The Picnic Basket: New Santa Cruz restaurant from owners of Penny Ice Creamery

Posted on August 12, 2011 by admin

Earlier this summer, the folks behind organic Santa Cruz ice cream shop The Penny Ice Creamery opened The Picnic Basket, a restaurant that serves savory food from local providers as well as the infamous Penny ice cream that has countless fans.

As owners Kendra Baker and Zach Davis have promised, The Picnic Basket offers a seasonal menu from “local farmers, foragers, and artisans.” Menu items include breakfast selections such as egg frittata pressed sandwich ($8), Santa Cruz-based Companion Bakers’ scones ($2.50) or Companion toast served with local Plumline jam ($3).

Lunch/dinner selections at The Picnic Basket include the El Salchichero hot dog with Farmhouse Culture sauerkraut ($6), which I can personally recommend, Ricotta and beet panini with lemon, toasted walnut spread and greens ($7.50), and Rib King pulled pork sandwich with roasted tomatillos and house slaw ($10). There are a variety of sandwiches and salads and ingredients change depending on local and seasonal availability; for example, the ricotta and beet panini has appeared as the ricotta and asparagus panini. I recently enjoyed the Picnic Salad ($7.50) with Fogline Farms lemon roasted chicken, very thinly sliced summer squash, shaved Parmesan cheese, toasted croutons, and mixed greens. The flavor and texture combinations worked perfectly in this refreshing dish. Read more on Santa Cruz’s El Salchichero.

Side dishes include corn on the cob ($2) and spiced nuts ($3), and beverages include sparkling fruit sodas made on-site ($3), Verve coffee ($2.75), and – coming soon – a variety of local beer plus wine from Birichino (co-founder John Locke is the wine director at Soif). Desserts include ice cream, sorbet, popsicles, shakes, and ice cream sandwiches. Don’t miss ice cream happy hour: double scoop for the price of a single on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4-6pm (also good at original Penny Ice Creamery on Cedar Street).

If you want more background on the original Penny Ice Creamery — including its owners who just a year after opening Penny now run two popular Santa Cruz spots — read this article (since that article was published, the hours have changed: Penny is now open 7 days a week).

If you’re on Twitter, follow me @santacruzfoodie.

Picnic Basket Hours & Info

Hours: Daily 7am-midnight

125 Beach Street, Santa Cruz 95060

(831) 427-9946

www.facebook.com/thepicnicbasketsc

Posted in Restaurants | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Picnic Basket: New Santa Cruz restaurant from owners of Penny Ice Creamery

San Francisco Lamb Jam recap: winners plus lamb taco tips

Posted on August 3, 2011 by admin

Braised lamb shoulder, chickpea puree, fava beans, chimichurri, herb salad from Wood Tavern Restaurant

The 2nd Annual San Francisco Lamb Jam was held Sunday, July 17, and if you are a lamb fan and didn’t make it this year, make sure to put it on your to-do list for 2012!

The fun event featured continuously flowing wine from Paso Robles wineries and a feast of lamb dishes from more than a dozen top Bay Area restaurants (read my event preview). The Lamb Jam provided me an opportunity to try food from some great chefs; I can’t wait to visit a few places I just discovered including Oakland’s Wood Tavern Restaurant.

More than a dozen chefs competed for top props in six categories: People’s Choice (voted on by all attendees), Best In Show, Best Loin Dish, Best Shoulder, Best Shank, and Best Loin (the last five were scored by a panel of judges). Results are below.

One of my favorite dishes didn’t get an award, but it is worth mentioning. The Oaxacan Lamb Tacos prepared by Zin Restaurant & Wine Bar were absolutely delicious, and the restaurant’s booth boasted a beautiful presentation of ingredients that you could watch being  assembled. I spoke to Chef Jeff Mall of this Healdsburg-based restaurant about his creation. For the tacos, he used tortillas that he made by hand. For the lamb filling, he made a traditional Mole sauce with 21 ingredients.  This was something he learned from a chef  from Oaxaca he worked with 15 years ago; it was the Oaxacan chef’s mom’s recipe.  Chef Mall braised the lamb shanks in a mixture of the mole sauce and  a bit of red wine.  After the meat was done cooking it was deboned and degreased, then reheated in a mixture of mole and lamb stock.  The taco toppings included queso fresco cheese, toasted pumpkin seeds, and intriguing “radish dust.”  The radish dust was made with 10 radishes per bunch of cilantro.  How does Zin Restaurant make this? Pulse the radishes and cilantro in a food processor until fine.  Place mixture into a clean towel and squeeze out all the liquid. Fluff the mixture, and there you have radish dust.

