We are pleased to hear the good news from Lisa Grotts that the “Narsai’s Seventh Annual Taste of the Mediterranean” event which recently took place raised over $200,000!  Proceeds will go to displaced Assyrians in Iraq.

Narsai David, host & president of The Assyrian Aid Society, San Francisco with RNM chef Justine Miner

The event was hosted by Narsai David, KCBS Food & Wine Editor and President of The Assyrian Aid Society of America, a charitable organization dedicated to helping Assyrians in need.

Mona, Phil and Pilo Malik

Kirsten, Helen and Joe Tuman

KCBS news team of Dory Culver, Mike Sugarman, Janice Wright and Dory’s husband Walter

The Miner Family: Ed, Gloria, Dave, Emily & Ed Jr.

Lisa Schreiber and Aabi Shapoorian, with Lisa Mirza Grotts

San Jose Magazine Publisher Gilbert Sangari with wife Caroline

Caroline & Joseph Schmidt with Stephanie & Ashur Yoseph

Guests included Venus and Narsai David; board member Mona Malik with husband Phil; Lisa Mirza Grottsand John Grotts; Dave and Emily Miner of Miner Family Wines; KPIX political commentator Joe Tuman and wife Kirsten; KCBS reporter Mike Sugarman with radio personality Janice Wright; Joseph Schmidt with wife Carolyn; San Jose Magazine Publisher Gilbert Sangari and Caroline Sangari; Assyrian Aid founder Lincoln Malik and wife Emma Malik.

Our thanks to Eliot Khuner for photos from the fun event.

Guest chefs included Assyrian Justine Miner of RNM; Gerald Hirigoyen of Piperade and Faz Poursohi of Faz and MacArthur Park.

• Photos: Eliot Khuner [khuner.com]
• Charity Information: Assyrian Aid Society of America [assyrianaid.org]

We just want to remind you that this year’s Dining By Design event, presented by DIFFA: Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS, is going to take place on November 19th and November 20th, 2008. The designs are really quite magical — as you can tell by the table that Robert Fountain designed for last year’s event (shown above.)

Tickets are still available for the “Table Hop & Taste” event on the 19th, and possibly for the “Gala Dinner” on the 20th.

We hope to see you there!

(Our thanks to Claudia Juestel of Adeeni Design Group for the reminder!)

• Photo: Courtesy of Tara Arrowood
• Further Information: Dining by Design, San Francisco [www.diffasf.org]

Entrance to the Hotel Kabuki

SFluxe rarely writes about restaurants, unless some fabulous party was held at one, in which case we may mention the name of it, though no doubt the food was less memorable than the fashions.  Even more forgettable — the reviews one occasionally reads about such places.  Restaurant reviewers seem to write only for the most informed dining enthusiasts and food critics.  That leaves us out.

But when we read Laura Albert’s latest essay, a review of the Hotel Kabuki and O Izakaya Lounge, we had to share it with you.  The novelist’s brief visit to Japantown becomes a meditation on the origin of the species and the end of all humanity.  We absolutely guarantee that you have never read a restaurant or hotel review like this before.

• Read: “Bathing in Primordial Soup” [psychopedia.com]

As many of you know, SFLuxe.com’s Damion Matthews is a supporter of the Bay Area Allergy Advisory Board (allergysf.com), which was founded by local parent Mireille Schwartz, who is featured ocassionally on this site.

We have seen how difficult it can be for parents during the holidays who have children with food allergies (over 3 million nationally, according to Centers for Disease Control), which is why we were delighted that the San Francisco Chronicle’s Karola Saekel wrote an article this week featuring Mireille’s special list of candies that are safe for folks with some of the most common food allergies.

Even though your child may not have an allergy, it’s a good list to keep around for when they have playmates around, or when you have trick-or-treaters knocking at your door this Halloween.

