How about stepping away from the pressures of your life for a few days? One place on my bucket list to visit is the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. The guest season for 2012 goes from May 4th through September 10th.
Guest accommodations consist of private cabins and dorms. Rates are all-inclusive, with three meals daily and use of all facilities.
Romantically, there is no electricity in the guest rooms. Kerosine lamps are used for light. You can bring your own wine or champagne.
Keep your iPads and cell phones at home -- there is no cell service.
Resources:
Tassajara Zen Mountain Center
39171 Tassajara Road
Carmel Valley, CA 93924
Guest Season 2012: May 4-September 10
888-743-9262
General information: 415-865-1895
Day guest reservations: 831-659-2229 (no more than two weeks in advance)
tassreservations@sfzc.org
And here's a link to the Tassajara SF Zen Center cookbook:
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Thursday, May 17, 2012
San Francisco Zen Center & Green's Restaurant
Green's is one of the best vegetarian restaurants in the country. Chef Annie Somerville has a daily menu. The restaurant itself is a beautiful space. It has floor to ceiling windows looking out to views of the Marina, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the Marin Headlands.
Greens opened in 1979 under the auspices of the San Francisco Zen Center. The Zen Center was established in 1962 by Sheenryu Suzuki Roshi. The Zen Center has three residences: the Zen Center in San Francisco, Tassajara Zen Mountain Center in the Ventana Wilderness inland from Big Sur, and Green Gulch Farm in Marin County.
Resources:
www.greensrestaurant.com
415-771-6222
Greens To Go: 415-771-6330
Fort Mason, Building A
San Francisco, California
You can also check out the "Fields of Greens" Cookbook:
Greens opened in 1979 under the auspices of the San Francisco Zen Center. The Zen Center was established in 1962 by Sheenryu Suzuki Roshi. The Zen Center has three residences: the Zen Center in San Francisco, Tassajara Zen Mountain Center in the Ventana Wilderness inland from Big Sur, and Green Gulch Farm in Marin County.
Resources:
www.greensrestaurant.com
415-771-6222
Greens To Go: 415-771-6330
Fort Mason, Building A
San Francisco, California
You can also check out the "Fields of Greens" Cookbook:
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Wine Country -- Cooking Resources
We recommend a few books about cooking Keller-Wine Country style.
These are, at least, fantastic coffee table books (and good ideas if you're rushing around thinking of a good Mother's or Father's Day gift). For those who are more adventurous, trying to make the dishes described in these books can be quite an experience.
First, the classic: Thomas Keller's The French Laundry Cookbook.
Next, the more recent Complete Keller:
And there's Ad Hoc at Home, which has some recipes and ideas that might be just slightly easier than the other books above.
These are, at least, fantastic coffee table books (and good ideas if you're rushing around thinking of a good Mother's or Father's Day gift). For those who are more adventurous, trying to make the dishes described in these books can be quite an experience.
First, the classic: Thomas Keller's The French Laundry Cookbook.
Next, the more recent Complete Keller:
And there's Ad Hoc at Home, which has some recipes and ideas that might be just slightly easier than the other books above.
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Wine Country
Thomas Keller's restaurant, The French Laundry, is beyond amazing. My husband and I went there once several years ago, and I ordered the vegitarian prixe fixe menu. The restaurant, as I remember it, was clean and crisp; it was the most perfect restaurant I'd ever gone to. It is definitely for special occasions. Reservations are absolutely necessary; there are legends about trying to get one. You basically need to call the restaurant first thing in the morning two months before you want to visit.
Keller's Bouchon is nowadays getting rave reviews. It is purposefully intended to be more casual than The French Laundry. It is a casual place, a social place, a place where people come to relax, talk, and eat. As Keller describes it, Bouchon is "a kind of home."
As we all know, a home is never perfect! My friends celebrated a birthday there, and absolutely loved it. I want to go soon!
Resources:
www.bouchonbistro.com
Bouchon
6534 Washington Street
Yountville, CA 94599
Price - $31-50
Reservations: (707) 944-8037
There are also locations in Las Vegas and Beverly Hills
www.frenchlaundry.com
French Laundry
Reservations: (707) 944-2380 or online through opentable.com
Jackets required for both lunch and dinner service.
No jeans, shorts, or tennis shoes
Keller's Bouchon is nowadays getting rave reviews. It is purposefully intended to be more casual than The French Laundry. It is a casual place, a social place, a place where people come to relax, talk, and eat. As Keller describes it, Bouchon is "a kind of home."
As we all know, a home is never perfect! My friends celebrated a birthday there, and absolutely loved it. I want to go soon!
Resources:
www.bouchonbistro.com
Bouchon
6534 Washington Street
Yountville, CA 94599
Price - $31-50
Reservations: (707) 944-8037
There are also locations in Las Vegas and Beverly Hills
www.frenchlaundry.com
French Laundry
Reservations: (707) 944-2380 or online through opentable.com
Jackets required for both lunch and dinner service.
No jeans, shorts, or tennis shoes
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Rockridge Jazz and Wine Stroll
On May 11, the beautiful Rockridge neighborhood (in Oakland, California along College Avenue about a mile or two south of the UC Berkeley campus) will play host to its Jazz and Wine Stroll. Starting around 4:30pm, Rockridge neighborhood restaurants and shops will have live jazz, serve wine, and have a great time.
Market Hall will serve street fare.
A great time for couples!
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