Happy Independence Day

Hog Island Oyster Farm

First, you have to get to Tomales Bay. It took us 1 hour, 35 minutes. We took Sir Francis Drake through Ross.
Second, it helps if the weather is beautiful, bright and sunny, as it was today.
Third, you really have to like fresh oysters.

Simply said, the five of us shared 5 dozen oysters. We enjoyed all sixty. Immensely.

Seen through Soviet Eyes

This map was posted on the main www.winnacker.com page on Wednesday. I've repeated it here so it can be expanded (by clicking) for more detailed study. I was interested to see the apparent importance of the railroads, indicated by dark black lines, to the Soviet Union.

Study and enjoy. :)

Food events

'Twas a busy, food-infused week.
First, from our Atlanta house guests, a simply crabmeat and egg omelet, qua pizza. You should definitely try this. (Crab meat is available in a can, if fresh is not in season.)

And then, on the weekend, off to Tilden Park, just past the steam trains, to a celebratory picnic for a young 90-year-old friend from UCBerkeley. Food was catered by "Rick & Ann's" although Rick and Ann have long been divorced. The Birthday Youngster is on the left.

Followed by a stop at a strip mall in Pleasant Hill at "Kobe Japan," a restaurant run by a very inventive Chinese-American who has learned the Japanese way of food very well:



All in all, a succesful week. :)

Filoli Gardens After Scenes

Sure, beating up everything outside on the patio is fun, but

Standing in front of the East side of the Pacific Ocean is also good, unless

 a meeting of the Red Hat Ladies gets in the way.

Find an honorable course, Love your fellow man, Live a wonderful life.

That's Fi Lo Li

Q.E.D.

Dematerialization

Photoshop is amazing, even in Shanghai.

Lunch in San Francisco

Twitter has moved into new San Francisco offices. It's a long way from South Park in a short 5 years! This place is "Mid-Market", on Market Street close by City Hall. The streets are a bit sticky, but the newly-remodeled building has an open roof. This roof is landscaped and open to a lovely California sky on fog-free days.
Today, they had an all-hands barbeque on the roof:

Not too shabby!

Together

In the morning, after I rise, get dressed, and open the cat door, when I return to the bedroom there are often three adorable lumps on the bed.

Two of them are purring.

Cookie Time!

If the ancient Romans had had Oreos:

Bet it would have tasted good. :-)

NASA rewards us

They changed the colors, for some reason, but please now look at Planet Venus (upper left) floating between me and Sun yesterday.

Cool.

Or, to be literal about it, "Hot!"

Somestimes. . .

. . . I'm just feeling bad.



:-)

Northern California Food

Our local restaurant fare has driven at least one New York writer over the edge. From Saturday's WSJ, consider:
"The following year, Patterson opened Coi, his intimate San Francisco oasis. There, he delights in poking fun at endemic gastronomic stereotypes, but instead of rejecting that legacy wholesale, Patterson elevates it. His California Bowl takes on brown rice and avocado in the form of paper-thin, crispy-does-it "chips" (think papadum) and a creamy-smooth dip."
And it continues on, and on, and on in that vein.
It should be actionable, "maltreatment and disrespect of the language." At least.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303610504577418871114965262.html?mod=WSJ_Magazine_LEFTTopStories

Golden Gate's 75th Birthday Celebration

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/video?id=8679035&pid=null

http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/video?id=8679035#&cmp=twi-kgo-video-8679035

bit.ly/Kd4UM1

(One of the above should work)

Happy Birthday!

Ridge Vineyards

A bit above my price point, but we're enjoying a Zinfandel from Ridge's Pagani Ranch. I was interested in the 5% Alicante Bouschet grape that is blended. So far, so very good. Very fruity and tangy. No tannin that I can detect. Highly recommended for an aggresive meat dish.

Try it. Let me know what you think.

