If you haven't gone hiking in the Three Rivers area yet, please put it on your 2011 to-do list.

Choose a warm day with lots of breezes, and go with friends who have the same concept of "hiking." (For example, my late-rising group arrived at the trail in early afternoon. And stopping to laugh at funny stories trumped covering a lot of ground.)

My 3G iPhone photos don't do justice to the place. Still, you can see why this was one of my favorite days in the Valley:

Before we get to my photos of tri tip and ribs at Mike's Grill and Smokey's Grill, let's get this bit of news out of the way:

Want more info? Call or go to Becky's by 5:30 p.m. today.

Now onto today's column, which features Mike's Grill and Smokey's Grill. (Check my column for addresses, hours/days of operation and full descriptions of food.)

Mike's is admired by Chris Shackelford and folks on Yelp for its tri-tip sandwich. Here's a photo of it (before I added the sauce):

And here's a look at Mike's baby-back ribs. The shop has a two-bone special for $3.49 plus tax, so folks don't have to choose between tri-tip and ribs:

It's been about two days since I broke the news in the paper about my upcoming departure, and your well wishes are making me emotional.

Although joining my family's Hawaiian coffee business is the best way I can honor my late father, it's hard to leave the Valley. Wednesday's story includes some fond memories of Koda Farms' rice, UC Lindcove's citrus fruit, all the stone fruit, The Double T and fresh figs.

Expect me to celebrate a few more local gems in my remaining stories.

Since you've shared so much with me, I thought I'd give you a glimpse of some of my adventures to come.

Going home means I get hugs from my mom:

Here's my new "office":

The Daily Meal, the all-things-food site headed by Saveur co-founder Colman Andrews, has put out a list of the top influencers in American food.

It's an interesting group. Folks such as Ingrid Newkirk, president and co-founder of PETA (No. 48) and Steve Jobs of Apple (No. 5) made the cut.

Here are a couple of my observations:

The big-city influence is evident in this list, with Sam Sifton, New York Times restaurant critic, at No. 9. Here in the Valley, I'd argue that Michael Pollan (No. 38) is more influential. Remember the fight between Harris Ranch and Pollan?

And I'm not sure how I feel about No. 1. On one hand, it makes sense, but on the other hand, it feels like The Daily Meal's editors couldn't agree.

What do you think? Is there anyone you would add or remove, or rank differently?

[photo of Steve Jobs from The Daily Meal]

If everyone had a Jem, we'd all be more relaxed.

Those of you who know Jem as a folk singer probably are scratching your heads at that one. But I got to know him through massages at Whole Foods Market. When I want some quick pampering, Jem has been my go-to guy for years.

A visit goes something like this: He breaks into a smile and opens his arms for a big hug. Afterwards, he'll step back to scan the expression on my face and note my movement, looking for signs of illness or pain.

Jem: "How are you, my dear?"

Me: "My neck hurts/my back hurts/I'm on the verge of a cold/I have no energy/I just wanted a massage." (Those are the typical answers, anyway.)

Next thing I know, he's whipped up some aromatherapy according to my ailments, and we settle in for a good round of acupressure.

Now, I'm a huge fan of acupuncture, so acupressure is right up my alley. And I love that Jem switches things up according to what I need on any given day.

But our sessions are so much more. When I'm really tired, we'll fall silent, or he'll sing -- granted, a lot softer than in the photo below:

Ah, January. After the mad dash of the holidays, it's hard to get diners in restaurants.

It's cold, it's dreary (especially earlier this week) and just about everyone is lamenting holiday weight gain.

Enter California Restaurant Month, which brings statewide dining deals. It's a perfectly timed promotion -- and a smart idea for restaurants to participate.

You can check out all the deals here. Local promotions are listed under "Northern California." For your convenience, I'm linking them below:

• Madera County deals
• Fresno County deals

You'll notice that the Fresno list of deals isn't complete yet. The Fresno Convention and Visitors Bureau is featuring all of its restaurant members on this page and still is collecting information. Check back through Feb. 7 for more deals. And you can read more about Restaurant Month Fresno (originally called Restaurant Week Fresno) in my column today.