Zin’s lamb tacos also had two savory side dishes that I loved. The first was a roasted butternut squash puree with rajas (these are roasted poblano peppers, cut into strips and cooked in cream with yellow onions).  The other side was a jicama and sweet corn slaw with fresh mint and cumin-lime vinaigrette. Okay, I’m hungry now – time to take a field trip to Healdsburg!

SAN FRANCISCO LAMB JAM 2011 WINNERS

People’s Choice: ThirstyBear Brewing Company, Chef Jessica Gorin

Grilled Lamb Loin with Polenta, Mission Figs and Marcona Almond

Best in Show & Best Shank: Nick’s Cove, Chef Adam Mali

Braised Lamb Shank, Lemon-stewed Cannelini Beans, Lavender-Mint Gremolata

Best Leg: Eastside West Restaurant & Bar, Chef Dino Vazquez

Spicy Lamb and Lemongrass Soup “Hue” Style

Best Loin: FIVE Restaurant & Bar, Chef Banks White

Roasted Lamb Loin, Piquillo Pepper Jam, House Yogurt, Cumin Chimichurri

Best Shoulder: Wood Tavern Restaurant, Chef Yang Peng

Braised Lamb Shoulder, Chickpea Puree, Fava Beans, Chimichurri, Herb Salad

On Twitter? Please follow me @santacruzfoodie.

Posted in Cooking & Chefs, Events | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on San Francisco Lamb Jam recap: winners plus lamb taco tips

Half price wine at San Francisco, San Jose, Napa, and East Bay restaurants

Posted on July 20, 2011 by admin

Wine cellar at Lark Creek Walnut Creek

For food and wine lovers, it doesn’t get much better than this: half price wine at several restaurants across the Bay Area including San Jose and San Francisco.

The scoop? It’s the Ninth Annual July Wine Event hosted by Lark Creek Restaurant Group.

Every bottle on every wine list in the Lark Creek Restaurant Group, which has many restaurants, is half price. That’s 1,000 different wines – 50% off every brunch, lunch, and dinner in July.

Lark Creek Restaurant Group restaurants serve consistently great food. There is One Market in San Francisco, where Chef Mark Dommen creates masterful, beautiful, delicious cuisine. Last autumn, One Market earned a Michelin star for the fourth year in a row.   And then there’s Yankee Pier on Santana Row in San Jose, with fresh seafood cooked wonderfully. And so many more… it’s also worth noting the group is a partner of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program that promotes sustainable practices.

Here are the participating restaurants. Bon Appetit!

San Jose & Santa Clara

Yankee Pier Santana Row (408) 244-1244

For food and wine lovers, it doesn’t get much better than this: half price wine at several restaurants across the Bay Area including San Jose and San Francisco.

The scoop? It’s the Ninth Annual July Wine Event hosted by Lark Creek Restaurant Group.

Every bottle on every wine list in the Lark Creek Restaurant Group, which has many restaurants, is half price. That’s 1,000 different wines – 50% off every brunch, lunch, and dinner in July.

Lark Creek Restaurant Group restaurants serve consistently great food. There is One Market in San Francisco, where Chef Mark Dommen creates masterful, beautiful, delicious cuisine. Last autumn, One Market earned a Michelin star for the fourth year in a row.  Here’s a Mark Dommen recipe. And then there’s Yankee Pier on Santana Row in San Jose, with fresh seafood cooked wonderfully. And so many more… it’s also worth noting the group is a partner of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program that promotes sustainable practices.

Here are the participating restaurants. Bon Appetit!

San Jose & Santa Clara

Yankee Pier Santana Row (408) 244-1244

Parcel 104 (408) 970-6104

San Francisco

One Market (415) 777-5577

Cupola (415) 896-5600

Lark Creek Steak (415) 593-7100

Larkspur

The Tavern at Lark Creek (415) 924-7766

Yankee Pier (415) 924-7676

Walnut Creek

Lark Creek (925) 256-1234

Lafayette

Yankee Pier (925) 283-4100 – and here’s a recipe from Chef Michael Dunn

Napa

Fish Story (707) 251-5600

On Twitter? Please follow me @santacruzfoodie.

