Pomona Bistro and Wine Bar is a lovely restaurant. It is a wonderful part of the Sarasota restaurant scene. While it sounds like a casual bistro, that is in name only. It is an upscale restaurant with great service from the moment you walk in.
It is located in the Rosemary District and so it is a little off the beaten path unless you have had breakfast, lunch or dinner at the Rosemary. Once you find it, you will wonder why you haven’t gone there before. The restaurant has both inside and outside service.
We were seated in one of the smaller rooms that immediately puts you at ease with calming colors and antique pieces that were placed between some of the tables.
One of the partners took us to our table and explained some of their philosophy about the restaurant. The wine list is very good although we wished the wines by the glass selection was a bit better. We had cocktails that are hand crafted and delicious.
Everything on the menu looked so good we wished we could eat more. They have a charcuterie platter that looked delicious and best of all, they have a wonderful cheese plate.
Mike had the French onion soup. It was simply sublime. The soup, which I typically think as the vehicle for the cheese, was amazing. It was excellent and probably as good as any I have had in Quebec.
I had the bistro salad with beets, goat cheese, orange and orange pomegranate dressing. It was light and delicious.
For our main dish, I had their duck breast with beets. Mike had their seafood pasta and it, too, was delicious.
The dessert was the best. We had their fresh berry Napoleon. It was the best dessert in Sarasota. Many years ago, we lived in Connecticut and there was a French bistro called Bec Fin in Old Greenwich. It closed many, many years ago, but they also made an incredible fresh berry Napoleon dessert and we have been searching for it ever since.
We found it here and we would go back there even if nothing else was good because this is so amazing. Unfortunately, because of it, we couldn’t manage the cheese course so we just have to go back.
The service was excellent from start to finish. We really enjoyed Pomona Bistro and Wine Bar and can’t wait to go back.
Fast forward another 10 years and my foot pronated so I was basically walking on my ankle so it was a very difficult situation. I knew I would have to have foot surgery again and dreaded it. The good news was that I found another great surgeon who performs these type of things regularly. He said I didn’t have to do it immediately but soon. I chose to wait until the summer since it is too hot in Florida to do much outside. I hoped that by fall, I would be able to get around and enjoy life again.
This time it was a two-part surgery. The first one fused the bones behind my foot; the second fused the metatarsals to the joint. In total, my foot is now straight and has an arch (sort of). For the first month, I had a splint that was so padded that I couldn’t fit any clothes over it except for golf skirts.
It was impossible to get clothes over the splint so I had to wear golf skirts.
This time I was prepared. I knew what we had to do. This time, the house is on one floor. I bought a knee scooter so I wouldn’t need crutches.
I was able to scoot around the house. Eventually, I was pretty fast. Good thing there were hand brakes
We had a walk-in shower so we didn’t have to get over the tub (yahoo) and Mike bought a toilet seat with arms so I could get up easily. Finally, I didn’t have to work so I could concentrate on me. While things weren’t easy, it was so much better.
Two trash bags and large elastic bands later, I was ready to take a shower
July 12, 2016 was the first surgery. The worst part about it was the nerve block. That really hurt. I don’t remember the rest of the surgery except I had a rather large splint on my foot. Mike had to pinch my toes because I had no feeling in them for three days. July 26, 2016 was the second surgery. This time I tried to beg off having the nerve block but the surgeons convinced me it would be better for me to have it. This time it wore off in one day.
I went out for the first time on July 31st (5 days’ post second surgery) for lunch at the Longboat Key Club with Mike, my aunt and uncle. It felt good to get out of the house for a couple of hours. The knee scooter worked out well but sitting in the car was a challenge. The next day, we went out to lunch for our 29th anniversary. It was a lovely lunch at Jack Dusty in the Ritz Carlton. It is always fun to eat there. At that point, I wasn’t ready to go out for dinner so lunch was wonderful. I have to add that their floors are marble so it is fun to cruise on the knee scooter.
August 19th (5 weeks’ post-surgery) was a momentous day. My splint was changed out for a cast. It was supposed to be a walking cast but I really couldn’t walk on it even with a funky rubber-like sole that was added to the bottom of the cast with a couple of Velcro pieces. It just didn’t work. I don’t think it can work for anyone so I called the doctor and they changed it to a walking boot. That took some time to figure out how to really walk with it. Actually, it took a couple of weeks so the knee scooter was still part of the action for a while.
Started physical therapy on August 24th (6 weeks’ post-surgery). I have to say I went to a wonderful physical therapy place called Fyzical. Their methods were excellent and I know it really helped. They had a treadmill that used air pressure to modulate a percentage of your weight so you could “walk” at 50 or 60 or some other percentage of your real weight. The only thing that was odd was being zipped into the device. It felt like Captain Pike of Star Trek fame. They also have an underwater treadmill and that is really fun. They adjust the water pressure to make it harder to walk.
