UPDATE:  Here is the second installment from The Times with more hints for a restaurant.  Note that the blogger is opening a restaurant.  Buzz believes there are numerous positive tips for all involved in the restaurant arena–servers, management, and even customers.

So San Diego’s diners, how well do our restaurants hold up to the blogger’s thoughts?  And perhaps San Diego’s restaurateurs might create their own list for customers!   Consider also, that the first installment topped the most e-mailed list for days at the paper which would make one wonder if they care more about food on the east coast than we do in “Sand” City as a commenter noted below.  Chime in here, you all can’t be out surfing!

Just read a terrific little piece in The New York Times about what restaurants should and shouldn’t do. It’s a list that ought to resonate with diners as well as management and servers in San Diego–a town that wants the food savvy world to take note of their up and coming chefs.  But even good chefs can’t help a restaurant if the management doesn’t understand why most diners want to experience a meal with well-trained servers in a pleasant, congenial atmosphere be it a hole- in- the- wall or fine dining establishment.

As Buzz noted many times, good service isn’t about a server telling me his or her name (you aren’t going to be my new BFF).  Nor is it proper for servers to clear a table, when, as happened to me while eating with three friends, all that was left on the table was my unfinished plate (even the glasses disappeared).  After that who would want to finish a perfectly good pasta dish? And, yes, I mentioned it to the owner who knows better.

When it comes to service, San Diego’s pervasive “mañana”- “let’s go surfing” attitude could be one reason Frank Bruni (former restaurant critic of The Times) commented, during a recent appearance here, that San Diego isn’t known as a food town.

So what do you think?  Let’s hear from you.

It appears that some San Diego restaurateurs think of Restaurant Week as an easy way to fill seats without having to give good service or present a menu that showcases the regular menu.  And many customers are grumbling about the added 20 percent “service charge” or tip, especially at the $40 dinners.  Diners beware that a $40 dinner does not include tax and tip or beverages, so, at the bare minimum, your tab will be roughly $50 before you’ve sipped even a soda. With that tab, you might want to consider dining off the regular menu, if that is available.

Restaurants that put that 20 percent tip on the bill with service that doesn’t match, do themselves a huge disservice to diners. Why?  Because many people use this week as a time to try a new place, but if they feel they’ve been ripped off because of so-so service or an unispired menu, they won’t return, ever.

Let’s hear from you about your experiences during this week and what do you think of the three-tiered pricing?  New York, (where this idea began in the 1990’s) now has more than 250 restaurants at a fixed $35 dinner, plus tax and tip.  Would this be a better idea for San Diego’s Restaurant Week?

Recently, Buzz returned from three days in Napa attending Taste3, a conference at Copia that melds food, wine and art in deliciously unusual ways. Imagine a tour of three local artists studios, including glass designer Gordon Huether, painter Gail Chase-Bien and ceramic sculptor Renata Allen led by the legendary Margrit Mondavi that included lunch at Yountville’s Redd. Everything–and everyone, including the 12 lucky participants– from the art to the food made a terrific segue to the next two days.

This gathering was the third year of Taste3. Started by the bright and ingenious minds behind TED including the creative comedian Tom Rielly, this conference brings together cutting edge thinking presented by experts in their respective fields. Taste 3 tempts, teases and teaches…and is worth every minute of the experience.

In two jam-packed days, 32 speakers, four to a session, each talking about 18 minutes, covered such topics as “Seeds”, “Urban” and “Source”. In”Action/Reaction” I learned about climate change and its impact on viticulture and wine production from Greg Jones, who teaches geography Southern Oregon University. Earlier in “Source” Ben Roche, Moto’s pastry chef, thrilled the audience as he showed how he designs “technically innovative” desserts that use nitrogen gas, helium and more to create “explosive” and delicious confections. Darra Goldstein in “Worldview” spoke of her trip to Israel and the West Bank and how food, including falafel, can be used as a bridge to quell Arab and Israeli conflict. Also in that session, Bruce Gutlove explained how he directs a Japanese winery (worked by developmentally disabled to produce wine served at the recent G-8 Summit).

Breaks featured chocolates from Tcho and Scharffen Berger, Equator Estate Coffees & Teas and even shoes from Tom’s. Winery dinners and a lovely party and concert at Mondavi winery finished out the symposium’s evenings.