This is the first of a series of posts about why I love living in Berkeley. These will be observations and musings, and while some might be very silly, it’s my small way of paying homage to the town I now call home.

Yesterday, I was in Country Cheese Coffee Market where I was buying a bar of my favorite chocolate — Michel Cluizel. I started chatting to the woman behind me in line, and we started talking about chocolate. Turns out she leads chocolate tours in San Francisco. “Cluizel is my favorite too,” she said, and we waxed on about the coffee undertones and creamy finish. I told her I wrote about food and about my book, we exchange cards and I find out she’s Michael Chabon’s assistant. She loves chocolate and literature and I love that I can turn to the person behind me in line and have this kind of conversation.

Then this morning, I get up early to go to the gym to get in a workout before a weekend of bbqs and margheritas. As I’m driving down the hill, I pass Alice Waters in workout gear working up a sweat.

“Halllooo Alice,” I yell silently out the window, now inspired to finally make that kale salad topped with roasted pumpkin seeds and Pecorino I’ve been dreaming of.