Well Fed On the Town

Every so often I get a hankering for a good plate of hummus. I mean hummus, not chipotle sundried tomato garbanzo bean spread from a plastic box on the supermarket shelf. I’m talking about a plate of hummus with a well in the middle shaped by a tablespoon, drizzled over with spicy olive oil and […]

Vegan baked goods are an odd lot. Without butter and eggs, they are like photocopies of a photocopy of a photo — pale imitations of the original. I do enjoy trying my hand at vegan baked goods, and have managed a pretty decent cornbread, but I’ve often wondered about those vegan goodies one sees in […]

Shuna “Fish” Lydon is known and loved by many people in the foodblogging community, bloggers and readers alike. She is admired in the blogosphere for her professional perspective on food, as well as her sensual prose. I have taken several cooking classes with Shuna and found her to be an engaging and knowledgeable teacher, encouraging […]

When you live in San Francisco, you often wind up milling amongst the clam chowder shacks and tacky t-shirt shops of Fisherman’s Wharf. Not necessarily because you want to, mind you, but because anyone who visits you insists on going there. To me, San Francisco is all about the Castro, the Haight, the houses along […]

While vacationing in Seattle, we stayed right across the street from a sleek looking restaurant called Qube. I must have passed the place a dozen times on my way to Pike Place market or the little Mexican joint that served the best corn tortillas I’ve ever eaten (I’m guessing they use high quality fresh masa). […]

Have you ever eaten at a restaurant where the manager, chef, pastry chef, sommelier, server, busboy, and greeter are all the same person? John Peakes of 120 Nichols manages every facet of his restaurant on San Juan Island, with the help of a single sous chef.
For the past two years, John has been serving dinner […]

Sunday morning is comfortably warm and sunny. You sit down to an outdoor breakfast, looking out at the bay. Breakfast is grilled lamb sausages, a slice of spinach quiche, fresh strawberries and cherries, a scone, and an olallieberry mini tart. A hot mug of freshly brewed coffee with a bit of raw milk accompanies your […]

Hiro’s Sushi and Grill is a relatively new addition to Oakland, California’s array of restaurants on College Avenue. Don’t let its location fool you. You can almost walk right by the weirdly pink shopping area housing Hiro’s near the bottom of College. But something calls you back. Maybe it’s the rice paper screens, a menu […]

I am so, so sorry. My apologies to all the readers who cannot order Claire’s flapjacks on the web. Sadly, these wonders are too delicate for long distance travel. Those readers outside the San Francisco Bay Area can console yourselves with a pack of Clairesquares–buttery shortbread cookies covered in caramel and chocolate.
Those of you who […]

This aptly named little neighborhood eatery is a bright spot on College Avenue. There isn’t anything particularly noteworthy on the menu, nothing you haven’t heard of or eaten before. But the dishes here are prepared well–each dish proudly celebrates the flavors of India.
The sag paneer is a creamy dish with hints of cinnamon, cardamom, and […]