Culinary Muse

ON THE ROAD TO MONTEREY, PART TWO: TusCA

TusCA - Tuscan California Cuisine- is the HYATT REGENCY MONTEREY new restaurant (as of February 2007). A great concept well executed. The menu’s inspiration is Tuscany using California’s amazing food resources. And is there any more bountiful location in the state of California than the Monterey area? Nearby Castroville is the Artichoke Capital of the World and the Salinas Valley is the ‘Salad Bowl of the World’ as my sixth grade California geography teacher told us. The Pacific Ocean is within walking distance. And fresh tomatoes are at the height of their season.

Before I continue with this story I should let you know that this has been a tough month for the Culinary Muse. I managed to get through cooking school without anyone learning my secret. I HATE fresh tomatoes. Cooked tomatoes in any form are fine. It’s the fresh ones I despise. Never let anyone in cooking school know your weakness or sooner than you can say ‘I’m a vegetarian’ they will have you butchering piglets. While my ordeal this month may not seem that bad to some, it is still difficult to be a gracious guest when presented with a food you abhor especially for someone like me whose middle name is ‘Gracious Guest’. So far this month I have let a tomato granita melt into a pool of liquid while I picked off the garnish of jalapeno slices. I have closed my eyes and swallowed baby tomatoes whole. How much longer could my luck hold out and when was this tomato season going to be over, anyway? Tonight’s charming waitress presented a beautiful salad, composed of many tomato slices, in front of me. It was a gift from the chef. There was going to be no swallowing these whole. I picked off the micro greens. I watched Mr. Muse devour his tomatoes hoping he would have mercy on me and eat mine. No luck. When the waitress returned I started apologizing as fast as I could. I begged her not to tell the chef. But before she could clear the plates, Chef de Cuisine Neil Dunn came over to our table to ask how we enjoyed the salad. Busted. Luckily he is an affable fellow. I confessed. He forgave and we moved on to the rest of our dinner.

ON THE ROAD TO MONTEREY, PART ONE

The plan for this trip started in July when I was first contacted by the PR agency for the Hyatt Regency, Monterey, to see if I would be interested in visiting their client’s property and trying out their new restaurant, TusCA. Well, why not? Mr. Muse and I often go down to Carmel for a quick mid-week get away, dog in tow, but we have never stayed in Monterey. Or, I should say, I have never stayed in Monterey. Mr. Muse stays here whenever there is a classic car event happening at nearby Laguna Seca or Pebble Beach. This was my first time.

We left the City today at 1:30. We were both starving but didn’t want to spend the time looking for a place to eat and a place to park. Besides that, once you have decided to get out of town, just get out of town. I knew we would find someplace to stop along the way. I just wanted enough food to stop the blood sugar from falling. We ended up stopping in Burlingame and had a great Middle Eastern lunch at MIJANA on Burlingame Avenue, just across from the train station. Chicken Shawarma, Fattoush (salad), Tabbouleh…delicious. With a quick stop at Peet’s for my wet cappuccino, we were ready to hit Highway 101. 90 minutes later we pulled into the driveway of the Hyatt Regency.

I love the Monterey/Carmel area. It always feels fresh and the air is always invigorating. It may be overcast in the mornings and afternoons but it never feels depressing. It must be something about the sweetness of the air that always says to me ‘relax, you are now on vacation’. Even when I travel here for work it feels like a brief vacation. No matter how long the work day can be, I leave relaxed and in a calmer state of mind.

The Hyatt property itself has been here for many years. They benefit from the wonderful landscaping (huge trees) and from being directly adjacent to the Del Monte Golf Course, the oldest golf course west of the Mississippi. Our suite is on the ground floor with the golf course right off our patio. Not being a golfer, I just turned to Mr. Muse and asked him if that cracking sound I just heard might be the sound of a golf ball being hit. We stared at each other and burst into laughter.

Once we got the computer up and running I toured the room. Calming shades of beige, well designed modern furniture, a walk- in shower to die for and two separate commodes. I’m sorry. Even if there are just two of you traveling together it is the little things at the end that can make or break a marriage and/or a vacation. Mr. Muse just found the ironing board and is ironing a shirt for dinner. I am sipping a glass of Pinot Noir and trying to resist the urge to consume the entire antipasta platter that just arrived. Prosciutto, salumi, cheese, pepper, olives….but wait, I have to save room for dinner. More tomorrow.

