Wonderful and you are right of course. I can rermember enough of what we cooked, and how we managed. And the Getty girls coming in after a run to lose weight and then scarfing down hamburgers.
Thanks! No, I don't have menus, just the dishes that I remember (and still make, from time to time).
I think Chuck passed away a few years ago. Brad Barker might have some menus or recollections, if you're still in touch with him. Also Liz Schiffman, or Monica (who ended up working for Harry Denton for some time). There must be an old Patty Unterman review hidden away somewhere, too, that would describe at least the opening menu. I'm sure that's how I found you in the first place.
Because it was a café, I don't know if you'd need a menu from that time to write about a few of the key dishes and your approach to making the most out of a tiny space.
In a funny way, the Balboa was a microcosm precursor to Stars, with a clientele that ran from the throngs of the Bermuda Triangle to Ann & Gordon Getty. Did I ever tell you that's where I first met Sean Thackrey? I was waiting on him and asked about his hands, which were stained purple. He had just crushed his first harvest that day.
Paul started off in the kitchen, but the system could not handle the smoke, so he moved the operation to the fire escape. And cooked there. Then so much smoke that the fire brigade arrived en masse.
formidable! what a spectacular walk down memory lane, a moveable feast of prose, a delicious way to start the day, and now I’m craving pecan puff pastry! ❤️
The wine list. Pairing the 74 Mondavi Cab with the cheese course. And Christian Brother's Sherry for the afterparty. So many great wines and producers, I think all of them are around in one form or another (although many aren't the same) except Acacia, which sold to Chalone.
The Stanford Court has changed a bit since then. I remember taking pictures in front of the wine cellar when I was a kid.
I'd love to see you write a piece someday about the perfect, simple dishes you created at the Balboa. Less earth-shattering, but so right for a simple café. I still love to make the fettuccine with a sauce of reduced cream & goat cheese, tomato, basil, & lemon zest. The cold flank steak salad, the watercress salad with walnut vinaigrette...
It was a time that we all made and, importantly, without much technology except books.
Staining proof that they are loved and used. Thank you Katherine.
Wonderful and you are right of course. I can rermember enough of what we cooked, and how we managed. And the Getty girls coming in after a run to lose weight and then scarfing down hamburgers.
What a wonderful idea! Do you have any of those menus? I am sorry to say that I don't. And where is Chuck, the chef, these days? He would have them.
Thanks! No, I don't have menus, just the dishes that I remember (and still make, from time to time).
I think Chuck passed away a few years ago. Brad Barker might have some menus or recollections, if you're still in touch with him. Also Liz Schiffman, or Monica (who ended up working for Harry Denton for some time). There must be an old Patty Unterman review hidden away somewhere, too, that would describe at least the opening menu. I'm sure that's how I found you in the first place.
Because it was a café, I don't know if you'd need a menu from that time to write about a few of the key dishes and your approach to making the most out of a tiny space.
In a funny way, the Balboa was a microcosm precursor to Stars, with a clientele that ran from the throngs of the Bermuda Triangle to Ann & Gordon Getty. Did I ever tell you that's where I first met Sean Thackrey? I was waiting on him and asked about his hands, which were stained purple. He had just crushed his first harvest that day.
Paul started off in the kitchen, but the system could not handle the smoke, so he moved the operation to the fire escape. And cooked there. Then so much smoke that the fire brigade arrived en masse.
What a wonderful compliment, Laura. Always up for a moveable feast!
Thank you Donna!
Yes indeed, great memories.
Such a good story - and those great, inspirational books. I found the kind of food in those books that made sense to me. Great memories of those days.
I was working at the Stanford Court Hotel at the time. All I remember, was what a mess the kitchen was after the blackened fish course.
formidable! what a spectacular walk down memory lane, a moveable feast of prose, a delicious way to start the day, and now I’m craving pecan puff pastry! ❤️
The wine list. Pairing the 74 Mondavi Cab with the cheese course. And Christian Brother's Sherry for the afterparty. So many great wines and producers, I think all of them are around in one form or another (although many aren't the same) except Acacia, which sold to Chalone.
The Stanford Court has changed a bit since then. I remember taking pictures in front of the wine cellar when I was a kid.
What a moment in food history. The bridge between craft and culture began here — with flavor as philosophy.
I'd love to see you write a piece someday about the perfect, simple dishes you created at the Balboa. Less earth-shattering, but so right for a simple café. I still love to make the fettuccine with a sauce of reduced cream & goat cheese, tomato, basil, & lemon zest. The cold flank steak salad, the watercress salad with walnut vinaigrette...
Yum. Magical memories!
Such an amazing and beautiful time to be alive. So many fascinating moments.