Sunday, January 31, 2010 

Frank Ostini of Hitching Post Wines


Frank Ostini working his magic
Originally uploaded by santa barbarian.

will create 25 cases of a special cuvee for the Vintners' Express: American Riviera Wine Auction benefiting Direct Relief International.

Winemakers Frank Ostini and Gray Hartley of Hitching Post Wines are creating 25 cases of a commemorative cuvee of Santa Barbara Pinot Noir for auction at the Vintners’ Express: The American Riviera Wine Auction fundraiser.

For the first time, the event will benefit Direct Relief International’s programs supporting community clinics in Santa Barbara and across the United States.

Sponsored by the Santa Barbara County Vintners’ Foundation, the dinner and auction will be held Saturday, Feb. 20, at the Direct Relief warehouse, 27 S. La Patera Lane, Santa Barbara.In collaboration with the winner of the designated auction lot, Hitching Post Wines will create a commemorative cuvee of 25 cases, including a label branded by Hartley Ostini and Direct Relief USA.

Ten cases will be awarded to the winner, with remaining wine to be sold at the Hitching Post II Restaurant in Buellton and Terravant Winery’s Avant Tapas and Wine.

The winner can name the cuvee and will join Hartley and Ostini for lunch at Avant during the 2010 harvest, followed by a tasting of new wines. - Santa Maria Times

Labels: , , , , ,

Thursday, January 28, 2010 

Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz


Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz Talks to the Media
Originally uploaded by sillygwailo.

"reportedly...rumoured to have....supposedly" tired of Seattle "gloom" and recently dropped a bucket o'money for a home in Montecito. Guess he can afford to as his salary increased by 25% last years.

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz was paid $12.1 million in 2009, an increase of 25 percent from the previous year, according to a securities filing this morning. - Seattle Times

Labels: , , , ,

 

January 28, 1969


A date that lives in infamy here in Santa Barbara.
And, for those who chant "drill baby, drill", might I remind them the oil pumped out of the Santa Barbara channel is of a quality that is used for pavement...not autos. It wouldn't help the price at the pump at all. But, you won't hear that little bit of information coming from the politicians (r-oil companies) who are looking to force offshore drilling.


Labels: ,

Wednesday, January 27, 2010 

Santa Barbara's The Eagle Inn

is mentioned in a press release sent out by the California B&B Innkeepers. Take notes if you are looking for an unusual way to say "Will You Be Mine" this upcoming Valentine's Day "season."

Eagle Inn in Santa Barbara
Originally uploaded by arrabi.

Lovers looking for an unforgettable way to pop the question can rely on experts in the field of romance: California bed and breakfast innkeepers. For years, innkeepers throughout the state have been helping couples dream up unique ways to get engaged.

...Three years ago, innkeeper Paul Bullock of The Eagle Inn in Santa Barbara emerged from the ocean at sunset in full scuba gear — like a creature from the deep — and shuffled along the sand to an incredulous couple standing on the beach. He handed them a large sea shell. “I told them I’d found this unusual shell and that they should have it as a souvenir,” said Bullock. “The man made a big deal of it, shook it, passed it to his girlfriend, and said, ‘there’s something inside.’ The girlfriend opened the shell and found her engagement ring.” - BusinessWire via Earthtimes

Labels: , ,

Monday, January 25, 2010 

Is the Weinermobile being gobbled out of a home?


According to Loopnet, 120 Santa Barbara Street is up for lease. This is the address for Prototypesource...makers of the Weinermobile, the Hershey's Kissmobile...and more.


This is not news to relish.

Labels: , , ,

Sunday, January 24, 2010 

The historic Cold Spring Tavern


Cold Spring Tavern
Originally uploaded by Carrie Patterson.


is written up in Restaurant News.
Known as much for its wild game dishes such as rabbit, wild boar and venison as for its history, Cold Spring Tavern, with its wood-paneled dining room, stone hearth fireplaces and mounted animal heads on its walls, was rustic before the term was coined. The 3,000-square-foot main restaurant and bar — there’s also separate bar area next to the restaurant’s sloping dirt parking lot — seats about 70 people and regularly serves about 110 lunches and 120 dinners a day, according to John Locke, the restaurant’s general manager for a decade. Cold Spring Tavern — not “Springs,” as it’s often called — which also has live music four nights a week, provides a snapshot of California history for customers ranging from longtime locals to out-of-state tourists to the aforementioned bikers.

