dinners with friends
By dinners with friends | a photo journal of meals, gatherings and places: menu, home decor and the occasional recipe from various kitchens ...
An {unintentionally} color coordinated twilight dinner in the Lucca Hills ...
Last month found us returning to the Colline Lucchesi, the fertile olive and wine growing hills surrounding Lucca, a region I had vowed to revisit …
ItalyCarbonara days of summer
Last month has been unusually hot along the Mediterranean, with a hot Scirocco wind blowing from Africa meaning lazy days spent in the shade of our …
Italian FoodA rustic kitchen and favorite table under the fig tree
Summer has arrived again, and as in the past couple of years we have escaped San Francisco's summer gloom and returned to Vetulonia, an Etruscan …
CeramicsA long Sunday lunch {& Infiorata} in Lubriano
We are back in Italy and what a treat to start off with a drive into the Tuscia region to join Alice Kiandra Adams {proprietress of Latteria Studio …
ItalyMediterranean inspired flavors in the desert
A couple of weeks ago we decided to take a road trip, driving from San Francisco to the California desert on a quest to see the desert in bloom. We …
FlavorsA sunny escape from the office & tacos at TACOS CALA
Yesterday brought a rare glimpse of sunshine to a week of dreary downpours, so spotting the Achilles Heel pop up on Instagram was the perfect excuse …
MexicoA first class waiting room turned Gesamtkunstwerk {Intérieur No. 253}
Walking into Intérieur No. 253 makes for a striking first impression - from the museum elevator you step into a narrow hallway, opening on both ends …
Old world glamour and pretty interiors at Bar Schmitz in Cologne
Before moving to San Francisco in the late 90s I lived in Cologne, in a classic apartment with tall ceilings overlooking Friesenplatz - and right …
When life gives you oranges ... help supporting the Big Sur Bakery
It has been a crazy winter in California. After five years gripped in a near existential drought, this has been the wettest winter on record, with …
A rainy day in Antwerp { & stay at Boulevard Leopold }
After spending the past holidays at home, this winter we felt a sudden rather sentimental urge to hop across the pond for Christmas in the "old …
A cheese fondue under the moon and stars
We couldn't have asked for a more perfect first weekend of December: a crisp and sunny fall day turned into a glorious sunset and an almost balmy …
A Thanksgiving picnic with friends
Even after calling California home for almost eighteen years now, I still have a somewhat ambiguous relationship with the Thanksgiving holiday.<p>As …
I { heart } San Francisco
SF AMATRICE Italy Earthquake Relief Fundraiser<p>I ♡ San Francisco. This pretty much sums up the experience of SF AMATRICE, the Italy Earthquake Relief …
A full moon gathering in West Marin
Disclaimer: this post was supposed to go live months ago. Let's blame the jet lag ... returning from Europe just a couple of days prior to this …
Everyday family life in a centuries-old villa { Tenuta di Valgiano }
Traveling in Italy, I often wondered what it might be like living in one of the centuries-old villas that dot the Italian countryside. This summer, …
Pizza, cocktails and music in an enchanted olive grove
Finally a long overdue update on this blog, while still playing catch up with so many rolls of {digital} film after this year's #anItalianroadtrip …
A summer lunch with friends in the Florentine hills
The impromptu invitation to a summer lunch in the Florentine hills arrived a day before, in the form of a private cooking class hosted by cookbook …
A lazy day under the cherry trees and impromptu market lunch in the Lucca hills
This year's Italy adventure started off with one of those experiences that make me love traveling with Airbnb: we had arrived in Florence two days …
A sunny birthday lunch for young and old {& Diego turns 4}
It's crazy how time flies by these days. I still remember Diego as a baby and have shared many meals with Diego and his parents, so it's not surprise …
A backyard house concert & potluck dinner on a warm San Francisco night ...
Last Friday was one of those rare San Francisco days that start off with a pink sunrise, turn sunny and windless - and actually stay balmy into the …
Another Easter egg hunt and potluck in West Marin
After days of long awaited rain all over California, West Marin is exploding in spring colors right now, with lush rolling green hills and blooming …
Memories of spring in Southern Italy & a local {taylored} walking tour
With the winter season already showing first signs of spring around here, I find myself thinking back to last spring and travel memories of an epic …
It's the most wonderful time of the year ...
'It's the most wonderful time of the year' ... or or so they say. I have to admit that for the longest time I only thought of the winter holiday …
A traditional éclade de moules in San Francisco
A glorious Indian summer weekend in San Francisco, celebrating our friend Maxime's birthday and gathering in a hidden backyard garden to set up an …
San FranciscoA modern townhouse in Cologne & flammkuchen in a hidden garden
More long overdue catching up with this summer's dinners with friends while traveling and finally editing the photos of this fun flammkuchen feast …
OnionsAn alfresco kitchen, {mostly seafood} moments and meals with Italian friends
This magical place, hidden in an olive and oak grove on the slopes of a small hill town in Tuscany's Maremma region, already made an appearance on …
A cool loft in Cologne and making pizza with old friends ..
No Cologne visit would be complete without a dinner with these two! Back in the olden days Petra and Feli, wardrobe stylist and DJ respectively, used …
LoftsMaking Gnocculi con Pesto alla Trapanese in Mazara del Vallo { recipe }
I have to admit, if there is one thing that always intimidated me in the Italian kitchen, it's handmade pasta. For some reason I always associated it …
A Sicilian lunch in the shade of the fig and carub tree ...
On the tail end of an epic Italian road trip {following roads less traveled from Toscana through Campania and Basilicata to Calabria} we eventually …