This is one great lobster roll!  Ever since I shared a lunch of a lobster roll with my grandmother in Boston, which was her last, I’ve always been on the search for a really good one.  Up until now, the rolls at various San Fran Bay Area restaurants have let me down.  Then Anchor & Hope’s roll ended the search.  Maybe because it’s on a top loaded brioche bun.  Maybe because the dressing is really light.  Nah, it’s because the chunks of lobster just shine through.  It’s so good, and so filling, I really didn’t need the Old Bay seasoned potato chips, or the coleslaw (although I recommend dipping some of the brioche roll into the slaw dressing…I’m just saying).  Yeah it’s 24 bucks, but I promise you won’t go away disappointed or hungry.  Pair with any number of crisp whites on the wine list, including an Albarino Grenache Blanc blend.

The other sandwich we tried was the Vietnamese shrimp fritter on a roll.  A&H just added it to their menu and it is a worth addition.

The restaurant space is really cool, and old auto mechanics garage.  Part of the fun is finding the place, down the alley on Minna St.

What’s char siu you ask? It’s a type of cooking and seasoning. According to Wikipedia, char siu is a method of barbeque or roasting, and the seasoning or marinade is responsible for the red color. Red miso is typically used, along with honey, five spice powder, soy and hoisin sauce. All I know is that the cod was buttery and a little sweet and absolutely delicious.

Low country is what people call the areas including Savannah, GA, Beaufort and Hilton Head Island, both in South Carolina, all the way up to Charleston.   No mountains or hills, just flat (and low) marshes and beaches.  During the holidays I got my fill of real BBQ, shrimp and girts and other seafood that low country is known for.  The wild Georgia shrimp are so fresh and sweet.  Had a standout meal at a fairly new restaurant in Bluffton, South Carolina.  Bluffton used to be the speed trap on the way from Atlanta to Hilton Head.  Now Bluffton’s becoming a place you want to visit, with local artisan shops and restaurants.  If you go, be sure to check out the May River Grill.  Panko-crusted fried local oysters, fluffy biscuits served with onion butter – yum!  And crab cakes stuffed full of the local blue crab and hardly any filler.  The special that day was a parmesan crusted Walleye which was moist and flaky and cooked just right.

First up, Keste´ Pizza & Vino. It’s in a cramped and narrow space on Bleecker Street in the West Village. No reservations; put your name in and wait. On a Monday night, it was only 10 minutes. You are practically sitting in your neighbor’s lap — tables are crammed in every nook and cranny. No matter, the aroma of pizza baking is more than enough to make it worth your while to stay.

You get Neapolitan-style pizzas here. In fact, Keste´ is the US headquarters for the Associazione Pizzaiuoli Napoletani, the group that sets standards for what “true” Neapolitan pizza is, and also certifies pizzaiolos (pizza makers).

From the menu of 20+ pizzas, we chose the classic Margherita and the Proscuitto e Arugola. Pies are cut into 4 wedges, enough for 2 people to share. The Margherita was FANTASTIC. The crust is little crisp and chewy. The flavors were bold yet familiar: creamy mozzarella, sweet tomato sauce. This pizza ranks up there with what I think is the best pizza in the world, at Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix. The proscuitto pizza was no slouch though, again the same chewy crust and just the right balance of salty and sweet flavors. Keste´ was my favorite of the NYC pizzerias. A very simple wine list has offerings of house white,
rose´or red, served in carafes.

Next, Pulino. This is a Keith McNally restaurant, the same guy who brought us Balthazar and Pastis. Pulino’s interior will remind you of Balthazar and Pastis. It’s rustic and simple, just like the food. Pizza’s the main attraction here, as is the chef, Nate Appleman, a recent transplant from San Francisco. He was part of the A16 team, one of the San Francisco’s best Italian restaurants.

An insalate verde is a good start. Loved the dressing, made with red wine vinegar and creme fraiche.  I can tell you that Pulino’s pizza, at least the one I had, bested A16’s efforts. I had the Pesto pizze,with basil and arugula pesto, mozzarella, pecorino, pinenuts and stracchino Here the crust is paper thin and crisp, allowing the toppings to shine. The stracchino was rich and gooey, a nice contrast to the crunch of the crust.

Last is Co., which is in Chelsea. Very minimalistic interior.

