In honor of Valentine’s Day today, we couldn’t resist telling you about one of the Bay Area’s most romantic destinations, Nick’s Cove Restaurant, Oyster Bar & Cottages on the pristine, tranquil waters of Tomales Bay in Marshall, Calif. Just a little over an hour from San Francisco, Nick’s Cove is still in the 415 but feels a world away.

Ellipses PR has had the pleasure of representing Nick’s Cove since September, and we’ve been lucky enough to stay in several of their luxuriously rustic Cottages. Our current favorite is Ruthie’s, which is one of the five little havens Nick’s Cove has built literally on the water, with the waves lapping underneath you as you relax on its patio, eating their famous BBQ’d oysters (which are complimentary upon check in). The breathtaking scenery perfectly compliments the Cottage’s interior, complete with a dining nook and fully-stocked honor bar, living area (complete with a ready-to-light wood stove), incredibly comfortable king sized bed and fully-appointed bathroom with heated tile floors.

The food at Nick’s Cove, by their new and very talented chef Austin Perkins, can be enjoyed in the property’s beautiful restaurant or as room service, making it entirely possible to stay at Nick’s and not even leave your Cottage for days on end! A continental breakfast, complete with the day’s paper, is always brought to your door in the morning. Additional items, such as the decadent Dungeness Crab Eggs Benedict, are amazing.

They say a picture is worth 1,000 words, so we thought we’d share our gallery of photos from a recent stay. Bonus – all of these were taken with an iPhone 4S, which we have to say has an incredibly impressive 8 mega-pixel camera. (The last photo of the Nick’s Cove Boat Shack ended up being used by our client in an upcoming ad in Alaska Airlines magazine!)

Nick’s Cove has a couple of fantastic overnight packages perfect for a romantic getaway, including the “Nick’s Loves Love” package, which is available for the rest of February. It includes an in-room couple’s massage, and a new Signature S’mores Kit, made in-house by Pastry Chef Gillian Helquist. YUM.

The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind of feasting for us—well, I guess it actually goes back a bit farther than that. After all of the gluttony that December tends to bring, we dove straight into Chefs’ Holidays at the Ahwahnee, which was immediately followed by the insanity that is the Fancy Food Show at Moscone Center. Now we only went one day—three would be a little much, even for us—but trust us, we made that day count. From a micro-brewed soy sauce to Italian truffle butter to mushroom-infused cheese, it was hard to for our taste buds to not get a little worn and torn, but we did come across some really innovative and delicious foods that we really hope to see on store shelves this year. Our top five favorites (not including the fois gras booth – that’s just a given) are as follows:

#5: Trois Petits Cochons – this company has been around since 1975, and they know what they’re doing. Founded by French Chefs Alain Sinturel and Jean-Pierre Pradie in New York, their pâtés and charcuterie have always been small production and are made of the finest all-natural artisanal ingredients. They are even options for those who shy away from the classic fois gras and goose pâtés, including delicious artichoke, spinach, or salmon terrines.

#4: Truffle PigB&J – Remember the famous scene in “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” when the children first behold the view of candy land?  The one with chocolate rivers and gumdrop trees?  Now in that same vein, imagine a candy bar made of chocolate truffles, peanut butter and raspberry jam. Are you feeling nostalgic?  Made by Hagensborg Chocolates in Vancouver, this version of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in candy-bar form is our idea of hog heaven.

#3: Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream – now we have some fabulous ice cream here in SF, don’t get us wrong, but this small-batch, home-made ice cream from Ohio was pretty darned good. The flavors ranged from salted caramel and brambleberry crisp to Riesling poached pear and whiskey pecan. In each one (yes, we sampled each one) you could tell that the flavors were the real deal and the creaminess was simply perfection.

#2: Wild Veggie Soups – finally we get to give SF a little love with our #2 favorite, Wild Veggie Soup. These vegan and gluten-free soups, made in San Francisco, are flash frozen so the flavor is fresh and bright. The broccoli and butternut squash soups are both so creamy and flavorful that it’s hard to believe that there is no butter, only vitamins and nutrients. We love soup any time of year, but we are happy that we discovered Wild Veggie now—when it’s cold and we need a diet!

#1: Rick’s Picks – we are loving the recent pickle craze and Rick’s Picks from NYC are some of the best we’ve tried. From the deli-style pickle spears to soy-wasabi pickled green beans to his aromatic pickled beets “phat beets” and spicy okra “smokra.” We daydream about the perfect Bloody Marys that could be created if we had access to these pickles on a regular basis.

