Photo Shoot by the Bay

I had purchased my digital SLR camera only six weeks earlier, and San Francisco's sometimes fickle winter weather offered a gorgeous respite in early February. With less than 24 hours before I would leave Fisherman's Wharf I checked in to my hotel, and then began walking around the neighborhood with lens poised.

At Pier 39 I found a cornucopia of great images, from the dark mystery of Houdini's Magic Shop to The San Francisco Music Box Company, where tropical snow globes and Venetian jewelry boxes shared the shelves with hand-crank and Swan Lake music boxes. Diners filled the Crab House at Pier 39 and the Hard Rock Cafe; and Bubba Gump Shrimp offered patrons views of a massive Italian carousel where brightly painted horses pranced and thousands of lights twinkled.

Despite the calendar, a riotous rainbow of flowers decorated the boardwalk. But no place grabbed my attention more than this spot along the upper boardwalk, where the carousel's base disappeared, leaving only the 'roof' and it's intricately hand-painted images of the Golden Gate Bridge, Coit Tower, Chinatown and other popular San Francisco sites in clear view. I savored the sunshine and wrapped my jacket around me, as the Bay sparkled invitingly.

Getting Great Service

What makes restaurant service great? I appreciate a server who answers menu questions easily and/or knows how to find the answer for me, and mentions specials - or special options such as a buffet in the back room - before I order. Or quick changes of a food or beverage item when the first is unsatisfactory, and removal of the item from my bill before I ask.

I appreciate frequent refills of 'bottomless' beverages or bread, details remembered such as no salt on a margarita glass, quick clearing after courses, and bills that arrive soon after I finish eating. I like it when servers are easy to understand and understand me well, and when ethnic restaurants offer authentic preparations and atypical dishes - such as horchata or menudo in a Mexican restaurant.

What makes a great restaurant customer? I asked my older daughter who has served in three different chain restaurants in two cities, during the last six years.

"People forget what their parents taught them about manners when they go to a restaurant," she says. "Be gracious and treat us like we're hosting you at our home. If you're nice to us we'll go out of our way to do something nice for you" - such as when my server in a Kansas City-area restaurant artistically arranged the lemons I requested, on a small plate.

"Don't be rude, and interrupt me during my introduction. Don't snap at me, or act like it's the end of the world if something arrives 30 seconds after you want it." And good tipping is a must when 90 percent of a server's income is based on tips. That's why, "The standard should be no less than 15%, but 18-20% all the time, if service is good."

The next time you dine out, try thinking about service from both sides of the table. You - and your server - will be glad you did.

Year-Round Grill Guy

My husband is a 'grill guy' extraordinaire. Throughout the 18 1/2 years we have lived in this house, he has grilled every Sunday night during all seasons, unless there's a lot of precipitation or incredibly low temperatures. Sunday has always been one time when he knows his plate will feature an entire piece of meat versus meat cut in pieces as part of a larger dish - or a vegetarian entree. And, sometimes, he grills several times in a week.

By 7:30 last night our temperature stood at 23 degrees, but he fired up the grill to cook his ultimate burgers. We've long used a ground meat mixture that is one pound of turkey plus one pound of 85-90% lean beef so we don't need any fillers - which yields about six large burgers.

Seasoning/flavoring varies, depending on our mood, but always includes about a tablespoon, each, of minced garlic flakes, minced onion flakes and liquid smoke, plus liberal shakes of salt and pepper. Last evening we added a couple tablespoons of a cheese/herb blend from our last pizza delivery and we recently added green chile powder to another batch of burger meat.

These moist and juicy burgers hit the spot when paired with a slice of cheese (choose your favorite), ketchup, Vidalia onion mustard and a soft, fresh, whole grain bun. They also added a little taste of warmer days to a chilly winter night.

Kansas City's Plaza Lights

It's been almost 30 years since I visited the Kansas City area to interview for my first job. Although I knew only one person here beforehand, I immediately liked my potential supervisor. He then took me on a tour through some of the city's best known neighborhoods, and the Spanish-style Country Club Plaza shopping district immediately captured my heart.

But I discovered the Plaza's true magic during my first holiday season as a resident. Imagine a Spanish village replete with multiple hand-carved fountains, dozens of brightly painted ceramic wall murals and red tile roofs on every building - and then line them with thousands upon thousands of twinkling holiday lights. When I took a carriage ride with a friend as lazy little snowflakes dusted the street and buildings, the Plaza truly resembled a fairyland.

