Savvy Wine Food Blog

Last Friday I spent a fun evening with friends at Barber’s Q in Napa. Besides being the place in town to see and be seen amongst the Napa Valley wine industry, part of the fun was diving into a platter of Chef Stephen Barber’s special fried chicken. It’s usually served only on Sundays, so somehow I lucked out; four crispy, juicy pieces, mashed potatoes with gravy and collard greens. My favorite condiment to go with is the house infused chili pepper vinegar. For $14.95, I think it’s a great deal.

But don’t just wait until Sunday to go… Other dishes I enjoy are the pulled pork sandwich and the whole roasted vinegar chicken, which takes about 45 minutes to prepare. A side of mac ‘n’ cheese has become essential no matter what protein I am enjoying.

I love that the atmosphere is always friendly and the music upbeat and eclectic, thanks to Gene’s good taste. The food is super tasty, the wine list interesting and the prices are very reasonable. I also love that co-owner Gene Tartaglia always manages to swing by each table to check on everyone, and Chef Stephen is usually able to pull away from the kitchen for a moment to say hi.

I’m happy to report that Barbers Q has become one of my favorites eateries in town, and I hope it becomes one of yours as well.

Meet me and enjoy our gourmet nuts for wine at the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition.

Where: Fort Mason, San Francisco, CA

When: February 28, 2009.

Learn more about Savvy Wine Food, our gourmet nuts for wine, as well as which events where we will be exhibiting by visiting http://www.savvywinefood.com

Hope to see you there,
Chef Erika Heinemann

Meet me and enjoy our gourmet nuts for wine at “PS: I Love You Petite Syrah Event” at the Rock Wall Wine Company in Alameda, CA.

When: February 20, 2009

Hope to see you there,
Chef Erika Heinemann

I thought I’d share the Tajmaheiney Thanksgiving dinner menu…

Savvy Wine Nuts (of course)

Crudite with Balsamic Dip

Frisee and Endive Salad with Pecans, Pears and Bleu d’Auvergne

Herb-Salt Roasted Turkey with Giblet-Shallot Gravy

Classic Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes

Wild Mushroom Stuffing

Red Wine Glazed Cipolini Onions

Cauliflower Gratin

Roasted Sugar Snap Peas

Orange Scented Cranberry Sauce

Cracked Black Pepper Biscuits

Pumpkin Pie

Wines offered will be: Veuve Clicquot Brut,  2005 Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru La Romanee Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard and 2004 Patz & Hall Chenoweth Ranch Pinot Noir

Happy Thanksgiving everyone, bon appetit!!

Considering salmon season was cancelled here in California this year (Read More), I decided to take matters into my own hands: I went north to the vast wilderness of Alaska. Fly-fishing has been in my family for a while now, with my father and husband avid hobbyists, so it was high time I learned. Besides getting pretty darn good at casting, what I learned is that I’m hooked! I can now catch it, fillet it, cook it, and eat it.

I have two favorite places in Juneau to visit when I’m in southeast Alaska fishing for pink salmon, which actually isn’t the best-eating salmon and is more commonly used for canning. First up is the Alaskan Brewing Company, which not only makes great beer, but offers a nice tour and plenty of free samples from a hospitable staff. Jerry’s Meats and Seafood is a must for smoked salmon of all varieties, as well as black cod, and my favorite, the super rich and delicious smoked salmon belly strips. Jerry’s will process your catch, or kill from the hunt, and what’s best is that it’s all easily taken home to California. Savvy, Jerry.

The Michelin Guide to the San Francisco Bay Area came out recently, and once again the Restaurant at Meadowood received 2 stars (View). I have to say, I just don’t get it. I have eaten at many of the restaurants that received 1 star ratings, and they are far better than the experience I had at Meadowood recently.

In the beginning, the menu looked great, even though I was left to interpret each dish. Whoever is writing the menu really needs to be more descriptive. It simply leaves the diner guessing as to what to expect in the dish. After navigating the menu, I decided to run with the 5-course menu, where I could select, even mix-and-match various dishes, from each course. And as I expected after ordering, many of the dishes were served differently than anticipated, plus they were overly complicated, and the portions were puny, lost in the bottom of a deep-dish quenelle-shaped bowl.