This isn’t me but it is really amazing because you can walk at 50, 60, 70% of your body weight
On September 1st, I went out without the scooter. Freedom at last! It was difficult but I was so incredibly happy. Walked to labor day party at Tiki bar in walking boot. No scooter. It was the most walking I did since surgery. Yahoo!
Seven weeks’ post-surgery, I walked with a brace and sneakers. Okay, I had to buy $170 New Balance sneakers because they had very wide ones to accommodate the brace that I had to wear. I clunk, clunked around but could walk without too much limping.
One of the things I found out as I was starting to walk without the knee scooter and any other braces was that my left foot forgot to walk. I had to stand up and wait a couple of seconds to get it to start walking. I was astounded that my foot (who I now was referring to as Frank) was just not really part of me yet. I started thinking I was only off my foot for a relatively short time but what happens to people in worse shape than I? This situation lasted a couple of months but then started to go away. By week nine, I walked unassisted (no brace) from the bed to the bathroom. Another milestone was accomplished. I also was able to walk into the bedroom closet, put on my sneakers and take Mac for a bike ride (he ran). My life was definitely on the way back to normalcy.
These sneakers were too big but had go to over a splint but I could walk again!
I also started to go back to my real life and started water exercise. By week ten, I started riding my recumbent trike. The first ride was 5 miles. The following week was 10 miles and then 15. I was so incredibly happy to take my life back.
Six months’ post-surgery, my life is so much better. I had the right surgeon and he did the right thing for me. I am walking with the dog and best of all, with Mike. My life is better than it has been in years. I don’t have to count the number of steps it would take to go shopping. I can go to a mall and not worry about going to only one store and then back to the car! Life is great!
How did foot injury and subsequent surgeries make me a recumbent trike enthusiast?
I love riding with our dog Mac. He loves to run and we have a great time together. Mike has Mac’s trailer in back of us.
Honestly, it was all my fault. I did it to myself simply because I want to be fashionable down to my feet. I have always been height challenged so I wore the highest high heels I could find. I wore them for so many years, I swore I would never wear flats unless they were sandals. Well, that was the cause of lots of pain and two surgeries to fix an old issue that didn’t seem so bad at the time it occurred.
By now, most people who have read our blog know we love our recumbent trikes. How did this really happen for me? I don’t consider myself a cyclist. In fact, until my recumbent trike, I probably never rode more than 10 miles on a single ride. Now, 10 miles is just a warm up. We have so many stories about our rides on our blog. It is gratifying that I can and do enjoy these wonderful times together but I would still like to take a walk with Mike and Mac.
About 20 years ago, Mike and I were walking in Charleston. As usual, I was wearing the best walking shoes (platform heels) for our stroll in the cobblestones. Well, one of the holes in the cobblestone reached out and grabbed my shoe. My shoe was fine but my foot wasn’t. I broke it along the metatarsals.
Probably not a good idea to wear these shoes when walking in Charleston on cobblestone streets
For information, the metatarsals are located from the arch to the other side of the foot. At the time, I went to the orthopedic doctor and they taped it and said nothing more needs to be done. From that point on, I was never able to walk for a distance again without some pain.
For the last couple of years, I faced a repeat foot surgery. You might ask why would I have to go through a repeat surgery. I certainly did. Going through it one time was difficult. Going through it again was simply terrifying. Fast forward 10 years later, we moved to California and I was exercising with my trainer. I was pressing a significant amount of weight with my legs and feet. Something went terribly wrong and was very painful. The arch shredded and the spring ligament under the arch was torn.
First foot surgery. I had matching sports clothes
I found a great orthopedic surgeon who immediately said I had to have surgery. A couple of months later, I had the surgery. It basically rebuilt my foot. He transplanted the tendon from under my toes to the arch, repaired the spring ligament, and put pins on the left side of the foot. It was a painful experience that took some time to recover. It never really recovered as well as I thought it should have done. I had problems standing and walking any distances so my hope for jogging was gone. At that time, I found I loved to bike because that was how I could spend time with Mike (and it is a sport he loves).
Our home wasn’t conducive to recovery. Our bedroom was upstairs so I spent lots of time going up the stairs on my butt. To take a shower required Mike to put on two garbage bags and secure them with big rubber bands. Then he had to help me climb over the tub to get into the shower and I couldn’t put weight on my foot. That was a real challenge.