Each Thanksgiving eve since my first, a local celebrity has flipped a single switch so that 100,000 lights sparkle in the darkness as the holiday season begins. Then, as Plaza visitors buy holiday gifts and lift glasses of champagne at the New Year, the lights add magic to each moment.

Santa Fe Diner Food

Equal parts American diner, local hangout, visitors' favorite and culinary melting pot, Santa Fe's Plaza Cafe has operated continuously for 80+ years. We walked through the door and stepped back in time, as we viewed a wall covering of broken plates, red upholstered booths, a chalkboard 'specials' menu and a tin ceiling.

Dionysi Trazatos and Beneranda Saiz married and merged their Greek and Mexican culinary heritages with traditional New Mexican dishes and diner fare, when they purchased the restaurant. Today, son Andy still serves homemade Greek, Mexican, New Mexican and American cuisine.

One morning we chowed down on the Greek Canape - an English muffin with spinach, onion, tomato, a poached egg and feta hollandaise sauce, decadent; vanilla and cinnamon-flavored French toast made from challah bread encrusted with sweet cereal; and Enchiladas Divorciados, a corn tortilla stuffed with screambled eggs, avocado and cactus, and served atop spicy tomatillo and smoky Chipotle salsas.

We also tried Papas Fritas, a spicy deep fried potato topped with egg whites, homemade red chile sauce and cream and an awesome N.M. Chile Relleno - a Monterey Jack-stuffed New Mexico green chile cooked in egg batter and then topped with more green chile and cheese. The only problem with our breakfast feast was that, because we wouldn't return to our hotel anytime soon, we couldn't take 'doggie bags' with us. And we'd have to save a taste of Plaza Cafe's remaining menu for another day.

Cooking Up Ambience

Candles are a great ingredient for adding ambience, and I started to make my own when a friend said that he hated to throw away 'spent' candles so he began consolidating leftover wax to make new ones.

I agreed with his sentiment and plowed in. I probably won't try tapers - and still buy an occasional candle because I like the scent or size (for instance, I can only get pinon-scented candles in New Mexico) - but most of the candles I burn now are handmade. And the process is surprisingly easy.

Homemade Candles
Materials & equipment

1 cup leftover wax of similar scent and/or color

double boiler (VOE - try a small stainless steel bowl nested in a saucepan)

lead-free wicks with a small metal base, available in multiple sizes at many craft stores

candle 'molds' (VOE - use small containers such as empty food jars/candle holders, or empty/rinsed/small, dried cream cartons; miniature muffin pans work for short votives or shot glasses for tall)

skewers

If using a wick longer than 3-4 inches, wrap top of wick securely where two skewers form an 'x' when laid across the top of your container and cut off any excess; this will help stabilize the wick.

Fill saucepan with an inch of water. Place bowl in pan and fill with wax. Melt wax over high heat until it becomes liquid. As liquid emerges, use a spoon to pour a small amount into your container and secure the wick base. You may continue to add wax throughout the liquifying process or wait until completely liquified. If any wick pieces remain in the liquid from your old candles, remove with tongs.

Once you have filled the container, allow the candle to cool/harden, approximately 2-3 hours. Cut off excess wick (your wick should always be trimmed to 1/4-inch before lighting) and enjoy.

VOE - To retrieve spent wax, place your candle container in the freezer for several hours until you can crack the wax with a knife, and then remove it. Save wax until you have enough for your desired candle size.

VOE -To remove candle from muffin pan or shot glass, loosen slightly with sharp knife and then pull out by wick. To remove from dairy carton, peel off carton after candle is totally cool.

San Francisco's Cable Cars

Despite the 40-something temperature, dozens of passengers lined up at the Friedel Klussmann Memorial Turnaround to buy tickets for a ride on San Francisco's famed cable cars. Across the street, empty cars on the Powell-Hyde line awaited customers.

It's been 25 years since the city of San Francisco totally overhauled its cable car system, from track to cars. But the tradition began in 1878 with only a brief interruption from 1982 to 1984, during the overhaul. Today there are three primary routes - the Powell-Hyde, the Powell-Mason and the California Street lines.

I first rode a cable car across the city's brick-paved streets in elementary school, with my family and then when my Girl Scout troop had lunch in Chinatown. Thirty years later, I grabbed an outer bar and hung off the side of another car with a traveling buddy, as another friend took our picture. But I didn't have time to 'ride the rails' during this visit. Something to look forward to, the next time I'm in the city by the bay.