womantraveler

Pleasanton, California: Perfectly Named

As a woman business traveler and proactive fan of leisure day trips, I've learned time and again that some of the best adventures are close to home. Pleasanton, California, originating in the Gold Rush and existing comfortably today next to the Livermore Valley wine country east of San Francisco, is one of my recent "finds." History, luxury and quality wines and food within a few blocks -- my fundamentals!

Since I often stay overnight in nearby outlying communities when I have an evening event -- to avoid rush-hour traffic, windy country roads at dusk or late-night driving alone -- I calculate at the front end a pleasant evening in new surroundings to finish off my business or leisure commitment. And, Pleasanton, California, has definitely earned its name in my travel journals.

  But the secret -- absolutely -- is the right hotel or inn. A male friend recommended Pleasanton's Rose Hotel, and it turned out to be the right combo of stylish but casual luxury and welcoming service. To wit -- a spacious and well-appointed room with windows that actually open to fresh air, a jacuzzi tub (superb after an afternoon on the links at a Women on Course event at Poppy Ridge Golf Course in the Livermore Valley,) and Peet's Coffee brewed in my room's own French press. That was the first part of the wake-up experience before I went down to the Victorian lobby/loungefor an ample continental breakfast (which comes with the room). Men and women business travelers, a leisure travel couple from Pennsylvania, and more personalities crossed paths in this quietly confident and charming space.

For dinner, I hiked up and down Main Street to check out the multiple options (40 nearby restaurants), from lively outdoor gardens to indoor white table cloth candlelight -- but chose the originality of The Oasis Grille across the street from the hotel and its Afghan/Middle Eastern specialties and featured wine list. Grilled shish kebab and a Riva Ridge Chardonnay from one of the California originals, Wente Vineyards in Livermore, were perfectly matched!

Napa Valley's CIA Cooking (the Other One)

Wine inspires, but food sustains in the San Francisco Bay Area, so the Culinary Institute of America (the other CIA) in Napa Valley is a must-do for cooking classes. And they're quick and easy -- 1 to 2 hours. This ongoing series of classes the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena makes it easy to actually develop a small skill in the midst of experiencing the marvelous vineyards.

We girlfriends were jaunting through the Valley one spring day and discovered the Spring Table series at Greystone, the former home of the Christian Brothers Winery. Classes are Friday-Monday and a demo is held the first Tuesday of the month. The 1-hour public cooking demonstrations ($15) include the recipe and tasting while the 2-hour hands-on cooking classes (75)consist of a 30-minute lecture, 90-minute cooking and tasting with a glass of wine. Classes in May, for example, include "Terrine of Salmon with Spring Vegetables," "Lamb Carpaccio with Greek Feta Cheese, Black Olives, Lemon Vinaigrette and Mint Oil" and "Sweet Pea Ravioli with Sauteed Pea Tendrils." I'm getting so hungry I don't think I can finish this post!

There are also Wine Enthusiast classes and elegant dinners at The Wine Spectator Greystone Restaurant, which you can check out on their website.

San Francisco Stalwarts Keep Coming -- and One Sad Going

We solo womentravelers spontaneously checked out two of the three "iconic" San Francisco restaurants featured recently by the San Francisco Chronicle -- and all with women chefs -- Zuni Cafe and Hayes Street Grill (we'll dish on the third, Greens, very soon). Here are some some tips for getting in the door when the evening is booked. Plus, read on for a change of face for another iconic brand...

Tips #1-10: Repeat after me, "smile a lot, be friendly, don't be pushy and have faith." The good karma you're putting out will return to you.

Zuni Cafe: hip and cool, between downtown and trendy Mission and Castro districts. Dinner service starts at 6 pm. What's especially welcoming is that they serve all day. So, walk in at 4:45 or 5, grab a seat in the (very small) bar area, have an appetizer and get on the waiting list for dinner in the bar area. Maybe a 30 minute wait or so, and you can eat from the full menu (more limited lunch menu until the 6 pm change). Specialties -- intriguing wine choices, the freshest oysters this side of the Pacific Rim (which is to say locally in West Marin or not far up in the Northwest) and Mediterannean-inspired featured plates.

