Thank you, thank you! You guys are the best. Really. I never thought the day would come when I’d pour our life savings into a restaurant, and I especially never thought I’d get such passionate, encouraging comments and emails from so many readers of this here little ol’ food blog.
Truly, thank you. And if you live near by and see us building, painting, or tearing our hair out, please say hi–although I may throw a paintbrush in your hand. But I promise, it’ll be followed by a tall glass of spring sangria. Anyway, things moved forward this week–meeting with architects, signing the purchase agreement, working on a logo and seeking out financing. Check out these super-talented architects we met, Marites and Keith. They’re a husband and wife team who designed beautiful restaurants around the Bay Area.
I was trying to come up with a way to show my appreciation to all of you, and I decided a giveaway was in order. A pretty sweet giveaway, if you ask me. Win a $50 gift certificate to My Wines Direct! I originally said I would give away a copy of one of my favorite cookbooks, Alice Water’s The Art of Simple Food, so if you win, I’ll give you a choice: either the cookbook or the $50 gift certificate. Alice’s recipes are so approachable, so unique, and yet when you read them, you kind of think, “Huh, why didn’t I ever do that?” At least that’s what I think. But you know, I’m a little weird sometimes. 
I’m going to make you work a little though. To enter the giveaway, leave a comment by 11pm Monday night, telling me something you’ve seen in a restaurant lately that really wowed you. Was it the ball jar lanterns? The comfy couches? Wines on tap? What would make you stop and say, “Now that’s a great idea!” I’ll pick a comment at random as the winner. I know, the giveaway is a tad self-serving. But hey, this is our first restaurant, we need help…
Now for the sangria. It began with an email from my good friend Suzanne, who works for My Wines Direct in New York. She needed a sangria recipe, and I had one. A luscious, not-too-sugary, harmonious blend of spring fruits and wine. Did I tell you Alejandro was a bartender? Not your average beer-pouring bartender either. He was the kind who’d pour you a drink you’d never forget. The kind who invented drinks, and had them published in the Village Voice. Alejandro helped me with this spring sangria, which features ripe strawberries, kiwi, pear brandy, a splash of limoncello and fruity pinot noir. For even more umph, pair it with a California cab or even a petit verdot (though you may want to add a touch of orange or apple juice as well).
When I told Suzanne about it, she jumped for joy because she could pair my recipe with her Cinco de Mayo wine pack. (Disclaimer here, I in no way get paid by My Wines Direct. This all came about from a conversation with a friend. And, I have no proof that she actually jumped. I made that part up.) Cheers Suzanne, we miss you out here…
Spring Sangria with Strawberries and Kiwi
Makes about one liter
1 bottle California pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon or petit verdot
1 1/2 cups of strawberries, sliced thin
2 kiwi, sliced thin
1/2 cup pear brandy
1/4 cup limoncello
1/4 cup organic cane sugar
1/4 cup water
Bring water to a boil and add sugar and turn off heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved, and let cool to room temperature. In a medium-sized bowl, combine brandy, simple syrup and sliced fruit. Cover and let sit overnight in the fridge.
Take the fruit out of the fridge about 30 minutes before using. In a large bowl, mix fruit with wine and limoncello. Stir, and garnish with a strawberry.
Where I shopped:
Strawberries, Kiwi: Berkeley Farmers’ Market
If you enjoyed this post, sign up for emails or maybe subscribe to my RSS feed.
Print This Recipe
{ 58 comments… read them below or add one }
I recently went to Baker and Banker for the first time and I loved everything about it. That space must be blessed — Meetinghouse and Quince are hard acts to follow, but Baker and Banker has certainly lived up to their legacy. My favorite thing about the place? The exposed vintage light bulbs. The elements on the bulbs glow a rich amber color and give off a warm light. And the bulbs themselves are like miniature sculptures that look modern and traditional all at the same time. Good luck with your place!
hello! i’m from vienna and i recently went to a new restaurant called “wetter” (in english “weather”). the interior is puristic (black and white) – there’s a stuffed wild boar head hanging on one of the white walls! they have delicious italian food (but no pizza!). the menu is written in italian language – the waitress came to translate it into german! i really, really loved this place. i’d like to win a copy of this cookbook
have a great weekend!
Mmmm, that looks just gorgeous. Unfortunately we’re heading into winter in SA…
Allison, I did jump for joy and I’m jumping for joy right this second! I cannot wait to try this recipe. I love Sangria. Thank you so much for the recipe! We will be posting on our site and passing around to our readers.
I don’t want to be a part of your giveaway raffle, but I think part of what makes a restaurant awesome is the lighting. I like a little rustic feel and somewhere that feels comfy and homy. I guess I will have to think of more specific ideas for you. I will put my thinking cap on.
