Birthday dinner with the Gang at Broadway Prime

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Some of my friends and I, when we get together tend to aim towards a few favorite restaurants – but this week we went to a new place. Broadway Prime had been one on my list for a while to try as I havIMG_9750e been a huge fan of House of Prime Rib in San Francisco – so when one of us decided to pick Prime as the goto for a group birthday celebration, I was excited.

An easy drive south of San Francisco, located in a cute village like setting – it was easy to both find and park. With more than half of the group arrived -they seated us pretty fast up on the second level. (we weren’t happy they they had broken out group up into two tables which wasn’t what the host had asked for – but the only response provided was that we would have had to wait until the the other party ended) – not the nicest customer service (but I wasn’t the host so I didn’t say anything).

Now here is where the evening started to take a turn. With another large group up there and several smaller tables of 4, it looked like only one server was assigned. So it was well over 20 min before our drink orders were taken, then at least another 15 min for the food order. Luckily we were chatted and catching up and only a few side comments surfaced as to “gosh it was taking a while to get service”. Once the orders were placed, the meal came out pretty well timed after the salad course. IMG_9728

Ok so- the Strengths! The meats was great. At our table we had several different cuts, including one end cut, and everyone agr
eed they were moist, tender and had good flavor. The Baked potatoes were nicely steamy and melty good – always a treat when getting ready to toss some calories away.

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The Opportunities: Not all the plates arrived with hot food. Several of the meats were barely warm (including mine and I had the end cut) so that was a disappointment. The sides were on the bland side – both the creamed spinach and corn were lacking any “wow”. The spinach actually was almost pasty and lacked much in the way of seasoning at all. (maybe some nutmeg would have helped?) even salt and pepper at the table didn’t do much and again they weren’t particularly hot either.

We figured that they may have been hit with a rush, understaffed, or maybe the kitchen got slammed – but even the pop-overs which were good didn’t get to the table until well after we had started eating. I couldn’t see any bus-persons assisting and it felt as it we had one server to divide between the two large groups.

Overall – I would try the resturant again with a smaller group or a few couples when in the area. But not sure I would make it a destination again as a “must go to”.

 

 

Oh Nuts!

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Because cashews made into milk wasnt enough. Now I have to contend with hazelnut/chocolate beverages !! At least they are the only two nuts I have an allergy too. But it’s a shame they are such popular additions to so many recipes. 
   
 

The Lee Hello is a Goodbye

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She nails it on how many continue to feel, as we loose the “heart” of San Francisco to growing $’s. 
Even for me after 20 years here, it’s only been the last 10 years of which I made a yearly income over $20k because of my committment to gay mens health, HIV prevention and substance user services at a non profit and social justice level. 

So without having purchased property back in the day to sell now, I’m priced out from owning here. Which frustrates me to get that feeling of “if you can’t afford to buy, go ..” from the entitled new rich and old established power brokers who want more . 

 I’ve paid my dues San Francisco and it’s time you deliver 

Here is the sfgate article on the video http://m.sfgate.com/news/article/Anti-Super-Bowl-Adele-Cover-Hello-Candace-Roberts-6811321.php

 Candace Robert’s Hello Ed Lee video:
http://youtu.be/Qa9KZzYetD4

The Lee Hello is a Goodbye

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She nails it on how many continue to feel, as we loose the “heart” of San Francisco to growing $’s. 
Even for me after 20 years here, it’s only been the last 10 years of which I made a yearly income over $20k because of my committment to gay mens health, HIV prevention and substance user services at a non profit and social justice level. 

So without having purchased property back in the day to sell now, I’m priced out from owning here. Which frustrates me to get that feeling of “if you can’t afford to buy, go ..” from the entitled new rich and old established power brokers who want more . 

 I’ve paid my dues San Francisco and it’s time you deliver 

Here is the sfgate article on the video http://m.sfgate.com/news/article/Anti-Super-Bowl-Adele-Cover-Hello-Candace-Roberts-6811321.php

 Candace Robert’s Hello Ed Lee

Sometimes trying something new like @Sprig doesn’t leave a good taste in ur mouth

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Wow tried the food app service Sprig tonight and not impressed so far. After several recomendations earlier this week I placed my first order. 

 A short time later I happened to check email to find they issued a refund. Ended up calling to ask why a refund email was sent and about the status of the food.

Only to be told the order was cancelled with a vague mention that its a rare occurance but during my order placement an item ran out. 
But that doesnt explain why the system doesnt trigger a call, or text about placeing a substitution on the 86’d item. 

The phone support didnt seem very concerned and while they did offer some credit they didnt even have curtesy to initiate a “we can have an order out to you asap if you choose a replacement on us” instead he wanted to play word games about my telling him what I wanted as if it was on me that the error was made and to correct it.  I think more training is needed. 

I still think its a good concept but needs some work in its customer engagement and technical engineering. Unclear if I will risk another attempt in the future. 

   
 

A crowd sourced multi-media portrait of 24 Hours of Life in Provincetown #Ptown24 ; over 2oo hundred photos, 48 videos all in the same 24 hours.

