Diary of a Foodinista

One of the most fun wedding gifts we received a couple years ago was an entertaining diary from our friend Vincent. It’s great to look back and see who sat where, and what we ate and drank. Browsing online at Smythson (which is, incidentally, where we had our wedding invitations engraved!), I stumbled upon this über-chic BRUNCHES, LUNCHES, SUPPERS, DINNERS BOOK on sale for $145 (admittedly, not exactly a bargain even at 50% off, but such a pretty keepsake).  It’s red pigskin with gilt-edged pages, and has space for seating plans, menus and comments—like what you wore! 

LATER, SKATER.

Heading up to the Napa Valley in the morning for the holidays, which are sure to be wine-soaked and filled with fondue goodness, aged prime rib, stinky cheese and much more! I’ll be checking back in later this week, but for those of you still scrambling for last-minute gift ideas, like these fantastic chrome roller skate bookends from designer Harry Allen, head on over to A+R on Silver Lake Blvd., or on the west side on Abbott Kinney in Venice, or by clicking here. It’s a smart and stylish edit of global design, and I promise you won’t leave empty-handed.

Rebel Yell!

Okay, I’m really bad about being on the receiving end of surprises, which has made Christmas either a major drag or a no brainer for my parents, depending how you look at it, pretty much from day one. Thank heavens I’m married to an Aquarius—a friendly and humanitarian sign—who doesn’t get super annoyed by this super annoying character flaw. Which is why I have a pretty good idea what is under the tree this year! I am out-of-my-mind excited to tear into an approximately 4.96 x 3.8 x 2.4-inch package that may or may not contain a Canon EOS Rebel XS SLR camera with an 18-55mm lens! In solid black!!! Word on the street is that it has fantastic image quality, especially for those close-up shots of Helmut Lang stacked heels or scoops of sevruga, and as digital SLRs go, won’t break the bank. 

Dance of the Sugar Plum Sencha

During the height of holiday shopping chaos, there are few greater indulgences than a cup of Le Palais Gourmet plum sencha tea, a soothing Japanese green tea, made without grinding the leaves, and blended with fragrant sweet plum ($38/3.5 oz). Which you will have earned after braving the hard-sell ambush that happens anytime you walk in the door of the shop on Cañon in Beverly Hills—a good argument for ordering online. But overeager sales people notwithstanding, this tea sanctuary offers some 200 teas along with beautiful accouterments, such as silver-plated tea strainers, Japanese tetsubins, and gorgeous washi paper-covered airtight canisters for storing tea. A perfect gift for the most important person on your holiday list: YOU!

Pot of Pesto

The lovely Zinzi of Coffee and Oranges gave me a beautiful little jar of homemade pesto. There is no gesture quite so wonderful as a homemade edible gift, and Zinzi’s vibrant green, fresh pesto is not only festive but delicious. For lunch today, we spooned it over burrata atop thick slices of chewy French bread, and sliced up some FraMani salametto to nibble on alongside, which has a nice complementary garlicky flavor. Thank you, Zinzi!