Thanks San Fran readers who came to my meet-up!
From left, that’s Sabrina of Yum Sugar, my old college friend Kristen of Give Me Some Food, my new college friend and a person who has dreams about me and Craig adopting her and several other children, Catherine of Food Musings and the mysteriously shrouded couple behind Bunrab.
Bunrab has an amazing story that I’m going to share with you now. When these guys got married, around 1995, they were scouting out locations in the Napa valley. They stumbled into Yountville and saw a man tending a garden in front of a cozy house and they assumed the man was a gardener. “We’re looking for a place to get married,” they said, “is this place available?”
“Well,” he said, “in a month it will be. I’m opening a restaurant here.”
So Bunrab came back a month later and decided to check it out. “The food was extraordinary,” they said, so they booked the place. It hadn’t received much attention yet, and they loved the pristine setting.
The place, it turns out, was The French Laundry. The man was Thomas Keller. And Bunrab was the first couple in French Laundry history to get married there. They’re now regulars and closely affiliated with the restaurant, but can you imagine randomly choosing a place to get married and having that place turn out to be one of the greatest restaurants not only in America but in the entire world?
Bunrab, if I give you some money, will you pick some stocks for me? I have a feeling you’ll be good at it!
AG I’m soooooo pissed I missed you when you were visiting up in SF. The next time you visit I’m clearing out my schedule to make sure I get to meet you. It looks like you had a great trip in the bay area and I’m glad the food you ate was good too! Most of the time I have total food envy when I read your posts about restaurants you’ve been in in NY.
Your post about Ad Hoc has inspired me to try it out when I go to Napa at the end of the month. I hope we make it there!
Damn – sorry I couldn’t make it, but I was up at the Russian River.
Hello Adam,
I am a long time lurker, occasional poster and have enjyed reading about your visit to my hometown – I hope you are having a blast.
Really wanted to stop by Sunday, but it was my birthday and I was on my way to dinner at Delfina’s (another yummy San Francisco place)
How much longer are you here for – is there a chance you can arrange another meet and greet with your legion of fans? Coffee at Blue Bottle or Ritual Roasters? Pastries at citizen cupcake?
Enjoy the rest of your visit, I hope it meets your expections.
Lisa
I have told the BunRab story to about 50bajillion people now. No one can believe it.
It was really great meeting you all the other day! Hope you’re enjoying the rest of your eats!
Sorry I just missed Kristen.
I am worried Adam won’t like CHez Panisse when Kristen takes him there after Zuni – cos I had the same reaction to CP that Adam had to Zuni. I need to hgive it another chance.
Sabrina – it was GREAT to meet you – you are a hoot! Hope we can hang out together again sometime.
Ah, Place Pigalle! You don’t know how many bottles of wine I have consumed there!! My roommate and I, who lived up the street on Hayes, had two jobs: Our paying day-jobs, then the job of drinking at PP after work every day. I’m glad you had fun!
You need to come to Scottsdale. Chop chop!
Rats! I flew into San Francisco (from Ohio) the very day you had your meetup. I was forced to choose between meeting you and visiting my brother. My brother won because he was leaving for Lake Tahoe the next day. Maybe next time!