Coffee.

Yeah Yeah I know. Who goes on about coffee… Well I don’t usually. I am a pretty straight forward double tall americano with 2 inches of room. Though recently I switched to decaf – but that is another story altogether.

The point of this post however is not about what I would get at my favorite coffee shop, it is about home-brew. We have tried many a method to get a good cup. We love the results of the Aeropress, though the plunger and tube have lost their firm ability to deliver a quality cup every time, and it is a bit of a production. We hate the Cuisenart One Cup, it just never does the same thing twice. We like the Keurig for it’s simple ease of use, and since we were only recently gifted with the machine, are still trying to find the right little cartridge – plus I wouldn’t be a Seattlelite if I weren’t a little concerned about what I have to do to make those damn cartridges recyclable.

But here is what I want on the counter when my kitchen is finally remodeled… And believe me – I am not holding my breath!

Perhaps by then Clive Coffee will have a version that has just a little more curve at the base and top joinery. But I think with the sexy arch of the back they are on the right track!  Plus – love the simple white porcelain cone and cup!

P.S. – Thanks to Design*Sponge for the heads up!

Jean Luc.

My latest crush. No pun intended, is on this man:

Jean Luc Columbo’s French accent and the way he says  “organic” (or – gan – EEK) has inspired me.   I was lucky enough to meet and talk with him the other night at a fabulous wine dinner, where he told us,  ‘in France one vine = 1  glass. Here in America, one vine = 12 bottles”.

So being that I haven’t hooked up my drip system to my vegetable garden, I have decided to go or-gan-EEK in the truest sense of the word, and let the vines of my tomatoes struggle through the summer on their own, with only a drink in the evening when the days hit 90 (still cheating in Jean Luc’s estimation).  And so I hope to choose quality versus quantity.  And to also try to keep this attitude in other areas of my life. Less is more. The universe will provide. Keep passing the open windows. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Que sera, sera!

That said I also plan on winning a wine tasting tomorrow. Game on! Merci Beacoup Jean Luc!

Food is Art.

I love this photo by Katie Baum!

Never Coming Back.

I am pretty sure that if I went here on vacation, the postcard home would say “Never Coming Back”.

Don’t Tell.

As obsessed with opening a restaurant as I am – I also think about how I would want it to be this sort of speakeasy (sans the card games) that felt like an ongoing high energy dinner party.

Watch this video about some of the “Don’t Tell” restaurants in Spain.

Caught in the act.

Check this list of videos out! I don’t know what is better the descriptions and clips that the lister used or the videos themselves!

Urban Outfitters Picks.

Since the Anthropologie entry was so popular I have posted some of my picks from the Urban Outfitters site.

Can’t you just see the two birdy/flower hooks in an stainless kitchen with a broom and a mop hanging from them.

Art and Alcohol.

I love printed matter. I love cocktails. I would love to see these framed a little differently and hung a in a nice row.

Will you be my sensei?

I have this relationship with AvroKO. Well it’s more like hero worship. Or stalking. It all started when I was hired by Starbuck’s store concept division to compile a list of dream partners. Possible collaborators if you will. A great little research gig for someone obsessed with design, architecture, objects, and materials etc.  Anyway, it was during this time that I came across AvroKO, and as a firm they were the ones that set the bar for me. I felt as if I knew them, their methods, their mania for every detail. And I wanted to be them – hip young college friends all grown up and creating really amazing spaces all centered around food.  I still do.  And one day we will share a martini while concepting a new space… (a girl has gotta dream).

So here are a couple of snippets from their spaces in NYC:

More to come….

Balthazar + Schiller’s Liquor Bar = Bastille

Some of my most blissful and adrenaline packed highs have taken place at Balthazar and Schillers. NYC does that to many people, but oh, how I love the patina, the bodies, and the butter.

Now we have Bastille here in Seattle. It’s not in the middle of Belltown, which makes it better. And frankly, I am jealous. A project like this, a budget like this… the possibilities and concepts keep me a wake at night.

P.S. I saw Lila from Friday Night Lights there on Saturday.