“It’s the same,” said Stuart Churchill, who met his wife Joanne at the Tavern 28 years ago and in late December made a trip back there with her for the first time since they moved to Steamboat Springs, Colo., from Santa Barbara about 15 years ago. “The moss on the roof is a little thicker, but that’s about it.”


Cold Spring Tavern’s aversion to change — three of its 25 employees have worked there for more than 20 years — appears to have served the restaurant well. With many restaurants’ 2009 sales down between 10 percent and 20 percent, last year’s sales at Cold Spring Tavern, whose check average is about $15 for lunch and $30 for dinner, were about $1.7 million, or about 7 percent less than its 2008 revenue.

Along with Brothers’ Restaurant at Mattei’s Tavern in nearby Los Olivos and the Sycamore Inn in Rancho Cucamonga, Cold Spring Tavern, is one of a handful of California restaurants still in operation that started their lives as stagecoach stops. - Restaurant News

Labels: , , ,

Friday, January 22, 2010 

Saturday is Pie Day

The American Pie Council indicated the top five pies were apple, pumpkin, pecan, banana cream and cherry pie. In honor of National Pie Day, here's a list of the Top 5 Pie Recipes.

Martha Stewart's Luscious
Chocolate Pecan Pie Recipe
Tyler Florence's Food Network Ultimate
Caramel Apple Pie
Libby's Famous
Pumpkin Pie Recipe
Epicurious'
Classic Sour Cherry Pie with Lattice Crust
Ellie Krieger's Food Network
Banana Cream Pie Recipe

Don't forget to stop by the grand "crust breaking" of Simply Pies!

Labels: ,

 

Arnoldi's is serving up breakfast tomorrow

Arnoldi's (a Santa Barbarian institution for over 69 years) will be serving up an Italian style breakfast in the land of bocce ball this Saturday and free coffee is included with the breakfast.

Say "ciao to chow!"

Arnoldis Cafe
Saturday, January 23, 2010
7:30am - 12:00pm




a cheer for italy
Originally uploaded by jdg4.

Labels: , , , ,

Thursday, January 21, 2010 

Simply Pies...is moving to new digs

and they want you to join them at the "crust" breaking of their new "Pie Cottage and Bakery" this Saturday (January 23) from 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. They will be sampling some of their yummy pies (and yes, that does include gluten free, vegan and sugar free varieties)..and will have giveaways every hour.

Simply Pies
5392 Hollister

Labels: , ,

Tuesday, January 19, 2010 

Buy Local. Cherish Community.



Pick 3. Spend $50. Save the bricks and mortars our country...our communities are built upon.

Pick 3
. - What 3 local, independently owned businesses would miss you if you disappeared?
Stop in and say "hi!" Buy something that makes you smile. Your purchases are what keeps those businesses around.

Spend $50. - If half the employed population spent $50 a month at locally owned independent businesses, it would generate $42.6 billion in revenue.

68 - For every $100 spent in locally owned independent businesses, $68 returns to the community through taxes, payroll and other expenditures. If you spend that in a national chain, only $43 stays here. If you buy it online, nothing comes home.

1 - the number of people it takes to start a trend. YOU.

Labels: ,

 

Here comes the lightning....and thunder....

We're expecting 2-4" inches of rain today.

Holy mole...and then there was the tornado! Whoo hoo!
(where are those red shoes, now....)

Labels: , ,

Monday, January 18, 2010 

Congrats to the Horse of the Year


Meet the Princess: Rachel Alexandra
Originally uploaded by creepy_coyote.

Rachel Alexandra!

We'll have to toast her victory with a glass of Rachel Alexandra wine. (It helps that she has very intimate connections with Kendall Jackson winery.)

