Panama Trip

The house lake side bar and dock

Secluded Lake on property

Main and guest houses

Downtown Panama City

Panama City Skyline

 The huge capital city with high rise buildings everywhere. Sadly I found it not too much of a food city or even country, it seems like most of the people just want to eat and they don't care too much about what it is, it seemed like half the food was some form of burger or fried chicken. Small road side markets are mostly owned by Asian families and there was always a display of hot pork buns, pot stickers and other dim sum.

Dim sum in every market

The local beer, always welcome on a hot day.

Housemade restaurant hot sauce, really good with the fried fish.

Side of the road produce market. Great for stocking up on fresh produce.
The big markets don't have much of a produce section.

Coffee beans drying in the sun, coffee is big business up in the mountains.

Coffee beans roasting.

Known as "Tipico" the small road side meals that are served by families. Stewed pork, rice, beets and  plantains.

In the small towns and along the highway the restaurant scene is normally small and family run. The menu will have a couple of choices, chicken, pork or maybe locally caught fish. Its always served with rice and plantains. Really good and the price is cheap, anywhere from $5 on up. locals will get a cheaper price.

Small open street cafe

Our water taxi on a secluded beach

Island paradise

Boca Chica region of western Panama is a vacation spot for travelers and locals. The many islands are accessible by boat only and water taxis are easy to get. We had a hired a private boat to take us from island to island to visit restaurants and beach side bars.

Local moonshine rum

Rum is the drink......

My drink is rum, dark and aged on the rocks with fresh pineapple juice.
We of course went through a lot of this while sitting on the deck at night looking at the millions of stars. We also had access to really good Cuban rum as well.

New Thanksgiving Tradition??

A Rare Flawless Day at Sea

Brendan "All Good"

Cooler Full, Lets Head Home

Simmering Tomato, Fennel and White Wine

Cracked Crab and Mussels Added and Steamed

This years thanksgiving holiday plans changed when my friend Brendan Moylan called with the idea to go crabbing, a perfect weather forecast and the promise of fresh crab was all I needed. A quick morning motor on his fishing boat took us five miles offshore to the Pacific fishing grounds and our six crab pots were quickly baited and soaking. What to do for three hours while we wait? Hint Brendan owns two breweries! We got lucky fishing and were able to bring Dungeness crabs home for our holiday dinners. What to make? well there is two very famous ways to cook San Francisco crabs, one is simply cooked and chilled served cracked with sour dough bread and local white wine and very popular at local crab feeds. Two is the Italian style Cioppino seafood soup with a tomato and garlic based broth. Being a chilly rainy day I chose to make the hot soup. Amazing and perfect.

Cioppino My Way

Brussels Sprouts, Just in Time for the Holidays

Local Farmers Market in Castroville California

Brussels Sprouts, Fresh Picked and Still on the Stalk

It seem their is a love or hate relationship with Brussels sprouts, you either like them or not. With me, I like them and prepare them in a variety of ways. My favorite recipe is to shave them thin and sauté with a thick dice of pancetta and onions but also very good as a winter salad with nuts and dried cranberries. They are best if you find them still on the stalk where they will have a fresher flavor and will store for a longer time.

The Hawaiian Classic, Poke

Shoyu Ahi Poke* 

A Variety of Poke a the Market

The State dish? could be and found in almost every market in the state of Hawaii, Poke. A cold salad of mostly raw or cooked seafood dressed in soy sauce, sesame oil, Maui sweet onion, seaweed and chili peppers. There are lots of variations of seafood used but Ahi (Yellowfin tuna) is the most typical. The history of Poke dates back many years but started gaining in popularity in the 1970s to the level its at today where its eaten almost daily as a snack or maybe in a rice bowl as a meal. Sold by weight in little plastic tubs starting at around $10 U.S. dollars a pound to maybe $16 or more for better grade fish.

* Note: Shoyu Ahi Poke is a basic salad seasoned with Sesame oil, Soy Sauce and Onions  

Almost Harvest Time

Almost Ready Red Grapes in Sonoma

It's almost harvest time in the great wine regions just North of me- Sonoma, Russian River and Napa. It's said to be a good producing year with a bumper harvest expected. Can't wait and might have to go help out at a friends vineyard. You know harvest brings great parties at the end.