Hello, I just found your website a few weeks ago. I’ve been trying to check back, but for the past week I’ve been getting a message that the server couldn’t be found. Luckily, it’s working now! But I skimmed the comments and didn’t notice anyone had mentioned this, so I guess it must be me?
Good luck with your restaurant! Now, about your giveaway. I think the coolest thing I ever saw in a restaurant was in Morimoto’s restaurant in NYC where he had a wall of empty water bottles. I think that could be a cool direction for you to go in, since you are all about local and sustainable – maybe a recycling type of theme, OR since you are a great photographer, take some local pictures of your city and where you get your food and hang those up in a simple presentation. Those are my decor-related ideas, but I’ve got to say the most impressionable thing about a restaurant, for me, is the service. Bad service, even with good food, translates to a bad experience for me.
We went to Menton in Boston and they have the most gorgeous stemware for glasses. http://www.zaltoglas.at/en_sort_burg.php They don’t look like much from this picture but with a nice burgundy. The food there is also gorgeous..http://www.chow.com/photos/444623?tag=post-content-5534140;wrapper_inplace_photo_edit_5534140_index_3 a small example.
I do not go out too often but as luck would have it I went out with some members of my family last evening. (We celebrated my parents 49th anniversary).
It might not be all that impressive but the fact that the staff was forgiving of the fact that with our party were 4 children (ages 7,4,5 and 16 months). They were all a bit tired and cranky yet the staff was very accommodating. I think that some of the adults were a bit tired as well but all was served gracefully and in a timely manner.
This might seem silly, but my one of my recent favorite dining experiences was a mashed potato buffet bar. It was served in martini glasses, and it had all these amazing mix ins. Blue cheese, anyone?
Oh my god… I am so in love with these pictures and the beauty of this sangria. Bookmarking because this is one I am definitely going to make the next time I host brunch.
As for something I saw recently in a restaurant that “wowed” me. I love long long rustic tables… like at Camino. Even if some people don’t like sitting at the big “communal” style tables…
We recently went to Lark in Seattle and I was really impressed by the uniqueness and stylishness of their printed stuff: menus, business cards, etc. The menus were short and narrow and all the pages were held together with a brad, and instead of delivering the check in a standard black pleather card holder, it was presented in a transparent paper envelope, with a manila hang tag stamped with the Lark logo. (Like this: http://www.xpresstags.com/XTG/Manila-Tags.aspx). I kept the tag and plan on framing it as a memento, that’s how impressive it was.
Congratulations, and good luck!!
Hello! This is my first time posting but I couldn’t resist because I just ate at Chez Panisse Cafe for the first time (I don’t live in the area, I was on vacation) and I love Alice Waters. What wowed me in Chez Panisse was that there were bowls and plates out on the counter by the open kitchen with all the raw food that was being used to cook our meals. Bowls of fava beans, plates of tangerines – the color and bounty of it all was amazing and made me even hungrier as I waited for the amazing food!
Our favorite restaurant has a greenhouse in the back where they grow their own herbs and their tables, chairs and flooring is made from sustainable materials. Their menu is made from recycled paper and changes seasonally. They reuse old menus by folding them up and bringing the bill in them. My favorite part is that they put at the bottom of the menu where all their food comes from, much like what you do here on the blog. I love seeing the names of organic local farms, it makes you feel good about what you are eating! I’ll post the link, if you’re interested.
http://www.mindbodyspirits.com/mbs/
Things that wow me (regularly!) in restaurants: exposed brick walls, big windows, the ability to make simple dishes really well. Good luck with everything!
square plates and bowls… they get me every time!
I love edison lightbulbs. I love herbs in pots on tables with scissors so you can snip yourself a garnish. I love wine on tap and beer in cans. One thing I hate: coed bathrooms.
I love mirrors along the wall behind tables so that the people facing in toward their dining partners can also see the happenings in the restaurant behind them. At La Posta in Santa Cruz they have mirrors that are angled down slightly which makes for better viewing and looks cool.
Enjoyed a dinner at Boulevard last weekend. Loved the complexity of the desserts, its like getting a string quartet when you were expecting a solo performance!
Love that sangria recipe, I will definitely make that for the moms on mother’s day!
Needless to say, what makes the restaurant is the experience. Recently I was in Royal Oak, MI and at the end of the meal the waiter brought three little white boxes to the table and said, “for you.” We opened it and there were three small delectable pastries that we ate there on the spot free of charge. It’s that little extra that can turn a good mean into a great meal. Good luck with your restaurant opening and more importantly, HAVE FUN!
I ate at Bocanova (Oakland) and Gather (Berkeley) last week.
