Suriya Thai Restaurant on Howard, in SOMA, San Francisco, CA

Tonight, dinner was about not just food but celebrating my friend Ll’s great accomplishment, acing a critical exam needed for his profession. (He’s so good. ) We chose Suriya Thai Restaurant, a place we’ve known for years, back in the days when it anchored the south end of the Valencia foodie corridor. (In fact, before Valencia was the foodie street that it is today.) Still, the new location on Howard has all the familiar trappings of the old. Gorgeous antique carvings are placed throughout the dining room including a striking display of centuries-old carved coconut shellers.

coconut shellers at Suriya Thai

And the food is special. One can find a lot of thai in the City but somehow Suriya manages to set itself apart. Many of the dishes are drawn from family recipes so you’ll find some things here that you’ve not seen on menus before. The helpings are generous, the price reasonable. The casual-dining-feel in turn reflects the casual nature of the food. The descriptions on the menus are well worth reading, too…

Suriya menu

Our server was Ahn, always flawlessly kind. A special treat was meeting Suriya’s owner, who came by to check on us, and I met one of the lovely women behind the scenes responsible for the exciting flavors on the menu.

A meal in pictures:

scrumptuous, the chicken dumplings at Suriya.

perennial favorite, the sausage-stuffed eggplant with basil

bursting with flavour: pineapple, tomato and duck curry

special menu item tonight, and so good!, the bbq pork ribs with shredded new coconut

Suriya Thai Restaurant

the Mission Burger

We’ve been searching San Francisco in search of the best burger. It’s been hard to find one quite as good as the now defunct, Mission Burger. (MUS•e•YUM report, here.) Elated we are to hear that Anthony Myint is bringing the burger back. And, the concept sounds fun. More destination eating in the Mission, and how much do we love this neighborhood!

Would you like to see some pictures of Mission Bowling Club as it’s getting built out? Mission Mission shows us the six shiny new bowling lanes being laid down. The bar top will also be made of a reclaimed lane, and please remember that Anthony Myint will be bringing the historically famous Mission Burger back from the dead. Lots to look forward to. Previous Mission Bowling Club coverage, here.

Link by:

Mission Bowling – Eater SF.

thirteenpalms.com logo design

Thirteen Palms had a story to tell. Having recently undergone a complete remodel by the owners, the resort had been reborn, transformed into an oasis in the desert, luxury vacation rentals in Palm Springs finished with a contemporary Mexican design flair.

This called for a new image, and they called on me for print and web collateral to spread the word. Visit their website for more information: Thirteenpalms.com

thirteen palms business card, front

thirteen palms business card, back

thirteen palms, email signature

thirteenpalms.com banner ad for the web

thirteen palms promotional card, front

thirteen palms promotional card, back

thirteen palms stationary/letterhead

thirteen palms fax cover sheet

One of the things we love about our city, San Francisco, is our reverence for the  environment and the food supply that sustains us.  Check out this link to find out what the city is doing to not only reduce the waste going to landfills but also, to repurpose food waste as the compost that makes our soil among the best in the world. Find out what you can do to help by following this link from sfenvironment.org: our citys programs: Zero Waste: Composting.

This is the latest video in an ongoing series produced by the Bay Area’s Pie Ranch.

Pie Ranch is an educational farm whose mission is

to inspire and connect people to know the source of their food, and to work together to bring greater health to the food system from seed to table.

We here at MUS•e•YUM simply love them. Check out the first in the video series, previously posted on MUS•e•YUM, here.

The Whole Pie. on Vimeo on Vimeo

via The Whole Pie. on Vimeo.

Glen Oaks, Big Sur, Photos by James Hall Photography

We here at MUS•e•YUM are hooked on great design, and a regular fix of real estate and interior design blogs are our daily addiction. Blogs like these not only whet our design appetite they inspire- they spark the imagination. Every new room that we see conjures a new vicarious question- what would it feel like to be there, in that space, inside the design?

Today’s candy is a gorgeous vacation rest-spot in Big Sur, a former motor lodge-cum-posh getaway in one of the most scenic of places you can find in California. The name of the inn is Glen Oaks Big Sur. Interior design by Steven Justrich.

Photos by James Hall Photography

Photos by James Hall Photography

Photos by James Hall Photography, published New York Times Magazine, NYTimes.com

Style in the Rough | Glen Oaks Big Sur – NYTimes.com.

Celebrating great wine in a beautiful setting, the HWG brought together top wine makers for an event tasting at the gorgeous Carneros Inn. They asked me to photograph the event for them. This is the story of the makers, the consumers and above all, the wine.

The Henry Wine Group had a story to tell.

In honor of great wines, the HWG brought together the best local wine makers for a tasting to end all others at the very swanky 25 Lusk, in San Francisco. They needed me to photograph the event. This is the story of the makers, the consumers and above all, the wine.

Partnered with fellow photographer Stéphane Houari to cover the event.

via Wise Sons pop into Ferry Building farmers’ market.

so sad.