Typical Friday in the Napa Valley

So, it's trite and touristy, but if you know good folks (like us!) you can make a memorable tour out of an afternoon in Napa. How about a visit to the Hess Collection on Mt. Veeder?

Up 29, West side of the Valley, typical stuff. We sidetracked off to Redwood Road, West of Napa, through a typical subdivision, past a few road splits, looking (and praying?) for the first of only the two signs, through forest, tight turns, redwood trees, narrow mountain roads, and then...

The tasting room is on the left, but there are two floors of absolutely wonderful art pieces collected by Donald Hess. Stunning stuff, mostly over sized, and superbly done.

All this on the side of a mountain on the West side of Napa Valley. You don't get here by mistake, believe me; you have to know what you want.

And yes, there's wine. Good stuff. Just look for "Hess Collection" at your local wine shop. And, next time you're in the neighborhood, please visit. You'll have a memory for life.

www.kamakurarestaurant.com/

So our out-of-town visitors tipped us to a sushi bar in Alameda ("The Town That Hasn't Changed Since 1950".) Kamakura, at the out-of-the-way corner of Santa Clara and Broadway.

Fascinating place, in a very friendly sort of way. Faith is the proprietress, and she keeps an eye on everything.
Prices are more than reasonable. Quality is close to the best California sushi that we've had. Beer is available; wine is from a large Franzia box from Safeway. Parking is on the street and easy.

This is very much a neighborhood place, with no reservations, and Faith welcoming many of the guests as old friends.

I was surprised to see the entire wait staff flock outside and bow and say "thank you" when the diners left, just like at a Japanese ryokan after a guest's stay. 

The sushi is very fresh and very well prepared and presented. The larger plates are interesting and very tasty.
And the prices! Four of us got out for less than $100, including tax, tip, beer, and wine. You cannot beat that anywhere!
Someone that we know, who lives at the foot of the mountain, should take his entire family. Soon!

Yosemite

This is fun and, sometimes, inspiring:


http://vimeo.com/40802206

Cavallo Point, Marin County

Cavallo Point is located on the grounds of Ft. Baker, on San Francisco Bay at the North end of the Golden Gate bridge, and just South of Sausalito. The Army left in 1970 and only the Coast Guard remains. The former military buildings have been rejuvenated and are in fine shape. Murray Circle was officer housing encircling the parade ground with powerful views out across San Francisco Bay to San Francisco itself. The housing is now hotel rooms, and the officers' mess is now the restaurant. All this is mere minutes from the North anchorage of the bridge.

Murray Circle, the name of the restaurant, is upscale with excellent service. The food offerings are a bit undecipherable, but tasty. DW#1 had a  pastrami sandwich, and I an Ahi Tuna salad; both were excellent.

Wines were from California, France, and Italy. Prices are a bit high.

Oysters cost $3/each!

And yes, the overall bill was about 25% above my normal, at $60 with wine and tip. Complementary valet parking (tips accepted) is next door at the hotel entrance building.

Experienced diners will ask "What about the fog?" Well, there was absolutely no fog today, temps were in the 70's, and breezes were refreshing. The outdoor dining deck was full. On a more-typical foggy day, I would expect no one on the dining deck, fireplaces flaming, and sweaters abounding.

But, hey! We were lucky. That green lawn below is Murray Circle.

If you wish to try it, I'm game. We'll do Dutch. :)

Mother's Day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmgPODFXAQk

( How I wish I knew how to highlight a link. Oh well, cut and paste. It's worth it)

Corners Tavern, Walnut Creek

Bing Crosby's used to be here. Another time, another economy. Corners is much less fussy, quite a lot more interesting and fun.
Unusual menu (check it on the internet.) Lots of things I have never seen in a restaurant before. Crispy peppers are very crispy, and very hot; pretzel is okay, and tasty; charcuterie is sublime; smoked salmon is super; ahi tuna is great. Then, after super fries, we stopped.
Wines are good, and not too overpriced.
Next time you're in town, I shall host you! Let's do it.