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Each year we head back to Provincetown for a few weeks to see old friends and chill. We usually go when the big events have passed and before the last big theme party hits. This past summer Provincetown TV (PTV) launched its own version of a crowd-source “day in the life” called #Ptown24 asking for folks to share images from throughout a 24 hour period using the hashtag #Ptown24 (which happened to occur while we were in town).  Below is the summer version and happy to say several of my shots made it.

A crowd sourced multi-media portrait of 24 Hours of Life in Provincetown; over 2oo hundred photos, 48 videos all in the same 24 hours. Heather Reed of Provincetown Television got the ball started.. and I’m hearing a winter version of #Ptown24  is brewing now too. See the message post below.

You can see some of the great work of PTV on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/provincetowntv/ or visit the website http://www.provincetowntv.org

Below is the summer version and happy to say several of my shots made it. 

 #Ptown24

In fact – are you going to be in Ptown in February? Help document 24 hours of life in the winter in Provincetown!

Everyone who lives here in the winter gets asked (like a million times) “What do you DO all winter?” It’s time to stand together and ANSWER BACK! With beautiful little videos and photographs of our lives in our beautiful town when most people are elsewhere.

From 6 am 2/24 to 6 am on 2/25, PTV and LIPTV ask EVERYONE in Provincetown to shoot and post short videos and photos of your day to the first WINTER #Ptown24! Invite your friends to join the #PTown24 Facebook group and contribute videos and photos or follow along as the day unfolds.
facebook.com/groups/ptown24

We encourage you to post and tag your posts with #Ptown24 everywhere on this day, but we learned A LOT about Facebook and Instagram’s privacy settings last time. That’s why this time we’re asking everyone to join the #Ptown24 group and post contributions here. That way your beautiful post doesn’t show up as a white box that says “Attachment Unavailable.”

Questions? Contact info@provincetowntv.org.

PTV is a 501(c)(3) non-profit contracted by the Town of Provincetown to provide a community media center for local residents, and non-profit and educational institutions. PTV is also contracted to provide unbiased cable and webcasts of all Provincetown Regulatory Board Meetings. (Follow PTV GOV here to stay up to date on the latest Government video postings: https://www.facebook.com/ptvgov)

PTV Members have free access to cameras, editing bays, lights, microphones, studio space, and hands-on training classes and workshops. Join or renew your membership here: http://provincetowntv.org/membership/

PTV cablecasts on Provincetown’s Comcast channels 18 (Government) and 99 (Public), with selected programs available on our Vimeo channel www.vimeo.com/provincetowntv.

via @TouchofModern; GOAT STORY, Mugs Engineered For Your Commute

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From the folks at GOAT STORY, Mugs Engineered For Your Commute.

So they re-invented it from top to bottom, with unique detailing like an ergonomic handle, a sleeve that doubles as a stand, and an array of straps so you can sip while you check your phone. It’s the best commuter coffee mug you’ll find out there.
Not bad for $30 on sale at touchofmodern.com:  https://www.touchofmodern.com/sales/goat-story-f8e7d2ae-112c-480a-9120-a48fa93c0c0f

It’s Cold, It’s Wet and I Don’t Care Its Not Fall.. Crockpot Butternut soup

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Sometimes you just need a fish, hearty soup to get the chill out of you. Not being one that likes a thin broth style soups – I tend towards ones that are thick. So a good butternut squash soup will always work. This quick (sorta) toss together soup is perfect and done in the crockpot over 5-6 hours. Want to speed it up? Use left over roasted squash from the previous night!

In a Crockpot toss in:

This is at about 4-5 hours

This is at about 4-5 hours

 

  • 2 lbs diced Butternut Squash
  • 1 sweet potato; pealed and diced
  • 1 large apple – chopped into 1 inch cubes with skin ( I use a Granny Smith for its texture and flavor)
  • 1 small – medium diced onion (white) or 2 Leeks chopped
  • 1 3-4 inch stem of Rosemary fresh – pulled off the stem
  • 1 large or 2 small carrots cubed
  • 2 1/2 cups of Vegetable Stock (low sodium)
  • 1 tablespoon of Maple Syrup
  • 1 tablespoon of Honey (or agave)
  • 1 -2 teaspoons of mashed garlic (to taste – I use the tube version)
  • 1/8 of Cayenne Pepper (or to taste)
  • 1/2 teaspoon of Cinnamon
  • 1 good pinch of nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon of poultry spice (or fresh sage chopped)
  • 1-2 tablespoons of pepper jelly (any flavor you prefer)
  • Salt & Pepper to taste

IMG_9142You want the solids to raise above the liquid by at least 1-1.5 inch. Stir together and let cook on high 4-5 hours, then low for any remaining time. Stir occasionally and taste for seasoning. Once the carrots and easy to pierce with a knife you are pretty much done. Use an emersion hand tool to puree the mixture (or get out you soup attachment for that fancy blender you have sitting on your shelf and blend in smaller batches). It should be on the thick side – somewhat like an orange porridge. Turn off the crockpot by now if you haven’t!

Now these steps differ on personal taste – I like my soup thicker than thin; If you are dairy-free; Mocha Mix brand creamer or canned coconut milk to thin and add a more creamy texture. For those of you who do dairy – this is the time to add your cream, milk and 2 teaspoons of butter. Stir until well mixed.

Technically this isn’t a right to wrong way to do this soup – just use what tastes right.