Labels: , , , ,

 

Favorite Tweet of the Day

At the Fancy Food Trade Show...from Cube_LA
Someone asked me what the "mac" was in mac & cheese. Sigh. Even worse, that's not the first time

Labels: , ,

 

Sweet Chili Ginger Sauce Fountain. Seriously. #nasft


Sweet Chili Ginger Sauce Fountain. Seriously. #nasft
Originally uploaded by Jonesabi.

I am SOOOO missing being at the Fancy Food Trade Show....
I could have dipped myself into this fountain. Seriously.

 

900,000 lbs of beef being recalled

sold in distribution centers, stores, restaurants and hotels in California.
A Californian meat producer announced the recall today of nearly 900,000 pounds of beef products that could be contaminated with a potentially fatal strain of E. coli.

Huntington Meat Packing Inc., in Montebello, Calif., said the meat, including ground beef, patties and burrito filling mix, were sold to distribution centers, stores and restaurants in California.

The recall was prompted by tests conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which turned up positive for E. coli O157:H7.

The bacteria, which lives in the intestines of cattle, for example, produces a Shiga toxin which can cause bloody diarrhea, kidney damage and even death.

The company said the potentially infected products were produced between Jan. 5 and Jan. 15. It said no illnesses had been reported in connection with the recall. - OregonLive.com
In addition to ground beef produced early this month (Jan 2010), the recall includes ground beef products produced as far back as February 19 to May 15, 2008, due to the concern that some of these products may still be frozen in consumers' homes. - Food Poison Journal

During a follow-up review of the company's records, government inspectors determined additional products produced and shipped in 2008 to be of concern because they may have been contaminated with E.coli, the service said in a notice on its web site.

This batch was produced from Feb. 19, 2008, to May 15, 2008. It also had been shipped to distribution centers, restaurants and hotels within California, the notice said. - Reuters

Labels: , , , ,

 

Fancy Food Trade Show finds

via online since I couldn't make it up to the City this year...and am stuck inside in torrential rain. Here's an interesting concept found via Twitter...Watermelon Beer?

A watermelon beer? I might need one more sample to be convinc... on Twitpic

Labels: , ,

 

OMG...I'm mising chocolate at the Fancy Food Trade Show!

Labels: , , ,

Sunday, January 17, 2010 

Bummed I couldn't make it to the Fancy Food Trade Show

but at least I can pretend that I am up in San Francisco!

Watch live streaming video from nasft at livestream.com

Labels: ,

 

Municipal Winemakers to open new Tasting Room

Their grand opening will be held - February 20th from 2:00 - 6:00 p.m. at 28 Anacapa Street (on the Urban Wine Trail [pdf] in the "Funk Zone".)

...The cozy new tasting room is set quietly off the street towards the back of the same building that houses the Kunin/Westerly tasting room at 28 Anacapa Street, just a couple hundred yards from the beach.

...Industrial machinery, old office furniture and found objects have been repurposed and recycled as functional design. Highlights include: tables with community seating for sharing the wine experience, and an outdoor patio to enjoy the sunny Santa Barbara weekends.

...Municipal Winemakers is a small production winery that has been producing honest wines since 2007. The philosophy is to craft small-lot, highest quality wines by sourcing grapes from special vineyards in Santa Barbara County and drawing on winemaking experiences in Australia, France, and California. Muni Wines balance old-world personality and elegance with the vibrancy and intensity of modern wine styles.

Muni is owned and operated by one person, David Potter, who is also a member of the winemaking team at Fess Parker Winery and Epiphany Cellars. - Municipal Winemakers



Municipal Winemaking from Municipal Winemakers on Vimeo.

Labels: , , , ,

Saturday, January 16, 2010 

Geaux Saints!

Loved that y'all made a little Cardinal Gumbo today!

Labels: , , ,

Friday, January 15, 2010 

Watching Santa Barbara's businesses shutter

It is sad to see the state of State Street and Santa Barbara these days. Businesses that were there one day have simply vanished the next, leaving nothing behind but paper plastered in the windows and perhaps a stray soda can laying on the interior floor.

