2009 June | vmac+cheese

My favorite time of year — now and forever.

Posted on June 21, 2009 by vmacandcheese

An Ode to Summer Produce.

It’s summer again.

I know this not just because the calendar already tells me that June is on its last leg, or because the low light of dusk lasts until nearly 9 in the evening. It’s not the linen pants I’m giddy to wear, or even the (slightly) warmer weather.

No, it’s my appetite.

Summer has always been my favorite time of year. When I was young, my reasoning was obvious: summer meant nearly three months off from school. The summers of my youth were filled with vacations, trips to the neighborhood swimming pool with friends, impromptu sleepovers on a Tuesday night, and grilling in the backyard with my father.

Sure, when I think of summer now, I still anticipate the vacations, albeit they’re much shorter than they used to be–a quick weekend jaunt here and there. But when June hits, what I think about most are the fruits of the season.

sunflowers

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Filed under: Food, Just thinking... | 2 Comments »

Posted on June 16, 2009 by vmacandcheese

Yesterday, Alder Yarrow posted this photo to his excellent wine blog, Vinography, and I just had to share it here. I think it’s simply stunning. And it’s totally my new desktop background–both at work AND at home!

Below the Fog

Vineyards in Sonoma County. Photograph by Andy Katz. Click on the photo for a larger version.

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I just can’t help myself

Posted on June 2, 2009 by vmacandcheese

Sat in bed watching every iteration of the HP:6 trailer tonight. And now, of course, I have to start re-reading the entire series, like, tomorrow (for the 10th time, no less). I found myself scheming, I should aim to have all seven read before July 15. Hmm. Wonder if that’s doable. Then I had to laugh outloud. Doable? Please. I’ll be done with all 7 by next weekend.

[vodpod id=Groupvideo.2655552&w=425&h=350&fv=]

[vodpod id=Groupvideo.2655558&w=425&h=350&fv=]

[vodpod id=Groupvideo.2655555&w=425&h=350&fv=]

p.s. — I have to give a shout out to Vodpod here. Embedding vids into WordPress has always been a little hit or miss for me. Sometimes, embed codes from YouTube and the like would work, sometimes not. Tonight, as I was just about to pull my hair out trying to get these Hulu videos embedded, I came across Vodpod on a WordPress support forum. And presto, an answer to my prayers: I can now embed and share videos across multiple social networking platforms (Twitter included) at the click of a mouse. I f***ing love the Internet, seriously. And, as a second shout out, I have to give it up for Google, the solution to all my problems. Have a question? Here’s a great piece of advice: JFGI.

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Around the ‘Sphere

Posted on June 2, 2009 by vmacandcheese

I JUST saw Quantum of Solace this weekend, and I have to say, these are not a bad idea. [Eat Me Daily]

Hirsch Pinot is where it’s AT. Glad to see Obama thinks so too. [The Cellarist]

Magazines I should ask for this Christmas [SFoodie]

“I love the idea of a person’s garbage outliving him: that particular plate broken at a rather raucous dinner party or over the head of an unruly relative; the oysters from that incredible dinner party that paired so well with the crisp 1711 White St. Emilion…” [The Atlantic Food Channel]

25 brilliant wine label designs [Designer Daily]

Chateauneuf-de-what? A great label primer [Kevin Zraly]

And because I think her work (especially her calligraphy and typography!) is absolutely beautiful: [Cynthia Warren]

Filed under: Lists, Wine | Leave a Comment »

A Sad Announcement

Posted on June 1, 2009 by vmacandcheese

It pains me to announce that after 30 years of business, Tien Hong has closed.

I only discovered this over Memorial Day weekend in late May, on a long overdue visit to Austin (ahem…I may or may not have last made a cameo in the ATX in April of 2007). The family and I were all revved up and ready to get our siu mai on–then, as I went to make reservations, I saw the saddest words one could ever see next to the Tien Hong listing on Yelp: CLOSED.

What? How could this be?, I thought to myself, panic stricken. After all, Tien Hong has always been one of my most cherished memories of Austin, part of an early series of childhood food experiences that have greatly contributed to my current day fascination with gastronomy. A quick Google search revealed that the owner (someone I remember very clearly, for whether I dined at the restaurant at age 8 or 18, he was always shuffling about, making sure everyone was taken care of) decided to retire after a long and admirable haul in the restaurant business. This had apparently all happened sometime in 2008, when I was too busy scarfing down har gau in San Francisco, and too far from Austin to get wind of the closure. As happy as I am for the former owner, I’m super bummed I couldn’t say goodbye to the restaurant.