For the Eloise in All of Us...

I'm in Pittsburgh, PA right now visiting my family, and met a friend for High Tea at the Omni William Penn hotel. Coincidentally, this is also the place where I had my wedding reception, but hadn't been back in 6 years! We had so much fun. You can read about it here.

Anyway, it got me thinking that High Tea would be a super fun thing to do with any little kid who's into Eloise. And you know, you don't have to go to the Plaza to partake! Spurred on by my love of fine dining, or drinking as it were, I decided to investigate some kid-friendly places to do High Tea in the Bay Area.

Here's the list!

Lovejoy's Tea Room (San Francisco) - One of the best and most well known spots for High Tea.

Secret Garden Tea House (San Francisco) - Another tea lover favorite.

The Terrace at the Ritz-Carlton (San Francisco) - High class tea time.

The Rotunda (San Francisco) - Do some shopping at Neiman's then freshen-up with some tea.

Laurel Court at the Fairmont (San Francisco) - Opulent surroundings!

Lisa's Tea Treasures (Menlo Park, San Jose, Campbell) Victorian, frilly, girly tea! They do party bookings, too.

The English Rose (San Carlos) - Nice, homey, traditional English Tea service

High Tea at the Fairmont (San Jose) - Specialty kid's menu is especially cute!

Oregon Shakespeare Festival

We went to Ashland, Oregon last weekend for our annual meet up with family, and to catch a few plays. If you've got yourself a budding thespian (and we do), don't miss an opportunity to partake in some incredible shows! Ashland is located about 6 hours north of here in a tiny hamlet town that's reminiscent of an Old World society full of scholars and poets (and there are troubadours!). It's also worth mentioning the killer coffee shops, the great dining options, fantasy stores, hiking trails, and parks.

Lilith Park

OSF plays 9 months of the year, and boasts one of the largest repertories in the country. They bring in notable actors and artists from all around, and were even written up in NY Times this year!

There are several different theaters including an outdoor venue. It's so wonderful to drink mulled wine under the stars listening to iambic pentameter lilt away. Insanely enough, the kids pick up on it pretty quickly, and the actors are typically very physical with lots of gestures and body language. The minimum age to see a play is 6. Every year there are several family friendly plays and musicals both by Shakespeare and other notable writers. This year we saw Much Ado about Nothing, Don Quixote, and Music Man. If you have other younger ones and no one to watch the kids there are reputable daycare providers available (and pet sitters that will massage and walk fido, too, go figure).

The nicest thing about OSF is most of the actors in the company are down to earth, friendly, and typically live in town. Last year, we took the backstage tour and were guided by one of the leads from the show we saw the previous night! Matthew thought that was totally cool! We learned about how sets were designed, and how costumes are made. We even hung out in the green room, and learned more about life as a new actor!

Mark Bredard, our tour guide and principle actor

Can't make it up to Oregon? Arrange for OSF to come to your child's school! The company has a visit program that will work directly with your curriculum and teacher to bring Shakespeare to your young ones in a fun and dynamic way.

Pizza Antica

We were at Santana Row and went to Pizza Antica for dinner the other night. The kids love this place and so do we for several reasons:

1. Call ahead seating up to a half hour in advance. If we know we're on our way here for dinner we call ahead and put our name on the list...it shaves off wait time by a good 20 minutes!

2. The kid food is good! Math scarfs down their spaghetti every time, and for him that's saying something (boy is the pickiest eater alive).

3. Affordable prices as far as Santana Row dining goes.

4. Kid friendly environment. There are lots of families who eat here, so you don't feel like you're ruining anyone's nice meal out. The open room makes for noisy acoustics, but really if you're kid throws out the occasional screech no one's going to bat an eye. There's also outdoor seating if you're in the mood for alfresco dining.

Really, what's not to like?

DeYoung Museum: King Tut Exhibit

Yesterday some friends and I took our kids to the de Young Fine Art Museum in San Francisco to see the traveling King Tut Exhibit.

