Dinner Party

The second week of February is a really good one in San Francisco. Not only do we have Valentine’s Day but the city is also bustling with Chinese New Year celebrations and there’s usually a heat-wave around this time that makes it feel so summery. I hosted a luncheon last Saturday for a group of…

I only decided to have this dinner party at about 10:00 in the morning the day of. I had one friend coming in town to stay for the week, another friend coming to visit for dinner from Santa Cruz, Rob was in NYC on business and I had a lot of things to say about…

At this year’s brunch, I had a lot of extra flowers left over from making arrangements and set up a “Deck Your Hairdo” contest for our guests. A small table held all the flowers, scissors, bobby pins and a small mirror.  Everyone got into the spirit! Jordan’s son helped to get guests to participate: Jean…

What could be more festive than a 17-pound roast ham? For the last nine years, Rob and I have hosted a Christmas brunch for our friends featuring a locally-cured delicious ham. The menu is so simple and so fun. It’s one of my favorite parties of the year. Menu Roasted ham with spices, brown sugar…

A highlight of my birthday weekend in Pescadero was making dinner for our 15 guests using local ingredients and a blazing hot campfire! Nothing tastes better than what you’ve cooked with friends over a wood fire under the Milky Way. Menu: Grilled Harley Farm goat cheese Artichoke garlic bread from Arcangeli Grocery  Chile verde pork loin…

I think the heat wave in San Francisco is about to break. It certainly was hot when we had old friends over for a casual Italian meal on Sunday night.  When you’re spending time with people you’ve known for 13 years, it is cause for celebration – hot or not. Menu:  Charcuterie: A spread of sbriciolona, soppressata,…

Last night’s dinner party was probably the best in terms of food that we’ve hosted so far. A delicious spread of homestyle Mexican food focusing on fresh seasonal produce straight from farmer’s market. Menu Chips and homemade salsa Pollo en salsa chile de arbol tacos Rice with fresh cranberry beans and cilantro Pickled onions Mini…

I’m just back from farmer’s market and ready to start cooking. Can you guess what the theme of this week’s dinner party is going to be?

We’re going to cook an authentic African meal together with my parents and family friends tonight! My Mom and her good friend lived in Ethiopia while working with the Peace Corps. For Christmas, I bought her a suite of authentic Ethiopian spices online, and yesterday I walked down to the corner deli on Grove Street,…

The thing with hosting a dinner party every week is that you go through a lot of table linens.  Will fall entertaining just around the corner, it’s time to pick up a few new cloth napkins for my supply. 1. Blue green linen napkins from CB2 2. French toile patterned napkins in blue and red…