Category: Food & Wine
Small Group vs. Private Tours: Culture & Immersion
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The question we hear often: “Do you offer small group tours? We’re just looking for something more intimate than a bus tour.” I understand the appeal. Small group tours promise a middle ground — not quite the cattle-car experience of 40-person coach tours, but not the perceived “expense” of going…
Designing a Perfect Healdsburg Insider Wine Day – Case Study
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At CKcurated, every excursion we design is fully bespoke — tailored to your group, interests, and the memories you want to create. I recently designed a full itinerary for a private Healdsburg day for a group of four friends — let’s call them Emma, Claire, Sophia, and Mia — who…
Rethinking Corporate Retreats: From “Just Another Offsite” to an Experience Your Team Will Remember
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As a 30-year corporate veteran in design & construction and big tech, I’ve attended more retreats and summits than I can count. Some left a lasting impression — experiences that still come up in conversations years later. Others… were forgettable, the kind everyone dismisses by Monday. The difference wasn’t fancy…
Beyond Booking: How CKcurated Designs Personalized Travel Experiences
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Lately, some people ask whether we do “the same thing” as a travel advisor on a certain large booking network that promises “curated” trips. Our social media feed even shows ads inviting us to become one of their “entrepreneurial advisors.” Naturally, we took a closer look: Yes, their business model…
One Year of CKcurated: Launching “California Wine Excursions” for Curious Travelers
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Reflections on a milestone — and the launch of something new One year ago, I officially registered CKcurated as a business. Like many first-time founders, I was both exhilarated and overwhelmed. Building a business, especially one rooted in relationships, creativity, and trust, has felt a bit like building a plane…
Building a Business, Discovering Its Soul — My Journey as an Entrepreneur
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When I set out to build CKcurated, I thought I was simply launching a small business. I had spent 30 years working in the corporate world as an architect. Some of those years were shared with incredible colleagues and clients. Others left me wondering, “What have I done to deserve…
From Architecture to Lifestyle Experience: Reinventing My Authentic Self at 55
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In the latest episode of the Practice Disrupted podcast, I joined Evelyn Lee FAIA, NOMA, to share a deeply personal journey: how I transitioned from a 30-year career in architecture and tech to founding CKcurated, a lifestyle concierge service that blends travel, food, wine, and design into unforgettable, bespoke experiences. This wasn’t…
There’s something really easy and just somehow uncrowded about the Portland airport. Every time I go there, I’m like, “Why is this so easy and sweet?” -Fred in Portlandia
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I am an aviation geek, and I love visiting airports. When I read about the newly renovated Portland International Airport, called PDX by the locals and by the industry, I had to check it out. Two weeks ago, during a business trip from San Francisco to Seattle, I opted for…
It’s That Time of the Year: What’s for Christmas/Hanukkah Dinner?
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What are we serving for Christmas/Hanukkah dinner? Nigella Lawson’s Butternut & Pasta Soup (modified by CKcurated) INGREDIENTS METHOD Gordon Ramsay’s Beef Wellington (modified by CKcurated) INGREDIENTS For the red wine sauce: METHOD Meanwhile, make the red wine sauce: When you are ready to cook the Beef Wellington: Melissa Clark’s Classic Potato…
Pies, Glorious Pies! Filling-full of Fun in an Informative Cooking Class
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November, my birth month, brings pie season, and my sister Selina surprised me with a pie-making class at Central Milling Flour Company in Petaluma, CA. Chef David Groff taught the 5-hour class, and it inspired me to share the experience here. We dove into creating pâte brisée, a foundational dough for…
A Culinary Journey Through Traditions, Icons, Cookbooks and Authentic Recipes
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November marks the start of the holiday season in many countries, a time when people come together to celebrate life — with plenty of food. At CKcurated, we’ll be part of many feasts this season in San Francisco and New York, with much of what we’ll serve coming from my…
Cooking is Sharing, and Sharing is Love and Fun
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Before launching CKcurated, I became a home chef during the pandemic, cooking regularly for neighbors in our COVID bubble to stay sane. I even remodeled my kitchen to support this new-found passion, turning it into a hub for sharing meals with friends. This space of love and community inspired me…
A visit to Nalle Winery during Sonoma’s amazing harvest
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One of the many pleasures of living in San Francisco is its proximity to California’s Wine Country. Driving north, we enjoy the world-renowned Napa and Sonoma wineries. Heading east, there’s Lodi, an emerging player, and to the south, the Central Coast produces my favorite California Pinot Noir. A year ago,…
I Scream for Ice Cream! — My All-time Favorite Thing
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I can’t imagine anyone who doesn’t enjoy ice cream. Even those who have to refrain from eating it still want to enjoy it. And for those who can’t indulge in traditional ice cream, there’s always sorbet and other non-dairy, non-sugary options. My love for ice cream began when I was…
