Category: BiteClub

The Costco Report: Eating My (Cheesy) Words

I received some criticism for yesterday's post - some silly ("Why do you even shop at Costco?"), and some quite fair ("Maybe it's uneconomic for smaller local dairies to supply Costco."). I like to think that I can take it as well as I can dish it out and, while I sometimes like to play rough, I also like to play fair, so here's my mea culpa de fromage: While I may decry my inability to source local cheeses from the Santa Rosa Costco, and while I may now have to drive further and pay more to procure some of my favorite products as a result, that is not necessarily any fault of the Big C.

A Rainy-Day Braise: Ancho Chilis, Zinfandel, and Beets

I think this is a killer one-pot dish for a dank, inclement night although, in point of fact, I'm cheating, because neither beets, nor my protein of choice - young goat shanks, from the Owen Family Farm up in Hopland - are technically in season right now. But the mild heat and smoky undertone from the chilies, together with the spicy-sweet peppery jam of the wine, seemed a natural bedfellow for dense, rich, and slightly gamy flavors...

The Costco Report: Who Moved My Cheese?

The Costco Report: Episodic observations on where to port safely, and what to avoid like a pestilence, when navigating an ocean of consumer non-durables... In today's edition, a big finger wag at the Big C for abandoning some of our local dairies, and Taquitos From Hell.

Munch Monday | Santa Rosa

First Munch Monday in Santa Rosa draws hundreds, and is leading to a shift in how we think about food

Safeway Avocado Update

About a month ago, I bitched about out-of-season avocados, specifically the dark green monuments of Giza on display at my local Safeway, on sale at a seemingly unbeatable price of a buck per. For whatever reason - I, of course, speculate in that earlier post, but can't say definitively - they were appalling: Watery, mealy, flavorless, an ultimately disgusting pale green mush and affront to guacamole everywhere. Well, today (in point of historical fact, two nights ago) I got to eat my words: Said avocados are now $1.25, but - and this is the important thing - they actually taste pretty damn good.

In-N-Out’s “Animal Style” Onions, Home Edition

At some point, I'll get around to writing a longer treatise on the wonders - consisting, in roughly equal proportion, of cardiac perfidy and gustatory revelation - of In-N-Out's "Animal Style" offerings. But not today. Today - and, if you saw my recent column on Savory Onion Jam, I guess you'd say all week - I have eyes only for condiments, and few condiments inspire like In-N-Out's insanely caramelized onions.