We started off in St. Helena--we stopped in @ the *original* Taylor's Automatic Refresher. It's this funny little roadside diner that you would probably just zip by if you didn't know they have some of the best food around:
We shopped around the downtown area, snatching up some sweet and delicious balsamic vinegar from Olivier. We're going to drizzle it over grilled peaches before summer gets away from us. I love this sign from the Main Street:
This was easily one of the top 5 meals I have ever eaten--it was up there with the food we had in France. We both ordered the corn soup, which was a light and brothy dish, not the normally heavy, cream-laden fare they serve up as corn soup:
Lance got the fish, and I got the steak. Mine had a vegetable salsa and creamed corn topping that blew me away. For dessert, I got the homemade blackberry ice-cream, and Lancer got the peach crostini. He isn't into sweets, but he cleaned the entire plate:
We stayed overnight in the Hotel St. Helena, a cute little place from the 1800's. Our room was tenny-tiny, but nice and cozy:The next morning, we shopped in St. Helena for a few more hours, and then hit Dean and Deluca:We picked up some new salt and pepper grinders, and the cool and quintessential test-tube spice rack. I made a deal with the Devil (Lance) for these. I told ol' Satan that if he bought them, I would make one new dish a week using a new spice. Harder said than done--there are some spices I have never even heard of. Mace chicken, anyone?
Next, we headed down to Yountville to gorge at Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery:
Lance grabbed a few goodies, and I grabbed a Nutter-Butter cookie so I could scrape out the tasty inards....I'm not letting a little wheat cookie crust keep me from the goodies inside, especially when the inside consists of peanut butter and marshmallow cream. Mmm....
I feel inspired to make excellent food after our trip. I love, love, love great food. Lance is coming around, too. Before France, he said he couldn't really tell if food was bad or good--he just ate so he wouldn't die. Now that he can find and identify great food, he is a much more enjoyable foodie companion! More napa trips down the line!!
3 comments:
argh! now i am just plain ol' jealous! poop! who thought i'd be jealous of silly brenda walsh????
Everyone on our set..like Brandon, Dylan, Kelly, David, Scott (pre-death), Andrea, Jesse, and even crazy ol' Emily Valentine, sucka!
loved Napa Valley! Sounds like you have a great time - and good luck with the mace chicken! :)
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