List 76

Love: A brilliant film or television show title sequence.  I was very happy to find the Art of the Title website, which goes deep with directors and the artists who create title sequences to dissect their inspirations and thought processes. A sampling from their pieces on The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Mad Men:

http://www.artofthetitle.com


Like: To shop local, and a regular stop is Oakland's Bella Vita.  It's a good resource for vintage jewelry and purses (like this color block purse I picked up), vintage and new clothing from small area designers, and kids' clothing and gifts. 

Discovery: Bouche, a fairly new restaurant next to the Tunnel Top on Bush. It's super tiny - the size often described as "jewel box" but really "cigar box" seems more appropriate given its stripped-down, more masculine vibe - and incredibly good.  That everything we ate elicited a sigh should not be surprising given chef Nicolas Borzee's pedigree (Coi, and time with Alain Ducasse, Michel Troigros and Joel Robuchon back in his native France.)

Obsession: Graham and Green's Odyssey Writing Desk, based on a 1940s Italian design, which might nicely fill a spot in the back of the living room.

Complaint:  Why did I go 5 years without a watch?  After my last watch broke in 2006, like so many people these days, I had fallen into using the ever-present cell phone to check the time.  That is until last weekend, when I finally and very happily got a new timepiece: Nixon's The Time Teller in matte black with dark tortoise.  

List 75

Love: This ad for Lurpak Lighest butter, which is as colorful as it is fun.  What a lovely (and democratic feeling) celebration of cooking.

http://www.zillamag.com/advertising/lurpak-lightest-commercial-by-wieden-and-kennedy/

Like: The "subway" map of food culture, which floated around last year.  I'm in New York this week for work and am planning stops on the Elevated Basics line (Locanda Verde) and the Education + Global transfer station (Momofuku.)

http://www.hartmansalt.com/food-culture-analyzed/greater-food-culture/228


Discovery:  The best way to salvage a recipe disaster is to turn it into a pasta sauce.  Case in point: I tried a Tom Colicchio short rib recipe from Epicurious.  Braising the short ribs uncovered, as the recipe called for, yielded ribs that were fall-off-the-bone tender underneath the braising liquid, but brown and tough on top.  With less than an hour before guests descended for a dinner party, Erich had the brilliant suggestion of somehow transforming this mess into a pasta sauce.  By shredding the meat and putting it into a reduced, defatted version of the braising liquid (which had sherry vinegar, raisins, onions, carrots, garlic, celery, chicken broth, and herbs), and tossing it with herb pappardelle, a potential disaster became a home run.

Obsession: Diner, one of my all-time favorite movies.  This month's Vanity Fair has a piece proclaiming it "the most influential movie of the past 30 years."  I'm not sure I'd go that far, but the article has made me take a step back to appreciate just how important Diner's naturalistic banter about "nothing" has seeped into so much of pop culture.

Complaint: Top Chef is something we look forward to each week, even more so now that we've roped Stella into watching it with us.  But Pee Wee Herman as a judge?  And lame-o challenges like having to bike around town and crash a strange restaurant's kitchen?  Please, go back to it being a showcase for individual, inspired creativity and not an obstacle course.