As I mentioned before, the menu allows the selection of three, four or five courses, yet the cheese course was a $25 supplement, something I have never seen on a fine dining menu. Now a supplement charge for foir gras or caviar? Yeah, I get it, and, yes, I’ll buy. But cheese? Something stunk and it wasn’t the cheese board.

Next up was dessert, and especially considering I was still hungry, I was looking forward to my last course. But there was absolutely nothing on the menu that looked appealing. One item simply stated “Milk Chocolate.” Milk chocolate what? Needless to say, I passed on dessert.

Food aside, the property and restaurant are beautiful. But our server was boring, acting like he would rather be somewhere else. The sommelier stopped by after about 30 minutes to apologize for the wedding band that was pumping a cover of The Commodores “Brick House” on the lower level, but he did it so profusely, drawing even  more attention to the party. Frankly, he became more annoying than the music selections blaring into the August night.

I’m sure people will disagree with me on this post, but for $500 for two people, I would much, much rather eat at Gary Danko, Acquerello, Bouchon, Chez Panisse, Fleur de Lys, Quince, or Redd. Most of these restaurants aren’t nearly so spendy, and the food is far superior.

Since it’s football season, I’ll sum up this post with a college gridiron analogy. The Restaurant at Meadowood reminded me of the overrated Buckeyes of “The” Ohio State Univeristy. And like the scarlet and gray, I’m sure Meadowood will continue to sit atop the polls and have its blind apologists, but I for one will not celebrate mediocrity.

I just got back from a week in Europe and spent most of my time in Brussels. I did take a day trip to Paris, but I’ll write more on that later. One thing I noticed while cruising around Brussels’s city center is how restaurants tend to group themselves together by cuisine. Makes me wonder if this isn’t done for tourists? Walking down one little cobblestone street near Place St. Gery, it was one Thai or Vietnamese place after another. In another part of town, near the Grand Place, the streets were lined with Greek restaurants. Nearby, on the Rue de la Montagne, all Italian trattorias.

I had a delicious meal the first night in Brussels at Fanny Thai, on the Rue Jules Van Praet. The service was warm and friendly and the dishes uniquely regional and spiced perfectly. It was a Saturday night, and I ate outside, people-watching while sipping on a Riesling with my meal. The neighborhood was hopping with young people and energy.

Lunch the next day was in Brugges, at a little cafe located alongside a canal. This meal was the food and wine pairing hit of the trip! Moules Frites paired with a Chablis. C’est bien! Moules (mussels) and Frites (French fries) is a classic Belgian dish served in a choice of broths, typically garlic and butter, white wine, tomato, or curry.  The crispy frites are served on the side for dipping in the broth and are eaten with knife and fork. By the way, French fries were created in Belgium, not France as typically thought.

As I relaxed at the table after my meal, I watched a family of six enjoying ice cream sundaes after their lunch. It occurred to me that we Americans have quite a hang up when it comes to carbs. How often do you see women in America enjoying a beer or two with their lunch, then finishing the meal with a big dish of ice cream? It reminded me that we’re a society of sitters, not walkers like most Europeans.

Just wait until I tell you about Laduree in Paris!

I got to spend some play time in Las Vegas this summer, a little recon mission in Sin City. And I have to say, it was my best overall food experience in this Disneyland for adults. What was interesting about this Vegas experience was that the food got better as the trip progressed.

I kicked off my first dinner at Fiamma Trattoria in the MGM Grand. The server was a little overzealous, but the dining room was beautiful and the food delicious. I also got a chance to meet the Wine Director, who oversees all of the properties of the Be Our Guest Restaurant Group. She was dynamic and full of information, and steered me to a terrific white wine from the Alto Adige region of Italy. This wine was superb, excellent with the Mozzarella and Heirloom Tomatoes, but by the time the Short-rib Stuffed Ravioli arrived, it was time for Barbera.

