Ice cream at Mission Hill Creamery from January’s downtown Santa Cruz Dishcrawl
Last month’s Dishcrawl Santa Cruz debut in the downtown district was so much fun, organizers are returning to the same area for a second outing on Feb. 26. Dishcrawl ambassador Wes Katayama says he is excited to bring Dishcrawl back to this area to collaborate with even more downtown restaurants and help bring together the community. Read my recap article of January’s downtown Santa Cruz Dishcrawl outing for more details on how the evening works and what Dishcrawlers got to taste last month.
This promises to be a great time, and you get to try four restaurants for $45 (actually, only $35 with the discount provided to my readers; see code below). Part of the fun is you don’t know what four restaurants you’re visiting until that night. But you get to – at most venues – try a “trio of items” and it’s up to the restaurant to interpret that as they wish (for dessert in January, attendees got one scoop of ice cream in a homemade cone or cup – that was plenty, no three-item-combo necessary!).
Many Dishcrawlers who attended the January event mentioned they tried restaurants that they had never been to before. A few attendees that had in fact been previous customers mentioned that with Dishcrawl they got to experience the restaurants “in a more intimate and fun setting.”
Another Dishcrawl Santa Cruz event coming up is “Neighborfood” on Sunday, March 24. Neighborfood as a concept was launched in January 2013 (Dishcrawl takes place in cities across the country, so there have been Neighborfood events elsewhere). These are described as “afternoon celebrations of food, family, and the community we live in.” As Katayama shares, “A neighborhood is defined by the community within it, so, for one afternoon, we will be inviting our neighbors to live it, love it, and eat in it — because ‘One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well’ (according to Virginia Woolf).”
At the Santa Cruz Neighborfood, “Neighbors” will enjoy 8 different restaurants that add to the neighborhood’s unique identity, all within walking distance. It is a self-guided tour that will take place downtown. Unlike Dishcrawls, people will know the restaurants involved beforehand, and will be served a single sampling of the restaurant’s choice (unlike the trio served on Dishcrawls). Also, Dishcrawl Santa Cruz is partnering with a local non-profit that will receive a portion of proceeds (the beneficiary organization will be announced in the near future). Tickets will go on sale in about a week. Watch the Dishcrawl Santa Cruz site for details and also follow them on Twitter @DishcrawlSC.
For $10 off your ticket to the Feb. 26 Dishcrawl Santa Cruz event, order online and enter the word “santacruzfoodies” after finding and checking the box “I have a promotion code.” See you there! Follow me on Twitter @santacruzfoodie.