Why I don't like bonds

We bought some dungeness crab yesterday.  They cost $12.96 each. I remember that when I first visited San Francisco in 1953 crabs cost 25 cents each on the wharf.  So inflation has increased the price of crab fifty fold.

At the same time that I first visited San Francisco I was typically paying 21 cents a gallon for gasoline.  Sometimes a price war would reduce the price to 19 cents a gallon but 21 cents was typical.  Gasoline now costa a bit over $3.00 a gallon.  That's a 15 fold increase.

People say that the good thing about bonds is that unlike stocks you can be sure you will get your money back in the end.  Maybe so, but you can be sure that the money will be worth damn less when you get it.

(Footnote:  I visited the wharf in San Francisco with my family twenty years later.  Crab had doubled in price to 50 cents each.  I was appalled.)

James & Katherine Moule Family: 2011

I dislike posed family groups.  Nevertheless, it is very difficult to make a candid snapshot of twelve people and this is the first time that our whole family has been in the same place since 2007. So here we are. This was taken at the reception following the memorial service for my mother on February 5th.  For the benefit of my pen pals who have not met our family or those who have not seen them for a while these are, L to R:

son-in-law Michael Rowe
daughter Nancy Moule Rowe
daughter Elizabeth Moule Polyzoides
grandson Alexander Polyzoides
son John Moule
John's wife, Rosie Shillinger
James Moule (me)
granddaughter Katherine Polyzoides
daughter Allison Moule
wife Katherine Moule
grandson Nicholas Polyzoides
son-in-law Stefanos Polyzoides

This photo benefits a lot if you click on it to enlarge it.

A Memorable Meal at Cyrus

Behind this modest exterior lies one of the most elegant and accomplished restaurants in the United States if not the world.  This is Cyrus in Healdsburg, California—the restaurant of Doug Keane.  We had dinner there this week.  The menu follows.  Each course is separated from the next with a tilde.  If two dishes are shown, then Katherine had one choice and I had another.

Canapés

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Amuse Bouche

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Sea Scallop with Sweet Potato-Passsion Fruit Puree and Turnips Poke

&

Quail Egg with Foie Gras-Black Truffle Jus, Rye and Caraway

With Shaved Black Truffles

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Tasmanian Ocean Trout with Smoked Soba Noodles and Mitsuba, Oolong Broth
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Milk Poached Chicken with Cauliflower and Brussels Sprouts, Uni Froth
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Braised Pork Cheek with Cabbage and Red Wine Truffled Risotto, Parmesan
With Shaved Black Truffles
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Artisanal and Farmhouse Cheeses Presented Tableside
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Vanilla Bean Fontainebleau with Rhubarb and Lime, Farina fritter
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Butterscotch "Sundae", Popcorn Tuile and Chocolate Soil
&
Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar, Honeycomb Parfait
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Mignardises

We were seated side by side at a small table with our backs to the wall and looking toward the door to the kitchen.  This was perfect since we enjoyed seeing the ballet of servers entering and leaving the kitchen.  We had wine pairings with each course and each choice was intelligent and imaginative.  (I differ on serving a pear cider with the cheese course however.)  The wine portions were adequate, but we should have exercised a bit of restraint.  We had one glass of Sauvignon Blanc an hour before arriving at the restaurant and ordered an extra glass of wine to accompany the canapés. That was too much.  If we just stuck with the wine pairings, the quantity would have been just right.

The only way that I can describe how good this all was is to compare it to other meals we have had in restaurants presenting haute cuisine with attentive and flawless service.  In this restaurant category, we have never had a better meal.  I can think of four meals we have had achieving the same level of quality:

Four Seasons, New York, NY, 1962
Le Pyramide, Vienne, France, 1970.

Steirereck, Vienna, Austria, 2006 

Sa.Qua.Na, Honfleur, France, 2010

Our experience at Cyrus was distinctly better than meals at some other restaurants in this genre, specifically: Alain Ducasse, New York, NY, 1995; Inn at Little Washington, Washington, DC area, 1999; Daniel, New York, NY, 1999; Picholine, New York, NY, 2007; Sans Souci, Rome, Italy, ca 1987; Enoteca Pinchiori, Florence, Italy, 1993; and elegant restaurants in Paris in the 1980-2000 era.  (Several restaurants on the this list had 3 Michelin stars at the time.)

What distinguishes Cyrus is extreme attention to detail and thoughtful balance on each plate and between each course.

Annual Chef's Holiday at the Ahwahnee

This January, we attended the 26th Annual Chef's Holidays at the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite.  This consists of cooking demonstrations by chefs from all over the country and culminates in a grand dinner in the main dining room.

The top photo is Douglas Keane, chef/owner of Cyrus in Healdsburg.  Under that is Annie Somerville, Executive Chef at Greens Restaurant in San Francisco.  The last photo (obviously) is the grand dinner.

This was a three day holiday for us.  There was plenty of time to walk/hike around Yosemite valley between demonstrations.  Sum it up to say that we intend to participate every year from now on.