Hayes Street Grill: white table cloth and "older" crowd (for the most part, Baby Boomers and their parents, but welcoming to all). Said to have "the best seafood" in San Francisco. Maitre d' running around with his hair on fire and lines nearly pushing out the door. Walking in is not a guarantee, but it can work. So we put our names on the list for the small bar area and waited patiently, for 35 minutes. People pushed in front of us, nonobservant customers took a bar stool or two, we kept smiling at the waiters, hmmm...And then, two great seats, right in front of the bartender, who took fabulous care of us. Be patient, gals, the rewards will come. Fish cooked all ways, choice of many sauces or none, steamed vegetables, diverse wine list, great service. Even when there were empty tables, the maitre d' wouldn't seat guests early because he wanted to make sure there were servers available to attend them well. This is a well-run destination that you can count on. Future planning tip, because it's near the ballet, symphony and opera, tables tend to open up after 7:30, when the neighborhood locals come in -- and the mood is more convivial and relaxed. 

Greens (our opinion coming soon): still a top choice after founding chef Deborah Madison, who was influenced by Alice Waters, who is one of Obama's "kitchen cabinet." This high-end vegetarian setting has kept to its roots, supplied by the organic gardens of the San Francisco Zen Center's Green Gulch Farm in Marin County.

Speaking of organic, sadly Bill Niman's revolutionary vision, humanely and sustainably raised meat at Niman Ranch, has changed hands. Great idea, popular brand, high-end chefs as clients...but no profit. Niman himself is gone from his Bolinas, California ranch, but the name continues with the new owner, Chicago's Natural Holdings. Just wanted to make sure you knew that. Darn -- loved those Niman Ranch hot dogs my brother used to grill in the fireplace back East. Sort of sad to see the idealist bought out by the corporation, but let's remain optimistic about the quality.

Sonoma's Cottage Inn and Spa: Spoil Me

Downtown Sonoma's Cottage Inn and Spa is my home away from home. And even though I can drive up in 30 minutes from San Francisco's North Bay area, guests last week from Hawaii and Boston clearly had caught onto the same idea. (One couple was hanging out in the dreamy upstairs Vineyard View Suite after just getting married following 27 years of dating. Another arrived with a group for a surprise anniversary event.)

Romance and relaxation are the overwhelming themes in this architecturally inspired hideaway only a 5-minute walk off the Sonoma Square. But a solo woman traveler like me can comfortably slip into one of the individualized rooms -- most with jacuzzi tubs and fireplaces --  for a timeout from the rat race of the typical day to day. And, yes, there's free Wi-Fi in my suite and public spaces whenever I want to fire up my laptop and check back into the real world.

The Cottage Inn is different from the quaint or "wine country elegant" inns that dot Sonoma. The carefully chosen painting, photographs and sculpture in the rooms and the spirit forms and Buddhas in courtyards and walkways create a soothing, healing presence. Cloistered Santa Fe-style with adobe walls around two converted houses, the inn declares "cozy retreat" whatever your intention. 

Now that it's Mustard Festival in next-door Napa Valley through March, vineyards across both valleys are brimming with yellow gold flowers. So the Cottage Inn is a perfect anchor for taking in the wine country sights -- and then pulling back to more serenity in the evenings. I arrange for a Zen Garden Spa treatment, then unwind even more beside the open pit gas fire that burns up through a floor of crushed glass in the Romantico Paradiso Room.   

Each room has a unique decor, designed by the late founder, who was an architect. All have similar amenities, including coffee and juice and refrigerators stocked for breakfast. Each morning fresh breads arrive in a basket at the door.The largest North Suite is one of two with full kitchens, and most rooms have open or covered outdoor patios. 

I like the convenience, too. Hiking trails and bike routes start nearby and go in all directions, including over to General Vallejo's 19th century estate and historical museum to the west and a vineyard walk to Sebastiani and Ravenswood to the east. Sonoma Square offers some of the Valley's best dining -- including The Girl and the Fig, Cafe La Haye and El Dorado Kitchen, while the former General's Daughter restaurant in an 1864 Victorian on the Vallejo estate is generating a lot of buzz as Estate, the new venture of Girl and the Fig's Sondra Bernstein. 

Downtown Napa's Revival

Downtown Napa continues its energetic boomlet, creating a classy alternative   to its tony north-county wine country neighbors in Napa Valley. Not that wine-touring and epicurean dining aren't worthy tourist-focused delights anywhere in "the Valley." But those of us who live and work close by like to get away for an evening in downtown Napa for a friendly, yet stylish, "hometown" scene delivered with neighborly personality and first-rate quality.

