Today I’m sharing a fun day trip to The Barlow in Sebastopol. If you’re planning a visit to Sonoma County, add it to your list. Plus a simple Mother’s Day brunch idea, a Cinco de Mayo cocktail and more.
Happy Weekend Friends!
It’s time for the weekend post with Kim and Elizabeth.
Our weekly roundup of inspiration and goings on.
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Kim’s arrangement from last weekend inspired me to give it a try.
I found this little pot at Orchard Nursery.
They have a ton of cute planters right now.
We’ve got a lot to cover today so let’s get to it.
Visiting The Barlow in Sebastopol
Last weekend Jim and I took a day trip to Sebastopol to check out The Barlow and see what all the fuss is about. The Barlow is an open air market filling about four city blocks with restaurants, shops, art, winery’s, and taprooms. It opened about ten years ago …I know, what took us to long to get there?
From Orinda it took nearly two hours to get there. Traffic was dreadful. It’s hard to go anywhere in the Bay Area without traffic, but had we gone from point A to point B without traffic, it’s only 65 miles. Once off the 101 we exhaled and enjoyed the drive through the beautiful, rural countryside. By the way, it was a perfect 72-and-sunny kind of day. We found parking easily and conveniently behind one of the most popular spots at The Barlow.
Since this was our first visit, we took a stroll from one end to the other taking it all in. The Sarmantine Artisan Boulanger caught our eye and we bought a croissant and pain au raisin to take home for breakfast on Sunday. Raisin snails are my favorite and it’s not easy to find a good one … or any one … these days.
Our (my) first priority is always food and we wandered into the Wm Cofield Cheesemakers and ordered a glass of wine and a meat and cheese board. We found a table outside and took advantage of the DJ spinning 70’s hits across the alley at Blue Ridge Kitchen. We love a good cheese board and the Boom Island camembert was so good we bought some to take home.
Then we were off to do some window shopping. I found a darling dress at Rust, but didn’t succumb … and now regret it.
Acorn is a home store I could browse in all day … Jim has a time limit for this sort of thing. It has everything from decorative pillows to tableware to baby clothes to cocktail syrups and bitters.
We stopped in at PAX Winery, where Jim’s patience is endless, for a glass of wine – Pinot Blanc for Jim, Cheney Blanc for me – and settled into a room in back – that felt very library-ish + western – to sip and people watch. This tasting room had so many cute places to sit, from pretty green bistro tables out front, picnic tables lining the side patio, bar height tables in the main tasting room and the back, library room.
Our final stop was Region, a self-serve wine bar featuring over 50 Sonoma County wines.
Jim bought a 4-tasting card and got busy. I settled into the covered patio area where there’s all kinds of seating, fire pits and a very lively atmosphere.
Believe it or not we were hungry again and ordered slices from Acre Pizza delivered to us on Region’s patio. One of the really fun things at The Barlow is being able to order food from the food vendors delivered to you in the wine bars and beer gardens. Charcuterie boards and pizza seemed to be the most popular choices and we watched the food runners zipping around all day.
Before departing I ran across the sidewalk to Two Dog Creamery and brought back a small ice cream sundae.
I’m not sure what took us so long to get ourselves to The Barlow. It’s totally charming with flowering spilling out of planters and onto the sidewalk, happy people with their happy dogs … and tons to sip and see. If you live in the Bay Area or are planning a visit to Sonoma County, The Barlow is a great place to spend a few hours … or a day. We’ll definitely be back.
I’ve been nibbling on the Boom Island Camembert all week. Along with my favorite Raincoast Crisps and a bottle of Campuget rose.
Ivy Cove Ojai Wine Tote
On our way home from The Barlow, we made an impromptu stop at a farmer’s market and I put my wine tote from Ivy Cove to good use. It may be intended for wine, but it’s perfect for grocery shopping, farmers market visits and picnics. You can use my code SPRITZER20 and take 20% off site-wide on the Ivy Cove website.
Frank & Eileen’s Popover Henley
I know you live for my style content, and this week I posted a couple outfits-of-the-day over on Instagram. I’m kidding no one cares what I wear. But that won’t stop me from telling you about my love for Frank & Eileen’s Popover Henley. It’s a great alternative to a standard white tee (which I wear all too often). A little bit elevated but just as comfortable. I adore a long sleeve, and with the open neckline and relaxed, slightly cropped raw hem it’s light and airy even on warm weather days. When I wear it I get lots of compliments so I thought it was worth mentioning. It comes a bunch of colors and stripes (I have the navy and white stripe too). It’s not inexpensive, but it’s well made here in California, and its lasts. I’ve been wearing mine on repeat coming up on 3 years.
