Bay Times Dines

Basketball Star Co-Creates

Game-Winning Wines Castro Farmers’ Market Is Back

Author, speaker, wine consultant, and television host Leslie Sbrocco is known for her entertaining approach to wine and food. She has won multiple Emmy Awards for her work on PBS, which includes hosting the series “Check, Please! Bay Area,” “Check, Please! You Gotta Try This!” and “100 Days, Drinks, Dishes & Destinations.” www.LeslieSbrocco.com

Sbrocco Sips

Leslie Sbrocco

Famed basketball star, Dwyane Wade, partners with celebrated Napa vintner, Jayson Pahlmeyer, and together the two create game-winning wines.

The notable names may be familiar to sports and wine fans, but this isn’t some “celebrity” brand made just for headlines. On the contrary. Wade Cellars crafts both highly collectable and high-quality, affordable wines to enjoy daily. The “Three by Wade” Cabernet is lush, yet vibrant, and comes in a beautifully designed bottle that makes a statement.

Grab a glass, watch a game, and enjoy.

The popular Castro Farmers’ Market returned on Wednesday, April 5, with the opening of a new season. Managed by the Pacific Coast Farmers’ Market Association, the Castro Farmers’ Market is located on Noe Street between Market and Beaver.

An assortment of regular vendors offer a variety of products, including fruits, vegetables, nuts, pastries, seafood, meats, and prepared foods. The weekly event, held each Wednesday from April though mid-November, is a favorite gathering point for local residents and others from outside the neighborhood. The market’s manager, Mia Simmans, and her team have become familiar faces and community supporters during their years of continuing service.

The Gay Gourmet

David

Landis

It’s a nonstop 4 and 1/2 hour flight, but Mexico City is a world away from San Francisco. At more than 7,300 feet, the high-altitude metropolis of 22 million seems like it would be a teaming surge of humanity. But, surprise: it’s not. This sophisticated city charms with neighborhoods of green gardens and purple jacaranda trees lining the streets, alongside cafés on every corner. A walkable city in the neighborhoods where tourists visit, this burg has it all: temples from yesteryear, world-class museums, a temperate climate, and most of all, great food.

Of late, Mexico City (CDMX) has become a destination for global chefs who want to spread their innovative wings. So, it made sense for The Gay Gourmet to visit recently. Here’s my list of “mustdo’s” in Mexico City.

Restaurants

Contramar: At the top of any list of must-visit CDMX restaurants is the always-buzzing, upscale Contramar in the Roma district.

Run by celebrity chef Gabriela Camara (who used to run the popular Cala restaurant in San Francisco), this is a place to see and be seen. It’s only open for comida. That loosely translates to lunch, although comida is often the main meal of the day, eaten at 2 pm. The focus here is the always-fresh seafood and the menu item to order is the whole red snapper fish, cooked half with green parsley sauce and half with red chili sauce. The service is always first-rate, if not overly efficient—but being packed the whole time, the waitstaff has to