Cafe Sketches - Iyasare, 08/20/2022

On 4th Street in Berkeley, California, Iyasare is nestled amongst the shops and diners that attract crowds during Bay Area weekends. We've walked by Iyasare many times on our way to the Gardener or the Apple Store and always wanted to stop in for lunch or dinner. We finally stopped last week.

Iyasare, Berkeley CA

We ordered a curry chicken don, a miso ramen, and genki salad. The food was delicious and portions very generous.

Dinner meal

We were so happy that we finally tried Iyasare and will definitely return. 

  

Cafe sketches - Understory, 8/16/2022

Understory restaurant is on our way home from downtown Oakland and we were always curious about their cuisine. A few weeks ago, we read about several Bay Area restaurants that won James Beard awards for dining, and Understory was one of the winners. We found out that they are a collective of chefs that celebrate the diverse cultures and cuisines in Oakland. We had to try it.

Understory, on 8th Street in Oakland, CA

Elote corn, Thai salad, and Caribbean oxtail

The food was delicious. We had a Thai-inspired salad, an Caribbean oxtail dish, and elote corn. I also had a rose-infused, spiked lemonade cocktail - yum!  

Cafe sketches - Paradiso, 8/2022

Back in the 90's, I used to bring my sketchbook whenever we dined at a nice restaurant. It helped me occupy the time while we waited for our table (this was before smart phones). The sketches became a collection that I called "Cafe Sketches" and I was able develop a show around the collection. 

I'm revisiting this activity with a slight addition - I'll include photos of my meal. For the first edition, please enjoy Paradiso, located in San Leandro California. The meal at this restaurant, linguini with manila clams and a Hefeweizen; dessert - tiramisu

Paradiso, San Leandro, CA 

 

Dessert - Tiramisu

Entree - Linguini with Manila clams, Hefe

Lion Dance No. 2, update 08/2022

Filling in colors and blocking out shapes.

Lion Dance No. 2, in-progress

 

Fine dining, 08-13-2022

Thank goodness that some of our fine dining restaurants survived the pandemic. We were lucky enough to enjoy two really, really good venues in the last two months.

In San Francisco, my sister-in-law managed to get reservations to Mr. Jiu's, a modern take on the classic Chinese American restaurant in Chinatown. It was delicious.

Mr. Jiu's, San Francisco

In Chicago, we dined at Jaleo, Jose Andres' tapas restaurant at the Magnificent Mile. We have been big fans of Jose Andres and wanted to support him in any way we could. This happened to be a delicious way to support him.

Jaleo, Chicago

Chicago, Milwaukee sketches, 8/2022

Continuing the sketching exercises, I completed a few on my recent trip to Chicago and Milwaukee.

"Madame Cezanne in red armchair"

 At the Art Institute in Chicago, there is a Cezanne exhibit with much inspiration. 

Detail from "Five Bathers" by Cezanne

There are lots of sculptures to sketch.

Busts from Tavern Club, circa 1937

Lots of inspiration from Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee.

Motor Diner in the H-D Museum