The next night I dined at Daniel Boulud Brasserie inside the Wynn. I thoroughly enjoyed my lavender mojito at the bar before I sat down. The lakeside dining room was gorgeous, and throughout dinner, I was treated to an over-the-top water show that only Vegas could produce. The food was excellent and the service attentive yet subtle. One item, though, stood out enough to become an order “for the table” - the DB Burger, a 9-oz sirloin burger stuffed with short ribs and black truffle served on a parmesan bun. The only thing missing from the burger, however, was the advertised foie gras, but the table enjoyed it all the same. I also have to say that the Rocky Road profiteroles with cocoa nibs for dessert was outstanding! Here’s a copy of the menu from Daniel’s restaurant. 

I then mixed things up the next night, travelling off The Strip to my favorite Thai restaurant, Lotus of Siam. Next to my favorite Indonesian haunt in Amsterdam, Puri Mas, it’s the best Asian food I’ve ever had. Every dish was ridiculously tasty. When you order, you get to choose the level of spiciness ranging from 1-10. My table consisted of spice lovers, so we started with 8. After the first few dishes (#’s 7, 14, 32 and 42) and with sweat beading our brows and a couple of noses running, we backed down the spice level to a 7. Dishes 56, 102, 130, and the special Seabass with Suki Sauce were just to our heat liking. The mango and sticky rice provided just the right amount of sweetness to finish the meal. We didn’t do very well in choosing a Gruner Vetliner, but our ‘06 Reisling Kabinett from Christofel Erben was a perfect pairing across the board.

My last night’s dinner was at Michael Mina’s StripSteak inside Mandalay Bay, and it was an epic feast thanks to a recommendation from my longtime Santa Barbara friend, Conrad. Chef Michael Mina was in the house, dining with some lovely ladies, so it was fun and, actually, a rareity to see such a  celebrity chef as Mina dining in his own Vegas restaurant. Oysters, foie gras sliders, truffled mac ‘n’ cheese, caramelized onion, goat cheese and potato gratin were some of our favorite sides. As for the beef, each cut comes either Angus Prime, Wagyu or real Kobe beef. Now I am talking a real Kobe beef steak here, which will set you back over $200. For the wine pairing, we selected great, red-meat wines: an ’05 Pax Cuvee Christine and ‘05 Pride Mountain Cabernet. We wrapped up the meal with butterscotch pudding, beignets and Dunkin’ mini donoughts. Oh, and as we left, we were given house-made “fiddle-faddle” to go! Love it!!!

One thing I noticed everywhere, except at Daniel Boulud and Lotus of Siam, was the tremendously over-sized portions. Looking around at peoples plates, no one ever finished. Maybe if they served less they could charge less? Hmmm…just a thought? But all in all, really wonderful dining experiences. Lotus of Siam exluded, the meals certainly were not cheap, but instead of throwing away money at the tables, I was perfectly happy throwing it away on fantastic food and wine with good friends. And, for once, the Vegas food scene lived up to the hype.

Catcha next time at the black jack tables!

My friend, Lassa (here’s a picture of her, in the hat, at my Chef’s Market demo), who is the Manager of the Oxbow Cheese Merchant, recently introduced me to an interesting and rare Ecuadorian cheese called Andino. I was shopping at Oxbow Cheese Merchant, putting together a cheese course for a winemaker dinner that I was doing at Patz & Hall, and she offered me a sample. It’s a hard, almost crumbly cheese, tasting a little of butterscotch, a little nutty, and also reminiscent of aged Gouda or Mimolette.  I thought it would go nicely with one of Patz & Hall’s luscious Pinot Noirs, and it turned out I was spot on. I served it alongside another favorite Pinot-pairing-cheese, Sottocenere, walnut levain and mache lightly dressed with a black olive-honey vinaigrette. The whole course worked together beautifully with the wine, and now I have another cheese pairing trick up my sleeve.

Café de la Presse in San Francisco is one of my favorite places, for breakfast, for lunch, for a glass of wine or coffee. What I love about it most is, for a little while I’m transported back to Paris, one of my favorite cities in the world.

Great food and drink, a fabulous international newsstand, and terrific people watching, la Presse has it all. The menu is, naturally, very French, and some of my favorites are a croissant, omelet and coffee in the morning, or a Nicoise salad and a glass of rosé at lunch. It’s conveniently located for my Union Square errands, and I always make a point to stop in for something wonderful and a little day trip to Paris. C’est si bon!