I pre-paid our tickets using Ticketmaster, and it paid off (no pun intended) I'd spent the extra $2.50 to print them immediately. The line to even gather your paid tickets looked rather daunting. I got a discount by paying with my American Express, but I saw that Costco was also selling packaged tickets including the audio tour. Kids under 6 are free.

The big kids all really enjoyed the exhibit. I felt a little bad that my older son would have liked to spend a lot more time in there, but there was not much in the way of distractions for Alexi (2). He liked looking at the boats and pointed out the birds and shapes and animals he recognized, but he grew bored very quickly. It's a good thing there were a bunch of us so we could divide and conquer. I can say all the kids thoroughly enjoyed the gift-shop at the end, though. There was also a kiosk where the kids printed out their names in hieroglyphics, too.

After our educational excursion we headed to the cafe for lunch. I'm always pleased with the food, and they added a fantastic infused water stand that really made me giddy!

And after lunch we spent a few hours chilling in the sculpture yard while the kids ran around and played. A great day!

The Counter

Last night we hit up The Counter for dinner. They have two locations Bay Area, one in Palo Alto and the other at Santana Row. It's a gourmet burger joint, but it's still a very family friendly spot. The Counter at Santana Row is located right across from a gated tot lot, and it makes for easy waiting during busy times. The restaurant is always a little on the noisy side and always chock full of families with young kids.

I've got to say The Counter's food is consistently tasty. The burgers are pretty good (you create your own by checking off a list of selections). The onion strings are out of this world! I'd definitely recommend getting the 3x3. It comes with onion strings, potato fries, and sweet potato fries...a little bit of everything plus a bunch of dipping sauces. Waitstaff tends to be a little hit or miss, but really it doesn't stop us from coming back again and again.

We're on Vacation!

Check out our current adventures on my personal blog :0)

Perfect picnic...

We are meeting a friend and her daughter for lunch this afternoon. Here are a few of the picnic portables we're bringing along :0)

Vignette Wine Country Soda, made from California varietal wine grapes, yum!

Mollie Stone's has the best selection of crackers, cookies, and cheeses from around the world :0)

Fresh picked Brentwood cherries

Cowgirl Creamery Mt. Tam brie

I wonder if my kids would eat these...

It's ice cream, but it looks like fruits and veggies! I want to try it...Yum!

Fun with Firefighters!!!

Hey, if you live in the South Bay area come to Rivermark's Red Robin this Monday to chill with some Firefighters! They'll have a vintage and giant fire truck for the kiddies to play on. There will be REAL firefighters around to answer questions, show kids their gear, and a raffle to win a private tour of the fire station!

The event is to raise money for a wonderful FF volunteer program, Santa Clara Firefighters Foundation. These amazing men, who's job is to risk their lives on a regular basis, VOLUNTEER to help other local charities in a variety of ways. Some of these works would include Senior Assist programs (like helping older folks clear out their back yards of debris and possible fire hazards), disaster relief, mentoring and leadership programs, and outreach for the disabled.

Rivermark Moms and The SC Firefighters have partnered with Red Robin, who will be hosting this event. All proceeds are tax-deductible, and will go to the Firefighter's Foundation! So come enjoy the trucks, eat some dinner with the fam, and support a great cause!

Pasta Pomodoro and Pinkberry

Yesterday (and Saturday, too) we had dinner at Santana Row followed by Pinkberry. We were actually there only for the Pinkberry, but it seemed wrong somehow to spend all that time finding parking just for yogurt.

Pasta Pomodoro is our idea of fast food. We don't really like chains as a general rule, but there are a few local chains that we enjoy when we're looking for family friendly, yummy, and inexpensive. Pasta Pomodoro is great before a concert, for lunch, or just an impromptu dinner out. We've been to just about every location in the Bay Area, and the food is consistent, the waitstaff efficient, and the locations convenient. I really enjoy their salad and soup. Matthew likes the spaghetti and lasagna (he wants to be Garfield when he grows up), and The Hubs likes the portobella pasta.