Hey everyone, serious apologies for being very late on this post! The flu kicked me in the butt last week and I finally am getting back on track.

Anyway, my request still stands: Tell us your favorite foods from 2010, please, so we can make a collective list of delicious things to eat in 2011.

My list, described in last week's column, consists of

• Sierra Nut House's tomato bisque


• Masumoto Family Farm's Sun Crest peaches


• and Marian Farms' Curaçao.

Expect to try the first two this summer, when jaune coeurs de pigeon (heirloom yellow pear tomatoes) and Sun Crest peaches will be in season. As for the Curaçao, well, Marian Farms hopes to release it in the next month or so. (The company is waiting for its bottles.)

Now it's your turn. When you think of your favorite foods, they have to meet some pretty high standards. Specifically, ask yourself this question from #reverb10:

• "What did you eat [in 2010] that you will never forget? What went into your mouth and touched your soul?" (From author Elise Marie Collins on Dec. 26, 2010)

[Photo of the Masumoto family's Sun Crest peaches by Darrell Wong, The Fresno Bee]

If you didn't read all of today's 2011 Entertainment Preview, you might have missed this little restaurant nugget: Batter Up has a second restaurant opening in mid-January.

At least one of you already noticed the new sign at Cedar and Nees avenues. Here's the rest of the info I had in the paper:

The second Batter Up is taking over the old Orbit Cafe; it's bigger than the original restaurant at Brawley Avenue and Figarden Drive.


The launch coincides with a menu expansion at both locations. More burgers, omelets and burritos are in the works, as well as chocolate pancakes, says Batter Up co-owner Cristina Elbert.


The new restaurant will be open daily for breakfast and lunch. Details: (559) 438-1221.

(Note: That phone number is for the original Batter Up. The owners tell me (559) 440-1221 is the one for the new Batter Up, but it was still not working as of last week.)

For today's story, I took a look back at 2010 and picked out trends and hot spots in the local food world.

Notable were:

• Closures of longtime restaurants (LaRocca's and Coney Island)


• Deaths of chefs (Stanley Kooyumjian and Richard Wing) and a bakery owner (Janet Saghatelian)


• Lots of cooking contest finalists and winners (Percy Whatley, Rachel Granillo, Chee Her, Klaus Tenbergen and Malia Grant)


• Burger wars


• Dusty Buns, Fresno's first gourmet food truck


• And clusters of restaurant changes at River Park and in the Tower District

This certainly doesn't cover everything that happened in 2010, so I'm curious to know: What about the Valley's food scene stood out for you? Was it the recall of Bravo Farms' cheeses? A controversy about the names of Wassabi's menu items? Or something else?

[One of my photos from the burger wars: Eureka!Burger's Fresno Fig Burger]

Cooks, if you still are looking for some holiday cookie recipes, check out the ones I had in the paper yesterday.

Sue Der Matoian won Santa's Favorite Cookie Competition at River Park this year with a slight adaptation of Martha Stewart's chocolate-malt sandwiches. And Anna Demler was a finalist in Gene Burns' 15th annual Holiday Cookie Exchange with her frosted cookie cakes.

Now that I've given you recipes, here's a call for your recipes from the Fresno State Alumni Association.

To mark the university's centennial anniversary, the association is asking alumni, faculty, staff, administrators, students and their friends/families to contribute recipes to "Bone Appétit," an upcoming cookbook.

Feel free to submit recipes for appetizers, entrées, desserts and side dishes here. The deadline is Dec. 31.

Want a copy? Order it here. Advance orders are $30, or $25 for alumni association members. The book will be available starting April 15, 2011.

[photo of chocolate-malt sandwiches by Eric Zamora, The Fresno Bee]