• Photo: A child with food allergies safely enjoying the holiday [Craig Lee / sfgate.com]
• Article: “A Nut-Free Halloween?” [sfgate.com]
• List: “Peanut and Tree-Nut Free Candy” [allergysf.com]
• List: “Gluten Free Sweets” [allergysf.com]

We’ve been enjoying Landrin Chocolates at parties throughout San Francisco lately — at a penthouse fundraiser for Joe Alioto, Jr., a luncheon for supporters of Raphael House, at a fashion show for the Arthritis Foundation, and at the Fleet Week party at Pier 39 — and it’s now to the point where we actively seek them out because we love them so!

Well what a small world. It turns out that one of the Russian chocolatiers top executives in the United States, Stan Kisselev, is the son of one of our dearest friends in San Francisco, Ludmila Eggleton! We’re hoping it pays to have friends who are well connected.  And by “well-connected” we don’t mean in politics, business or Hollywood — we mean chocolate!

For those of you who don’t have a friend (we love you Ludmila!) who has a son with a warehouse full of delicious chocolates (the Waferatto Gold, with a hazelnut filling is our favorite), you can now locate Landrins in the flower department of your local Safeway. With their beautiful, delicate packaging, they make easy but impressive gifts.

Our only complaint — non of their chocolates are nut-allergy-safe (that is to say, they contain nuts, and/or are produced in factories where other products containing nuts are made.) Right now they just have a few products, so we hope that as the company expands in the US they will offer treats for those who have food allergies! In the meantime the Bay Allergy Advisory Board has created a list of safe sweets for allergy sufferers.

• Further Information: Landrin USA [landrinusa.com]
• Further Information: Bay Area Allergy Advisory Board [allergysf.com]

Model, historian, collector, editor, author — Tatiana Sorokko is a woman of many talents and job titles, most of them having to do with fashion.  So when we heard she was to appear on Martha Stewart this week, we thought it must have something to do with clothes.

Oh boy, were we wrong!

She’s going to be there not for fashion, but for pickles!

It seems that Tatiana is known among her friends for her homemade Dill Pickles, using a recipe handed down to her from her Russian grandmother.

“I’m so happy to be able to share the recipe with everyone - even if it is several million people!” she said in an email to all her pickle fans.

The show is going to be broadcast live from New York this Thursday, October 16th (check your TV schedule for channel and time information.)

For those who always look forward to seeing what Tatiana is wearing, don’t worry — she’s not turning completely domestic on us. The TV appearance promises to be a major fashion moment: not only will Tatiana and Martha both wear Ralph Rucci, but the designer himself will be in the studio audience!

The Vlasic stork was never this chic.

Photo: Ralph Rucci and Tatiana Sorokko at Neiman Marcus, San Francisco, in April. By Drew Altizer [drewaltizer.com]

Joel Goodrich (right) with Maria Ehmer, chatting with Manolo Blahnik at Neiman Marcus this week.

Today we are pleased to see that Miss Olive, of Olive and Friends, has published Joel Goodrich’s unique recipe for his daily morning shake.  One of San Francisco’s leading realtors (TRI Coldwell Banker), and our favorite man about town, he is known for his unflagging energy and optimism. We’re not saying he owes it all to his magic SuperShake… but if this drink is responsible for a tenth of his energy and health, it’s something you will definitely want to add to your diet.

Here is the recipe, via Olive and Friends:

“In a blender, mix the following:

½ cup of unsweetened organic soymilk - EdenSoy has a great ratio of protein/fat/carbs
½ cup of organic squeezed orange juice
½ cup of frozen blueberries
1 scoop of Green Vibrance powder*(available at Whole Foods & Real Foods)
1 scoop of Whey protein
½ teaspoon of cinnamon
½ teaspoon of ginger
pinch of cloves
1 heaping teaspoon of almond** butter
1 teaspoon psyllium
1 teaspoon organic flaxseed
1/4 lemon, including the peel
2000mg of D-Ribose powder***
1 banana

Then add another ½ cup of blueberries and blend again

*Check it out at www.vibranthealth.us, it’s amazing stuff
** I have read that almonds are the only nut that is not acid-forming upon digestion
*** optional, but very helpful if you work out a lot”

Photo: Drew Altizer [drewaltizer.com]

Tommy Hilfiger was accompanied in San Francisco last week by Dee Ocleppo, showing that they are still very much together, despite a recent change in marriage plans (the couple had made it into the gossip columns a few weeks ago after calling off their August wedding in Mustique. While one internet gossip page says Tommy has reunited with his ex-wife, Susie, we tend to think its mistaken.)

