Hello. I’m going to begin sharing some of my favorite things across all aspects of life. Here goes with one of the less glam but most functional things I’ve come across in a long time. I was lucky enough to be the sous chef for a good friend and amazing chef Rob Buono for thanksgiving this year. It really does make chopping 10 shallots a breeze, or a pile of garlic where my hands don’t smell like garlic for the next week.  He had me use this gem of a chopper a few different times, and I now have one on order.

Best Chopper EVER!

Fathom has been wonderful enough to publish my travels on their amazing travel site. It’s so fun to collect and write about all the wonderful people and places that I came across. Check out their site and the story. 

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NOSH • 9/8/11
Yes Sir. Cafe Clementine delivers. This is one of my new favorite go-to lunch spots in NYC to snag food on the quick. Check it out.

how to get there,

where to stay,

what to eat,

and what to do.

Ojai charmed me this weekend.

The landscape combined with the people makes it one of the most enchanting places I’ve been.

It’s the best of America’s small towns combined with the beauty of being connected to a larger world.

I’d go back next weekend if I could.

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TRANSPORT

Ojai is a very beautiful and easy 90 min drive from LA.

2 days is enough to feel like you’ve truly had a holiday.

I’m distraught that I didn’t figure this out 10 years ago!

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STAY

There are 2 great places to stay in Ojai,

Ojai Valley Inn & Spa or The Lavander Inn

We chose the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa and it was as close to perfection as any hotel I’ve stayed at. It’s not cheap but it’s worth it. They’re extremely pet friendly as well, which made Quinn very happy!

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EAT

Day 1

Lunch – Knead

The mother and daughter that run this lovely spot take great pride in their thoughtful treats. We saw them both days and quite possibly spent more time and money with them than anyone else. 5 packs of handmade crackers are a must, right? Now I’ve got to throw a cocktail party now just to use them!

Dinner – Azu

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Day 2

Breakfast – Ojai Farmers Market

Lunch – Boccali’s

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DO

Day 1

Muffler Art

This is on the side of the road and isn’t really a site, but it did provide a first Ojai smile at the idea of art meeting small town America. It was perfection.

Ojai Olive Oil Farm

Ron is amazing; he walked us through the entire process of importing, grafting, and growing the trees. Then sorted through the process of picking, packing, processing, finishing, and bottling. It was a treat to hear about his adventures with Olives. The oil itself is wonderful and worthy of the best from Italy and Spain.

Vista Point

Normally I find these corny, and living off Mulholland in the Hollywood Hills leaves me navigating tourists on a daily basis. You should  stop here, climb onto the stone pillar holding the explanatory plaque and you’ll see the whole valley laid out in front of you. It’s magical.

New Oak Ranch – Lavender Farm

6 weeks a year you can go harvest your own lavender. I chose the cooking variety. In the coming days will attempt to re-create the only pudding on the planet that I can’t get enough of. The chocolate pudding at Perry Street, with crystallized lavender on top…wish me luck!

Visit Larry Carnes – Master Potter

We were headed to lunch when we saw the sign, “the pottery studio” and a quick u-turn later we were back spending the good part of an hour with Larry Carnes. He’s a master potter who knows more about clay than I’m going to guess just about anyone on the planet. His work is entertaining and the vessels are addictive, I walked away with 5. If you’re lucky enough to get to spend 8 weeks in Ojai you can have Larry teach you his secrets.

Bike

There are wonderful trails in Ojai, and bikes can be rented. It’s well worth it!

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Day 2

Hike

The trails in Ojai are many and fine. This is a great way to start your morning.

Farmers Market

The farmers market in Ojai is of very high standards; there are no fakers here. The market is very well thought out and quite diverse, every stall I stopped at was directly farm owned and staffed. I resisted the bounty of beautiful perishable items due to the impending drive back to LA, but still managed to walk away with a good bit of loot….local honey, the best market basket ever from Ghana, more treats from Knead, Sugar Scrub, Organic Herbal Teas and Persimmon Walnut Nougat. Ron is at the farmers market on Sunday’s with his oils, we got the pleasure of sharing a photo with Ron that we’d taken while at Larry’s Pottery studio the day before. It was of some lovely dipping plates that Larry had fashioned for Ron to sell at the olive oil farm. Larry was wickedly proud when he shared his secret. “Ron doesn’t know yet but I’ve got dipping plates for him.” we loved getting to break the surprise to Ron the next day, and hopefully help the venture along with our enthusiastic delivery.

