Time to put a little more spice in your life.

Time to put a little more spice in your life.

You may know what Candelaria is; you may not. Even though I had a mostly Christian upbringing, I only knew the word Candelaria from an art history class. And it was a painting by Hans Holbein (The Elder, I think). In San Miguel de Allende, the presentation of Christ...
The Chili Cookoff. Good times never felt so good.

The Chili Cookoff. Good times never felt so good.

Some things are best said in words. Some things are best said in pictures. Yannis Dettingmeijer’s photography captures the good food, the good booze, the good people, the good times, better than I could ever portray them with nouns, adjectives and verbs. I was...
“Ow I like dem erstas at Hank’s.”

“Ow I like dem erstas at Hank’s.”

That was my attempt at what New Orleanians call a “yat” accent. I know. Not very good was it. In her book, New Orleans Cuisine: Fourteen Signature Dishes And Their Histories, Susan Tucker refers to Oysters Rockefeller as “the single greatest contribution of the United...
You’re invited to spend a gourmet evening in Spain.

You’re invited to spend a gourmet evening in Spain.

At next month’s San Miguel de Allende wine-pairing dinner, we will be exploring the wine regions of Spain. With six different courses each accompanied by a different wine. The menu, I think, speaks for itself. GASPACHO DE ANDALUCIA Cucumber, bell pepper and herb...
Appassimento. Hard to spell. Easy to drink.

Appassimento. Hard to spell. Easy to drink.

There is no winery in my opinion more emblematic of the Veronese style than Masi Agricola. Still family-owned, Masi is one of the largest wineries in Valpolicella, producing over 12 million bottles a year. 47 of those bottles were opened last week at Firenze, one of...
In pursuit of a better shepherd’s pie.

In pursuit of a better shepherd’s pie.

I’m recycling one of my blog posts from a few years ago today. Partly, of course, because I’m lazy. But mostly because a Scottish version of Don Day’s Wife’s shepherd’s pie will be on the menu at Bonds’ Robbie Burns Night in San...
“If you know beans about chili, you know chili has no beans.”

“If you know beans about chili, you know chili has no beans.”

Wick Fowler wrote those words. Jerry Jeff Walker sang those words. Don Day doubted those words. I was never really popular as a kid. Except for about every two weeks on Thursday. Because it was about every two weeks on Thursday that I would get up in the morning and...
The Restaurant. Because there’s no friend like an old friend.

The Restaurant. Because there’s no friend like an old friend.

I had an old friend visiting this week. We go back a long way. To when “having a ball” meant owning a treasured piece of pigskin. And going long, up-and-down the avenue, was our favorite pastime. “Though a dragon lives for ever, not so little boys”,...
Cazón. Worth the seven blocks just to try it.

Cazón. Worth the seven blocks just to try it.

OK, Grille Torres is a little out of the way. But only a little. In fact, it’s only seven blocks from the jardin. I counted last week when I went for the cazón. I like Grille Torres. A lot. And it’s not exactly a foodie restaurant. Reasonably common dishes actually....
Oh where, oh where, can my ramen man be?

Oh where, oh where, can my ramen man be?

It was October 10 when I got the first email. October 11 when I got the second. There had been a sighting in San Miguel de Allende. On the top floor of Mercado Sano. And then a second sighting. And there I was in San Sebastian, Spain. It would be almost three weeks...