This time of year, everyone and their brother is coming out with Culinary and Hospitality Trend Reports for 2012. From the Huff Post to The Food Channel to the James Beard Foundation, we are bombarded with differing opinions on what’s going to be hot and tasty in the coming year. It’s interesting—some say food trucks are out while others say they are just getting revved up, and some claim that comfort food (like truffled mac n’ cheese) is a thing of the past while others are just warming up to the idea. Here are our picks for what we think will be big in the hospitality/restaurant industry in 2012; what do you think?

1.  Hyper-local cuisine: As we saw on a recent episode of HBO’s Bored to Death, supplying your restaurant with produce and meats from within 100 miles is so 2011. In the coming year, we will be seeing more chefs trying to go hyper-local, both culturally and biologically. This means not only will everything on the menu be sourced from the closest farms possible, but more chefs will look to harvesting their own herbs and vegetables on rooftop gardens as well as foraging for edible species native to their location. Like Copenhagen’s Noma, new American restaurants will focus on cooking food that is also culturally native, in order to really give patrons a taste of where they are and how the cuisine defines that particular area.

2.  Eco-time travel: Not only do people still want to get the best deals possible when booking travel arrangements online, but the lodgings and tourism companies that tout eco-friendly elements at a competitive price point will be getting much more popular in 2012. While on vacation, people don’t want to think about whether they are partaking in an activity (or staying in a hotel) that is potentially hazardous to the environment, so if the company takes the liberty of ensuring that all of their amenities and business practices are green, it helps the guest feel good about their choice without having to do anything.

3.  Drink early, eat late: The Europeans have been way ahead of us on this one. With more people working remotely as well as spending more time in their cars and on public transportation, an afternoon rendezvous for a cocktail and late lunch around 4 p.m. will be gaining popularity in 2012. This means that hotels and restaurants with nice bars and impressive drink programs will be getting busier later when folks get hungry for dinner around 10 p.m. and there will be a greater demand for bars that serve good food late into the night.

4.  A la cart: Back in the day, upscale restaurants had service down to a tee. Not only did the servers assemble Caesar salads, de-bone fish and slice prime rib tableside, but they also had carts that were brought to each table so the guest could choose their dessert and see their cocktails being made in front of them. Most restaurants these days are missing that interactive side of service, and we hope to see it make a comeback in 2012.

5.  Pop-up chefs/guest chefs: Building upon the food truck craze which made it easier for chefs to get their food (and names) out to the public in an affordable and easy way, in the coming year there will be more pop-up restaurants and guest chefs moonlighting at pre-existing brick and mortar locations. People love to believe that they are getting to experience something exclusive and special, so using social media, especially Twitter, chefs will be able to create buzz by only operating in a certain location for a short period of time. This also leads into another trend of 2012, which will be more of a focus on using social media to decide where to eat out.

6.  Social app domination: Whether we like it or not, mobile apps and location sites like Foursquare are getting more and more popular. The chefs and restaurant owners that embrace this fact and partake in it will ultimately succeed in 2012. Most people use these apps to be better informed about the menu choices, so that they can see what their friends experienced, and ultimately to ensure that they don’t order the wrong thing. Being able to see where people are eating also creates mystery about a restaurant and draws more guests in.

7.  Local craft breweries: As everything else is going local, so are people’s thoughts about where their beer comes from. Because beer is becoming more acceptable (and even preferred by some) when it comes to being paired with food, more Americans are looking towards local breweries with smaller production to get their frosty kicks. Not only is it a fact that the fresher the beer, the better it tastes, but many craft breweries come out with special limited-edition beers that are seasonal and use local ingredients—for example, our client, the Half Moon Bay Brewing Company makes a Devil’s Slide Summer Ale which is brewed using local raw orange blossom honey that we feel embodies summertime in the Bay Area.

8.  Which leads us into our next trend: Strange Brews. Due to people’s growing bravery and excitement about trying new things, expect to see more experimentation with bars branching out and adding some pretty interesting brews that are lesser-known in America to their menus. We are hoping to see some more Belgian influences such as Lambics, Sour Ales, Saisons and Ciders.