F&E Henley | Old & Long Gone Target Khakis (these are similar) | Birks
Simple Mother’s Day Brunch Idea
Mother’s Day is next weekend. Which quite honestly makes me sad. My mom has been gone for 25+ years and I have no children of my own. My family is small, and fractured. I’m sure many of you can relate. Anyway, I certainly never intended not to have children but let’s not get into that sad saga. I’m an outstanding dog and cat mom, and exemplary aunt … if I do have to say so myself. My grandmother used to say that all the time and it makes me laugh to hear myself doing the same.
The last Mother’s Day I spent with my mom, I brought brunch over to her house. Her gift was the stoneware quiche dish and pitcher in which brunch arrived. I made Quiche Lorraine, squeezed fresh orange juice and I’m sure I brought a fruit salad and some kind of muffin or quick bread. Both the dish and pitcher came back to me after my mom passed and having them in my kitchen brings back memories of our last Mother’s Day together how animated and happy she was that day.
I’m not sure what recipe I used that day, but for the last 20-years my go-to Quiche Lorraine is adapted from Southern California Cooking from the Cottage. The Cottage is a very popular restaurant in La Jolla.
Squeezing orange juice for a crowd isn’t for the faint of heart and I’m glad I upgraded to this Black & Decker juicer. This is the mack daddy of juicers and quite popular with the serious citrus juicing set.
The recipe ~
Quiche Lorraine
Ingredients
- 1 Pie Crust
- 1 Tbsp Butter
- 3/4 cup Yellow onion, diced
- 1 cup Ham, diced
- 3/4 cup Cheddar Cheese, grated
- 3/4 cup Monterey Jack Cheese, grated
- 3/4 cup Greyere Cheese, grated
- 1/4 cup Chives, chopped into small pieces
- 6 Eggs
- 1 cup Half-and-Half
- 1/2 tsp White Pepper
- Pinch Nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425.
- Grease a 10" pie or tart pan, add pie crust and bake for 10 minutes.
- Remove crust from oven and reduce temperature to 350.
- In a medium saucepan melt butter over medium to low heat and add chopped onion. Sauté until light brown and slightly caramelized.
- In a mixing bowl, add cheeses, ham, half of the chopped chives, sautéed onion and thoroughly combine. Spread out evenly in bottom of pie crust.
- In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, half-and-half, white pepper and nutmeg. Pour into pie crust over top of ham and cheese mixture
- Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 1 hour or until center is set.
- Sprinkle with remaining chives before serving.
Taking brunch to your mom is the grown-up equivalent of serving her breakfast in bed.
I hope Mother’s Day is a very happy occasion for you and your family, and if you experience any sadness around it please know you’re not alone.
Click on images to shop ~
Aperol Margarita’s for Cinco de Mayo
With all this talk of Mother’s Day we’ve gotten a little ahead of ourselves. Tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo, a day in which I participate fully. A few weeks back I shared a recipe for Aperol Margaritas. Jim discovered this version of the margarita and it’s quickly become one of his favorites. Not only because it’s delicious, but with only three ingredients it’s super easy.
Aperol Margarita’s (makes two) ~
- 2 oz Blanco tequila
- 1 oz Aperol
- 1 oz Fresh squeezed lime juice
Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake it up and strain over a chilled glass filled with crushed ice. Oh, and of course, rim your glass with salt (or sugar) if you like … before pouring! Are you a salt or no salt margarita drinker? I’m in the no camp. Jim of course, is a yes. I have to admit it is pretty. Oh, and I made a Reel!
Odds & Socks ~
Have you seen Ralph Lauren’s Fall 2024 ready-to-wear runway show? If not, you’re in for a treat.
Home and garden tour season is in full swing and the local chapter of American Association of University Woman hosts their Annual Garden Tour next week, May 10 & 11th. Tickets here.
Current Favorites ~
And that’s what I have for you today.
Let’s visit Kim and Elizabeth to see what’s inspiring them.
If you missed last week’s post, you can catch up here.
We’re off to the Lafayette Juniors 25th Annual Lifestyle Tour.
If you see us, please be sure to say hello!
Until next time, cheers from Snowberry,
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