What started 20 years ago as a fancy fundraiser for the cultural programs Montalvo Arts Center brings to the community has morphed into a showcase of the diverse culinary and winemaking talent that surrounds us in the Bay Area.
“Over these 20 years, The Art of Food & Wine has evolved into far more than a fundraiser,” Montalvo Executive Director Angela McConnell said of the Sept. 7 event. “It has become the vital heartbeat sustaining our mission.”
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The posh affair, with VIP tickets at $455, sold out faster than a Taylor Swift concert.
Every year, the food seems to be more inventive and as diverse as the chef teams serving it up. Simple things work really well in a fast-paced environment where people want to sample as much as possible in a short period of time.
One of my favorite bites was the summer jardiniere with tomato, eggplant and olive tapenade from Chef John Cahill of Augustine, a one-bite wonder that had all the right mix of flavors and textures. Another bite that was easy to eat and appreciate was the hasselbacked king trumpet mushroom skewered and grilled by the chefs at ASA. I loved the Chilean seabass ceviche with passionfruit leche de tigre from Chef Jules Cablay at Wild Onion Bistro & Bar in Los Altos.
Also big kudos to the sensational tomato sorbet with marigold oil from Chef Julian at Tasting House Los Gatos and the addictive loaded baked potato from Jonathan Granada and Juan Rigau of Selby’s, which deployed a potato chip to dip into sinful crème fraiche with Royal Baika caviar, bacon bits and chives.
Chef/Executive Partner Jason Baade of Hurrica, on the Redwood City waterfront, impressed with his lobster salad on a corn chip topped with caviar, a simple yet mouthwatering combo that required no utensils. Similarly, the beef tartare gochujang cone from Eos & Nyx was a succulent bite with a bit of savory crisp from the tiniest waffle cone ever.
Chez Phillipe was serving up pate, which I didn’t manage to try, but Scott Cooper from Le Papillon had a corn panacotta topped with sous vide scallop, and Nobu had crab salad on a potato cake topped with caviar. First Born in Los Gatos served up garlic noodles, while Signia by Hilton plated a beautiful barbecued octopus dish with colorful swirls of purple sweet potato and yuzu avocado crema. For pure artistry, you’d have to go with the mushroom duxelles tart from Peter Armellino of the Plumed Horse.
(When The Plumed House received notice that its Michelin star had once again been renewed, they immediately received a very nice note from Thomas Keller at The French Laundry congratulating them. Accomplishments like this never get old.)
The VIP auction wines were provided by J. Lohr, and longtime Saratoga resident and winery founder Jerry Lohr was in attendance with his son Lawrence. Auctioneer Subyn Novelle helped raise $575,000 with the liquid encouragement of sommelier Jeffrey Perisho and his team.
My favorite wines, including a lovely Blanc de Blancs and sauvignon blanc, were from Kokomo in the Russian River; award-winning winemaker Erick Miller’s wife is from Saratoga. It was great seeing the Perrucci brothers Greg, Gary and winemaker Alex, who loves Martini clone pinot noir, having worked in Australia for a spell. He rather enjoyed the 2024 Kings Mountain Vineyards Rose of Martini Clone Pinot Noir made by Nate Kandler of Fogarty Winery. So many wines, so little time. Kudos to all the volunteers that make Montalvo Art of Food & Wine a success every year.
In exciting news, Tasting House Los Gatos is expanding, with plans to add a private dining room behind the Champagne Bar in what was previously a skin care salon. This gives the popular wine-centric restaurant even more room to showcase the talents of Chef Julian Silvera, which earned them their first ever Golden Spoon award at the 2025 Taste of Los Gatos event. Congratulations also go to Donna Novi of The Pastaria and her team for also being so honored.
Downtown San Jose has much to recommend it, not the least of which is the hot new place for weekend brunch: The Club on Post, owned by a delightful couple, Dayna and George González. Bright and cheery décor, friendly waitstaff and quick service made for a great first impression, as did the flaky house-made biscuits and jam, and a poached beet salad served with watercress and spiced walnuts.
The couple next to me displayed power eating prowess, as they devoured exactly one half of each their crab cakes eggs Benedict and chicken and waffles, then promptly put down their phones and traded plates. A party of young ladies was making merry with mimosas, while the bartender mixed up a Bloody Mary with the sinus-clearing house-made mix.
Brunch is served Saturday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. The Club on Post is also open for dinner Wednesday- Saturday, 5-9 p.m.
Also in downtown San Jose, I spied a great-looking menu at GoodTime Bar; I’m coming back for deviled eggs with crab fat mayo and trout roe, the espellete pepper, gulf shrimp and ginger dish, and the heirloom panzanella with tofu. I also inquired about the levels of hot sauce heat available at Scratch, an insanely popular fried chicken spot on Fountain Alley. The gal behind the counter warned me to stay at level 1 or 2 unless I wanted a fire extinguisher.
Telefèric Barcelona, the family-owned Spanish restaurant group, is launching its first-ever Paella Night on Sept. 21 across all five California locations, including Walnut Creek, Palo Alto and Los Gatos.