9.  And as beer gains more popularity so shall its close friend: The Pretzel. Salty, crunchy and satisfying, pretzels are the next big thing when it comes to trendy nostalgic snack food. Great on their own with a savory or sweet dipping sauce and easy to incorporate into other foods like ice cream, doughnuts or even fried chicken, get ready for pretzel domination.  Pastry Chef Emily Luchetti dons them chocolate-covered on her frozen chocolate mousse cake, which you can see her demo at The Ahwahnee’s Chefs’ Holidays event, Session 3.

10.  Unusual dining spaces: Last but not least, more restaurants are going to be utilizing creative spaces to give diners the feeling of being special and exclusive. Whereas it’s the norm to have a chef’s table that is close to an open kitchen, expect to see more clever uses of space, such as a table that is actually in the kitchen, in the wine cellar or on the roof. Also expect more unused areas to be turned into outdoor dining spaces: alleys, parking lots, and tiny back yards all have the potential to be fun al fresco dining gems.

One week from tonight we’ll be up at The Ahwahnee in Yosemite, hosting a group of very lucky media for The Bracebridge Dinner, which is celebrating its truly remarkable 85^th season this December 13-25.

For the uninitiated, The Bracebridge Dinner is a holiday experience like no other in the world. This remarkable American theatrical tradition transforms the hotel into a 17^th century English manor for a feast of food, song and mirth for eight performances, including Christmas Day. Produced by San Francisco Bay Area-based Andrea Fulton Productions, The Bracebridge Dinner is an evening celebration that transports guests to Old England, where more than 60 elaborately costumed, professional singers and other performers enact a holiday banquet with Lord Merrick of Bracebridge and his entertaining household. The scripted show offers laughs, spectacular musical numbers, and a touching reminder of what is truly important during the holidays. The Bracebridge Dinner is recognized as one of the most sought-after holiday events in the U.S. In 2006, The Wall Street Journal reported, “Bracebridge is, without much doubt, the country’s, if not the world’s, premier Christmas dinner.”

Photo Credit - Lani Spicer

During each Bracebridge performance, up to 300 guests enjoy a lavish, seven-course feast by The Ahwahnee’s Executive Chef Percy Whatley, with service meticulously choreographed as part of the pageantry. The Ahwahnee Dining Room, with its 50-foot ceiling topped by massive log beams, serves as the Great Hall at Squire Bracebridge’s manor. The entire room is a stage, crowned by an elaborate Squire’s table and decked with holiday decorations, many of which are restored originals from the first productions in the late 1920s.

History

The original production of The Bracebridge Dinner was created by Garnet Holme, a California pageant director, who conceived the event for The Ahwahnee’s first Christmas in 1927. The inspiration for this yuletide ceremony was author Washington Irving’s The Sketch Book (1819), which described Squire Bracebridge and English Christmas traditions. After Holme’s death in 1929, Donald Tresidder, president of the Yosemite Park & Curry Company, asked world-famous photographer Ansel Adams to assume directorship. Adams, who was also a talented musician and pianist, worked with Ahwahnee interior designer Jeanette Dyer Spencer to improve the script, set and costumes. Adams continued directing and performing in The Bracebridge Dinner until his retirement from the production in 1973. Eugene Fulton, who took over the directorship from Adams, began as conductor of the Chorale in 1934, and served as musical director beginning in 1946 after a two-year production hiatus for World War II.

The current director and executive producer of The Bracebridge Dinner, Andrea Fulton, took over the role from her father after his death in 1978. Fulton grew up with Bracebridge, performing in the production since the age of five. She currently plays the role of Augusta Billingsly, Housekeeper of Bracebridge Hall. Margo McCarty, a performer in the Chorale for more than 20 years, was brought on by Fulton in 2004 to serve as co-executive producer. McCarty’s husband, Michael McCarty, is co-artistic producer with Fulton and performs the role of Lord Merrick, Squire of Bracebridge Hall.

Photo Credit - Lani Spicer

Many of the cast members have been with the production for 20 to 25 years, maintaining a longstanding tradition and consistent mark of theatrical and musical excellence. When not in The Bracebridge Dinner, most perform as soloists, choral singers and actors with major opera companies, theatre productions, festivals and symphony orchestras throughout the world.

The 2011 performances of The Bracebridge Dinner take place December 13, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24 and 25, at 6 p.m.  There are one- and two-night packages available at The Ahwahnee, Wawona and Yosemite Lodge at the Falls, starting at $953, which include the Dinner for two, a professional portrait sitting and shuttle services for guests not staying at The Ahwahnee.