Restaurants in town have been hit by the economic downturn, as well, but often when they shutter there are still recipes out there somewhere, reminding us through taste and smell to what once was. Going through my cookbook collection the other day, I pulled out one I hadn't seen in awhile. "Sumptuous Santa Barbara. Eclectic cuisine from the best chefs and restaurants of the California Riviera", published by Devereux in 1995. The cover showcases a postcard perfect photo of the moon hovering over the city and Sterns Wharf; the lights of the city twinkling like earthbound stars.

The forward is written by the late Julia Child and a glance at the contents highlight some local restaurants that are just a memory with some of us "old timers" along with some restaurants that are still sauteeing along, perhaps with different owners and chefs than in their original incarnation.

Acacia (on Coast Village Road in Montecito) was praised by Gourmet magazine as "cooking carried out with care and top-notch ingredients." The recipes left behind for our tastebuds - Buttermilk Fried Chicken Salad, Banana Bread and Peach Pie.

Brigitte's (downtown State Street where Opal is currently) leaves behind some of Norbert Shultz' wonderful sauces for fish. Radicchio-Tomato Cream Sauce. Papaya Sauce. Mustard Lemon Sauce. Yellow Peppercream Sauce. Mango-Citrus Salsa. Sundried Tomato-Pistachio Pesto.

Chad's (in a historic Victorian house situated on Chapala) had the best happy hours and is represented here by a Cajun Aioli and Spiral Pasta Salad.

Citronelle (which sat atop the Santa Barbara Inn) is not alive here, but is vibrantly so along with Chef Michel Richard in Washington, DC. The recipes that were left of reminders - Tuna Carpaccio. Crunch Shrimp.

El Encanto (at the El Encanto Hotel and Garden Villas on the Riviera) was praised by Gourmet magazine as having "the most beautiful dining room in Santa Barbara. It truly was the best place to have a glass of wine and watch the sunset over the city. It leaves behind Sauteed Fillet of Halibut with Julienned Vegetables and Roasted Garlic Lemon Butter.

La Tolteca (on Milpas) was originally opened in 1946. They didn't leave the recipe for their infamous tamales, but did provide one for a Tortilla Chip Casserole. (Using their Tolteca chips, of course.)

Times do change...and things ebb and flow...but sometimes it's nice to have a tasteful reminder of meals from places we ventured to back so long ago.

Labels: ,

Wednesday, January 13, 2010 

Eric Ripert is deliciously gorgeous...


so how can a food magazine turn him into something washed out and "unappetizing?" On their COVER, no less! Kinda sacreligious if you ask me.

Labels: , , ,

Tuesday, January 12, 2010 

Direct Relief International (here in Santa Barbara)

is responding to the tragic earthquake in Haiti....
Direct Relief International is responding to a 7.0-magnitude earthquake and its aftershocks that struck Haiti today. The earthquake, centered off Port-au-Prince, destroyed a hospital in Petionville and damaged other buildings; the number of injured is expected to be high. Emergency aid is being offered to all our partners in Haiti to support their response to the quake. Two shipping containers, a 40-foot and a 20-foot container of ongoing medical material aid, arrived in Port-au-Prince today destined for St. Damien Children's Hospital; it includes emergency aid as well.

....Founded in 1948, Direct Relief is a Santa Barbara, California-based nonprofit organization focused on improving quality of life by bringing critically needed medicines and supplies to local healthcare providers worldwide. Direct Relief has provided more than $1 billion in privately funded humanitarian aid since 2000, including more than $150 million in assistance in the United States. It is one of two charities ranked by Forbes that received a perfect fundraising efficiency score for seven consecutive years and is ranked by the Chronicle of Philanthropy as California's largest international nonprofit organization based on private support. - Reuters

"Port-au-Prince is devastated, lot of deaths. SOS. SOS...," wrote Dr. Louise Ivers from Port-au-Prince, in an e-mail to the group's offices in Boston, Massachusetts. The clinical director of Partners In Health, which operates nine hospitals and health centers for poor people in Haiti, added: "Temporary field hospital ... needs supplies, pain meds, bandages. Please help us." - CNN

Please help out, especially any Californians....as we know the devastation, hardships and heartbreaks that earthquakes can cause. Donate some moolah...here.

