I’ve been a little slow with the continuation of the story from my #secretvacation but I apologize (yes, it was urgent to address that Simon Le Bon shaved LeStache, then it was Tunes For Tuesday and Workout Wednesdays so finally, we can get on with the rest of the story…).
If you didn’t hear, I went on a #secretvacation a few weeks ago up the coast of California to surprise my friend Susie for her second 39th birthday in Napa Valley (aka Wine Country!). If you didn’t read about my impromptu 5K run in San Francisco and want evidence that I nearly bumped into Susie and her husband Keith the day before the big birthday surprise in Napa, here you go:
The 2 people I’m NOT supposed to see in San Fran – my friends!
Luckily, a collision didn’t happen during my run. Keith surprised Susie in San Francisco with her mother and sister and then later that day with Jay, Wild Boy and me during a meet-up at the gorgeous Miner Family Winery in Napa.
Surprise at Miner Winery: (L to R): Ester, Lauren, Keith, Susie, Me, Wild Boy (yes, I’m hiding his face) and Jay
After a wonderfully luxurious tasting at Miner (including the decadent, bold red called Oracle -OMG!) we had to get ready for dinner at the Michael Chiarello restaurant Bottega. Michael Chiarello has been a long time favorite chef of mine and Jay’s from his PBS shows and cookbooks. We even made a trip from NYC to Bottega to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary in 2010. The ability to return and share the experience with some of our best friends was priceless.
Susie’s celebration was even more special because our dinner was held in the private Chef’s Table dining room. The elegant room for our party of 10 consisted of one long dining table surrounded by fabulous wines and had a very cool chandelier made of spoons overhead. Keith had a special menu created to celebrate his wife’s special day.
Our Dinner Menu and Dining Room at Bottega,
Our evening was full of love and deliciousness! The service, food and wine were just superb. It was also pretty cool to see Carlos Santana sitting right outside of our dining room (if you didn’t want to be noticed Carlos, don’t wear your bedazzled signature hat to a restaurant, OK?). I was hoping that Chef Chiarello would make an appearance for the birthday girl but it didn’t happen. 🙁 I’ll just say that he sent his love via his food.
Top: Insalata, Truffle Fries
Bottom: Aranicini, Trenne alla Bolognese and Burrata Caprese
Months of planning (and bitten tongues!) went into this fabulous secret celebration. It was wonderful to have our good friends on the West Coast for even just a little while. Jay and I have shared many meals and good times with Keith and Susie over the years but this meal was definitely one of the most memorable! The uniqueness of the evening may have been a little lost on Wild Boy but he was a trooper and held it together until we left the restaurant at 11:30pm (thank you iPad – see the dining room picture above).
It was hard to keep this secret under wraps but it was certainly well worth it! Look at how happy my gorgeous friend looks! I know I’ll get to see Susie and Keith in a few weeks when the family and I are in New York but I’m hoping it won’t be another 3 years until I get the chance to return to Bottega. If you haven’t been, put it on the list! If you have, let me know what your meal was like.
Spread the love – Tell me about your most memorable meal!
I still can’t believe that in a big city you almost got caught 🙂 But love that you didn’t and were able to surprise your friend. That meal sounds and looks so delicious I would be savoring each and every bite. The meal I most remember to date, hmm there are several after all I do love food. #1 My engagement/proposal dinner where both families met and talked wedding. My mother made from scratch bbq ribs, cheesecake topped with fresh peaches. divine meal! #2 The last meal my grandmother cooked for us {I still miss her} and #3 Before our move my husband was about to leave for a business trip and I cooked shrimp scampi, the kids were taking a nap so we enjoyed the meal sans kids at home with wine and margaritas. YUM!
I love Miner family Wines ~ I’ve had a sampling at a couple of food & wine events. Also, is the red Oracle wine named for red haired Barbara Gordon, as Oracle was her second guise? The comic book Batnerd in me is suspicious.
Glad you had such a wonderful time!
That is awesome!…you couldn’t sneak a pic of Santana?? Ha ha!! We’re having a lot of memorable meals on vacation this week…the kids are finally starting to behave just a little bit more, which means more time for wine! Thanks for sharing…:-)
More wine, more better! Enjoy your vacation Allie!
I believe the Oracle wine is named for Greek mythology 🙁 What a great winery. Hope you get a chance to tell me about your LA Food & Wine experience soon.
Maribel, I thought I responded to this but perhaps I didn’t. OMG those meals sound AMAZING!