Tommy Hilfiger and Dee Ocleppo

They were in San Francisco for the big Macy’s extravaganza, Passport.  And as you can see in Drew Altizer’s photos, they appeared to be loving each others company at the private dinner that was thrown for them at Spruce on the 16th. I mean, his tie matches her dress! In fashion language, that totally means love.

Vogue fashion editor Lawren Howell with Tommy and Dee

Some of our favorite tastemakers in the City were at the dinner, including Max Boyer, Juliet de Baubigny, Katya Sorokko, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, Allison Speer, Sloan Barnett, among others.  As usual, our beloved Spruce is the destination restaurant for any A-list visitors to San Francisco.

Juliet de Baubigny, Katya Sorokko

May Boyer and David Glynn

Roger Barnett, Sloan Barnett, Tommy Hilfiger

Jennifer Siebel Newsom and Trevor Traina

Allison Speer and Juliet de Baubigny

Photos: Drew Altizer [drewaltizer.com]

Elizabeth Thieriot, Robert Eves, H.R.H. Crown Princess Katherine, H.R.H. Crown Prince Alexander and friends.

We recently attended a delightful luncheon at Elizabeth Thieriot’s Tiburon home which was held in support of the Lifeline Humanitarian Organization.  Founded by Crown Princess Katherine in 1993, Lifeline provides food and medical care to refugee camps and orphanages throughout the former Yugoslavia.

H.R.H. Crown Princess Katherine, Elizabeth Thieriot

Prince Philip, Prince Alexander, H.R.H. Crown Princess Katherine, H.R.H. Crown Prince Alexander, Prince Philip

The Royal Family of Serbia was in the Bay Area to attend a wedding, and stayed for a few days to attend the Opera and visit friends.  Locally, their Royal Highnesses are longtime friends of Denise Hale, who wasn’t at the luncheon but has been a generous supporter of the needs of people in Serbia (she once donated an ambulance to a Belgrade hospital, in memory of her grandparents, whom she grew up with in Serbia.)

Their Royal Hignesses Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine spoke eloquently of the struggles that the poor and the displaced are still dealing with in Serbia.

Father Judas Gordich of St. John the Baptist Serbian Orthodox Church

Lunch was served poolside. The beautiful Tiburon home has gorgeous panoramic views of the Bay and the San Francisco skyline.

Elizabeth Thieriot

Josh Horowitz Thieriot with his sister, Ashley Horowitz Thieriot (visiting from New Mexico)

Olivia Decker, Martin Kobus

Christina de Limur, James Krohn, Silvia Forsmann

Mireille Schwartz and her daughter, with Damion Matthews

Claudia Ross with her boys

Stella Edralin and Dr. Michael Echavez

Erishka Fairchild-Harrington

Prince Alexander, Prince Philip

Christina de Limur, Elaine Mellis

• Further Information: Lifelineaid.info
• Photos: Drew Altizer

Last year we overlooked DIFFA’S Dining by Design, but we will surely not make that mistake this year.  Tickets are not yet available, however it’s good to mark it off on your November calendar (the 19th and 20th) now so that you don’t miss it.

The event is a real treat for people who entertain and are always looking for new ideas to make the experience beautiful and memorable.

Claudia Juestel, who has designed three tables for the event since it began to take place in San Francisco in 2002, points out that this is the first year it’s sponsored under the umbrella of Conde Nast (last year it was underwritten by “Elle Decor.”)

Last year, some of our favorite local designers like Ken Fulk and Lizette Bruckstein designed tables — we don’t know yet know who will participate this year, but no doubt they’ll be outstanding!

Claudia tells us that “there are about fifty designers creating some of the most unique and creative stage sets where guests then will be able to have dinner after tables have been viewed during the cocktail party.”

Sounds like a great time!

For preliminary information, visit the DBD website here.