Beer Alcohol Cocktails cocktail recipe beer festivals Restaurant Review

Let's just start out by saying that Heather and I had a fantastic time. This brunch cruise was an experience that really is hard to compare since it was three distinct things wrapped up into one happy package. For instance, raise your hand if you've ever done a booze cruise with someone you love? Keep your hand up if you've done a harbor cruise that involved a meal... Ok, now keep you hands up if that food has been great, the service excellent, and the experience was one that you can't wait to do again.  Yeah, not a lot of hands are up still, but that's ok! 

You probably haven't had the opportunity to sail with Flagship Cruises out of San Diego before. 

The company offers several different cruises ranging from whale watching excursions to sunday brunch, and even a jet boat. However, despite this diversity of types of cruises offered and my initial scepticism that they might be a jack of all trades and master of none, I can heartily recommend it and I will almost certainly go again. Heck, I'd even recommend their other experiences based on this one!

Ok guys, I've shared some easy recipes here in the past and there's something to be said for a cocktail recipe that can be shared in 3-4 lines. However, sometimes it's good to try something a little more advanced and that's what I have to share with you today from our friends at Basil Hayden's, part of the Beam Small Batch Collection.

Heather and I LOVE Mardi Gras - well, actually we just love New Orleans and the spirit of Mardi Gras goes along with that. There is something liberating and fun about a time of year when you can just let loose and celebrate all the good things in life including friends, family, food, and of course drink! 

Unfortunately, not everyone can make a trip to New Orleans in person, so the next best thing is to find a great Cajun or New Orleans restaurant near you and celebrate that way. In our case, this meant seeking out Bud's Louisiana Cafe in San Diego. I was a little concerned when I discovered it was located in an industrial park in a suite that would normally have held a logistics office or moving company, but as I've learned about great food down south - never judge something by the exterior appearance.

That was true here as well and I am thrilled that we spent our evening here enjoying authentic New Orleans food and of course Abita beer!

Are you lucky enough to have a partner that loves beer almost as much as you do? Well then I've got a great Valentine's Day gift suggestion for you!

Frankly though, they have a lot more than stuff for the women in our lives and you will have as much fun shopping as she will in receiving it. Of course, if you are lucky, she will remember this place when it comes time for your birthday or fathers day since it has some great gifts for guys too!. 

Osteria Panevino is set in the heart of San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter and while there is no shortage of restaurants here, it's always fun to find ones I haven't been to before.

The restaurant is designed to evoke the best of an authentic Tuscan osteria complete with brick walls and chalk boards on the walls with specials, a great wine list ranging from $25 to $900, sidewalk seating and of course bread as well as a full menu featuring homemade pasta, steaks, seafood, and of course gourmet Italian desserts. 

Sometimes in life you discover great new things completely by accident. That's how we found Viva Bar + Kitchen actually... we had gone to have dinner at a different place that sadly we left feeling we needed to go somewhere else to eliminate the "bad feeling" left in our belly. When we walked by Viva, the super friendly hostess on the sidewalk told us it was "taco Tuesday" and so we figured, "what the heck" and walked in to check it out.

That taco and that experience was good enough that before the end of our snack that we had already booked our New Year's Eve dinner here the next day.

Since 1969, when Byron and Virginia Hardin opened their first location in Ocean Beach, Hodad's has been a legendary burger joint in San Diego. With an atmosphere that borders on kitschy tourist trap but somehow manages to stay authentic, this is a must-visit location for anyone visiting the city. However, what makes it even more awesome is that it is more than just a "cool place" to grab a bite, it is serving up some of the most amazing burgers in the whole world. 

For those of you who have never been to Ocean Beach, it is a beach town located just north of the city and is full of hippies / surfer culture, so it is also great for people watching.

7UP is a great mixer that should be on your holiday shopping list right there next to lights and mistletoe and so I was excited when I was invited to join this campaign to share with you some of my favorite cocktail recipes using it.

San Diego has tons of craft beer bars and great wine is in no shortage either but the craft spirits industry is also growing rapidly here as well. One of the shining stars there is El Agave Artesanal tequila and so I was thrilled that the folks at El Agave Restaurant invited us back to try some additional menu items as well as a tequila tasting led by one of their experts.