Bocanova has a great patio and they’re dog-friendly. I really appreciated that! The vaulted ceilings are a nice feature at Bocanova too. Makes it feel larger than it is.
I loved the chalkboard at Gather, telling diners “this week’s farms.” The wire lanterns hanging from the ceilings are nice and I like the open kitchen.
Best of luck opening your restaurant, Alison!
The past few times I’ve eaten out, I’ve been wowed by the incredible flower displays. Adds a bit of elegance to the entire experience. Good luck!
Just went to a place called The Cove here and it was “wig night” – all the employees had them on and if you wore one, you got some sort of special on drinks
I’m always looking for fresh new ways to serve strawberries, and this sure looks like a winner.
I love the way Pizzeria Mozza serves tap water at the table from old fashioned clear glass bottles with stoppers. As a matter of fact, I’ve stolen the idea for home and no longer apologize for serving guests tap water.
great question – it seems we all go to restaurants where we notice random stuff, but since i’m not opening my own i never write that stuff down!
i will say that i remember a visit to the Publican here in Chicago, and i thought it was really cool that they had a “drinking/standing area” in the middle of the restaurant. they have a small bar with seating, but a few tall 4-tops with no chairs. sorta like a place where you can stand, get a drink, and wait for your table, but not be shunned to the outside while you wait. i thought it was a great idea, and have never seen that before!
I love the chandellers at Farrallon in San Francisco. There shaped like jellyfish, to go with the seafood theme. Really amazing.
I really like the comfy, rustic feel of this Irish pub I go to with the girl. Owner is friendly, food is good and it feels like I’m actually in Ireland at times! Gotta love the soccer playing 24/7 too
Beautiful Sangria! I was recently at a Voce in NY and they had the most amazing glass walled room & the walls were encased with glorious wines *swoon*. It just struck me. Loved it.
I’ve been to places that put little hooks under the tables for your purse….I think that’s a great idea…better than having them behind your chair or worse on the floor.
Good Luck to you!
i just got back from panama where i drank sangria just about every day. must. make. this. now.
I love the use of Lemoncello in the Sangria….I love Lemoncello!! I am always looking for a good sangria recipe, we love using fresh fruits in the summer, just about anything is fair game…
thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!
one of the most novel things I have seen in a restaurant was in the Spring Lake area, we went into a local restaurant and each booth had a small TV screen on the wall….now while I wouldn’t go as far as to put a TV screen , you could put up digital frames with specials, pictures of the chef working, foods prepared…just about anything pertaining to the restaurant.
cheers
Dennis
Hi, I had lunch in Beldon Alley at Brindisi’s, the sun came out and warmed me up and I felt like a million bucks, now I know you can’t buy that and put it in a restaurant but a warm sunny feeling while dining is tops on my list!
unfortunately i haven’t been out to a resturant in the last couple of years so haven’t seen anything new/different.
jacquieastemborski AT comcast DOT net
I really went to a restaurant that served their coffee the way it is often done in Vienna. The coffee (which was actually a delicious Americano) was served on a small silver tray, with a cup of water beside it (also on the tray). Nice touch.
Well, one thing that impresses me is a good side salad. I hate restaurants that plop a plate of iceberg lettuce with a couple slices of tomatoes in front of you and call it a salad. It doesn’t have to be huge, but at least have something more substantial to it as well as being somewhat appealing to the eye. We went to a nice restaurant in Cupertino (Park Place, I believe) that had the most exquisite salad! The entree was good, but the salad is what I remember! Who wants to pay $5-$10 for a plate of lettuce? (That mashed potato buffet bar mentioned above sounds really cool, by the way! And your Sangria looks wonderful! Drool!)
digicat {AT} sbcglobal {DOT} net
Hi Allison! Well, at Boat Street Cafe in Seattle we had their house pickle plate and it was pretty rad–served with pickled cherries, asparagus, beets, prunes (those weren’t my favorite), carrots…really creative and beautiful. Also had a really simple creme fraiche ice cream with candied citrus. Perfect light end to the meal.
I’ve been to a few spots that do casual shifting menus on craft paper and I love the simple look of that. Also, Weck jars for storage/presentation. Can’t go wrong with those.
Also, ports are big right now–as I’m sure you know. Fun to do some after-dinner drinks at Little mac…excited to see it unfold!
I am a huge fan of bubbly water, but paying for it in a restaurant seems decadent. But Gather in Berkeley has a carbonator! And they’ll make your tap water into bubbly water! For free! They serve it in Strauss milk bottles. It’s a little thing, but reminds you that you’re eating someplace inventive and special.
I would like this right now, please! Funnily enough, I have a sangria date with friends on my calendar for next week. Now I know what recipe I’ll be using!