The 2003 restoration of the 19th century Napa Valley Opera House helped kick off a wave of activity that has transformed this once rundown and neglected river town into a charming riverfront destination just an hour north of San Francisco. When I heard that "The Blue Note 7" jazz tour celebrating 70 years of Blue Note Records would bring some of the world's finest jazz to      the 500-seat opera house theater, I snapped up a seat on a weeknight. Renowned jazz artists like Bill Charlap, Ravi Coltrane, Nicholas Payton and their colleagues gave a stunning performance of their new CD "Mosaic," then hung out with the locals in the lobby afterwards for easy conversation. Keeping the music alive, pianist Charlap and bassist Peter Washington joined 15 late-night jazz enthusiasts at Silo's, the local club that manager Keith Stansberry kept open afterhours for the occasion. (Check out Silo's schedule at 707-251-5833. Exquisitely chosen Napa wines currently complement "Great American Songbook" artists Wesla Whitfield and Mike Greensill Wednesdays-Saturdays. Not to mention the Opera House's ongoing calendar.) 

  A few paces from Silos in the restored 1884 Napa Mill complex, I checked into the Napa River Inn, one of the preserved Historic Hotels of America for spacious luxury in a Victorian style room with a gas fireplace, canopy bed and claw-footed bath tub. Morning brought fresh baked goods in a basket from Sweetie Pies next door, a bakery that choosy clientele know well. Sweetie Pies' pumpkin pie was recently voted #1 on the Rachel Ray Show, and it's easily shipped. As one patron confessed, "you can't walk by without going in."

  We foodies are in pig heaven in places like Napa, where high standards by patrons and friendly competition among skilled chefs keep restaurant quality very high. There's something for everyone, too --from Ubuntu, the vegetarian restaurant and yoga studio that was cited in 2008 by the New York Times as one of the best two new restos in the U.S., to Vietnamese Annalien, the country French riverfront Angele, globally focused Celadon and the playful Kelley's "No Bad Days" Cafe. Mix that with stroller-friendly "The Little Gourmet: A Kid's Restaurant that is Grown-up Friendly" and many more dining spots, and it's easy to contemplate the next trip to downtown Napa.  

If you're going, note these two stellar upcoming events -- the 16th annual Napa Valley Mustard Festival, January 31-March 28, 2009 and the Napa Valley Opera House League's 9th Annual "Dinner Is Served" fundraiser, where you can eat in the best restaurants, on Wednesday February 25, 2009.

Napa Valley Wine Country's Carneros Inn

Splurging for the best room (one of the east vineyard-facing Vineyard View Cottages) at Napa Valley's Carneros Inn was worth the stretch price, especially the outdoor shower and vineyard views.    Now in off-season there are deals worth considering across the property for a peaceful winter get-away. There's lots of good buzz about the place, most of it worthy. Besides the privacy, we especially liked the patio with overhead heaters, the fireplace, French doors and flat screen TV/DVD/CD combo. I'm told by Womantraveler friends that a girlfriends spa visit at the Carneros Inn tops the list in the highly competitive Napa Valley spa scene, including a room for the day for relaxing and changing. On another visit to the Valley, simply stopping for a glass of wine at the outdoor lounge was a delightful treat. Just inside was the highly rated Farm restaurant -- we can't vouch for it directly but the word of mouth is tantalizing. 

San Rafael Street Festival Redux

Womantraveler was on an extended vacation when Typepad featured her blog this week. Stay tuned -- there are lots of stories ahead...Meanwhile, as it's a deadline, the Italian Street Painting Festival in San Rafael, CA returns this weekend -- and if you're in the San Francisco Bay Area, check it out. This is how close you can get to the artists!

What's "Inn" for New Year's Eve

The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament has wrapped up, but it's not too late to make a note to be in Pebble next New Year's Eve. The Inn at Spanish Bay throws a bash that's worth planning for, even though the details might not be available until after Thanksgiving. On December 31, 2007, the inn threw its most elaborate New Year's event ever, celebrating 20 years of auld lang syne parties with 5 bands and DJs, lavish buffets and terrific fun. Taking advantage of the New Year's Eve package (offered with one- or two-night stays), we settled in at the inn for a couple of days in comfortably appointed accomodations with a cozy fireplace and spectacular views from  ocean to coastal hills. Happily the "house restaurant" is one of the best versions of the popular Roy's restaurants and Chef Roy Yamaguchi's signature Hawaiian-fusion cuisine in a casual setting.

It goes without saying that the Monterey Peninsula location about 2 1/2 hours south of San Francisco is fabulous -- if the weather cooperates. The wild coast can be shrouded in fog, but the spectacular sunny days are unforgettable. A quick reminder of day trips in the area -- Carmel, Monterey, 17-Mile Drive that provides some access to the scenic coast and, farther south, Big Sur, at the moment a coastal perch for migrations of whales, elephant seals and California condors.

