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Archive for the ‘Pacific Highway’ Category

I said in an earlier piece that the illegal Mexicans do not pay tax – quite the opposite – they do pay the full wack of tax but do not get any of the benefits that ordinarily go with paying tax – how fair is that.  The Californian economy cannot exist without immigrant labour – mainly Mexican – but it tiakes their tax and ignores their immediate needs – Arnie get a grip man!

Girls felt a bit jaded and stayed home while the boys went out to play.  We went to Chat Noir in South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa, Orange County.  We were greeted by Yvon Goetz, Corporate Chef for David Wilhelm’s group of restaurants.  Yvon has held many high profile positions all over the world including Hambleton Hall, Leics and the Belfry (Anton Mossiman) etc and he gave us a menu to die for – Frogs legs in a rich Mexican inspired sauce, Scallops with truffle in a brioche,  Quail on risotto rice with ceps, Venison with foire gras, assorted cheeses with deserts. – to die for with Cotes du Rhone, Californian Pinot Gris and Cabinet Sauvignon – we loved it and were glad that the girls were not there as they would not have enjoyed it as we did.  Yvon had to come back to Laguna Niguel so we got a lift back with the Corporate Chef no less – what a superb night – I sent Yvon a great article about Gordon Ramsey in America published today in the Observer – go there to read a brilliant article.

I found this interesting biography:

Yvon Goetz – With his cooking described as “self-assured and faultlessly accomplished,” Yvon Goetz joined the culinary team of The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel as Chef de Cuisine of The Dining Room in November 1995 with an impressive culinary heritage and extensive experience steeped in legendary cuisine. Chef Goetz was born and raised in Strasbourg, France, a region famed for its culinary conscience and extraordinary vintages. After attending the Hotel and Culinary School, he traveled to England where he worked in some of the world’s finest Michelin Starred restaurants and hotels including London’s Dorchester Hotel under Chef Anton Mosimann, Relais & Chateaux Chewton Glen Hotel and Hambelton Hall. After spending five years abroad, Goetz came back to his homeland and trained under Chef Emile Jung of the famed Michelin Three Star Le Crocodile in Strasbourg. Chef Goetz joined The Dining Room at The Ritz-Carlton, Boston in 1991 and opened The Ritz-Carlton, Aspen before joining The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel. Outside of the kitchen, Yvon Goetz savors fine wine, cuisine and travel, and also runs competitively. He runs 10K and half-marathon races throughout the year, and recently completed his third marathon. “Running clears my mind, allowing me to focus on food or other thoughts,” proclaims Goetz. “At least for the first three miles, then all I can think about is the finish line.”

Alisons number plate – they are free as long as someone else has not taken it – better system than DVLC

Tony’s number plate

Lunch at Montage Laguna Beach which was superb with view over Pacific – left camera in the car but when we got home we took this wonderful pic of a beached whale – more in photo album fo Lagunal Niguel.  The heating was not working so locals found the water a bit cool but for Brits it was amazingly warm – especially the tub.  Met some people from Yorkshire.  Tony was telling me that he met a guy in Laguna Beach from Oswestry and while they live about an hour away he pops into the restaurant from time to time – amazing co-incidences. 

Arrived this afternoon at Tony & Alison’s in Laguna Niguel which is about 3 miles in from the Pacific Highway in Orange County.  We will eat at Tony’s restaurant tonight – Chaparosa Grill & Spiritz.  It will be good to chill out for the weekend although we have to catch a plane to Fiji on Monday morning at 7.30 which with getting into LA and dropping off the rental car we will have to leave here at 3am!

We spent lunch at Newport Beach at Portofino where our server was Gabrielle from Poland who is getting married tomorrow – everyone is asking her why she is at work today but she said someone has to do it.  I will post a pic of Gabrielle tomorrow.   Yeah I know it is a very poor picture from dark to light but she is a stunner!

Prisoners from Malibu Camp 13, prepare sandbags at Geoffrey’s restaurant in Malibu, Calif., Friday, Jan. 7, 2005. Geoffrey’s suffered flood damage as the latest wave of major winter storms dumped rain and snow throughout California http://asia.news.yahoo.com/050108/ap/camw10701080008.html

Thanks to Tony for link.  No Geoffrey’s last night just a takeaway – the cab driver did not turn up and I had already had a drink – this is a one cab town

The original version of this now ubiquitous condiment was created at the Hidden Valley Guest Ranch in Santa Barbara in the 1950s. The formula was subsequently purchased by the Clorox company (makers of household bleach!!!), which uses the Hidden Valley name to this day, but "ranch" has become a generic term not just for a dressing but for a buttermilky flavour (as in ranch-flavoured chips).

