Author Archives: trevsbistro

“Beer” of the Week: White Chocolate Ale, Sonoran Brewing, Scottsdale, AZ

It’s not uncommon for a porter or a stout to present very noticeable chocolate notes. In fact, those two brew genres more often than not have the same repetitive duo in taste profiles: cacao and coffee. Yes, expert food and drink writers such as yours truly who can discern the most hidden of flavors, oftenContinue reading ““Beer” of the Week: White Chocolate Ale, Sonoran Brewing, Scottsdale, AZ”

What’s in a Name? That Which We Call a Restaurant?

Shakespeare and restaurants? Wherefore art thou going for dinner Romeo? Usually when we consider Shakespeare and dining, we think of going to the corner pub for a pint of bitter hard cider, or Falstaffian feasts, as in, “To finish a dish at Montreal’s Au Pied de Cochon, you must have a Falstaffian appetite.” I’m noContinue reading “What’s in a Name? That Which We Call a Restaurant?”

Tuesday’s Project: Nicole Plue’s Chocolate Peanut Butter Gianduja

First things first, gianduja needs some clarification. Gianduja is NOT Nutella. Nutella is a form of gianduja. Gianduja is the term for the Northwest Italy (Piedmont, Torino…) dessert specialty that combines chocolate with nut butter, most commonly hazelnut. The usual ratio for chocolate to nut butter in gianduja treats are 3:1, where the chocolate isContinue reading “Tuesday’s Project: Nicole Plue’s Chocolate Peanut Butter Gianduja”

Plat du Jour Monday April 8, 2013: Remembering Two Icons, MLB Dining, and Louisville vs Ann Arbor, In Basketball and Dining

Happy NCAA Basketball National Championship Monday, always one of the most “un-Monday feeling” Mondays of the year. Hopefully tomorrow doesn’t deliver a delayed case of the Mondays. In just a few moments, the Louisville Cardinals and the Michigan Wolverines will tip-off the Championship Game from the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. With the 2013 baseball seasonContinue reading “Plat du Jour Monday April 8, 2013: Remembering Two Icons, MLB Dining, and Louisville vs Ann Arbor, In Basketball and Dining”

Cocktail of the Week: Beet Yuzu Gimlet at Crudo, Phoenix, AZ

Is there anything more virtuous sounding than beet juice? Just think of the ills of the world that could be solved by drinking beet juice. So many nutrients could be acquired to brighten up so many days by pressing the violet juice out of those ugly, gnarly root vegetables. It seems like you could goContinue reading “Cocktail of the Week: Beet Yuzu Gimlet at Crudo, Phoenix, AZ”

For Your Weekend: Congratulations Scripps College Olive Oil and the Beltre Burger

It’s first weekend of April and the first weekend of the baseball season (Let’s Go Red Sox, Let’s Go Giants!). Here are a pair of amusing notes from the food world to chew on while watching the Final Four or getting your garden ready for the warmer weather. A very big congratulations go out toContinue reading “For Your Weekend: Congratulations Scripps College Olive Oil and the Beltre Burger”

Plat du Jour Friday April 5, 2013: Would You Like To Make A Reservation For Your Reservation?

A few weeks have passed since the restaurant world’s hot button issue du jour revolved around the supposed “tyranny” of tasting menus, where the writer Corby Kummer accused chefs in the February Vanity Fair of killing the liberty in the ¡a la carte restaurant experience. It was an intriguing accusation and one many diners understood.Continue reading “Plat du Jour Friday April 5, 2013: Would You Like To Make A Reservation For Your Reservation?”

Tasting Notes: Drakes Brewing, San Leandro, CA

Despite living in the San Francisco Bay Area nearly all my life, I had never been to the town of San Leandro before this recent craft beer tasting excursion. I had heard of San Leandro. It was always one of the exits along Highway 880 when I would be en route to or from anContinue reading “Tasting Notes: Drakes Brewing, San Leandro, CA”