Grand National Rodeo, Horse & Stock Show
The Fior d’ Italia, as it has for the past 10 years, was a sponsor of the 2007 Grand National Rodeo and Stock Show at the Cow Palace, April 4 to 16. The Fior’s proprietors Bob and Jinx Larive always enjoy the action — bareback riding, steer wrestling, barrel racing, saddle bronc and bull riding, tiedown roping in team roping.
This year Bob presented the “buckles” — the rodeo’s Oscars — to the rodeo event winners on April 14th the final night.
Throughout the week, the show presented terrific entertainment by musicians Gary Allan, Heart, Gretchen Wilson, Montgomery Gentry and the Western Underground; and the athletes themselves: the Professional Bull Riders, rodeo cowboys and cowgirls and California’s stockmen and women.
But rodeo was probably America’s first extreme sport. Participants can sustain serious and life-threatening injuries. The Justin Boot Company, a maker of Western boots, together with several rodeo professional organizations, formed a fund to lend a hand to professional rodeo athletes and their families in event of catastrophic injuries. The restaurant continues to work with the Cow Palace to raise finds for the Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund.
We are planning a huge fundraiser at the restaurant next year to raise even more for the Justin Cowboy Crisis Fund. The Fior d’Italia looks forward to working with Justin Boot and the Cow Palace staff and Board of Directors to make next year’s event even better. In fact, one member of the Board dined at the restaurant a couple of weeks after 2007 event.
“That was the best meal I have ever had,” she said.
Our chef and his crew deserve a buckle for their performance too!
ROBIN WILLIAMS
Actor Robin Williams and a group of his friends and family dropped again in recently. We see a lot of him here at the Fior d’ Italia. Shortly after his arrival almost everyone in the dining room, guests and staff, is laughing helplessly.
On his most recent visit, one of his guests, Renee Stacho, came to grief when she was about to pour a a dab of olive oil on her bread plate. As she pulled out the cork from the carafe, it escaped and with a life of it’s own careening across the dining room and bouncing off another guest’s table. The little stopper’s shenanigans cracked the room up. Renee was a good sport and took the whole event in stride. Well, maybe she was a little embarrassed, but don’t try to tell us we are stuffy here at the Fior d’ Italia. We really appreciate flying corks!
“GUEST CHEF” BOB K.
Our staff gets tired of eating our really good Italian cuisine all the time. Can you believe it? Therefore we often treat them to In-N-Out burgers (the double-double specimens, of course) and other mouth-watering treats. On Sunday May 27th a friend and neighbor, Bob K. volunteered to cook the staff a batch of his famous chili and beans. With the help of Juan and Francisco he made a meal everyone praised. One of the things we understand very well is how to keep the staff happy and well fed! If they are happy, our guests are happy.
HILLBILLIES “DINE” AT THE FIOR D’ ITALIA
Friends and neighbors of the Larives from Nevada County and Rio Vista joined Jinx Larive for brunch at the Fior d’ Italia recently. The Nevada County folks, Phil and Karen, needed some “learn’n on city ways,” said Jinx.
“They are great neighbors and friends but not real sure they like city life. They loved the Fior and we did get them to eat with a knife and fork not their fingers,” she added, kidding.
Meanwhile, one of the party, Derek worked with us at the restaurant in the past and now helps run his family’s Chevrolet dealership (www.driveable.com) in Rio Vista. Derek also does some catering on the side.
SURPRISE!
Although Ed Bohnert’s 60th birthday wasn’t until the end of May, his wife Linda started much earlier preparing a surprise birthday party for him at the new Fior d’Italia. “I went to the Fior in January and set a date with Bob (Larive),” Linda remembered. She chose May 4 because that was the birthday of their son Michael. That way, Ed would not suspect any festivities for himself by going to the restaurant that night.
On that night when the Bohnert family entered the Tuscan Room and 65 of their friends and relatives were there to greet him — even his 93 year old mother — he was quite unprepared.
“He had no idea,” Linda said.
Linda and Ed are old-time San Franciscans, though they now live in Burlingame. Ed grew up in the Sunnyside District and went to Riordan High School.
Going to the Fior d’Italia has been a family tradition for Linda. “My family was used to going to the old Fior (on Washington Square). My dad had his 75th birthday in the Tony Bennett Room and my daughter’s wedding rehearsal dinner was there also,” Linda recalled.
Speaking again of Ed’s night on May 4, “He loved that party,” his wife reported. “We had so many compliments on the restaurant, the service, the food, everything. I couldn’t have asked for more.”
