15 Fiesta Ln, Lafayette
Back in April I posted some scuttlebutt about an upscale men’s salon called 18/8 coming to Fiesta Ln. in downtown Lafayette near The Cooperage. Based on the signs in the windows I’m happy to see this has now been confirmed.
15 Fiesta Ln, Lafayette
Back in April I posted some scuttlebutt about an upscale men’s salon called 18/8 coming to Fiesta Ln. in downtown Lafayette near The Cooperage. Based on the signs in the windows I’m happy to see this has now been confirmed.
Cooking with Kids at Walnut Creek Yacht Club:
Walnut Creek Yacht Club
1555 Bonanza St., Walnut Creek
Saturday, July 12th, 26th & August 9th, 2014
1:00pm – 3:00pm | FreeThe spaces at these classes are highly coveted, and are limited to the first fifteen to sign up. Please call now if this is something that you would like your budding chef to experience.
The three classes are held on Saturdays, from 1-3 pm.
And here are the dates:
July 12, July 26, August 9Chef Kevin chooses a dish that is seasonal, delicious and fun to prepare with the kids, ages 7-13.
We’re sorry, but this is for kids only! Please drop your sous chef off at the aft deck at
1:00 and pick him or her up at 3:00.
These classes are as much fun for Chef Kevin as they are for the kids, so we do not charge for them.
From the Lafayette City Manager:
Earlier today, Acalanes High School went on total lockdown after a student texted a threatening message. After an all-out response from the Lafayette Police Department and Acalanes faculty and administration, the student was arrested, taken into custody, and it is likely that s/he will be prosecuted for the action. There are lots of things wrong about this, but among the most regretful is that the high school seniors were scheduled to have their senior picnic at 10:30A, and this stupid act disrupted their celebration. Anyway, everybody’s breathing easier now, and the police and school personnel can chalk it up as a very realistic drill. All involved commented that the twice-annual active-shooter drills paid off big time. Whew.
Photo by Flickr user A. Currell
I hate planning birthday parties. Not the actual planning part, but the unknown. Living in the East Bay with two small kids however means birthday party planning is a given, twice a year. Two big decisions are the entertainment and the food. Considering the great weather we’ve been having lately I decided to host it in the backyard and promptly found a fun and educational group to keep the kids entertained for a while.
For lunch, pizza was the obvious choice, and not trusting a phone order, the morning of the party I drove over to a local, to-be-unnamed pizzeria. I inquired about ordering a few pies later in the afternoon. “Sure, no problem” he replied. Then I paused, looked him in the eye, and although I didn’t see his soul, asked him whether he was sure there wouldn’t be a problem delivering a few pies in the afternoon. “Absolutely” he replied, “no problem at all”. Relieved that I was able place the order I went back home to make the final arrangements before the party began. I even requested delivery 15 minutes before the entertainment would finish in case they were late.
15 minutes before the entertainment was to finish, everyone was having a great time. The pizza would soon come, certainly within 15 minutes I thought. 5 minutes passed, I glanced at my watch, then 5 more minutes. I called the pizzeria and inquired about the delivery. They checked and told me it was on its way and would take 5 – 10 minutes. Perfect I thought. I planned this just right. 5 minutes after the entertainment left the kids were sitting at the lunch table and I was sure the pizza was coming any minute. 5 minutes later with no delivery I called again. I was put on hold for a long time, and then told that I would receive a call back from the manager. 5 minutes later I receive a call from the manager who blamed traffic and the driver but insisted that he was on his way. By this time, with the kids restless I decided to serve the birthday cake first and, after waiting 5 more minutes, opened the garage door to head out to Safeway to pick up sandwiches instead. Finally, 40 minutes after the expected delivery time the pizza guy came. The kids got their pizzas (after the cake), and it wasn’t a complete disaster. After the party I got a call from the manager again who apologized, didn’t charge for the pies and sent a gift card as well which was considerate.
That being said, I hate birthday party planning because of the unknown. Has this ever happened to anyone? What would you do?
Last week I noted that the fashion accessories store Bracchiale would be reopening in a new Broadway Plaza location next to the Tesla showroom and there is now a sign up indicating that they’re opening on June 20th.
Snakes Alive…Harmless or Venomous – Meet the reptiles of Mount Diablo:
Mt. Diablo State Park
Summit Museum
Sunday, June 8th, 2014
10:30am – 2:00pm | FreeCome and meet some of the common reptiles of Mt Diablo. See our ONLY venomous snake, the Northern Pacific Rattler, a timid yet “deadly” creature. Find out what is myth and what is the true about these non aggressive serpents. Meet and hold some of our other local snakes and reptiles. Join Naturalist Michael Marchiano between 10:30 AM and 2:00 PM in the Audio Visual Room at the Summit.
408 Hartz Ave, Danville
A couple of weeks ago I noted that Duchess Boutique was moving to Danville and they have now opened on Hartz Ave. in downtown Danville where the shoe store Hartz & Soles used to be. Check out their Facebook page here.
This week’s kitchen of the day, located in south Lafayette is also from this year’s Lafayette Juniors Kitchen tour held last month. More photos from the tour are available here. The huge island featuring honed white and gray Calacutta De Oro marble countertops was one of the highlights for me, as was a unique cutting board, pictured in one of the photos below.
From the Lafayette Juniors description:
The ranch home houses a cook’s kitchen. The kitchen has beautifully honed Calcutta marble countertops with dual dishwashers and sinks. The kitchen is all white yet very vibrant. It has touches of modern elements with pops of orange in the décor. The kitchen offers grace and elegance in an immensely functional design which includes a built-in icemaker and wine
refrigerator.
Dining Area:
More photos including the cutting board after the jump…
Cutting board:
Side entry:
Rock the Plaza – Azure Moon:
Plaza Park
Moraga Rd & Mt. Diablo Blvd, Lafayette
Friday, June 6th, 2014
6:30pm – 8:30pm | FreeJoin us for Rock the Plaza on Friday, June 6 at 6:30pm at Plaza Park (intersection of Moraga Road and Mt. Diablo Blvd.) to hear Azure Moon.
From an email:
Tender Greens Chef Sean Eastwood is hosting a private tour of the Walnut Creek Farmer’s Market (schedule and details below) and at the link: http://www.tendergreens.com/blog/717/walnut-creek-farmers-market-walk-cooking-class-and-lunch
WHY is Tender Greens doing this? Because Sean Eastwood loves teaching and sharing the joy of food and cooking. Tender Greens wants want to give their guests a fun way to try different things at the farmer’s market that they might not get on their own, taste the different and get a chef’s perspective of the farmer’s market. There are so many different flavors and varieties of stone fruit, heirloom tomatoes, melons and berries but most people are only familiar with a few of them. They want to encourage people to enjoy and explore everything that the farmer’s market has to offer and teach them how to cook in interesting new ways.