As for restaurants, I have to say – drinks served in jam jars always get me!
(PS: Please get Alejandro drunk on this stuff so I have a chance at winning at Scrabble again!)
First off.. I am a sucker for a good sangria!! Can’t wait to try this one!
One of my favorite things I have seen recently is silverware. I was in this little cafe in Santa Monica and NONE of the silverware matched! It was all rustic and fantastic and I loved the look of it!
I have never seen a recipe using strawberries in Sangria. I can’t wait to try it out.
I was dining at Ten22 (Sacramento, CA) a few weeks ago and I really liked how they served their water. I know, sounds wierd right? Instead of having the waitstaff coming around filling the water glasses, they had these bottles with an attached rubber stopper on the table. It made the meal less distracting and allowed us to focus on our conversation and the meal rather than pausing every few minutes whenever the waitstaff would come by. They also had stemless glassware.
I’m sorry to say I don’t get too wowed in restaurants around here. It’s just not the culture, so I look for good food, locally owned, down to earth. Last wow came from my neighbor’s Jamaican restaurant. She’s soon to be featured on diners, drive-ins and dives. Restaurant is nothing fancy, but food is unstoppable, especially the goat and the plantains. The “wow” is that she makes it all, does it all, and it’s really delicious. The crowds come and when you’re standing in line to place your order (it’s that kind of casual), people will always talk to each other, telling what their favorite is and trying to get you to try something new. People walk in and “get happy.” She does a heck of a take out business too.
Oh forgot to say, I’ve been looking for a good sangria recipe. THANK YOU.
Tiny servings of dessert – so you can have several if you like. That is one thing that I LOVE when I happen to find it at a restaurant. Even better would be a set price for several of them – of your choice.
Oh – and even BETTER is if the dessert is not too sweet. I had an overly sweet cheesecake last week, it was quite disappointing. I think that is something that is not done well here(in the US) is desserts that are not too sweet.
I absolutely love the baking sheets as trays at Betty’s, but it’s the amazing front of the house staff that keeps me coming back… the chicken sandwiches don’t hurt either.
Love this strawberry kiwi twist on sangria! I’m making one for a Cinco de Mayo party tonight with pomegranate juice, brandy and triple sec. I hope it’s as good as yours looks!
There is a small restaurant/brewery here that has come up with an interesting way to run themselves. I find that too often there is a sharp divide between the back of house and the front of house and that this leads to too much discord. The back of house works their butts off and feels like the front of house doesn’t understand how hard they work, and vice versa. So what this place has done is hire everyone at the same wage, front and back of house alike. Then all tips are pooled and shared by all. Also, on any given night you may be expected to wait tables or jump on the line and help the kitchen get caught up. I know that this set up can’t work for everyone and that you have to be very picky about who you hire. I just like the fact that they are doing what they can to bridge the divide between front and back of house. Both sides need to have an understanding of what the other does for the place to run smooth and without animosity.
That’s my very long 2 cent
There’s this little lebanese restaurant in Cologne which serves different kind of vegetarian dishes. my favorite one is the “Falafel Teller.” But what I really adore at this place is that they serve you hot cinnamon tea for free. Spicy and at the same time sweet!
love all your recipes from your website. good luck with your new restaurant and welcome to another whole new adventure.
the latest restaurant that has ‘wow’ me is lacques on melrose. the fireplace in the main dinning area exudes warm and high ceilings with exposed beams to give it openness. there is also a backyard patio filled with olive trees and planters of assortment of flowers that gives it a serene effect. the seller is the fresh seasonal produce that they buy from farmer’s market. Their menu changes weekly and the food is phenomenal.
I’m from Berlin and congratulations, and good luck to your new restaurant! My favourite italian restaurant has a great and delicious antipasti counter. So whenever we visit the place I have to choose something new dishes to try
For my last birthday I went to a restaurant in Grand Rapids called Mangiamo’s. It’s located in a huge old house. You get to eat in one of the massive rooms. We got to eat in the dining room, but next time I want to eat on the front porch that is all windows. Not only was the experience unique, but the food was delicious!
Sangria? Yes please.
Coolest thing is at the Boston bar, Drink. Each cocktail comes in unique/antique-y glasses found on ebay, garage sales and your grandmother’s attic. Some glasses match, some don’t, but it adds a homey, vintagey feel that can be easily replicated by those with good taste.
Can’t wait to try this sangria recipe!
Bolsa in Dallas, TX was one of the first restaurants in this area to buy local. Everything is completely fresh, they don’t even own a freezer! The food is delicious and presented beautifully but to know the owners you wouldn’t be surprised that the sugar holders were made out of electrical outlet boxes. It completely worked out!