Spring Forward For Oven-Roasted Artichokes

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Oven-roasting leaves these artichokes even more flavorful and even juicy tasting.
Oven-roasting leaves these artichokes even more flavorful and even juicy tasting.

My love for artichokes comes from my father. He’d arrange them in a pressure cooker, secure the lid, then let them cook away. Afterward, we’d tear off each leaf, dunking each one into a blob of mayo (Best Foods, of course) before using our teeth to scrape off the soft part to enjoy.

Because I always thought that old-school pressure cooker looked like a bomb about to go off, when I got older, I opted to use my rice cooker to steam my artichokes instead.

Of course, that had the disadvantage of only being able to cook to at a time. So when I spied this recipe for “Oven-Roasted Artichokes” that cooks four — or more if you want to add a second pan to the oven — I was keen on trying it.

The fact that the artichokes get flavored with garlic and aromatic herbes de Provence as they cook enticed me even more.

This super easy recipe is from “Mostly French” (Simon Element, 2025), of which I received a review copy.

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Get To Know the Good Works of The Key Room

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Succulent leg of lamb served at a recent demo-dinner at The Key Room.
Succulent leg of lamb served at a recent demo-dinner at The Key Room.

In the Bay Area, there are many places to take top-notch culinary classes, both hands-on and demonstration ones.

But at The Key Room in Novato, while you learn how to make dashi, handmade pasta, or what goes into crafting Kansas City-style barbecue from acclaimed chef Darryl Bell of Napa’s Stateline Road Smokehouse, you’re also supporting a culinary job-training program that teaches skills to troubled youths, veterans, and the homeless.

Founded in 2008, the Key Room is an extension of Homeward Bound of Marin, which has been the primary provider for resources and shelters for homeless individuals and families in Marin County since 1974.

Setting up for dinner.
Setting up for dinner.

Since the culinary program was founded, more than 1,000 people have gone through it, says Paul Fordham, CEO of Homeward Bound of Marin. Five instructor chefs, two who hail from the Culinary Institute of America, teach 70 students each year in a free, 11-week training program. Half of those who graduate go on to get jobs in the hospitality industry, and the other half end up working at The Key Room in kitchen or front-of-house positions.

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A Giant of A Meatball

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A mega meatball. Oh, and there's soup, too.
A mega meatball. Oh, and there’s soup, too.

Matty Matheson is a big guy. With an enormous personality. And a huge star of the monster hit show, the Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning “The Bear.”

So, when he puts his mind to making meatballs, you know they’re going to be outsized.

Giant — to be exact.

In fact, these babies weigh in at 8 ounces each, and are served one per person centered in a bowl of tomato-laced soup with plenty of tiny thimble-shaped pasta.

Now, that’s a meal. And then some.

“Giant Meatball Soup in Beefy Tomato Broth” is a recipe from his newest cookbook, “Matty Matheson: Soups, Salads, Sandwiches” (Ten Speed Press, 2024), of which I received a review copy.

The Toronto restaurateur who owns a bevy of establishments, including Prime Seafood Palace, has put together a collection of 126 recipes to enjoy one at a time or to combine for the ultimate Matheson meal.

They are fun, inventive, and can definitely veer toward over-the-top.

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Come Hungry To Meze Kebab

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Beyti kebab, one of the many protein options at the all-you-can-eat Meze Kebab.
Beyti kebab, one of the many protein options at the all-you-can-eat Meze Kebab.

Think Brazilian steakhouses, Japanese shabu shabu, Chinese hot pot or Korean barbecue joints where one all-inclusive price gets you all-you-can-eat for a set time limit.

Transfer that concept to Mediterranean food expanded to include a few Indian flourishes, and you get Meze Kebab in downtown Palo Alto, the new offshoot of the popular Meyhouse restaurant in Palo Alto and Sunnyvale, and soon-to-open San Ramon.

In fact, Meze Kebab is right next door to Meyhouse in what was once home to Tacolicious.

The interior has been repainted a striking lipstick red on the walls and columns; and the floor redone with beautiful blue and gold ceramic tiles.

The dining room.
The dining room.
The bar.
The bar.

Here’s how it works: For $59.99 (for adults) or $24.99 (for kids), you get unlimited dips, hot and cold mezes, house-baked bread, and an assortment of kebabs that take influence from Istanbul to Delhi — for 90 minutes. That price includes a 20 percent gratuity, so no tipping is required.

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Chez TJ Marks Its 44th Year with A Reset

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Owner George Aviet in one of the intimate dining rooms at Chez TJ.
Owner George Aviet in one of the intimate dining rooms at Chez TJ.

For an unprecedented 44 years, this charming Victorian in downtown Mountain View has drawn crowds and accolades for its fine-dining cuisine that has proved a jumping off point for a roster of some of the Bay Area’s most illustrious chefs.

Last year, though, Chez TJ lost its Michelin star after an impressive 19-year streak, a crushing blow to owner George Aviet. It was Mountain View’s only Michelin-starred restaurant, too.

But Aviet, 69, remains as determined as ever to forge ahead and continue to shape the restaurant into the best that it can be.

He and his late business partner Thomas J. McCombie bought the 1894 property in the early 1980s, and opened it as a restaurant in 1982. When McCombie died unexpectedly of a heart attack at the young age of 44 in 1994, Aviet pressed on, resolute in keeping Chez TJ going in McCombie’s memory and spirit.

The restaurant is housed in a historic Victorian.
The restaurant is housed in a historic Victorian.

He’s done more than an admirable job. In fact, he’s had an uncanny ability to hire young chefs, who after making a name for themselves at Chez TJ, have spring-boarded into stardom.

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