Labels: , , ,

 

Treat Nail Salon...up for sale


Shopping center details
Originally uploaded by santa barbarian.


Another downtown business up for sale....
Treat nail lounge is an eco friendly, gorgeous, one of kind nail salon with huge office/treatment room in the back. Over 55K has been put into this space and I am looking for a buyer to take over the business. Great downtown location, high end clientele, plenty of parking. Turn key operations, absolutely everything is here and ready to go. Brand new flooring, custom seating, lighting, surround speaker sound, Detox foot bath machine, massage table, copper bowls and all the products and retail products.. Just bring your own business this location. Great and fair land lord!!!! Asking 25k. Very motivated seller. Need to sell quickly and any reasonable offer will be considered. - Craigslist

Labels: ,

Sunday, January 10, 2010 

Is the Greyhound Station on Carrillo Street closing?


Greyhound Bus Depot Signs
Originally uploaded by santa barbarian.


According to the Epsteen & Associates website (and their big sign on the side of the building at 34 West Carrillo), the entire building is up for lease. $6.00/sf NNN

Labels: , , , ,

Saturday, January 09, 2010 

Which local billard center

is up for sale in Santa Barbara?

High Visibility. Favorite For Ucsb Students And Locals.
Type 40 Beer License (Under 21 Ok)
2383 Square Feet With Marble Bar Top - Newly Rennovated.
Base Rent: 5515 Monthly (2.22 Per Square Foot+200 Nnn Apprx)=5715 Total Rent
EXCELLENT LONG LEASE!!! Ends February 2014 +3, 5 YEAR OPTIONS!!!!
6 Professional 9' Tables, One 7' Bar, One 8' Carom (Populare With Japanese
And Latinos.)30,000 In Improvements: 50" Flat Screen Tv, 3 25" Tvs, 1 Mrs.
Pac-Mac Video Game, Pro-Shop, 3 Door Cooler, 1 Lounge Setting (Couch, Love Seat Etc.) Time Keeper, Alarm System.
Gross Income: 263,000
Average Annually (Net Available On Request.)
New Offering: Free Wireless, 2 Rental Laptops. -
Asking Price - $175,000

- BizBen

Labels: , ,

Friday, January 08, 2010 

Happy Birthday, Elvis

Where ever you are...

Labels: ,

Thursday, January 07, 2010 

Turning Water into Wine....sustainably

Interesting wine news....
Wineries are notorious for using large amounts of water, with estimates ranging up to 20 gallons of water needed to produce a singe gallon of wine. Jackson Family Wines is one wine maker that has found a high tech way to put a billion-gallon dent in its own annual water consumption, and the implications could be enormous for wine rich, water poor states like California.

Jackson Family’s new water recycling system has just completed a “proof of concept” pilot run certified by the University of California at Davis. Once in full swing, the system will involve about 70% of the winery’s water use, which primarily goes to rinsing barrels and tanks. The new system will recycle 90% of that water for up to ten rinses but wait, there’s more: the recycled water also keeps 75% of its heat, which will save a significant amount of energy that would otherwise be needed to warm up cold water. - CleanTechnica

Labels: , , , ,

Wednesday, January 06, 2010 

Julie, Julia and Jamie

No...not a sequel to the blog, book and/or movie. It's the upcoming foodie weekend at the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa featuring Chef Jamie West (formerly of Santa Barbara's San Ysidro Ranch), blogger/author Julie Powell and the late Julia Child's recipes
Ojai Valley Inn & Spa is bringing the hit movie Julie & Julia to real life as author Julie Powell and the Inn's Executive Chef Jamie West team up for a unique cooking weekend January 23-24, 2010.

