The Iron Chevsky Wine Blog

Some days aren't about the destination. They're about the people who share the journey. A simple plan: coffee in San Francisco, wine in the Russian River Valley, and seafood in Healdsburg. We started in Jackson Square at Loveski , a neighborhood café and deli that's become a favorite breakfast stop for my friend, who lives just around the corner. While the menu ranges from house-smoked fish, breakfast dishes and sandwiches to pastries, we kept it simple with coffee. A compact in-house roaster sits just steps from the espresso bar, making the place feel more like a craftsman's workshop than a café. Next door, Maison Nico reminded me why French cuisine is as much about craftsmanship as flavor.  We shared buttery croissants, brioche, madeleines and caramelized canelés while admiring one of the most beautiful displays of pâté en croûte, duck pithiviers, terrines and Beef Wellington I've seen in the Bay Area. We were saving room for lunch, which made it an easy decisi...

Finally, a fine dining, foodie restaurant opens in Palo Alto. There is no shortage of restaurants in this town flush with Silicon Valley millionaires (and billionaires), but finding an avenue that satisfies a truly discerning palate is a tough call.  Protege  is located at 250 S. California Ave. They soft-launched last week aspiring to fit that bill, and it mostly delivers. Founded by ex-French Laundry culinary and vinous experts Anthony Secviar (chef) and Dennis Kelly (master sommelier, a very elite designation of wine expertise), the food is high-end, yet manages to avoid a stuffy/snobby feel of a formal Michelin-star establishment. The room is divided into a "no-reservations-accepted / first-come-first-serve" a la carte section, which based on the review from a trusted source is fantastic, and the more formal "prix-fixe" reservations-only (reservations are taken exactly one week in advance) where you get to choose a 3 or 4 course (mix-and-match, i.e. you ca...

Benu restaurant in San Francisco has recently been promoted to 3-Michelin-Star, an elite designation of top restaurants in the world. In the Bay Area, we only have four: The French Laundry, The Restaurant at Meadowood (both in Napa Valley), and the newly promoted Saison and Benu, both in San Francisco. I headed over to Benu , for my inaugural visit, to find out for myself what the fuss was all about. A fixed menu of numerous bite-size courses, Asian-fusion style, with an incredibly light touch, was impressive. Almost every decadent ingredient one can think of was somehow represented. The wine list was fairly impressive and versatile as well, with aged bottles of DRC at prices not far above the retail prices of current releases (so relative "value", one might say). Based on a recommendation of a wine guru friend and a Benu regular, I brought a bottle of white burgundy which I had been cellaring for a few years, and indeed it worked very well with the menu. Master Sommelier ...