After that we jaunted over to Pinkberry aka Crackberry. Pinkberry opened about 3 months ago at Santana Row. You know you're in the right spot when you run into a line trailing out to the street. Pinkberry is the hottest craze since pogs, but likely has enough staying power to last. I'm loving the new Pomegranate flavor and the chocolate shavings! Taste-wise I think it's almost as good as Fraîche, but Fraîche gets the extra thumbs up for being organic and having indoor seating.

Speaking of yogurt, my sister in law just started her own yogurt blog. Check it out here! She's also the creator of my new photo watermarks. Cute, no?

The Cheese Board Collective

So after my romp around Cal, I made arrangements to meet up with my neighborhood mom pal, bookgroup compadre, and friend, Ariele. Okay, let me start of by giving you some amazing background about Ariele.

• She's sharp as a tack funny and smarter than most everyone I know.
  
• She grew up in Berkeley going to a hippy dippy school across the street from where her dad started Berkeley Free Clinic.
• For many years she was a HS Math teacher providing progressive education to some of the most depressed schools in California. She speaks of her old students with nothing but heartfelt love and admiration, and she has an innate understanding of teenagers few can fathom.
  
• She's a true, blue friend. And for the life of me, I couldn't imagine my first visit to Berkley without her!

So we met up at The Cheese Board Collective, she with her two boys and me with mine. After the greetings we got down to business. Ariele promptly handed me a shopping bag (she came prepared!), grabbed us a playing card, and started piling her arms full of the most amazing looking pastries and breads I've ever laid eyes on. CBC make all their own baked goods on site, and there is a constant overturn of hot crusty goodness every few hours. The cases also had a wide variety of olives, French and local honeys, and other noshes. Since CBC is a co-op they take their cheese very seriously. It is mandatory that you "try before you buy" so when our card was called we spent the next 30 minutes trying every cheese known to man...and then some! You wanna try a cheddar? Well they have like 20 different varieties of varying sharpness, some with chives, some without, some white, some yellow. Wanna brie? How about a stinky one? How about a blue that's creamy? How about a crumbly blue that's slightly different in texture, but very different in taste? It went on and on like this. I was starting to get scared...the wrapped packages of cut cheeses were piling up, and it didn't look like we had any sign of stopping soon. Ariele assured me it was all good, and kept on ordering. Finally, when the tally was rung up I balked...it coudln't be that cheap! So I added another three selections to top it off. We weren't allowed to tip the proprietors, but they said we could donate to the homeless initiative they support instead. After this, we stopped next door to the produce co-op and bought some fruit and berries. Then again next door to the Cheese Board Pizza. There was a live jazz duet playing while we waited in line to grab a few slices of the daily offering. Finally, we took all the kids by the hand and walked a half block up to a fenced in park. We found a big tree and set to work on our impromptu picnic.

I can't imagine a better first trip to Berkeley, and I'll be back soon for sure.

Walk from Cal to the Cheese Board.

That's a LOT of cheese.

If you pull the Joker you get to skip to the head of the line.

Freshly baked bread...and it was hot, too!

Weird ass cow bread god?

Cheese, glorious cheese!

Our cheese pile...we're about halfway done at this point.

Best pizza I've had in a long time! Zucchini, red onion, feta, with pesto and pignoli nuts.

Don't I look manically happy?

Brunch Bashing???

Another weekend, another opportunity for brunch...at least that's how I always look at it! On University Ave in Palo Alto there is a place called University Cafe that consistently serves tasty, no-frills brunch fare. I was just looking at the reviews and was really disappointed to see some do not share the same love I have for this establishment. Many complaints were about slow service, but in my experience (and we eat here about 2-3 times a month) service has been just fine. I wouldn't call it over the top, but it's an order/seat yourself joint. There's not much service to be procured other than food being brought out. *shrug*

It's advisable not to come during peak hours because it's seat yourself, and unless you have a rather aggressive personality finding space for a group of 6 can be cut-throat. You order at the bar, you get a number, and then your food is brought to you. The tables are lined with paper so the kids always love coloring while we wait for our food. I love the open airy atmosphere of this place, and the outdoor seating is nice in the summer. The old school looking coffee roaster is always wafting off some rather pleasing aromas, too. Add that to the yummy breakfast food and I'm a happy camper.

