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Monday, October 19, 2009

Cadillac Crossovers at Santana Row

.....with a cooking demonstration?!? This is a funky marketing idea, having a cooking demonstration to get people to test drive the new Cadillac SUV/Non-SUV. Anyway, check it out:

On Saturday , October 24 and Sunday, October 25 at Santana Row in San Jose, Cadillac and our partners at Bon Appetit and Gourmet magazine are teaming up to let people experience the all-new Cadillac SRX in a more relaxed, personal environment and we'd like to invite you to join us.

The event is open from 10-7 on Saturday and 10-6 on Sunday and includes test drives of the new SRX along with its competition (Lexus RX350, Mercedes GLK and BMW X5) as well as cooking demonstrations from celebrity Chef Emily Luchetti of Farallon and Waterbar. Chef demonstrations will take place at 11:00AM, 1:30PM and 4:00PM.

You (and your readers) can find more information, including images and video, and register in advance (although it is not mandatory) at: https://www.cadillacofcrossovers.com/EventDetailsAdvanced.aspx?eid=302 (warning: site is very slow)

If you are interested, we will have a senior representative from Cadillac on hand to answer your questions.

This will no doubt be a very crowded, pretentious, and showy event, as most Santana Rows events are. Weather permitting, I may just see some of my readers there!

-Tom W Tell

Jasmine Thai, the one next to the liquor store!

Always up for finding and interesting alternatives for Thai food in San Jose, I am never one to judge a restaurant by its location. Take Jasmine Thai at 1710 Berryessa Rd, for example. Yes, it is in a cheesy neighborhood strip mall, they dont have a website, but the flavor and service you get in just so worth it. I have visited and commented about many-a-decent Thai place, and always comparing them to Krung Thai (the best in the world). Jasmine Thai comes in second for several reasons.

When I first visit a Thai resaturant, I tend to order items similar to those I normally get at Krung, to make an even comparison. Some may say that this rules out an establishments feature dish, but, with my analytical background, it is really the only way to really compare food. The food at Jasmine Thai is great, both in freshness and quality. It was a Sunday night, and it was not that busy. Perhaps 3 other couples (locals, no doubt) visited during our time there. From what I could see, there was a cook in the back, and one waitress, and she did a fantastic job attending to our every need.

The only reason it places second to Krung, was the atmosphere, and furnishings. Krung has a lot of cool Thai decor, and comfortable surroundings. Jasmine Thai was in a strip mall, and did have the appearance of a lunchtime favorite (take out booth, thin napkins, easy in/out layout).

The prices were great, and they even held a birthday cake for us (oh, yeah, we were there for a birthday!), and provided paper plates and plastic eating utensils. Overall, it was a great experience, and if even if you are not in the mood for Thai, do yourself a favor and visit JasmineThai!


-Tom W. Tell