Unfortunately Carmel has deteriorated from a quaint artists' community surrounded by elegant wealth to an overexpensive tourist trap overrun with bad or at best mediocre shops and galleries and often fairly outrageous taste, the kind that befits big spenders. The statement seems to be, "if I'm expensive and I flaunt it, I must be good." Sorry, but cost and quality do not necessarily align in my book.  Monterey has the world-famous aquarium, which is awesome, and an appealingly funky spirit fed by casual seaside food and fun. We hear that the nearby Carmel Valley Ranch resort in a less frenetic and lush inland valley setting has undergone quite a renovation and brought in celebrity chef Michel Richard's Citronelle restaurant.

Nick's Cove Bay Area Getaway

The Northern California insiders' new retro getaway is Nick's Cove along a curvy stretch of the Marin County coast. It's hot because its impressario is restaurateur Pat Kuleto (Fog City Diner, Boulevard, Postrio and a host of other signature San Francisco dining destinations), supports the credentials of organic farming and sustainable fishing and is sufficiently out of the way for a cache of remoteness. Plenty of people have gotten the word in the past six months, though -- it's already difficult if not impossible to get a reservation on short notice, although they do have a bar and seat walk-ins.

The 45-minute jaunt west of San Rafael, Novato or Petaluma or about an hour north of San Francisco snakes along hairpin turns through vast protected West Marin hills and dairy farms before reaching the town of Marshall on the Tomales Bay. This coastal Highway 1 stretch from Point Reyes Station on the south to Bodega Bay on the north is across from the Point Reyes National Seashore, a coastal wilderness abundant with wildlife. Landside, it's dotted with late-1800s onetime railroad towns and farms of cultivated oyster beds. It's an area full of history, as the story of Nick's illustrates. And far enough from modern civilization, in fact, that even cell phones can't find you here.

Turning a 100-year-old restaurant that was a local favorite and adding 12 pricey bungalows was a bumpy eight-year journey for Kuleto and his longtime partner, Executive Chef Mark Franz. They've preserved the ambiance -- the restaurant is casual roadhouse-style, and the bungalows were built or remodeled from wood-rotting shacks. They are perched along the water's edge, where you can hear the lap of the tide hitting the bungalow pilings and across the road in the groove of a hill. Each cottage is unique. All are decorated in comfortable antiques with luxury appointments -- high-thread count linens, heated bathroom floors, flat screen TVs and Wi-Fi. Winter rates range from $165 to $595 a night, which suggests what the summer season will fetch.

We sampled the inventiveness of Nick's kitchen staff during a wine tasting dinner hosted by Ross Halleck. You can't go to Nick's and not have oysters, which are farmed in the area by Hog Island Oyster Company, Tomales Bay Oyster Co. and others. Halleck Vineyard in the Russian River Valley produces just under 2000 cases of Pinot Noir. That's not far from Nick's, which has become Halleck's local hangout. His Hallberg Vineyards Pinot Noir 2005 was paired with a butternut squash flan, delightfully rich and nutty with white truffle oil. His Three Sons Cuvee Pinot Noir 2006 accompanied the wood grilled Vermont quail stuffed with local chanterelles, pancetta, cannellini bean puree and a balsamic reduction.

This, of course, wasn't the regular Nick's menu, which is harvested daily from the bay out the back door. We'll head back to do that soon. Kuleto, meanwhile, is hard to keep up with -- he opened two new restaurants in San Francisco's Embarcadero waterfront to more fanfare in late January -- Epic Roasthouse and Waterbar.

City Wine Bar Meets Napa Tasting Room

The food and wine mecca of San Francisco continues to present the fineries of gourmet high-style with the simplicity of exquisite neighborhood casual. This certainly comes in the city's restaurants of all sizes and shapes as part of its neighborhood-based identity. Now comes an abundance of local wine bars, where visitors or residents can experience the tasting rooms of Napa and Sonoma wines, Burgundy and New Zealand grapes, and more. These often funky places are not pretentious, but they are knowledgeable. The connoisseur experience is just down the street, with the world at your fingertips.

Not that wine bars are novel, but they are increasingly more prevalent and certainly more accessible to the unitiated. For a "flight" of small quantities of several wines, you can sample a much wider variety than a single winery's tasting room offers out in the Valley. Clearly these venues provide two different types of entertainment -- to go deeper into a single winery's selections or to go wider by experimenting with new and unexpected options at the city wine bar. Yet, while wineries are pushing sales of bottles to go, wine bars offer comfortable seating encouraging lingering and conversation. As a womantraveler, it's good to have the options.