Firstly – Glücklicher Geburtstag to Steve

Hearst spent a great deal of his money and Getty gave a lot away and it shows.
The Getty Foundation in LA is magnificent.  The building is very elegant on top of a hill looking accross the LA plain, out to the Pacific and up to the Sierra Nevada. The collection is wide ranging but it was the 19th century art that gripped both of us: Van Gogh (pronounced Go here)

(Irises particularly appealing), Degas, Pissaro, Monet (Bridge over Lilly Pond) all worthy of mention – and it is free as he left a big enough endowment to cover upkeep.  Hearst mainly acquired and spent and then left his pile to the State of California but the Parks department have the cost of maintenance etc.

Then went down to Rodeo Drive for some serious retail therapy – well Jean’s therapy! but it is an interesting area – nearly £2 per 15 mins to park.!

Forgot to take the camera so no pics for a 2nd day running but I shall cull some to give you an idea.

Wifi working fine in Malibu – email send/receive and access to the web all for free with no wires attached.

All these wonderful and very expensive Malibu houses face directly on to the sea – the only problem is that at the back of the house there is a 6 lane highway where the cars go like a bat out of hell 24/7.  If I had that sort of money firstly I wouldn’t live in LA but if I had to I would live in the hills with a pool and look down on the Pacific.

We were down on Venice Beach and all the roller bladers and beach volley ballists were out, in more senses than one.

We were delayed coming back to Malibu from LA this afternoon due to more rock and mud slides.  When I criticise services at home I will remember how well or not they coped with rain in the US.

Had a great Burrito with shredded beef, black beans, salsa with chili and onions on the side – having a snack here is like undergoing the Spanish Inquisition with all the various options which must be answered or you don’t get your meal.

What is Ranch dressing (it’s a form of food and not a standard of attire – anyway, to be avoided) – that’s one for Tony.

In each hotel there is a concierge who will organise stuff for you – they may well get a kick back but they are fantastic and save you so much time.  Also it is great to have a local mobile phone – the concierge said to me this morning just phone me if you get lost.  Tony if you are reading this thinking he phoned me when he got lost it was because the conceierge was on her brreak.

We are going to Geoffrey’s tonight to eat – it is pronounced Joffreys.  If you want the right pronunciation of Geoffrey’s you must say Jeffrey’s – you say tomato …

Lyndon recommended this – his credentials are that he Loved Toast and Kitchen Confidential like alot of visitors to this blog.  Few things are as exciting as the idea of travelling somewhere else,somewhere far from home, a place with better weather, more interesting customs and inspiring landscapes –and where it seems we will finally be happy. But the reality of travel seldom matches our daydreams. The tragi-comic disappointments are well-known: the disorientation, the mid-afternoon despair, the lethargy before ancient ruins. And yet the reasons behind such disappointments are rarely explored. We are inundated with advice on where to travel to; we hear little of why we should go and how we could be more fulfilled doing so. In The Art of Travel, Alain de Botton, best-selling author of The Consolations of Philosophy, tackles the curious business of travelling. In a series of thought-provoking, lyrical and often humourous essays, he writes about airports, landscapes, museums, holiday romances, photographs, exotic carpets and the contents of hotel mini-bars. De Botton mixes his own thoughts about travel with those of some great figures of the past: Edward Hopper, Baudelaire, Wordsworth, Van Gogh and Ruskin among them. The result is a beguiling, highly original work which, unlike existing guidebooks on travel, actually asks what the point of travel might be – and modestly suggests how we could learn to be happier on our journeys.

Set off from Santa Barbara at 10am – arrived at Malibu Beach Inn at 6pm – 8 hours driving – roads closed, diversions, suspect mud slides, traffic snarl-up where a 5 lane overcrowded freeway reduced to one lane.  Tony said that he had given up driving from Orange County to Las Vegas as he wanted to preserve his marriage – after today I can see what he meant.  However, all sweetness and light now.

Booked in for 2 nights and off to the Getty Museum tomorrow after a walk on the beach at Malibu etc.  Scenery in parts especially over the Sierra Madre was dramatic – at other times it was deadly dull.  No chance of pics today.  Weather dramatically improved with clear blue skies and a red sunset tonight.