Dinner-only tickets are available for $425 (adults) and $265.50 (children 12 and under), including tax and gratuity. Please call the reservations desk to make a dinner-only reservation at (801) 559-4884. Single tickets are not available online. For more information or to make reservations, visit http://www.yosemitepark.com/bracebridge or call (801) 559-4903.

It may be the gluttons in us, but we feel there is nothing better than a holiday dedicated to gathering together with family and friends, stuffing ourselves silly and drinking copious amounts of booze. Add in a beautifully set table, a warm bustling kitchen, and that moment when you finally get to change into sweatpants and it doesn’t get much better.

What we find really interesting about Thanksgiving is that everyone does it differently. Some people love to go out to eat for Thanksgiving (for example, two of our clients, The Half Moon Bay Brewing Company and Nick’s Cove are both doing special Thanksgiving menus), others do potlucks with friends in tiny San Francisco apartments, and some people don’t do anything special at all. Not everyone is fortunate enough to enjoy a homemade meal, surrounded by loved-ones on Thanksgiving; one that includes old family recipes, traditions and takes weeks to plan out and hours to prepare. It may sound corny, but we are very thankful that we are lucky enough to chow down on homemade delicious grub this year.

We love learning about what other people can’t live without on their Thanksgiving table, so we thought we’d share our favorites and hope you share yours with us!

Tami is obsessed with her mom’s Pork Sausage Stuffing, which she says is “Da BOMB”.

Even though it’s a tough choice for Caitlin who loves her Brussels Sprouts with Prosciutto and Parmesean, she cannot imagine Thanksgiving without snacking on her grandma’s Deviled Eggs while waiting for the turkey to come out of the oven.

And Diana salutes the passing of her favorite magazine, Gourmet, every year by making this to-die-for recipe for Cranberry Jelly.

What are some of your special Thanksgiving dishes or traditions?

This past weekend, we got to experience the Wine Road’s annual Wine & Food Affair up in northern Sonoma County. We navigated our way to each winery not only by the actual wines being poured, but the paired dish each one was serving.  In our trips to wine country, we’ve never stopped at so many wineries in one day and even though it was slightly rainy out, the scenery proved to be just as beautiful, as you’ll see in this photo taken from the grounds of Twomey Cellars.

Tickets for the two-day event are a very affordable $70, which allows guests to sample as much wine as they want at each of the dozens of wineries, along with food prepared by local chefs.  If that weren’t enough, you also leave with a sizeable hard-bound cookbook featuring the recipes for each dish that was served.

We started our journey at Kendall-Jackson, which we’ve never visited before, and it offered much more than we expected from our previous grocery store-based experience with the brand. We were pleased to see that the tasting room was a gorgeous French Chateau-style building with equally perfect gardens and manicured lawns to match.  Inside we not only enjoyed a taste of their delicious reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, but also the Cabernet-braised Oxtail with heirloom tomato & okra sauce.  It was a fine way to start the morning.  Our tastebuds piqued and our new cookbook now in hand, we continued the adventure to Windsor Oaks Vineyard.

The second unexpected surprise was the discovery of a delicious non-oaked (hooray!!) Chardonnay from Windsor Oaks, which we snatched up a bottle of to take home, along with some other treasures from the day’s tasting, which you’ll see in this photo.  The wine paired beautifully with the Lobster Chardonnay Bisque with Meyer lemon oil that was being served, and is a dish we will definitely be making at home this winter.

Next, it was a quick detour to relatively new winery, Merriam Vineyards, for a taste of their Rosé and Mushroom-braised Short Ribs. Taking a sweet break from our savory escapade, we next visited Foppiano Vineyards for a taste of their decadent Flourless Dark Chocolate Cupcakes, of which we’re not afraid to admit we tasted more than one.  After a nice sweet mid-course, we headed to Twomey Cellars (also a participating winery in The Ahwahnee’sVintners’ Holidays event this year) for a taste of their Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noirs with Sicilian Lamb Meatballs with Vin Cotto.

As we meandered down the beautiful windy road through Sonoma’s “back country,” slowly making our way home we made two last stops, first at Hop Kiln Winery for some Wild Salmon and Pinot Noir rice along with some tasty Zinfandels, and lastly Moshin Vineyards, where, gasp!, we discovered another wonderful non-oaked Chardonnay!  We washed that down with some Smokin’ Slow Moshin Brisket, then forklifted ourselves back in the car and called it a day.  We look forward to next year’s event and the new surprises we will discover along the Wine Road.

