Just listen to the music of the traffic in the city...

Linger on the sidewalk where the neon signs are pretty
How can you lose? The lights are much brighter there...
You can forget all your troubles; forget all your cares, and go
Downtown -- things will be great when you're
Downtown -- you'll find a place for sure
Downtown -- everything's waiting for you
-From Petula Clark's Downtown

Few of you may know that Jen used to volunteer at St. Anthony's Soup Kitchen in San Francisco for years. Along the way Jen made many friends, but one in particular remains close to Jen's heart. She's a mature, retired lady named Pat. I've met her only a handful of times but what a lovely, kind person she is, so generous and joyous. Last week, the three of us met up for our semi-monthly get together at Downtown Restaurant in Berkeley, CA.

Downtown is a restaurant and bar that caters toward yuppies to established professionals and the occasional neighborhood regular with a big emphasis on the arts. Large, modern canvas works are hung throughout the large, honey-oak accented dining room. They also have a stage against the far wall for their Jazz concerts occasionally held there. Their food unfortunately does not live up to the expressiveness of the art that is displayed. Their menu was a bit confusing as they wanted to mix the different dining styles of tapas with normal entrée plates. Thus, entrée prices ranged from $12.50 for the Spring Risotto to $26.00 for Grilled New York Steak without indicating how much food you really are getting for that price. Is it a small, expensive tapa or fair-priced, full and rich dinner plate? Well the three of us ended up ordering the salmon, sole, and pork shoulder plates, that ultimately were good but forgettable, with a bottle of equally forgettable wine. The sole was well prepared but the dish as whole lacked pizazz. The salmon and pork dishes were essentially the same dish: only so-so cooked protein over risotto & cherry tomatoes. Their desserts had a little more flair as they tried things like a corn crème brûlée (for those who remember Jen had a corn custard tart on her menu at the same). The corn crème brûlée was the best of the three desserts we had but lacked the some corn flavor that Jen's custard had. In contrast to their food menu, the drink menu was very interesting with peach-passion fruit soda and a variety of cocktails made with St. George Spirits famous for their Hanger One vodka distilled right here in the bay area on the old base in Alameda. The weirdest listing we found was an Aqua Perfecta Candy Cap Mushroom Vodka. Upon ordering it, our waiter did a double-take and asked if we were sure that's what we wanted. Thinking it would be just straight over ice, it was a surprise to see it come in a martini glass. It turns out even the bartender thought it wouldn't be good, so he doctored it with Madeira, honeywater, lemon juice, and a lemon twist. It was it definitely tasted like a plain English button mushroom but worked surprisingly well. It worked much like how olives or onions do in a martini. The Candy Cap was certainly the most expressive part of the meal aside from the company, of course. In conclusion, we'd rate Downtown as a good experience, but there are many other impressive restaurants we'd rather eat in downtown Berkeley. Maybe we'd come back for a jazz concert...maybe...

---

Culinary Word of the Day: Madeira
Named after the Portuguese-owned island where it's made, Madeira is a distinctive fortified wine that's subjected to a lengthy heating process during maturation. It can range in color from pale blond to deep tawny and runs the gamut from quite dry to very sweet. The pale golden Sercial is the lightest, driest Madeira, while the rich, dark Malmsey is the sweetest. Bual and Verdelho are both medium-sweet wines. The flavor of American-made Madeiras cannot compare with that of the Portuguese originals, but then they're a fraction of the price. The lighter Madeiras are often served as apéritifs, while the richer, darker Malmsey is perfect for after-dinner sipping. Madeira is also an excellent cooking wine and can be used in both sweet and savory preparations. Source: Food Lover's Companion