The Jetsetter

Boy, was I overdue on some NEW YORK scouting. Since I spent last year writing and working on my book, it had been a while since I took a bite of the Big Apple. I hope you’re wearing some comfortable pants, or at least have an extra hole or…

As my plane started its descent into Mumbai, some twenty-five hours after I had left San Francisco, I started feeling a spike of nervous anticipation about the chaos that was looming in the city below, starting with the end of safe drinking water. Then again, it’s definitely a bit…

Eddie Lau is a chef and Boston native whose former kitchen experiences in San Francisco over the last two years include Orson and Poleng Lounge. He is the proud writer and owner of HotFoodPorn.com, to which he calls "a vehicle for all things culinary that are sexy, tasty,…

On the Road with Chef Charlie Kleinman Chef Charlie Kleinman (Fish and Farm, Fifth Floor) is taking his roots in fine dining and the locavore movement and branching out in his new project, Wexler's. At his newest restaurant, the flavors of the American South's proudest tradition,…

I'm a vintage girl at heart--I've always felt like a displaced spirit, pulled out of 1928 and plunked into modern times. Even while I was in high school and working at my grandmother's store in San Mateo, one of the cute older ladies, Margie,…

You know, it bugs me when San Franciscans hate on ~LOS ANGELES~. My first question is always, "Well, do you know someone there?" Because without at least one local person to point you to some metropolis gems, and there are many, you won't get a good…

And now we continue with part two of my ~HEALDSBURG~ recap. Last week was about where to eat and this week covers where to stay, and drink good wine. Cheers to that. ~WHERE TO STAY~ I was in hotel heaven at the ~HOTEL HEALDSBURG~--it's modern and chic…

PLEASE NOTE SOME OF THESE PLACES HAVE CLOSED SINCE THE ARTICLE WAS FIRST POSTED IN 2008. I fell in love with ~HEALDSBURG~ my first time there--give me a town square, some killer wineries, delish restaurants, a mellow small town atmosphere, stunning scenery, and, well, where's my ring? The…

When I was invited to attend the annual Tales of the Cocktail event in New Orleans in July of 2007, I was beyond thrilled. I hadn't been to New Orleans in years, and to visit the birthplace of the cocktail was like a trip to Mecca for me.…