SHERYL CROW IN TAHOE ON A SATURDAY NIGHT

Paul and Lori surprised us with tickets to the Sheryl Crow concert at Harvey’s in South Lake Tahoe last weekend.  Beth and I were happy to tag along and it turned out to be a fun time!  We rode up in the Freestyle and got to Harvey’s late Friday afternoon.  After checking in, we went to the rooms to relax and ended up doing major damage to a bottle of Gentleman Jack and a bottle of Yamazaki Single malt, before heading downstairs to get some dinner.  I sat at a Roulette table in Harrah’s for about 15 minutes and managed to make $80, which paid for our dinners at the Hard Rock Cafe.  My burger was beyond well done, but I was too drunk to send it back.  After dinner, we all went to bed, except for Paul, who headed out to enjoy the warm (by Tahoe standards) night.

Saturday, we did a little nature walk, then walked around the new shops at Stateline.  We ate lunch at Mc P’s and then rested up for the show.  Before going to the concert, we hit the cigar bar in Harrah’s called Cliche.  We were the only ones in there, but the place was nice.  I selected a Arturo Fuente Hemingway, ($20) and ordered a Johnny Walker Blue, neat.  ($40)  It was a first on both accounts for me.  The Hemingway was great!  A toasty, medium flavored cigar with all the right flavors and no harshness.  The Johnny Blue was very good, but it has been so long since I drank any blended scotch, that I can’t really compare it to anything.  The place was cool, sure it was overpriced, but hey, there is a cute girl cutting and lighting your cigar for you!

The concert was great!  Being in Nevada, there was no shortage of alcohol available, and I took advantage and ordered a yard of Waborita.  Yes, that’s Sammy’s Cabo Wabo in a margarita mix, on the rocks at least.  I’m not sure who the first band was, as we only sat for their last song.  The next act was James Blunt, and I must say, I gain more respect for that guy all the time.  At first, I didn’t like him.  You know, a few years back when all I saw was a little, whiny Englishman who serial dated supermodels.  (no jealously here!)  Then I saw him on the British car show Top Gear, where he was funny, intelligent and downright cool.  And I found out that he served in the military and actually put in some pretty serious service!  Now, I see him open up for Sheryl Crow and he rocked!  He did an awesome job of warming up the audience, even in spite of his largely depressing songs.  He did a great job of interacting with the audience, and was pretty funny too.

Now, on to the main event.  Sheryl Crow was hot!  Her set was long and sounded great.  Her voice was powerful and dynamic, and the band was tight.  (So were her jeans, wow!)  She did a nice job of incorporating most of her hits, and spliced sections of a few covered songs into her own.  (Rolling Stones, Aerosmith and Led Zeppelin)  The drummer was very solid too!  A great show in a great location.  Thanks Paul and Lori!

ANOTHER “MONEYMOY” WEEKEND

This past weekend was another exercise in gastronomic activities.  Well, for me, it was Sunday through Tuesday as Money was attending a family wedding here on the Left Coast on Saturday.  (Slumming it on the golf course at Half Moon Bay no less!)  Sunday morning started off with Beth and I jumping in the car and heading up to San Mateo for a late breakfast at Santa Ramen.  This was my first foray into authentic Japanese Ramen, but Steve is an old pro.  Beth and I enjoyed the steaming hot bowl of ramen noodles, milky pork flavored broth, and added delicious stewed-pork.  It is definitely a good wintertime meal!  As it was, I was sweating after almost finishing my bowl.

Next, we headed up to SF to hit the Ferry Building.  Some of Steve’s relatives also came along for the tour.  The weather was beautiful and the company enjoyable.  After touring the Ferry Building, Steve, Beth and I sat down at the counter at Tsar Nicoulai Caviar Co.  Beth and I had been before, and we saw the menu had changed in the two or three years it had been since eating there.  Unfortunately, there was no more Caviar Sashimi dish.  That was my favorite; a big glass bowl with a Betta fish swimming in the bottom and above, a mix of caviar, sturgeon sashimi, and a raw quail egg among other items.  Oh well, Beth was satisfied to drink a Belini, while Steve and I both ordered the sparkling wine/caviar flight.  A glass of Domanie Carneros paired with Select American Osetra, a glass of J rose with Estate American Osetra, and Paddlefish caviar with Roederer.  After polishing off our pairings, we split a sampler platter.  It was good, but to be honest, I have to say the place has gone downhill.  The menu wasn’t as good and the sampler plates were not as good a value as they once were.  Not only had the prices gone up, which I could understand, but the grouping of caviar per sampler had changed.  It is still a place I will bring people, but I admit to being slightly disappointed.

While Steve and I were putting a hurting on our bank accounts eating caviar, his relatives were at Pete’s Coffee trying to digest all the ramen.  We met up at The Hog Island Oyster Company and put down a couple dozen oysters, some steamers, clam chowder and oyster stew.  The highlight was the Pacific Sweetwater Oysters for sure!!!  OMG!!!  Must have more!!!  I think Beth and I will be heading up to Tomales Bay to sample some more of these delicious beauties!

