Category Archives: Enticing Events

A Caviar Pop-Up, Dining Deals & More

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A luxury pop-up -- Regiis Ova Caviar and Champagne Lounge. (Photo courtesy of Regiis Ova)
A luxury pop-up — Regiis Ova Caviar and Champagne Lounge. (Photo courtesy of Regiis Ova)

Thomas Keller’s Caviar and Champagne Pop-Up

Even if you can’t score a coveted table at The French Laundry, you can still enjoy some luxe tastes in Yountville from Thomas Keller.

The acclaimed chef joined with caviar expert Shaoching Bishop to start their own caviar brand, Regiis Ova (“royal egg” in Latin), in 2017. Now, the two have collaborated on the Regiis Ova Caviar & Champagne Lounge pop-up, 6480 Washington St. in Yountville. Open Thursday through Saturday, 5 p.m. to 11 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., the pop-up is expected to continue at least through the fall.

Take a plush seat indoors or outdoors to enjoy a tasting of caviar, starting at $45 for 15 grams with classic garnishes, two deviled eggs topped with caviar for $35 or French onion dip topped with caviar and served with kettle fried potato chips ($65)

If that’s a little rich for your pocketbook, opt for smoked sturgeon rillettes with pickled garden vegetables ($20) or a whimsical Bouchon Bakery “Oh Oh” (a gourmet take on a Ho Ho) for $10.

Alongside, sip prestige French or California bubbly by the glass or bottle, or a variety of red, white and rose wines.

Whether for a sip and snack or a complete meal, kick back with the sounds from a jazz pianist or DJ.

Dine Downtown San Jose Restaurant Promotion Runs Through July 18

In a normal year, “Dine Downtown San Jose” would indeed last a week. But as we all know, this past year has been anything but conventional. As such, the annual promotion will run for 10 days this year, from now through July 18.

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Three Great Things to Do in May

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Chef Ravi Kapur of Liholiho Yacht Club designed the new pool-side menu at the Rosewood Sand Hill. (Photo courtesy of the hotel.)
Chef Ravi Kapur of Liholiho Yacht Club designed the new pool-side menu at the Rosewood Sand Hill. (Photo courtesy of the hotel.)

Check Into the Rosewood Sand Hill for Liholiho Yacht Club Noshes

Now, here’s a great excuse for a staycation on the Peninsula if there ever was one.

The Rosewood Sand Hill has partnered with Chef Ravi Kapur of San Francisco’s Liholiho Yacht Club on a new poolside menu that’s available now through the end of summer.

Imagine nibbling on furikake-dusted Kennebec potato chips to dunk into caramelized onion dip; a tuna poke bowl with with avocado, radish, spicy aioli and radish sprouts; a yacht burger crowned with pineapple, bacon and kimchi; and a fried chicken sandwich garnished with cabbage slaw, pickled jalapeno and avocado ranch.

It’s the perfect excuse to relax at the newly redone pool area with flowers galore, plus a beachy-style bar.

The posh pool area at the Rosewood Sand Hill. (Photo courtesy of the hotel.)
The posh pool area at the Rosewood Sand Hill. (Photo courtesy of the hotel.)

And it saves you a trip to San Francisco to enjoy Kapur’s Hawaiian-influenced food, especially with Liholiho temporarily operating out of a Mission District space for takeout and delivery only.

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A Mother’s Day Treat with Delysia Chocolatier

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A truffle box that's part of the special Mother's Day virtual chocolate tasting from Delysia Chocolatier.
A truffle box that’s part of the special Mother’s Day virtual chocolate tasting from Delysia Chocolatier.

Pamper mom this “Mother’s Day” with a virtual chocolate and tea pairing from Delysia Chocolatier.

Having taken another virtual class recently by this Austin, TX chocolate company, I can attest that it makes for a fun and enlightening time, particularly when you learn that founder Nicole Patel is actually allergic to chocolate. Patel, who began making chocolates professionally after creating some for fun for her husband’s colleagues one Christmas, relies on a keen sense of smell to get her truffle flavors just right.

When the pandemic hit, she began offering virtual tasting events. On May 8, she’ll host “Tea Time with Mom,” starting at 4 p.m. CST, in which she’ll instruct how to pair her chocolates with various teas.

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Three Things to Enliven Shelter in Place, Part 3

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Nancy Oakes, chef-owner of Boulevard, will be teaching a virtual cooking class for kids. (Photo courtesy of Boulevard)
Nancy Oakes, chef-owner of Boulevard, will be teaching a virtual cooking class for kids. (Photo courtesy of Boulevard)

Kids’ Cooking Class with Boulevard’s Nancy Oakes and Dana Younkin

Your youngsters can take their cooking skills to the next level in a Zoom class taught by none other than Executive Chef Nancy Oakes and Chef de Cuisine Dana Younkin of San Francisco’s celebrated Boulevard restaurant.

The virtual live-streamed class, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.. March 21, is the brainchild of Sprouts Cooking Club in Oakland.

Oakes and Younkin will demonstrate how to make ricotta crespelle manicotti and strawberry shortcake. Ingredient and equipment lists are provided five days before the class.

The $45 class is designed for kids, 6 to 15 years old. The fees help fund Sprouts’ Chef-In-Training Program, a vocational platform that provides restaurant training to underserved women and youths of color.

If your kids can’t make that particular class, don’t fret. Sprouts has put together a whole line-up of celebrated female chefs to teach upcoming virtual classes, including March 20 with Mina Newman of Sen Sakana in New York City; March 27 with Emma Bengtsson of Aquavit in New York; and March 28 with Nite Yun of Nyum Bai in Oakland. The March 3 class with Dominique Crenn of Atelier Crenn in San Francisco is sold out, but there is a wait list. Find the complete schedule here.

Zola’s Fundraiser for the Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula

Pick up some tasty takeout from Palo Alto’s Zola on Feb. 25, and 50 percent of sales from a special to-go dinner package will donated to the Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula.

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Join Yours Truly In Conversation with Fanny Singer and Alice Waters

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(Illustration courtesy of "Silicon Valley Reads'')
(Illustration courtesy of “Silicon Valley Reads”)

You’re invited to join me in conversation with Chez Panisse founder Alice Waters and her daughter Fanny Singer at 6 p.m., March 11. All virtually, of course. And all part of this year’s Silicon Valley Reads series of events.

Just what was it like to grow up the only child of the iconic chef who launched the California cuisine revolution? Singer, the founder of lifestyle brand Permanent Collection and holder of a doctorate from the University of Cambridge, answers that question and more in her memoir, “Always Home: A Daughter’s Recipes & Stories” (Knopf), which debuted last year.

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