinegar” (the bold vinegar tartness tickles your nose the second you open the bag). Whatever flavor you choose, you’ll be hard pressed to eat just one.


Meatball Madness

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Bucci\'s Italian-American meatballs

We’re mad for meatballs. We certainly are.

Consider that loyal diners nearly revolted when San Francisco’s A16 once halted its popular ”Monday Night Meatball” special. No worries, as that curtailment was short-lived, and the meatballs are safely back on the Monday menu.

What is it about meatballs that we can’t get enough of? There’s something so comforting in their rustic presentation. They’re a little more special looking than a hamburger; a little more playful than a big hunk of meatloaf.

When I dined at Pizzeria Mozza in Los Angeles, the pizza was the star, of course, and the butterscotch budino for dessert was out of this world, too. But the appetizer of “meatballs al forno” nearly stole the show with their incredibly light texture, and subtly spiced tomato sauce. I could have eaten the entire plateful, well, if there weren’t two other people with me.

When I’m jonesing for meatballs, I turn to this favorite recipe from “The Complete Meat Cookbook”by Bruce Aidells and Denis Kelly. Heap these bold tasting meatballs over pasta or soft polenta, and you can’t go wrong.

 Bucci’s Italian-American MeatballsÂ

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Cupcake Craze

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Kara's Cupcakes

Cupcake mania, which hit New York first (“Sex and The City,” anyone?), then spread to Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, is finally making its way to the South Bay/Peninsula.

Talk about taking your sweet time.

While those metropolitan areas long have boasted stand-alone bakeries specializing in nothing but cupcakes, we who have been frosting-starved in the South Bay/Peninsula finally will get our baked-good due when Kara’s Cupcakes is expected to open two locations in September: one in San Jose’s Santana Row (next to Pluto’s), and the other in Palo Alto’s Town & Country Village. Because the Santana Row location will be tiny — just 300 square feet — it’ll have a smaller selection, but promises to showcase the bakery’s most popular flavors.

Kara Lind, who worked in marketing for Conde Nast, found her true passion when she attended Tante Marie Cooking School’s baking program in San Francisco. Her first Kara’s Cupcakes bakery opened in 2006 on Scott Street in San Francisco. Since then, she’s added a second location in San Francisco, this one at historic Ghirardeli Square.

The cupcakes are made daily with such premium ingredients as Scharffen Berger chocolate, Clover Dairy products, and Flying Goat organic coffee. Regular cupcakes, $3 each, come in flavors such as Buttery Buttermilk, Chocolate Velvet, and Kara’s Karrot. Filled cupcakes, $3.25 each, come in such decadent concoctions as the “Fleur de Sel” (a chocolate cupcake with caramel filling, ganache frosting, and sea salt).

What does Lind find so irresistible about cupcakes?

“They are just filled with so much happiness,” she says. “They are like a little piece of joy.”

Who can argue with that?

Restaurant Happenings

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The produce garden at 25ºBrix

Longtime stalwart Napa restaurant Brix has morphed into 25ºBrix with new owners and a new look.

The owners, the Kelleher Family winemakers, picked the slightly different name to symbolize the sugar level at which they pick their grapes for their Cabarnet Sauvignon. Their consultant on the project was David Gingrass of Two in San Francisco, who has put in a 2-acre garden on the property, which will grow produce for the restaurant.

Menu items include beer-battered soft-shell crab with cherry tomato vinaigrette ($22); Berkshire pork schnitzel with sunny quail eggs, caper brown butter and spaetzel ($28); and whole roasted branzini with potato and crab hash ($32).

An adjacent wine shop on the property sells cult and hard-to-fiind Napa Valley wines. Visitors also can pick up fresh-baked baguettes and gourmet picnic baskets to-go from the restaurant.

Down the road in St. Helena, Go Fish restaurant has livened up its outdoor dining area with acoustic contemporary and blues music every Thursday night. A flat-panel TV also has been installed, along with a misting system to keep patrons cool in the summer heat. On the Fourth of July, Go Fish plans to fire up the grill on the patio to cook up an outdoor feast.

More al fresco eating can be had at the Dry Creek Kitchen at the Hotel Healdsburg. Every Wednesday night through September, the restaurant features “Family BBQ Night,” a three-course meal served family-style for $32 per person.

Offerings may include Painted Hills Skirt Steak and Niman Ranch Pork Loin; bourbon baked beans and potato salad; and fruit pie.

Along the coast, Nick’s Cove on the east shore of Tomales Bay, is hosting winemaker events with featured winemakers and specially prepared dishes from Chef de Cuisine Adam Mali.

June 19 at 6 p.m. is “Coastal Expressions” night, featuring wines from Radio-Coteau. July 17 at 6 p.m. is “Contemporary. Innovative. Out of the Ordinary,” an evening of wines from Duckhorn, Paraduxx and Goldeneye. Price for each wine dinner is $75 per person.  RSVPÂ by calling (415) 663-1033.

For those who are always on the go, Jack Falstaff in San Francisco has created a new “Power Lunch” menu. It’s a selection of two-course paired menu items such as potato & leek soup with Jack’s classic chicken Caesar salad; or walnut and baby green salad paired with “PBLT” (slow roasted pork belly and beefsteak tomato on grilled sourdough). “Power Lunches” are $16 to $19.

Enjoy them with a new selection of “Zero Proof Concoctions,” such as Hibiscus Cooler (Hibiscus iced tea with kiwi syrup) or Raspberry-Rhubarb Lemonade. All are $6.

Jerry Regester of C Restaurant + Bar. Photo by John Sutton.

Finally, down in Monterey, Jerry Regester has been appointed executive chef of the new C Restaurant + Bar at the new luxury hotel on Cannery Row, the InterContinental The Clement Monterey. He was most recently executive chef at The Restaurant at Wente Vineyards.

His debut menu includes Monterey Cioppino with mini cheese ravioli, artichokes, tuna, clams, and calamari in a spicy Dungeness crab broth; and fettuccine with smoked sardines, sun-dried tomatoes, and shaved garlic.

C Restaurant + Bar. Photo by John Sutton.

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