After the oysters, we headed bay towards Steve’s cousin’s place in Fremont.  They had planned a big BBQ with tons of food.  We stopped at a hole in the wall Indian store, where they had cooked food to go!  Steve’s cousin Nancy made us try a few things, that were good and spicy.  Then I was too full to eat at the BBQ and decided to drink my dinner.  I brought a bottle of Provenance Cab which turned out to be OK, and also had some wine Charlie provided, and a Mojito mixed by Nancy.  Then Beth and I headed home to fall asleep!  (I must note that as a polite house guest, Steve offered to cook something for his cousins and he decided on Beer-can chicken.  Now Steve is a good cook, but he was using an unfamiliar grill, and here is a picture of what he cooked!)  

I think they're done!!!

On Monday, Beth had to work, but I went with Steve, his bro Harv, Harv’s wife Rosa, and cousins Tony and Nancy up to Napa.  We went to two of Steve’s favorites; Rubicon and Corison, but the main event was dinner at Ad Hoc, one of Thomas Keller’s joints.  It was casual, but the food was spot on.  It was a fixed menu, and that day the four courses were:  A salad with fruit, Wagyu steak and veggies including potato fried in duck fat, a cheese/apple/honey course and a warm chocolate brownie for dessert.  We washed it all down with a bottle of Roederer champagne and a bottle of Rubicon Estate Cabernet.  Yum!

I was foolish enough to think that we would drive back to Fremont, where I could get in my car and go home to my nice bed, but I was wrong.  I should have known better because Money is a Foodie.  A very serious Foodie.  And I had noticed in the past two days that his extended family was eerily similar!  So, we headed into SF for sushi.  Nancy wanted us to experience the live Uni at Sushi Groove and it did not disappoint!  They only had one left by the time we got there, but it was delish!  There was some talk of going to a club after that, but the older folks won out and we headed home.

Tuesday I was so beat that I stayed home and caught up on some rest and my chores while Tony took Steve for his first Pete’s coffee and later for some Vietnamese coffee (which I’ve heard is served by scantily clad women) and pizza.  That night, we met up in San Mateo again at Sushi Sam’s for dinner.  I got there late and they had already order a few apps, and Nancy had gone to the store for a couple bottles of Sake (I think the corkage was $10 per bottle) then we all ordered Omakase which means “it’s up to you”, or basically “I trust the chef”.  It was seven sushi items brought out one course at a time and I must say,  at least four of five were exquisite!!  Great combos of three or four contrasting flavors in one bite.  Very good!  Then Charlie was crazy enough to pick up the tab for our table so we owe him big time!  Then it was off to a local bar for a last drink with Money and a couple games of Eight-ball before saying goodbye until the next time I see my NYC buddy.

Winemakers Dinner

Thanks to Laurie and Ed C. for inviting us to a great winemakers dinner!  Laurie won an appetizer contest at one of the member events at Martin Ranch Winery, the prize being an intimate dinner with the owners/winemakers.  Apparently, Ed and Laurie could invite four guests, and they picked another winery owner/winemaker couple to attend.  So, during this delicious dinner filled with different selections of wine, we got to eavesdrop on conversations of all aspects of wine-making by winemakers themselves!  It was a wonderful treat.

The grounds of the house and winery/vineyards were beautiful, but in a natural way.  This isn’t one of those fancy Napa wineries, it is more of a working farm and residence located in the beautiful Santa Cruz mountains.  There is a pond for fishing, and while sitting alone on a bench near the bank, I watched swallows performing their aerobatic maneuvers as they caught insects in flight.  I observed a black duck swimming lazily and even a noisy Kingfisher circle the pond a few times.  All this while sipping a glass of prosecco and smelling fresh veggies, and meat on the grill. 

The dinner was delicious, and many different wines were consumed, but the highlight had to be the double magnum of Martin Ranch Cab Franc.  I’m not sure how old it was, probably only a few years, but it was unfiltered and oh so good!  After dinner I was happy to hear Ed ask me if I had brought any cigars, (Ed knows me well)  and happier still when Dan Martin’s ears perked up and gave us the green light to smoke away!  I gave Ed and Dan each a La Flor Dominicana Ligero and had one myself.  They looked like they had good luck with theirs, but I struggled with a under-seasoned wrapped on mine.  I bought a box of these a few months ago, and they seemed to have “moist” wrappers.  The fillers burn okay, but the wrappers just smolder on some.  They have been aging in the humidor for months, and are starting to get better, but some still need more time.  I guess I’m just impatient when it comes to my favorite brand of cigar.

Overall, it was a most pleasant evening!  We met lots of fun, intelligent people (including a local news personality) and learned lots too.  (Dan gave a coffee-roasting demonstration for the interested souls around midnight.)  Beth drove the Z06 home and did a nice job of avoiding about 8 deer that crossed in front of us on a old country lane.  I hope we are lucky enough to experience a dinner like that again!