Gastronomy Blog by Cathy Chaplin

Potpourri

14 Mar 2011

Celebrating 1,000 Posts on Gastronomy!

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Potpourri

Blog birthdays come and go without any acknowledgment on the site, but I couldn’t let this milestone pass without some fanfare. I can’t believe I’ve pressed the “Publish” button 1,000 times! And I can’t believe people actually read this stuff!

I launched this site one summery day back in August 2006 while bored to tears at work. I was performing some heavy duty statistical analysis at the time and desperately needed an outlet for my creativity. Little did I know that writing about my food adventures at home and out on the town would afford me so many awesome opportunities and introduce me to so many fun and fascinating people. This has been a seriously amazing ride, and I hope to keep on bloggin’ till I’m gray and senile.

In celebration of the big 1-0-0-0, a retrospective is in order! Of the 999 posts that preceded this one, these are the most viewed recipe and restaurant posts of all time. Thank you for taking the time to read Gastronomy and I hope you’ll enjoy this trip down memory lane.

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Restaurant Review

11 Mar 2011

Fried Chicken Night at Ad Hoc – Yountville

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Sometime last December, a brilliant idea came to me while I was procrastinating at work. I didn’t know how the logistics would unfold exactly, but I decided that my 29th birthday had to be celebrated over fried chicken at Ad Hoc. It’s been a dream of mine for quite sometime, and it was high time that it was turned into a reality.

After calling the restaurant and figuring out the schedule (fried chicken is only served for dinner every other Monday), a table was booked for February 21. And thus, my month-long birthday party culminated in Yountville at Ad Hoc’s fried chicken night. Dreams really do come true!

Ad Hoc has been one of my all-time favorite restaurants ever since The Astronomer and I brunched here nearly two years ago. The food, which has a deceptively simple and homey quality about it, is made with the finest ingredients and executed with precision. The restaurant serves a four-course menu five nights a week and a three-course brunch on Sunday. All meals are shared family style.

The Astronomer and I were joined by our friend Scott and his girlfriend Nandita for this hotly anticipated dinner. Scott, who produces wine in nearby St. Helena, was in charge of the evening’s libations. He chose a light and bright white from the Napa Valley—Massican “Annia.”

Fried chicken Monday, which is priced at $52 per person, started off like any other Ad Hoc meal, with bread from nearby Bouchon Bakery served with perfectly spreadable butter.

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Restaurant Review

09 Mar 2011

Bottega – Yountville

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After spending several days in The Bay visiting loved ones and dining at some spectacular local spots, The Astronomer and I traveled to Wine Country for more of the same. We haven’t been back to the area since celebrating our engagement at The French Laundry in 2009, but the scenery and spirit of the place was just as lovely as we remembered it.

On our first night in town, The Astronomer and I snagged two seats at the bar at Chef Michael Chiarello‘s three-year-old rustic Italian eatery Bottega. I had tried to make a proper reservation a few days earlier, but the entire restaurant was fully booked. Fortunately, we didn’t wait but five minutes before two stools opened up.

While we perused the menu and wine list, our waiter dropped off some white bread along with a garlic- and cheese-infused olive oil. It’s been a while since I’ve encountered bread service worth going gaga over, but Bottega’s was really outstanding. The bread was crusty without scarring the roof of my delicate mouth, while the olive oil was just plain addictive. Even though we had a feast ahead of us, seconds were requested and immediately devoured.

To start, I picked the pesce crudo—“market fresh raw selection from the sea.” The day’s offering was Big Eye tuna served with spicy micro greens and deep-fried satsumas ($13). I liked the dish well enough, but thought the portion size was ridiculously small. The tempura-battered mandarin segments were the most exciting element on the slab.

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