I have become a broken record on the state of Yakitori in San Francisco; you can’t throw a dead cat in any neighborhood of that illustrious city and not hit a Japanese restaurant, yet there is a not a single yakitori establishment anywhere in it’s small confines. Yeah, I have heard of a few in South San Francisco or down on the peninsula, but in San Francisco proper, there is nary formal barbeque utilizing the essential Kishu Binchō-tan, or charcoal wood. This means my occasional trips to Southern California always necessitate a visit to a Yakitori restaurant, of which there are a plethora (go figure). Shin-Sen-Gumi has been my go-to yakitori for years but on the occasion of hitting L.A. for my birthday, old friend and local food writer Richard Foss suggested a new joint he had heard good things about, Izakaya Bincho in Redondo Beach. It was slightly surreal because Redondo was where I called home for almost a decade and left over seven years ago for the wiles of Napa (eventually decamping for San Francisco). Odd to walk the boardwalk, hear the Saturday night mating calls from nearby Naja’s, a local watering hole, and see the changes in a neighborhood I had known so well…
I have really amazing friends. No – REALLY amazing friends. Several weeks ago I decided to head to my old stomping ground of Southern California for my birthday weekend. As I usually plan these events, I e-mailed all the principals to determine who was free when and a pell-mell few days are planned with me driving from Orange County to Los Angeles and back several times; seeing this friend for lunch and that friend for dinner. But my first day was wholly and entirely spent with my darling friends, Lita and Vere.
Now it is true that normally when I travel, I maniacally plan all the restaurants and eating establishments I want to frequent, but I knew that Lita liked to cook and that something quiet, small and intimate would probably take place in their home instead of the informality of a stuffy Orange County restaurant. What I was not prepared for was the stunning extent to which she would go to give me the most special birthday dinner I have ever had. You see, being a cook myself, most friends don’t usually cook for me. We go out. And as cooks know, having someone else cook for you is that much more special. Click through and read the tasting menu which left me speechless and literally brought tears to my eyes. I love you guys so much.
My visit to Charleston, South Carolina was a very quick one – barely two days. But there were two very specific things I wanted to experience whilst in Charleston; true southern barbecue, and McCrady’s. I’m not sure where I first heard about McCrady’s, but when I suggested to my friend that this is where we were going on my last night in town, she quickly assented and confirmed it was well-regarded in town.
I waited until the very end of my weeklong report to really get into the food on the cruise. I was very fortunate to meet with head chef, David Reihana from New Zealand, who gave me a private tour of two of the twelve kitchens aboard the Liberty of the Seas. Engaging and gregarious, it is easy to see how much Chef David loves his job. While admittedly not four-star dining, I am actually more in awe at the overall quality of the food served considering what is accomplished on board in these kitchens. It is all very, very impressive.
I am an admitted snob in that I prefer to have my vacations centered around old cities, good restaurants, and museums with lots and lots of art. It was surprising then that I found the Royal Caribbean’s® Liberty of the Seas ship to be studded with some fairly decent art. The ship has two main stairwells both starboard and aft; the starboard side goes twelve floors and the aft side of the ship spans fourteen decks. On the wall in between each deck is a different piece of artwork – all two-dimensional (no multi-media, sculptures, textiles, etc.) There are acrylic paintings, watercolors, photographs, and digital art – and much of it is very evocative, which is good when you are trapped in a stairwell waiting to depart the ship for an excursion.