The special weekend includes author Julie Powell and Chef West in an interactive cooking demonstration highlighting some of Julia Child's recipes, similar to those portrayed in the Hollywood film Julie & Julia from Sony Pictures. This will be followed by a sumptuous dinner dedicated to Julia Child's recipes.


Chef West is well prepared for this authentic weekend. Julia Child frequently dined in Chef West's previous restaurants. She was a guest on Chef West's weekly cooking show on ABC-TV in Santa Barbara. Chef West often ate lunch at her apartment that, as expected, even had her famous shadow board for utensils on the wall.

As Chef West remarked, "A few years before her death, I drove her to a Masters of Food and Wine Event in Carmel. She talked and I did all the work! On the way to Carmel, we stopped and ate at the In-N-Out Burger in Santa Maria. A young woman at the counter quietly inquired if this really was Julia Child. It was great to see how people of all ages knew and respected her."

In addition to the cooking demonstration and dinner, guests will have an opportunity to talk at length with Julie Powell and Chef West. They will also receive a personalized copy of the book Julie & Julia. - Ojai Valley Inn & Spa

Labels: , ,

Tuesday, January 05, 2010 

Note to Cablevision...Stop the Cable Food Fight

You really don't want to piss off Foodies. Forget "MTV"...they want their FoodTV...and quick. Cablevision execs might not want to mention their occupations whilst dining out, either. Their Ceasar Salads just might come with a "knife in the back." Resentment and revenge are "dishes best served cold." So...when you least expect it...they will get back at you.

She was home watching a marathon on "House Hunters" on New Year's Eve when HGTV and the Food Network were suddenly taken away from her and roughly 3 million other subscribers in the region.

Since then, the two companies - Cablevision and HGTV/Food Network owner Scripps Networks - have been carrying on a campaign of finger-pointing advertisements and corporate statements blaming the other for the loss.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/2010/01/05/2010-01-05_cable_fans_channeling_their_anger.html#ixzz0blBRLDKn


The very popular "Food Network" has been yanked from Cablevision systems in a dispute over money. Food Network routinely searches for "diners, drive-ins and dives," but many Cablevision subscribers have been left searching for the channel itself, reports CBS station WCBS-TV.

"I'm kind of upset that they snatched it out like that without warning anybody," Cablevision subscriber Diana Rogers said. - philly57

Labels: , ,

Monday, January 04, 2010 

I don't understand cruelty

and people who feel compelled to needlessly cause pain.
Police in San Luis Obispo County are hoping the public can help them identify those responsible for shooting two Arabian horses at the Varian Arabians horse ranch in Arroyo Grande, Calif., last Wednesday night.

Ranch staff discovered the two wounded mares in their pasture early Thursday. Both animals sustained gunshot wounds, said San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department Spokesman Rob Bryn. One mare was euthanized at the scene. The other is undergoing treatment at a nearby equine medical center.

The shootings appear to be deliberate, Bryn said. He declined to disclose further details.If caught, those responsible could face felony animal cruelty charges and penalties including significant jail time.

Anyone with information about the incident should visit the San Luis Obispo County CrimeStoppers Web site or call CrimeStopers at 805/549-STOP (7867). All tips are confidential.- TheHorse.com

Labels: , ,

Saturday, January 02, 2010 

Grapevine Fine Foods is selling off everything today

Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
  • walk in freezer 8 x 8
  • beautiful wrap around walnut veneer counter with granite top
  • one year old exhaust hoods - 6 foot and 14 foot
  • lots of pots, pans, sheet trays, plastic containers
  • metro shelves
  • tables and chairs
  • wood cabinets
  • commercial microwave
  • assortment of blenders
  • cappuccino machine
  • ...and more....
126 E. Canon Perdido -- please come to the back door

Labels: , ,

MY INGREDIENTS

  • I'm SantaBarbarian
  • From Santa Barbara, California, United States
Recipe of Me

Click for Santa Barbara, California Forecast


Local Food and Local Farms

www.flickr.com
This is a Flickr badge showing public items from santa barbarian tagged with Food. Make your own badge here.
Help end world hunger

LOCAL LINKS