A Trip to Baja Mexico, Part 2

Dining out in Mexico can be fun with lots of options from the famous street taco carts grilling meats over charcoal to the more fancy ocean side seafood restaurants, I like to stay away from the main tourist areas to get a better value and food that is more genuine. A sign of a good restaurant where you can't go wrong is a crowded place filled with locals and if you ask someone for or a recommendation you might find a great hole in the wall place too.

Simple Mahi Ceviche

Common Road Side Restaurant in San Jose

Sea of Cortez Prawn Combo Plate with the Ever Present Modelo Beer

Nervous Cows??

Baja Pacific Sunset

A Trip to Baja Mexico

I recently returned from a week in the Western Mexican region of Baja. Besides the lure of its warm beaches, the food is a big draw. Seafood dominates this coastal region and the menus reflect that with lots of trophy fish such as Marlin, Mahi and Tuna. The most common preparation is the famous Baja fish taco- simply made with grilled fish, cabbage and salsa. There is also quite a bit of ceviche made from fish and shellfish; the chilled fish is perfect in the hot and humid environment. What was different on this trip for me, was having access to a full kitchen in my room. This gave me the opportunity to cook more of the foods I saw in the local markets.

Simple Shredded Chicken Taco

Blue Corn Chips with Salsa

Sopes with Pinto Beans, Cheese, Avocado and Fresh Salsa

Breakfast Egg & Cheese Scramble with Avocado and Refried Pinto Beans

San Francisco Fall Fest 2012

San Francisco Style Crab Cakes 

Beets and Goat Cheese

"The crowd favorite" BBQ Pork Belly

Smoked Trout with Plantain

San Francisco Skyline

On a recent Saturday I attended San Francisco Magazine's Fall Fest at Justin Herman Plaza. This was a perfect spot for it with the historic Ferry Building just across the street. Its a nice event and a way to enjoy some of the best local restaurant foods and wines while benefiting its charity Meals on Wheels, this great organization delivers food to people in need. It seemed like the crowd favorites this year were no surprise all the seafood dishes and the two booths serving crispy seared pork bellies. They were my favorites too.

Padron Chili Peppers

On a recent weekend I visited the city of Portland, Oregon where I attended the weekly farmers market in the downtown area. This is always a great way to see what other cities or even states are growing this time of year, and no big surprise was seeing lots of berries on display there. Oregon being a little cooler then California has a slight delay in warm weather vegetables coming to market, but the berries were out in force with amazing varieties. Another popular seasonal vegetable found there is the small Padron chili pepper, loved for its mild pepper flavor (but maybe one in twenty will be spicy hot). I bought at least four baskets which I brought back with me to California to enjoy here. The very best way to cook them I think is to quickly pan roast with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Perfect when served in a bowl as a snack with a cold drink.

Love the Variety 

Berries in all colors

Peppers everywhere

Urban Garden in San Francisco

Growing Cabbage

Most of the time I notice the changing of the seasons by seeing new produce arrive at my local farmers market, the other somewhat odd place I see seasonal vegetables is a small urban garden in downtown San Francisco.  I have been driving by this garden for years and I always notice what's being planted and harvested; I always like to see the bright red summer tomatoes surrounded by grey buildings. This small plot of land is called the Tenderloin People's Garden and all the volunteer-grown vegetables are given away free to local residents.  It's a win for everyone.

A Spot of Green in a Sea of Grey

Baja Mexico Trip, Part Four

The Sand Bar

The Cool & Funky Sand Bar

One of the cool and fun things about Mexico is that due to somewhat relaxed government agencies, the bars, clubs and restaurants can be pretty funky in a good way. Things that would not be allowed here in the US due to the many building codes are fine in Mexico. One example is the Sand Bar, a bar & restaurant on highway 19 in the town of Pescadero, Baja California Sur. The name Sand Bar is right because the floor is just that, sand.  A large living tree in the center is a focal point with a rustic palm-thatched roof built around it. The crowd is made up of locals, traveling surfers and the ever-present odd cat and dog, enjoying good drinks and a simple bar menu while maybe watching a game on the wide screen or live music on the weekends.  Another different funky bar and restaurant on the same highway but in the middle of nowhere, is Art & Beer ~ a simple bar surrounded by modern outdoor sculptures in the cactus-covered garden. It's fun to wander and look at the art while drinking a over-sized mug of blended fruit and tequila. One odd tradition they have is to hand you a beer as you are leaving so you can continue drinking on the road; is that legal in this country?  No way!

The Bar

Funky Art on the Highway