My review of the Native American Basket Collection at the Pacific House in Monterey, California follows: Thank you Monterey County Weekly for the assignment and byline:
Pacific House Native American Basket Collection
By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
Watch the website below for information about the 2026 Carmel Valley Garden Show:
Carmel Valley Garden Show 2026
Posted by Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
The Carmel International Film Festival is being held from October 1 to October 5, 2025. Early bird tickets are available till September 1, 2025. Ticket and film submission information follow:
Ticket Information for Carmel International Film Festival 2025
Reposted by Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
The 2025 Concorso Italiano Auto Show is being held at Bayonet Golf Course in Seaside, California on August 16th. Click below for ticket information:
Concorso Italiano Ticket Information
Reposted by Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
All-American Lobster Ravioli at Pub’s (Growers Pub) in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget
Lobster comes from the icy waters off the coast of Maine, making lobster ravioli in tomato cream sauce an Italian-American classic that may have originated in a place like Boston’s North End Italian neighborhood. (Harvard, MIT, Boston University and Tufts all have a guilty splurge dish in lobster ravioli.)
When I saw lobster ravioli in tomato cream sauce on the menu at Pub’s in Salinas, California on a recent outing there, I immediately ordered it and planned an Italian-American meal around it.
I began my meal with an order of fried calamari with chipotle aioli (garlic mayonnaise with chipotle peppers blended into it) dipping sauce. I love fried calamari with a light batter like they do it at Pub’s. That appetizer sets the tone for a delicious meal.
The lobster ravioli comes with a salad, so we next ate a mix of fresh friseé lettuce, baby greens, and chopped romaine lettuce. I ordered blue cheese dressing with my salad and liked thinking I was eating creamy Italian gorgonzola cheese with light cream as a dressing.
I guessed the blue cheese dressing was actually made with a creamy Point Reyes blue cheese from outside San Francisco. It was delicious and also set the tone for the much anticipated main dish.
The lobster ravioli looked great when it came and also had braised prawns and whole octopus in the sauce. The ravioli was stuffed with ricotta cheese with chopped lobster claw meat mixed with it. The tomato cream sauce tasted as if seafood broth had been blended into it. The delicious sauce tied everything together and made me feel exceedingly healthy as I ate it.
For dessert, I ordered tiramisu. To make this dessert, you place lady finger sponge biscuits in the bottom of a dish and dampen them with espresso coffee. Next, you spread whipped mascarpone cheese (like whipped cream) on top of the ladyfingers. Then, you sprinkle the top with cocoa powder and refrigerate the tiramisu before serving it.
This meal was delicious and a bit more luxurious than what I normally eat, but I enjoyed every bite of it and highly recommend the lobster ravioli in tomato cream sauce at Pub’s in Salinas, California to everyone as a splurge meal to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, good grades, and graduations.
(Note: The dining room we sat in had photos of the Salinas Rodeo on the wall. The back wall was covered with brand marks from Monterey County ranchers – 35 in all. These marks were placed on livestock to help separate animals after grazing and to keep cattle together on cattle drives east for slaughter in the Midwest. The meat from the cattle was mostly sold to the Northeast.)
By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
Another condor action video at Pebble Beach, California during Car Week 2025.
I shot these videos in the morning from my car window. Thank you Apple iPhone.
Text and videos by Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
Robata Grill Izakaya in Carmel, California by Ruth Paget - one of my favorite reviews for the Monterey County Weekly (Circulation: 200,000). Click below for review:
Robata Grill in Carmel, California
By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks
Ranchero Shrimp at Super Pollo in Salinas, California by Ruth Paget
I found a dish at Super Pollo in Salinas, California that I am pretty sure qualifies as a Blue Zones recipe, which is 95% plant-based with 5% of the dish being made up of six butterflied and sautéed jumbo prawns.
This dish is called Ranchero Shrimp (camarones rancheros). This dish is almost a stir-fry using olive oil (California has a lot), white onions, fat Serrano green and spicy peppers, 1 pound of diced tomatoes, cilantro, and shrimp. (Recipe source: mexicoinmykitchen.com)
Ranchero shrimp is delicious and full of Vitamin C and antioxidants like lycopene in the tomatoes that can help prevent cancer.
The light tomato sauce and vegetables pair well with the Spanish rice that comes with the meal. I always love Spanish rice as it is made with chicken broth, tomato juice, and green pepper slices. The refried beans at Super Pollo were light and tasted as if they had been made with olive oil.
Finally, Super Pollo also delivers a side salad with this meal made of crispy iceberg lettuce (tastes great in the heat), tomato slices, a ring of raw onion, shredded cheese, and ranch dressing on the side. The salad and all the vegetables that go into this dish make it country or ranchero.
I think camarones rancheros at Super Pollo tastes great and is really a good value for your money when you consider all the organic food from the Salinas that go into making it. I also think it is a candidate for a Blue Zones designation.
By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
The flagstone stairs leading up to the entrance of the Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo, California somewhat prepare you for the Norse myths and/or Hobbit décor inside the large white Victorian Inn.
Inside a large imitation Ash tree sits in the middle of the dining room, which resembles the Yggdrasil tree in Norse mythology that holds together the heavens, Earth, and the lower realms. The dining room with red horseshoe booths and round lights encircling the booth are in the lower realms. I photographed the lower realms trunk and noted the prominent orange lily, which is poisonous for cats and dogs.
This dining area was closed for breakfast, so my husband Laurent, daughter Florence Paget, and I turned left and entered the Copper Room, which has a dining area and a saloon bar. Above the bar, there is a carving that reads, “Let’s Eat and Be Forever Happy.”
Letting that saying guide me, I ordered a Madonna Frittata, a baked Italian omelet, that comes with sautéed shallot, tomatoes, mushrooms, zucchini, and spinach baked in the omelet with mozzarella cheese melted on top. Every bite of the frittata was delicious. It was served with a bowl of perfectly ripe cantaloupe and honeydew melon cubes, pineapple wedges, and sweet red grapes.
I shared the biscuit made with flour and corn meal with Laurent and Florence. They shared their bacon with me to add to my order of bacon. The bacon was thick-cut, crispy, and was smoked over applewood.
The coffee was Apffels brand from Colombia, an organic brand. I think I drank an entire pot of this delicious and somewhat expensive brew. (Highly recommended!)
You can buy a lot of merchandise at Madonna Inn that is really nifty. At the table, we ordered an 8-inch wedge of pink and white pink champagne cake. In the lower realms gift shop, Laurent and Florence bought Hobbit goblets and raspberry habanero jam. There is also an upstairs gift shop that sells clothing, toys, and lifestyle items for the home.
For really great breakfasts and cool souvenirs and equally cool Hollywood set atmosphere, make sure to stop in for a meal at Madonna Inn in San Luis Onbispo,California.
By Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
Photo of lower realms Yggdrasil Tree at Madonna Inn - Photo by Ruth Paget
The Fall 2025 Catalog for the University of Chicago Press is available online and in PDF format. Click below for information:
UChicago Press Fall 2025 Catalog
Reposted by Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
The University of Chicago free e-book this month is Lions in the Balance. Click for information below:
Lions in the Balance Free E-Book
Reposted by Ruth Paget, author Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France