San Diego is an awesome town that is sometimes forgotten about or dismissed as simply a surf town, but what I have discovered over the past year is that there is an incredible amount of awesome things to do here beyond the beach including touring some of the almost 100 craft breweries, exploring vineyards in nearby Temecula and Romona, as well as visiting the Zoo, touring historic military ships and some of the best burgers and tacos in the country.

The Gaslamp District is the destination to go for nightlife in San Diego. It's the place to be seen and it's no surprise that it is home to some of the most popular restaurants in the city. Last night I had the pleasure of dining at Acqua Al 2 for an opportunity to taste my way through it's delicious cuisine direct from Florence Italy.

Many Italian restaurants trace their inspiration back to Italian roots and Acqua Al 2 is no different - except that they actually have a location in Florence itself. Many years ago, owner and Executive Chef, Martin Gonzalez went to Italy to learn Italian and better understand the customs and way of life. To do so, he enrolled in cooking classes at the prestigious Instituto Culinario Apicius where he was award the title of "Best Student". 

Josefas Cocina Mexicana is a brand new addition to La Jolla from the same folks that brought us Iberico. As part of it's opening, I was invited to stop by for a lunch to check it out and share my thoughts.

For the past year, I have been moaning that the San Diego restaurant scene sucks - and so a few PR teams ganged up on me to convince me that I just had bad luck in picking places. While I still stand beside my earlier comments, I am starting to discover that while San Diego doesn't celebrate - or demand - a certain high level of sophistication from its restaurants compared to the prices charged,... there are some fantastic gems. 

El Agave - it's the plant that when processed makes such delicious products such as agave syrup and tequila. In this case though, it is the name of one of San Diego's finest Mexican restaurants. For those of you who think "Mexican" is just tacos and burritos you are missing out on the fact that Mexico cuisines is as diverse as any other with influences from Europe as well as indigenous cooking techniques and plants.

I have seen El Agave several times as it is located above one of my favorite liquor stores in Old Town San Diego. However I didn't know much about it until the PR folks contacted me recently and invited Heather and I to check it out.

A scene from Top Gun was filmed here, their bartender loves to create artisanal tequila cocktails and to top it off, San Diego Magazine's readers just named their chef, Accursio Lota, as "Best Chef" in San Diego - so who was I to say no when they approached us recently and invited us to stop by for dinner!

Honestly, I am not typically a fan of Italian because I usually associate it with kitschy bottles chianti, heavy but tasteless spaghetti sauce covered pasta and pictures of the pope or mobsters on the walls. Over the past couple years though I am starting to warm up to it. What I discovered at San Diego's Solare Ristorante was a delightful interpretation of classic Italian but merged with the essence of the Southern California farm-to-table movement.

Happy National Tequila Day!

Not sure about your plans, but we're celebrating with some delicious margaritas and tequila cocktail recipes that we've rounded up from around the world. Which is your favorite?

How much you know about Jägermeister's history and origins? Let's find out more about this unique spirit...

While many people associate New Orleans with some of the best parties in the world, the other "Must Do" in New Orleans is brunch. While there is no shortage of great places where you can gorge on delicious traditional brunch foods, I would like to heartily recommend stopping by Court of Two Sisters.

Between the gorgeous courtyard, tons of great food (traditional breakfast as well as cajun and southern staples like crawfish, jambalaya, and collards), there is something for everyone! Plus they have some of the friendliest staff in town.

If you think that Tequila, Rum, and Cacasa are the only spirits from South America then you need to bring a chair up to the bar and try some Pisco. This is a colorless to amber spirit made from grapes and can be compared to a grape brandy. 

This spirit has been distilled in the winemaknig regions of Peru for hundreds of years and is now making its way to the United States!

Tequila tends to be a summer drink in the United States - it is synonymous with margaritas and doing shots on the beach or around a campfire. However, there is more to the spirit than just that. To help convince us, Tequila Avion sent us some great recipe ideas that will go well with your Thanksgiving celebrations this year.

The word "Oktoberfest" likely causes images of a raucous bar scene with giant steins of beer and busty waitresses dressed in dirndls. What if I told you that there was a family-friendly restaurant with authentic German food that was a perfect date location too? That's the quick synopsis of our experience at Edelweiss Dining - located in the Chicago suburb of Norridge.

For more than 30 years, this restaurant has served up some of the best authentic German food in all of the Chicagoland area.