Last week Condé Nast Traveler announced that Charleston, South Carolina, was voted the top tourist destination in America by 29,000 card-carrying readers, usurping San Francisco after an 18-year run at No. 1. “How could this be!?,” you ask? Well, according to the poll, the answer is friendliness. Whereas more than 90% of Condé Nast readers feel that Charleston is a friendly city, only 66.9% would describe S.F. as such.

On one hand, we understand that it’s not the most enjoyable experience to be asked for change when sitting outside of any café in North Beach (usually multiple times in one sitting). Maybe we’re just used to the panhandlers, but we don’t think that’s enough of a reason to say S.F. isn’t friendly.

For example, what other city in America shuts down entire streets every weekend  just so people can ride bikes, roller blade or just stroll leisurely around, listening to music and enjoying each others’ company? Just this past Sunday in Golden Gate Park, we witnessed loads of people dressed up for Halloween, young and old, having fun.

We know that Charleston is a lovely city, full of history and other beautiful sites (not to mention some delicious shrimp and grits), but we offer a few reasons we think San Francisco should remain #1, particularly when you recognize that all of this exists within just seven square miles:

1) Architecturally, San Francisco is home to many fascinating historic landmarks, including Alcatraz, the Presidio, Coit Tower, the S.F. Cable Car System (the only transportation system on the National Register of Historic Places), Fort Point and The Golden Gate Bridge, to name a few.  Plus, the collection of amazing Victorian homes, many restored to their original glory, in all corners of the city is unmatched.

2) Geographically, San Francisco simply cannot be beat. From the Bay to the breakers (with several parks to nap in, in between) walking S.F.’s more than 50 hills will leave you breathless in more ways than one. We love discovering hidden stairwells, lookout points and gardens while wandering the city. In fact, the other day we came across the gorgeous 16^th Avenue steps in the Inner Sunset. Just this year, the city celebrated its 100^th anniversary of the Bay to Breakers foot race, an annual tradition that started to boost civic morale after the devastating 1906 earthquake.  Now, weather you’re in jogging shorts or costume, the event attracts thousands of participants each year for a morning of fun unlike anywhere else on earth.

3) Food-wise, San Francisco is the epicenter for culinary innovation and has access to the best produce in the country because of its thriving local agriculture.  Is there any other city besides New York that can boast more of the United States’ best restaurants? Not only are we home to this year’s James Beard Award recipient for Best Chef in the Pacific (Cotogna and Quince’s Michael Tusk, who was also one of The Ahwahnee’s participants in Chefs’ Holidays this January) but also several nominees in a variety of other categories. Mission Chinese Food came in second in Bon Appetit’s Best New Restaurants in America 2011, plus we have an out-of-control food truck scene, pop-up restaurants and underground dining societies. (Not to mention our very own weeklong food festival, SF Chefs. Food. Wine. )  In fact, most tourists of San Francisco cite “food” as being their #1 reason to visit.

4) Culturally, combine all of that with our fabulous weather (75° on Halloween is not too shabby) where most days of the year we can be outside enjoying The City’s beauty, cultural diversity, acceptance of “different” lifestyles, fabulous shopping districts, awesome tenant rights, extreme environmental consciousness, bike-friendliness and close proximity to wine country and we’d say we’ve got Charleston beat. But for good measure, we have decided we are going to be EXTRA nice to every tourist we meet from now on so we can be sure to win back our well-deserved spot as Numero Uno in 2012.

Last week we decided to take a little road trip down to one of our favorite spots on the coast and our client, the Half Moon Bay Brewing Company. Every year around this time is when the Brewing Company comes out with their famous Mavericks Pumpkin Harvest Ale, made with local sugar pie pumpkins and a secret blend of spices. This beer is perfect for an autumn evening on the dog-friendly outdoor patio under the heat lamps or cuddling next to one of the fire pits.

We started out taking a short tour of the brewery with Brewmaster Kirk Hillyard where he explained how beer is made and showed us all of the different types of malts and hops that are used in their everyday operations at the brewery. Depending on the type of beer being made, it can take anywhere from two weeks to several months before the beer is pumped from the brewery directly into the bar in the HMB Brewing Company.

