Valle de Guadalupe

Remembering Ray

March 20, 2017 // 11 Comments

Ray Magnussen, Lechuza Winery, Valle de Guadalupe, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

VALLE DE GUADALUPE, B.C. – One of my favorite people in the Valle de Guadalupe winemaking community passed away suddenly yesterday. As the news and shock spread, I woke up to no less than a dozen tributes to Ray Magnussen on Facebook this morning, along with an outpouring of love for his wife and [Read More]

A Gringo in Mexico’s Top 25 Baja Bites 2016

December 29, 2016 // 2 Comments

As a San Diego-based writer of Mexican food, culture, and travel, I’m in a fortunate position both geographically and gastronomically. The international border and gateway to Baja California is only twenty tasty minutes away by car. Across the frontera lies a plethora of culinary delights — [Read More]

Baja California Cuisine Takes it’s Place on National Stage

December 3, 2016 // 0 Comments

Foro Mundial Gastronomia de la Mexicana, Mexico City, Mexico, Martin San Roman, Miguel Angel Guerrero

MEXICO CITY – Baja California and its cuisine were represented again this year at the World Forum on Mexican Gastronomy (FMGM) held at the National Arts Center (CENART) in Mexico City. The fourth annual event was conceived and presented by the Cultural Conservatory for Mexican [Read More]

Javier Plascencia’s LUPE Opens in the Valle de Guadalupe

November 9, 2016 // 1 Comment

Lupe, Finca Altozano, Valle de Guadalupe, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

VALLE DE GUADALUPE – Forget the Javier Plascencia you think you know: the celebrity chef who appears on national network cooking shows; the restaurateur and heir to the family business who deals with the details of his high-profile Bracero Cocina de Raiz in San Diego; the auteur who tweezed his [Read More]

Female Chefs Celebrated during 2016 Baja Culinary Fest

November 1, 2016 // 0 Comments

La Cocina Que Canta, Rancho La Puerta, Tecate, Baja California, Mexico

TECATE – Held in and around the oak-shaded organic gardens of La Cocina Que Canta – the famous wellness retreat Rancho La Puerta’s cooking school – October 27th’s El Sabor de Mujeres de Baja featured dishes from 15 of Baja California’s top female chefs, Valle de Guadalupe [Read More]

El Clavo Nails It in the Valle de Guadalupe

August 8, 2016 // 0 Comments

El Clavo Cocina de Baja, Chef Ryan Steyn, Valle de Guadalupe, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico

VALLE DE GUADALUPE, B.C. – When I visited chef Ryan Steyn’s El Clavo Cocina de Baja last year at its former location next to winery Madera 5 in Ensenada’s industrial zone, I asked the chef about his new project’s name. He explained “El Clavo means to ‘nail it’, to do something really [Read More]

RESTORING VALOR

March 4, 2016 // 0 Comments

SAN DIEGO – On Wednesday, March 9 from 6 -10PM, San Diegans will have the opportunity to sample the cuisine of Master Chef winner Claudia Sandoval and Master Chef 4th place winner Nick Nappi during RESTORING VALOR, a fundraising dinner and silent auction being held at Border X Brewing in Barrio [Read More]

Choosing Chilis: Tijuana’s Festival Del Chile En Nogada

September 4, 2015 // 2 Comments

6th Annual Festival del Chile en Nogada, Cien Años Restaurant, Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico

TIJUANA, B.C. – A block of Avenida Revolución between 7th & 8th streets became the focal point for the 6th Annual Festival Del Chile En Nogada on Sunday, August 30th from noon until 9PM. Here, a gathering of fourteen hopeful chefs and cooks prepared their version of chiles en nogada: a [Read More]

Le Petit Pinche Francés: Running on Taste Memory

July 28, 2015 // 1 Comment

Le Petit Pinche Francés, Torres Alegre y Familia, Valle de Guadalupe, Baja California, Mexico

VALLE DE GUADALUPE, B.C. – Taste memory is an integral thing when preparing regional cuisine. The best chefs and restaurateurs have it and constantly tweak ingredients until their dishes taste just like their mothers’ – and their mothers’ before them. Recipes can be transcribed and handed [Read More]

Baja California Flavor Takes Center Stage at Sabor de Baja 2015

July 14, 2015 // 0 Comments

Sabor de Baja, Rosarito Beach Hotel, Baja California, Mexico

ROSARITO BEACH, B.C. – The third annual Sabor de Baja will be held again this year in the ocean front gardens of the Rosarito Beach Hotel on Wednesday, August 26th from 5-9PM. The white attire, end-of-summer garden party is widely considered to be one of the premier food, wine and beer events in [Read More]