I was so concerned about work (I thought they couldn’t survive without me) that I went back to work in one week. That alone was a big mistake. My boss didn’t care that I was in pain (and I didn’t expect her too) but she was more upset that I wore very nice exercise pants and jackets. I did my best but I couldn’t get clothes over the cast and splint.
I know I often mention how much we love going to small boutique wineries where we have the opportunity to speak with the owner/winemaker. It is always a joy to listen to their stories because how they got into making wine is really a labor of love.
Paso Robles is a special place because it is probably what Napa was before it became so commercial. Over the years we visited the area, it was clear many people were finding their way to this wonderful place and enjoying the wines and olive oils that are produced there.
As we continued our exploration of the California wine regions, we drove up toward San Luis Obispo. While not as well known as the Santa Barbara wines, it is worth taking the time to visit San Luis Obispo. There are lots of good restaurants and wineries to enjoy and if you want to go to the beach, Pismo Beach is truly a beachy community that is a throw back in time.
When driving up 101 past Santa Maria, the first place we went to was Laetitia Vineyard.
It is in Arroyo Grande, that is the southern most part of San Luis Obispo. Laetitia grows a number of varietals but they are best known for their Pinot Noir. Their wine is always good and are available at a good price point as well. We belonged to their wine club for a number of years but stopped before we moved to Florida. They have a number of single vineyard Pinots that are just wonderful, full bodied wines but they aren’t usually available outside the winery. Their Laetitia Estate Pinot Noir is readily available and is a good wine to keep around the house for any occasion. They also have a good chardonnay and other wines including a sparkling one. Take the time to visit. It is a beautiful spot to stop.
Talley Vineyards is also a good choice and is located in Arroyo Grande as well. We visited Talley a number of times. It is a beautiful winery with lovely views.
We have also been to Claiborne and Churchill, as well as Baileyana, Chamisal, and Windemere.
San Luis Obispo has a lot to offer visitors. It is known throughout California for being the home of California Polytechnic Institute. It is an amazing university because of all of their offerings including a architecture school and their wonderful school of Agriculture and Natural Resources where the students make cheese and all kinds of foods that are available for sale. They have a cheese making class that is open to the everyday public that I thought about taking but, unfortunately, didn’t get to do it while we lived in California.
The town center has a wonderful downtown with lots of restaurants. It is definitely worth the time to stop and visit if you are in the area. We don’t really know too many hotels in the area but there are two I thought I would talk about.
The first one is the Madonna Inn. It is truly a funny, fantastical, original that only exists in San Luis Obispo.
It is right on the 101 and is worth a stop if not a place to stay for the night.
Dining room at Madonna Inn (Picture courtesy of J. Chalew for her 50th birthday)
Each room is different and each is an individual. It is kitschy and just plain retro funny. Want to say in a caveman room? How about Flowers and Hearts or a western room complete with a wagon bed? Oh, and what about a toilet sculpture for a fountain? Think about every idea you ever had for a room and give them a call. They probably have it.
The second hotel is The Apple Farm. It is an institution in SLO.
The rooms were pretty funky. They are decorated a la poster beds and a lot of chintz.
There may even be an old fashion rotary phones with (oh horror) circular dials and a dial tone. I guess the kids today would know what to do with them. They don’t have to because it is a stop on the tour buses with a lot of elderly people going to SLO. Breakfasts are good and old fashioned and they have wonderful baked goods to purchase.
Once you have seen enough of SLO (the town), you can cruise over to Pismo Beach. It is also a throwback in time. Lots of motels and funky restaurants. It is a fun place and we always got a kick out of going there but now we are headed to one of our favorite places: Paso Robles.
We don’t drive up to Tampa for dinner very often so since we had to be there for a concert, we took the time to look for one of their great restaurants. The good news is we found Mark Murphy’s new restaurant Grey Salt. It is located inside the Seminole’s Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Tampa.
It has been a while since I have thought about how much or how long sexual harassment has gone on in the workforce. The reason is simple. I haven’t had to work through harassment issues in a long time. It happens to most women during their career, even if they don’t realize it. So the question remains, did I imagine getting harassed? Is there a glass ceiling and is harassment part of the construct that maintains that glass ceiling? You bet there is and it does!
Recently, we went to a wine tasting in our neighborhood. The title of the wine tasting was barbecue wines from the new world. We were assigned a wine we have never heard of nor tasted ever before. Since we enjoy wines and know a little bit (and I mean a little bit about wine), we thought we would give it a try and see what we could match with it.
As we continue the tour of our favorite Santa Barbara Pinot Noir growers, I thought I would take a minute to talk about the times we have ridden our bikes in the area. It is simply a beautiful place to ride and explore because the little towns are welcoming and so are most wineries.
