Saturday, April 2, 2011

Delighted again!

As I impatiently await my 2 year contract with AT&T to reach its 2 years, photos taken with my iPhone will be unbearably dull and fuzzy. If I were to purchase the new iPhone now, it would cost me several cases of Champagne's worth or half a plane ticket to Paris and therefore, will have to wait. Plus, there will probably be a new phone again by then! I forgot my camera when I dined at Julienne this past week and you will find these photos to be dark and blurry, but I think that one still sees how delectable the food looks anyhow. I find Julienne to be on of the most gastronomically interesting restaurants in Santa Barbara. 
First course - Smoked MusselsTiny Market Lettuces, Grilled Flatbread, Lemon-Garlic Aioli. The mussels were so ever delicately smokey. The balance of the acidity of the aioli paired with the mussels and the flatbreads was spectacular. It's for dishes like these that I dine out.
Second course - Braised Wild Boar Shoulder, Broad Noodles, Shaved Brussels Sprouts, Garlic, Chili Flakes, Boar Braising Jus. You would think this dish would be too rich, but boy was it just awesome. I am drooling just thinking about it. The pasta had that perfect fresh pasta texture and the braised boar was full of flavor and tender. This is one of those dishes you end up craving.
Thrid course - Duck Duo, duck sausage, duck breast. Oh, duck, how I love thee.
Dessert - Housemade strawberry sorbet and coffee ice cream. That coffee ice cream = yum. And how they made such a strawberry-ey strawberry sorbet out of season, who knows, but bravo. 
We enjoyed this meal with wine pairings which ranged from French, to Italian, to local winery wines, all of which were perfectly matched with the dishes. Tom, our waiter, was wonderful and perfect as usual. He is always charming and aware of timing and the entire dining experience. Emma - co-owner with her husband (and the Chef) Justin - is always smiling and professional. Julienne really is a gem.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Sitting here with a glass of Stella and some salted sunflower seeds, I try to find that ephemeral Muse that dances around my head taunting me with inspirations, making them hard to grasp and hold in my hand. I went to see Ruth Reichl speak today. She was the food critic for the LA Times and then the New York Times as well as the editor of Gourmet magazine and writer of several books around food. I feel all inspired and motivated, yet totally blocked.

On another note, the weather was lovely this morning when I set out for a very long beach walk on Hendry's Beach. The shore has taken quite a beating from the recent storms and the sand has been washed away revealing jagged, horizontal lines of rock jabbing out of the ground. Normally this is athe dog friendly side of the beach full of bouncing balls of fur, but now there is just too much rock protruding and nowhere to run after a tennis ball. Makes for a beautiful landscape, however. We'll see if the tides bring in the sand again to cover up the rocks.
Photo taken with the Instagram application on the iPhone.