The man who put California wine on the map, famed Napa Valley vintner Robert Mondavi, has passed away at age 94: "A popular and tireless figure in the wine world, Mr. Mondavi was relentless in his drive to make wines that could compete with the finest in the world. His winery, established in 1966, became an iconic presence along Napa Valley's Highway 29 and a symbol not only of California's emergence as a wine powerhouse but of the lifestyle that Mondavi embodied - one that placed wine in context with good food and a culture of hospitality." [Chron]

Which "premier brunch restaurant" in Pacific Heights is currently on the market? The clues with which to work: "This popular and busy breakfast and lunch restaurant is in Pacific Heights (one of the most desirable neighborhoods in the city) and is in a prominent corner location with high visibility and easy access. This restaurant is consistently rated one of the top breakfast/lunch restaurants in the city. This well respected restaurant has a large glass frontage and open airy feeling." 1800 square feet, 78 seats. Go! [RestaurantRealty]

Last week, Bloomberg told us how Thomas Keller transformed Yountville from a run-down hamlet to a Michelin soiree, and this week, The Boston Globe pens the pretty much the exact same article about next door Napa's restaurant scene and its own saviors: "[Napa] is one of those places where you wish you had purchased a craftsman or Victorian house 10 years ago when nobody went there ...Then two of the biggest names in food and wine saved the city. Recognizing that the city of Napa was dying on the vine, the late Julia Child and wine mogul Robert Mondavi raised millions ... Downtown Napa now basks optimistically in a spirit of renovation." Money solves all problems. [BG]

Given the rise of food costs nationwide—not to mention San Francisco's own assorted bag of fees and such—many restaurants are taking up new tricks to assuage the pain. Most of the listed ten tactics aren't particularly revelatory (portion control, raised prices, weaker drinks), but we got a chuckle out of ones bluntly titled Cut Back on Freshness and Beg For Sympathy From Your Customers: "[Customers might] hear desperate justification of the higher prices in a conversation with the owner. They want to make sure you know they're not just being greedy." [WalletPop]

Across the Bay, Nicholas Boer forgives the small faults of Acquacotta, mostly because he loves the concept of the tiny Alameda trattoria that tries to raise the proverbial bar: "When the chef and the owner are one and the same it's a very good sign ... I'm not sure everyone appreciates how much love and commitment it takes to open and run a restaurant like Acquacotta. Before restaurants such as Chez Panisse came along, we'd have to travel to another country to get the same experience. That's why I like to give them my full appreciation." [CCT]

Michael Bauer's pet project continues, and with just about all the biggies sitting in the archives, he has taken to the chains. This week, he's at the Mill Valley branch of Piatti, where you'll never guess what the secret weapon might be: "At the Mill Valley outpost, the secret weapon is the pizza; I was surprised how good it is." We actually enjoy the series, but, yeah, it might be time to put Pizza Fridays out to pasture. [BauerBlog]

Here's hoping that future yogurt purveyor SoGreen had a great reason for postponing its opening from today to next week, because vigilant froyo fans are out in force: "I went down to the Galleria this morning at 8am (to be one of the first 1,000 customers on grand opening day) which coincides with the hottest day of the year. Things were lining up nicely until I got there – sign on the door reads 'Grand Opening May 22nd.' Talk about a missed opportunity – farmers market today and lots of people out enjoying the nice weather." [Eater Inbox, previously]

In a "hefty" deal worth a cool $1.8 billion, CBS has bought CNet, the parent company of Chowhound, among others. 'Hound master Jim Leff, whose basement enterprise has now grown into an asset of a major media company, isn't yet sure what the move means, but is hopeful that it will be a boon, so long as the pesky wannabe food snobs stay away: "What we don't need, however, is a broader slice of diners participating. A real flood of unsavvy diners could dilute the knowledge level." [Chron, Chowhound]

The great new blog The Foggy Monocle has the best write up so far on today's free chicken sandwich situation at McDonald's. It involves an IM conversation, a discussion on spotting good breasts, and the quote "for one day, all of the nation can be united in fried chicken bliss." [The Foggy Monocle via Eater]

Forbes Traveler has a nice little piece on the rise of offal in American restaurants, and of course, Incanto and Chris Cosentino—sorry, "West Coast innards king Chris Cosentino"—are featured prominently: "But perhaps America’s most adventurous nose-to-tail restaurant is San Francisco’s rustic-Italian Incanto. On offer are lamb’s necks, pig trotters and a five-course nose-to-tail tasting menu perhaps including venison kidneys and chocolate-blood panna cotta. For executive chef Chris Cosentino, it’s not about Fear Factor-style extreme eating. 'It’s about viable cuts of meat that we have thrown into the trashcan for years ... When it comes to food, we’re very wasteful.'" [Forbes]

There are few things better than halls of shame, and there are few things more annoying than a bar sans underlying hooks. Hence, the Bar Coat Hook Hall of Shame, where some past inductees (Bourbon & Branch) have since escaped the shame by installing hooks, but whose current members/dishonorees still include Fish & Farm, The Pilsner Inn, The Transfer and Colibri Mexican Bistro, which apparently has 350+ tequilas but not. one. coat hook. [Alcademics]

Mikey B visits the office food mecca of the nation, and though it would have been quite the fun precedent to have MB somehow write up a formal review with stars and everything, he comes back with tales of the wonders of Elysium: molecular gastronomy (olive oil gummy bears, barbecue beads), root beer made from scratch, suckling pigs, GoBasco sauce and even an Olivia Wu sighting. And we, for one, still can't get over the whole "Thunder" phenomenon. [BauerBlog]