This pizzeria was opened by Sullivan Street Bakery owner and baker, Jim Lahey. He’s known for his no-knead dough technique. At Co. the crust isn’t too thin or too thick — I’d say it is between the super thin Pulino crust and Keste’s chewy crust. Of the three pizzas, Co.’s had the proper amount of blistering and char. For me, what makes the pizza here are the toppings. I had the Peas & Proscuitto pie, with peas, shredded proscuitto, bechamel, mozzarella, parmesan and pea shoots. I’d never had peas or pea shoots on a pizza, but it really works! I paired it with a Shinas Estate “The Innocent” Viognier, a match that was fresh and luscious. Co. has the best wine list of the three pizzerias.

I never did make it to Motorino. Yet another Neapolitan-style pizzeria, Motorino has two locations, in Brooklyn and in the East Village. According to New York Times food critic Sam Sifton, it’s the best pizza in the city. My next trip to NYC, I’m going straight to Motorino from the plane. We’ll see then if it’s better than Keste’s.

Of course, while all of these pizzas are excellent, none of them are better than any of the pies coming out of Chris Bianco’s pizza oven at Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix. It’s worth a quick round trip flight from San Francisco just to eat one of his amazing pizzas. So far, Keste´ is the only pizzeria I’ve found that even comes close.

Of course, there’s always Ray’s – big slices, stringy cheese, mmmm. Perhaps it is the quintessential New York pizza.

One of Napa Valley’s best restaurants is Ubuntu in downtown Napa. Executive chef Jeremy Fox’s “vegetable cuisine” was a revelation. He redefined what it means to have an all vegetable-based menu, with much of the produce coming from the kitchen’s biodynamic garden fresh every day. Fox and Ubuntu received many awards and accolades. Well Fox departed earlier this year, and I think many of us were holding our collective breath about the restaurant’s future. Would it be as good with another chef? Will the vegetable menu be replaced? Will the restaurant close?

Rest assured, we can all breathe. I believe Ubuntu is now better than ever. The kitchen is now in the hands of executive chef Aaron London, who has been at Ubuntu since its opening in 2007. He’s got a stellar resume´- including stints at Daniel, Blue Hill at Stone Barns, L’Astrance and Arpege in Paris.  London is not only keeping the vegetable format, he’s elevated it.

My group for a recent Saturday lunch was made up of foodies, and many of us had dined at Ubuntu when Fox was at the helm. The first difference is the menu — gone is the little caldron of baked cauliflower and cheesy goodness. Trust me, you won’t miss it. Instead, try the gremolatta crusted zeppola stuffed with burrata. Mmmmm.

Each dish is a work of art and a creative blend of flavors and textures. To start, “chips ’n dip” – with lettuce, baby carrots, paper thin crackers made of carrot ash and a green goddess dressing for dipping it all in. Delicate flavors and interesting textures.

One of my absolute favorites is the clear cantaloupe soup with pineapple sage gazpacho, compressed melon, rat tail radishes, fork crushed avocado, aloe vera and banana mint.

The broth is poured tableside. Such delicate flavors; you get a hint of tropical from the pineapple sage and banana mint. The broth is incredibly clear; according to our server it’s strained at least twice.

I’ve had cheese grits, grits with gravy, shrimp and grits, but never with a strawberry sofrito. This creamy dish totally works. There’s also caramelized fino verde fennel, fresh ricotta and spinach. We’re told the sofrito was made over four days. London’s care and attention to detail in preparing ingredients for the dishes is mind boggling.

Our group also loved the carrot salad — slow roasted red dragon and crisp purple haze carrots with nasturtium panade, delfino cilantro and ras el hanout. This north African spice enlivens the dish, and gives it a subtle smokey quality.

The marinated ruby queen beets with aerated yogurt, beet tartare, compressed blenheim apricots and granola was a study in colors, contrasts and textures. I mean, granola and beets, who does that?

The beet salad is absolutely beautiful to look at, as are all London’s dishes. The freshness of the fruit and vegetables stand out and shines. The unusual and inventive combination of flavors are unexpected and keep your mouth guessing, but happy. All the more reason to plan to dine at Ubuntu now.

You probably don’t think of downtown Napa as a destination for style or shopping. People used to bypass Napa on their way to winery tasting rooms and St. Helena.  Well things have changed.  Now Napa is a must stop for great dining, wine tasting and shopping.

We drove up to Napa on Friday morning with only one destination in mind: Helen Lyall. Helen is the ultra-chic owner of her eponymous clothing boutique. She’s just relocated her store from Vallejo (a town south of Napa) to the new Riverfront development in downtown Napa.