Coffee roaster

Coffee is good (so is milk).

Eggs Bruschetta, my favorite.

Hubbs like the pankcakes...

So do the kids.

Buffalo Bills Brewery and Zuckersüss

Let me preface this by boasting about my father-in-law. He is the Grandpa of all Grandpas...he is a big-rig truck driver! This might not sound like much if your a mom without boys, but if you do have boys you know what I mean. The In-laws were in the restaurant industry for most of their lives, but when they sold the business/semi-retired Grandpa decided to try something out. Something he's always wanted to do since he was a little boy. And my little boy gets major benefits out of it :0)

One benefit is Grandpa's truck route often brings him down through the Bay Area so we get to see him quite often! And another benefit is we get to go to our favorite East Bay restaurant, Buffalo Bills Brewery, when he drives into Hayward. This weekend we got the added bonus of my MIL, too. And since she has heard lots about our eating at Buffalo Bills, but never been, of course we had to take her!

Our family is pretty fond of pub/brewery dining. For one thing, the food is almost always affordable and it's usually pretty good (especially if you have picky eaters). Secondly, brewpubs tend to be rather loud so you don't have to worry about your kids making too much noise. And lastly, brewpubs specialize in alcohol...what's not to like? Buffalo Bills satisfies all these qualities, and the food is actually better than pretty good...it's downright great! We've yet to have a bad meal here, and the service is always very friendly.

I'm actually not a beer drinker, but the Hubs and his parents are serious beer connoisseurs (no, all three of those aren't just for him!).

Teriyaki chicken sandwich (without the sandwich). Comes with caramelized onions, grilled pineapple, mushrooms and potatoes, and two dipping sauces.

Matthew likes BB's pepperoni pizza. Alexander had a kid's cheese quesidellia with fruit.

After dinner we headed across the street to a new frozen yogurt shop that just opened. It was called Zuckersüss, and they touted organic self-serve'n'weight European style tart yogurt. Zuckersüss also was sporting a baby grand piano in the corner, some rad throw-back tunes, and some pretty swank furnishings. Initially when we arrived their card machine was down, but we got some cash down the street. The owners were so incredibly sweet (hence the name) they offered us ALL free seconds for the price of one to see if their card-reader was back up and running! Unfortunately, we were so full we didn't get to take them up on their offer!

Math really got into the whole serve yourself thing. He's got more toppings than he does yogurt.

Gotta say, this was really good (and I'm a die-hard Fraîche/Pinkberry fan).

In-law Interludes

The in-laws dropped in for a surprise visit today and yesterday. A visit from the in-laws, I'm happy to report, is actually a good thing in my book! We had the whole day together so we decided to spend it up in The City. Being rather limited on time, we did one touristy thing and then one "off-the-beaten-path" thing. Our family is comprised of serious foodies. The in-laws have spent the better part of their lives in the food-business (owning both a coffee/patisserie house and a restaurant) so it's no surprise this day was full of feasting. We made our way to the Ferry Building Marketplace and comprised ourselves a fabulous make-shift lunch fit for any foodie, and then headed our way to Caffe Trieste, a funky little coffee house with excellent java.

The Ferry Building is a veritable cornucopia of high end foodstuffs. From caviar to wine this place has got you covered!

Caffee Trieste is located right around the corner from the Ferry Building in North Beach (aka Little Italy). There are cute outdoor bistros and romantic cafes lined all along the streets. Crowds seemed to be mostly locals milling about enjoying their afternoon riposo...perfecto!

Check it:

These would make such cute baby shower favors!

At this stand all I could think about was mushroom lasagna.

Cheese, glorious cheese!

Olive oil much?

Our lunch: Acme Bread Co. selection, Mt. Tam brie, St George cheddar, 3 peppercorn salame, Sicilian cracked olives, and extra virgin olive-oil for dipping.

Mocha and a cappuccino.