Owner JJ Wettstead and Chef Douglas Lund of Max's Bistro & Bar By Sarah Campise Hallier Photos by Patty Schmidt When you grow up in the same town your entire life, years and milestones fade into the background, replaced by memories of who you were with at the places that were important to you. Certain moments, in particular, begin to mark chapters you can look back on fondly. First dates become anniversaries, and, over time, simple nights take on a different meaning. Restaur

Davita and Tom Miller, owners of Bulle in Fresno, California. Written by Sarah Campise Hallier Photography by Patty Schmidt For decades, Fresno has been the punchline. It’s the city mentioned in Airplane! as a place no one wants to land, and comedic fodder in late night monologues about farmland and fog. California’s central valley is often described as a pass-through city, somewhere you drive across on

By Sarah Campise Hallier Photography by Patty Schmidt & Atlantis Paradise Island / Paranza Originally published in Appetito Magazine March 7, 2026 Next week, Atlantis Paradise Island becomes one of the Caribbean’s most vibrant culinary stages. For several days each year, chefs from around the world gather across the sprawling resort for the Nassau Paradise Island Wine & Food Festival , cooking for guests who travel specifically for the chance to experience their food up clo