11.26.2022. Port Costa. California.

Here is my annual pilgrimage to Port Costa. It's like stepping back in time to a magical place. I usually pick up a few magical items during my time travel.

7.23.2022-7.26.2022. Napa stay with friends. Napa. California.

I almost forgot about my quick stay with some food friends in Napa back in July before I started my new project. Since you all want to know where the chefs and I eat, here are some more recommendations for you that may be visiting Napa Valley. Always make a reservation ahead of time as this is Napa Valley after all.

We had dinner at our friend Sean's restaurant Torc. It's right in the mix of downtown Napa. It's casual fine dining and he definitely knows I love truffles. For those of you food snobs, he used to be the chef at Quince and Cotogna in San Francisco. Rest assured you are in great hands.

Torc
1140 Main St
Napa, CA 94559
707.252.3292







The chefs were very excited to bring me to Glen Ellen Star. I was also very enamored by the house right across the street (you'll see). We opted for outdoor here as that was an option and it's modern American dining. Definitely a great meal if you are near Glen Ellen!

Glen Ellen Star
13648 Arnold Dr
Glen Ellen, CA 95442
707.343.1384



We ended up going for a hike at Jack London Historic State Park one afternoon and ended up in downtown Sonoma for a snack. I always love going into Chateau Sonoma whenever I am there to see what offerings that suit my fancy.

Chateau Sonoma
453 1st St W
Sonoma, CA 95476
707.309.1993





Mostly, we all cook and have dinner parties. Especially when you have a bunch of fancy chefs and food purveyors of Napa, and I am the fancy baker. It's not terrible when the home is a William Turnbull with its own vineyard and pool either. It was hilarious to see Staffan having to cook in a small galley kitchen like mine.

9.22.2022. Portraits. Kauai. Hawaii.

For my portraits in Kauai, I decided to go with the lovely June Cochran with whom I had a magical time creating these with the most dramatic sunset. We felt lucky that evening. 

9.24.2022. Nāpali Coast. Kauai. Hawaii.

As mentioned, I chose Kauai as my first Hawaii island to visit due to my interest in its flora. It was also Nāpali Coast that caught my attention, as I love unusual landscapes. After doing ample research on helicopter rides versus boat rides, I decided that a boat tour is the one for me. I opted for the sunset tour of Nāpali Coast. My friend and I even sat up front on the catamaran on the ride out. I can say that you can skip that and be more comfortable staying dry unless you really want that experience. Be forewarned: you and everything on you will get completely drenched. We also took dramamine just in case as the water is extremely rough.

Holo Holo Charters

9.23.2022. Smith Family Garden Luau. Kauai. Hawaii.

If you did some research you will find that the Smith Family Garden Luau is one of the best in Kauai. The other thing to note is that you should pick a date and buy your tickets as soon as you can because they will sell out well in advance. I would highly recommend going for the luau in the evening and walk around their garden. The lush garden was my favorite part.

Smith Family Garden Luau
3-5971 Kuhl Hwy
Kapa'a, HI
808.821.6895

9.21.2022-9.26.2022. Food. Kauai. Hawaii.

The moment you all have been waiting for: all that I ate...

Again, a reminder that Hawaii is quite a travel destination and trips can be booked a year in advance. It will be exceptionally difficult to get a last minute reservation for anything amazing. So please plan well in advance to ensure best options. Since you will be dealing with island time and service during the Covid era, it is ill advised to try to pull a favor.

Beach House Restaurant
5022 Lawai Rd
Koloa, HI 96756
808.742.1424 

As note in the first post, we had dinner at sunset at Beach House Restaurant to take advantage of the view for our first night in Kauai. 



Wailua Shave Ice
4-831 Kuhio Highway
Kapa'a, HI 96746
808.634.7183

This was the best shave ice I have ever had. So much that we wanted to go back another day for more. However, we were exploring different parts of the island and never made it back.



Anuenue Cafe
2360 Kiahuna Plantation Dr
Koloa, HI 96756 

808.469.7000

Up the street from where we were staying is a cute little shopping center with food options. For breakfast one morning we decided to grab food at Anuenue and ate at the outdoor courtyard. Watch out for the rogue chickens all over the island gunning for your food! I got the French toast and it was to die for.

In this shopping center is also our favorite juice shop Kauai Juice Co. Those are some of the best juices I have ever had. Local Kauai produce cannot be beat, especially in terms of tropical fruits. Be sure to also check out their sauces and salts and other goodies that make great gifts!

Little Fish Coffee Poipu

2294 Poipu Rd
Koloa, HI 96756 

If you walk down to the street from the Anuenue Cafe shopping center, there is a wonderful coffee shop that also serves breakfast. We enjoyed our breakfast there with the chickens wandering around. 





Keoki's Paradise
2360 Kiahuna Plantation Dr
Koloa, HI 96756
808.742.7534 

We decided to have lunch one day at our nearby shopping center. I would highly recommend coming here for happy hour or dinner. The food is good and the ambience is amazing. 







Kakaheo Cafe & Coffee Company
2-2560 Kaumualli Hwy
Kalaheo, HI 96741
808.332.5858

One morning, we decided to switch it up and go to another neighborhood to explore. So we ended up having breakfast in a much more local neighborhood. It was nice to experience more of a local less touristy vibe and see the different foliage across town and its microclimates on Kauai.



Living Foods
2829 Ala Kalanikaumaka St Suite 124
Koloa, HI 96756
808.320.7642

One of my musts while traveling is checking out local specialty food stores. I love buying gifts to bring home so I can cook with them long after my trip. It's always fun to see what local specialty items are wherever I am. Look at the fruit!

In this shopping center there were 2 high end Hawaiian shirt stores where I bought some gifts for loved ones as well.



Holoholo Grill
8581, 2641 Poipu Rd
Koloa, HI 96756
808.742.2538

I highly recommend coming for dinner at Holoholo Grill. I am not a cheese person but I asked for more flatbread so we can kill off that macadamia nut crusted brie with garam masala pineapple chutney. Also, the senzai unagi pokiest crunch was to die for. But most of all, you will be blown away by the pool there, which is in the top 10 of America for obvious reasons.







Red Salt
2251 Poipu Rd
Koloa, HI 96756

While we did very well for all our meals, the stand out for this entire trip was breakfast at Red Salt. It was so good that we decided to return for our last dinner in Kauai.

For breakfast we shared the ko'a kea French toast, lobster Benedict (star of the show), and I tasted my friend's city mimosa flight (coconut, cactus pear, and ube).







For dinner we shared a salad with the scallops and a lobster risotto.