A DAY IN BERKELEY

Sometimes I just have to get out of the City but not so far away that I lose sight of the San Francisco skyline. On days like this I head over to Berkeley’s Gourmet Ghetto for shoe shopping, shortbread cookies, lunch and a view with roses.

The only thing better than a good piece of chocolate is a great pair of shoes. First stop: EARTHLY GOODS. Don’t let the Eco-Berkeley name fool you. This is no Earth Mama store. Along with a complete line of Eileen Fischer clothes they carry a great line of authentically reproduced vintage shoes from REMIX VINTAGE SHOES Los Angeles. And darn if those cute black and white spectators didn’t have my name on them. With shopping bag tossed over my arm and new shoes on my feet I walked (strutted actually) over to CESAR for lunch. A cool glass of rose wine, some hot fried potato wedges dusted with cumin seed and a small ramekin of salt cod and potato cazuela (a cod and potato spread) were enough to refuel and launch me on my way to more shopping.

SUMMER FRUIT CRISP

The Muse never leaves town in the summer without a cooler packed with ice. One can never tell when a farm stand will pop up along the road. Or a flatbed truck loaded with bags of oranges or flats of strawberries will be parked at the side of the road or a rest stop.

An embarrassment of riches? Or just pure greed? When the Muse got home last night from a day trip to the Central Valley it took more than one trip from the car to unload all the fruit. No wonder the woman at the CIPPONERI FAMILY FARMS fruit stand in Turlock asked if I was going to make jam. Apricots, nectarines (two types), white peaches, yellow peaches.

ON THE ROAD IN LOS ANGELES: GRAND CENTRAL MARKET

My friend Otto is repulsed by the displays. But he still wants me to see all of them. He exclaims that he would never eat anything from this place. He cringes as he eagerly searches out the next offal thing to show me: pig’s head, sheep’s head, hooves, claws and a pile of cooked, brown sheep tongues lapping at each other.

The place:GRAND CENTRAL MARKET in downtown Los Angeles. Sawdust on the painted black concrete floor, tall black columns that hold up the high ceilings pierced with skylights. The space soars upward like a cathedral. Each stall is organized to make maximum use of its small space. Wooden bins painted green have bulging sides like the wall of a dam holding back the flow of fruit and vegetables. Ordered chaos.

More East Bay Wanderings

The Muse found herself in the East Bay a few times last week. Here is a recent discovery.

I love a heavy (ok, hearty) Mexican breakfast.  Who needs wimpy eggs benedict with that silly thin slice of Canadian bacon when you can enjoy Machaca con Huevos at Francisco’s in San Leandro?  Described as ‘shredded beef and eggs’ this hearty dish is prepared with shreds of well-seasoned cooked chuck roast, sautéed with green bell peppers and eggs.  How about Chilaquiles o Carne Asada? Tortilla chips are sautéed with eggs, topped with cheese and green or red chili sauce and strips of marinated flank steak.  Both dishes are served with rice, refried beans and your choice of corn or flour tortilla.  $5.95. FRANCISCO’S, 599 DUTTON AVENUE (AT BANCROFT), SAN LEANDRO, 94577, (510)-777-9590.

A Trip to the Country

It is astonishing to realize how quickly we San Franciscans can travel from our bustling urban environment to bucolic countryside. With a car, a full tank of gas and a designated driver we can eat and drink away a day or two at great wineries in beautiful settings and avoid the weekend crowds.  Here are the highlights of a recent mid-week trip to the Russian River Valley and Point Reyes.

 Roshambo, named after the game Rock Paper Scissors, is a winery for the 21^st Century.  It is sleek and modern with a jaw dropping view of the Russian River and Dry Creek Valleys.  Good wine, fun art, terrific tasting room staff. I especially like the part of their brochure where they explain that the gallery, tasting room and commercial kitchen are available for private parties – “everything but weddings”. These people are not stupid. We bought four bottles of wine and headed west on Westside Road.