Wander

It’s worth a no destination meander through the downtown area, you won’t get lost and you may just find a wonderful surprise…

Bart’s Books

This place is fab, it’s an open-air bookstore, how impractical. I love it! There’s a sign on the door about how to pay for the books permanently installed on the outside, yes outside of the building. This is a theme in Ojai, there are produce stands spattered about with the honor system for payment, it’s refreshing to think that this is still possible in America in 2010. Bart’s is the best used bookstore I’ve seen, it’s huge since it covers the whole property including the small house that I am guessing was the original structure on the property. There are rows and rows of books on almost any subject you can imagine, I picked up a book I’d never seen before on hand tufted rugs. Tip…if you go, buy the tote that is pictured below.  It’s perfect, and I resisted. I’m still kicking myself! I’ll just have to use it as an excuse to visit again very soon!

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Cafe de Flore is a must stop on all trips to Paris, no matter if it’s for breakfast, lunch, dinner, cocktails, coffee with amazing French magazines from the near by newsstand. It’s been a favorite of the creative influencers for generations and is something everyone should experience more than once.

CAFE DE FLORE

The first photo below was snapped on a recent trip which felt very much like a modern day Herbie the Love Bug, and was shot on actual film with my Contax T3.  I had no idea if it had turned out for months and months, the camera ended up on an extended stay in Paris and it was such a wonderful surprise when the camera arrived and the images were useable.

These are images old and new that tell the story of the cafe.

Portugal last year…exhausted after fashion filled month in New York a good friend was on her way to Lisbon for a shoot, and who am I to turn down a spot at the Four Seasons and the inside view of a city that being on a production brings. All I heard was “much needed instant vacation”.  The night before heading home it was time for one last dinner, we wanted to walk from the hotel and as luck has it the best meal I had during my visit was the last one, an unexpected wonderful surprise. Bocca delivered what was one of the top 10 meals of my life. The highlight of the evening was a wine chosen for me by the sommelier. Without knowing Portuguese wine in any way, all I had to offer were the words Bordeaux, Malbec, Barolo….the kind man was a genius and I ended up being treated to one of the most amazing wines I’ve had the pleasure of tasting. Even better in Portugal it’s not pricey, and the label was stunning. The details he jotted down on a post-it for me and I take it with me as I make my way back to Los Angeles. Once home I hunt, and I do mean literally hunt the vineyard down. No US distributor, a UK one who’s on holiday, and a website for the brand. I send word in all directions…. and amazingly Ronald my soon to become e-mail pen pal responded. He’s at the winery, he may be able to ship to me, and he has what I want! Yes!

Long Long Long and by long I mean 3 months long story short, Ronald is able to ship me 4 cases (which fly via British Airways to LA, that seems somewhat posh to me for an unexplainable reason) and they get STUCK in customs because I’m not a wine importer. Tessa who has just started with Geren Ford dives in deep to help me out, thank goodness no is not an option for her and after much back and forth and a multitude of ideas, one of which was “SEND IT BACK TO PORTUGAL” which gave me hives, it arrives. Not with the same glamour as it’s flight here, but on Christmas eve at noon on Ventura Blvd in Sherman Oaks I meet Jesus to procure my 4 cases of gold out of the back of a delivery truck too large to make it up the windy roads to my house in the Hollywood Hills. The 4 cases are all that is in the truck. I feel like I’m accepting stolen goods, but I am not. I am 6 hours away from heading to LAX for a much-needed St. Barths stay over to celebrate the holidays and ring in the New Year. I am happy to report that a bottle went with me and was enjoyed by all on a tiny island in the Caribbean

Cargo safely in my pantry.