No surprise that my friends are all wine fashionistas. We had a denim-free weekend (unplanned); most of us wore cute dresses the entire time.  We had the run of the boutique with Helen and her staff pulling clothes, swapping out sizes and making sure we found just the right outfits. There’s a wide range of prices, and something for everyone from Helen’s well-edited collection of clothing and jewelry. We had so much fun we forgot about lunch and barely had time to make it to our first winery appointment.  We missed going to Cake Plate, another Napa boutique and Oxbow Market for the beautiful local food purveyors and places to dine.

The drive up to Chappellet on Pritchard Hill is breathtaking. Behind you Lake Hennessey comes into full view. The winery itself has a 1970′s modern vibe, with a low slung roof line. Inside the ceiling rises to form a point at the center. It wasn’t until I saw an aerial photo that I realized the building’s roof is a pyramid, with three triangles, just like Chappellet’s red pyramid logo on the label.

Our host Henri lead us through a tasting of a Chenin Blanc, which we all loved, the Mountain Cuvee, a Bordeaux style blend, and the Signature Cabernet Sauvignon, Chappellet’s flagship wine.  This intimate tasting takes place in the barrel room and lasts about an hour.

We were back in downtown Napa to dine at Morimoto, just a few doors down from Helen Lyall at the Riverfront.  It’s definitely a see and be seen type of place.  All day people had been recommending two appetizers – the spicy king crab legs and the rock shrimp tempura.  In our opinion the appetizers and desserts are much better than the entreés, so next time we’ll skip the main course altogether.

Carpe Diem Wine Bar is open late, till 11 pm on weekends.  I was very happy to find a Sean Thackery wine by the glass.  Our evening ended here.  Another suggestion for a late night glass of wine is the new 1313 Main wine bar.  They’ve got an eclectic wine list, served in a beautifully designed bar where you just want to hang out.

On Saturday we drove to St. Helena, where winemaker Julian Fayard was pouring his Rosé, Sauvignon Blanc and a red blend from his Azur Wines label.  The Azur Rosé, made from Syrah, is my one of my favorite American Rosés, and I wanted my friends to try it.  They loved it (I knew they would).

We spent a lot of time (and money) at Reeds shopping for dresses and jewelry.  Reeds carries several European designers we like, including Crea Concept from France.  If we had more time, I’m sure we would have hit our other favorite shops:  Footcandy Shoes, Pearl Wonderful Clothing, Jan de Luz linens and Woodhouse Chocolates.

We’d been saving our appetite for a wine event at Charles Krug, the annual Appellation St. Helena tasting.  A dozen or so wineries were pouring.  Peter Mondavi, Jr. was pouring his Charles Krug wines, including a very nice Sauvignon Blanc and Zinfandel.  The food was from local favorite Cindy Pawlcyn’s restaurants (Cindy’s Kitchen, Mustard’s); we went back for several servings of duck sliders and ribs.  A few of us took part in a blind tasting, trying to deduce the wine varietal, vintage, and even the producer.  One of my friends and I did well enough to win grapevines, which are now planted in another friend’s backyard.

Our evening activity was at von Strasser Winery, on Diamond Mountain in Calistoga.  The winery had an art event, with the works of various local artists displayed in the vineyards and in the wine cave.  They paired their wines with small bites from a  Napa caterer.  We loved sitting on the patio, enjoying our glasses of Gruner Veltliner and Eye of the Diamond Rosé (it was a warm night).  In the caves, we sampled the wine von Strasser is known for, their reserve cab blend.  A fabulous evening!

For brunch the next day, we dined on the patio at Angele, again in downtown Napa.  Our first winery stop was Robert Biale Vineyards.  We liked the wines so much from trying them the day before that we set up a last minute tasting.  The setting is so peaceful, in the middle of the valley floor.  Biale is known for Zinfandel and they offer 13 Zins.  Be sure to try the Black Chicken, it has a direct tie to Biale’s early days bootlegging during prohibition.

Chimney Rock was our next stop, where we did a tour and tasting of their fabulous Bordeaux-inspired wines.  On a hot day, we enjoyed both Elevage Blanc, a white blend, and the Rosé of Cabernet Franc.  We also tasted the winery’s flagship Elevage red blend and Tomahawk Vineyard Cab.  We weren’t done yet.  Last stop was dinner at Ad Hoc on the way back home.  We love Thomas Keller’s one menu restaurant, where you share dishes family style.  We lucked out with pork shortribs and a strawberry rhubarb crisp.

With full tummies, and a jam-packed car (try fitting many box carriers of wine, bags of clothing, suitcases, four grapevines and four women into one car), we headed back home.  Of course we’re already planning our return visit for another ultimate weekend in wine country.