Afterwards we made our way to the bar so we could taste Kirk’s hard work, and we decided that a flight of beers would probably be the best plan of attack. We started out with our seasonal favorite, the Mavericks Pumpkin Harvest Ale, and then moved on to a darker, English-style beer, the Bootlegger’s Brown Ale which was bold, flavorful and had a touch of sweetness. Some of the other stand-outs included the Princeton-by-the-Sea IPA which was deliciously hoppy with a touch of citrus, as well as our other favorite, the Sandy Beach Blonde Hefeweizen, a Bavarian-style wheat beer with hints of clove and banana.

Enjoying the beer flight before our pumpkin-inspired dinner was extremely helpful in determining which beers we should pair with each course. We started out with a creamy and delicious pumpkin, crab and shrimp chowder (which was specially served inside of a pumpkin for us by Chef Gaston Alfaro), paired alongside a pint of (what else?) the Mavericks Pumpkin Harvest Ale. Next we had the Roasted Pumpkin Chicken salad with mixed greens, and a roasted Jalapeno-Pumpkin seed oil vinaigrette, which was served alongside the seasonal Mavericks Oktoberfest. For our entrée, we had Prosciutto wrapped California Sea Bass with roasted spaghetti squash, sautéed Swiss chard and a lemon-pumpkin sauce which was divine with the Mavericks Princeton-by-the-Sea IPA. For dessert, we couldn’t choose just one, so we opted for both special desserts that night, a Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust and a special Beeramisu which is Chef Gaston Alfaro’s play on tiramisu, made with their Paddle Out Stout, marscarpone cheese, Kahlua and coffee which we enjoyed alongside the deep and satisfying Mavericks Barley Wine.

We look forward to the next trip to Half Moon Bay Brewing Company, hopefully on a weekend within the next couple of months so we can sit outside and listen to live music while we enjoy the next seasonal beer: the hoppy and warming Winter Solstice Ale.

When we signed up for this “pop-up” flash dinner picnic three or so months ago, we had so much work to do for Cocktail Week that we almost forgot about it altogether. Luckily, a week before, a friend mentioned that this “secret” dining event was almost upon us, so we scoured our emails and were happy to discover we had not only signed up but also RSVP’d on time (!) thus guaranteeing us an unknown table in an undisclosed location somewhere in San Francisco on the evening of October 14^th.

We had heard of Paris’s Diner en Blanc, where all of a sudden a thousand people descend upon an empty yet beautiful spot in the middle of the city, wearing all white and toting white chairs and white tablecloths. As it ends up, that’s what Le Diner a San Francisco was modeled after. The rules were the same: the guests must wear white and bring everything necessary to an elegant and graceful dinner including white linens, candles, flowers, wine, glassware, flatware, plates, food and drinks. As for the tables and the roving street musicians, they’ve got it covered.

Since we wouldn’t be hearing where the event would be held until an hour before, we had to prepare a meal that could be served room temperature or, possibly, cold—knowing full well that an evening in SF can get frigid—and would have to be easy to transport and serve.

Deciding on a theme was the most difficult part, and although we were tempted to do BBQ brisket and wings slathered in messy sauce—everyone would be wearing white, after all—in the end, we decided to honor the origin of the event, and go French.

When the location was announced, we were ecstatic. There would be no schlepping our Champagne halfway across The City, it was to be mere blocks away in the lovely music concourse in Golden Gate Park (in between the DeYoung and the Academy of Sciences). The set up was a breeze, so we decided to wander around the grounds and check out everyone’s creative and drool-worthy tables. Some brought their best crystal while others drank out of mason jars, some were dressed to the hilt in powdered wigs and elaborate costumes, while others busted out the only white thing they owned, like a sailor suit. At 7:30 the meal commenced with everyone grabbing their white napkins and waving them overhead, cheering, as the sun went down.

We popped open our first bottle of Champagne and dug into our first course. We started out with two different pates from our favorite local meat shop, The Fatted Calf, along with cornichons and Castelvetrano olives. For our main course we had a kale and quinoa salad with feta, tomatoes, kalamata olives and broccoli alongside a roasted chicken. As any good Frenchie will tell you, the cheese course comes next, and ours featured local cheeses from Cowgirl Creamery including the Mt. Tam, Pierce Pt, and Devil’s Gultch cheeses. The finale was a homemade lemon tart topped with fresh raspberries.

In short, it was a rare and magical San Francisco night. Not only was it actually warm outside, but the moon was huge, the fountains were lit up and the stars were out in full force. The food was a little cold, but the ambiance made up for it. It felt like we could have been in Paris, but where we actually were was better: surrounded by friends and neighbors in the middle of Golden Gate Park, eating, drinking and dancing the night away.