Posted in Events, Restaurants, Wine | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Half price wine at San Francisco, San Jose, Napa, and East Bay restaurants

Taste wine plus lots of meat from local chefs at San Francisco Lamb Jam

Posted on July 13, 2011 by admin

Lamb burgers from a previous Lamb Jam

If you’re a lamb fan, don’t miss the 2nd Annual San Francisco Lamb Jam this Sunday, July 17, where you can taste lots of wine plus delicious lamb cooked by top local chefs.

The event, featuring many renowned Bay Area restaurants and chefs, will be held at Golden Gate Club (135 Fisher Loop, SF 94129) from 3-6pm.  Participating chefs create savory dishes paired with wines from more than 30 wineries including Bianchi Winery, Estancia Estates, J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines, Midnight Cellars, Opolo Vineyards, Tablas Creek Vineyard, and Wild Horse Winery & Vineyards. Breweries including Thirsty Bear, Speakasy Ales and Lagers, and Cherry Voodoo are also participating.

Attendees get to taste and then vote for their favorite selections in a “People Choice” competition, and awards will also be given for “Best in Show” and for each of four lamb cuts: leg, loin, shank and shoulder.

Chefs at the event include:

  • Antelmo Faria (Tacolicious)
  • Banks White (FIVE Restaurant & Bar)
  • David Bazirgan (Fifth Floor)
  • Dino Vazquez (Eastside West Restaurant & Bar)
  • Eric Berg (Wente Vineyards)
  • Jeffery Lunak (Morimoto Napa)
  • Jessica Gorin (Thirsty Bear)
  • Mattin Noblia (Cheftestant from Top Chef Season 6)
  • Michael Koenig (Grand Café)
  • Richard Hodge (Puccini & Pinetti)

It should be interesting to see all the dishes and pairings that the various chefs come up with. As The Wine Bible author Karen MacNeil has said, “American lamb is the quintessential accompaniment for a wide variety of wines from around the world – reds, whites, and roses” (as quoted on the American Lamb Board web site, which also includes lots of recipes plus nutrition and cooking information).

Lamb Jam tickets are $50; buy online and get more information at www.FansofLambSanFrancisco.com or call (866) 327-5262. Other fun aspects of the Lamb Jam: attendees get to create their own swag bags and have the opportunity to watch a butchery demonstration by sheep herder Don Watson and Chef Matthew Accarrino from the restaurant SPQR.

The SF Lamb Jam is part of a national “Lamb Jam Tour” with five festivals. Besides San Francisco, there are events in Boston, Washington D.C., Seattle, and New York City (New York is the “Master Jam” where finalists from the other cities go head-to-head in a final championship). The festival is hosted by the American Lamb Board, a 13-member board that’s an industry-funded research and promotions commodity board representing all sectors of the American Lamb industry including producers, feeders, seed stock producers and processors.

Can’t wait ‘til Sunday to get your lamb on? Try Mark Bittman’s recipe Grilled Lamb and Figs, featured in his recent New York Times grilling article.

Look forward to seeing all my fellow lamb lovers this weekend in SF!

On Twitter? Follow me @santacruzfoodie.

The Details:

Sunday July 17, 2011 from 3-6pm

Golden Gate Club, 135 Fisher Loop, San Francisco 94129

Call (866) 327-5262 for more information or see festival site www.FansofLambSanFrancisco.com

Admission: $50 includes food and wine

 

Posted in Cooking & Chefs, Events, Wine | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Taste wine plus lots of meat from local chefs at San Francisco Lamb Jam

Betty’s Eat Inn serving up great food on Pacific Avenue in Santa Cruz

Posted on July 8, 2011 by admin
Betty's Eat Inn

Betty's Eat Inn on Pacific Avenue in Santa Cruz

Betty’s Eat Inn, the newest venue from popular Santa Cruz restaurant Betty Burgers, is serving up some great food after opening on Pacific Avenue in April 2011. In contrast to the two Betty Burgers locations in the Capitola and Seabright areas, this location has a full bar and an expanded menu.

I’ve eaten at this downtown Santa Cruz restaurant three times now, and the food has been delicious each time. The service was good two out of three times; when I sat on the Pacific Avenue patio the last time I was there, the waiter was slow to take our order and to bring the food.

The other times I sat in the main room, and in the back room (I was with a large group and we’d reserved a special area). Betty’s Eat Inn has a festive atmosphere. The main dining room is open and airy, and features flat-screen TVs. With the big group I was seated next to an Airstream trailer and that was fun. It’s worth noting that the restaurant is open late, until 1:30a.m. on weekends and 10pm on weekdays.

Here are some tips on food, including comments from me and my dining companions:

  • Texas Two Step, $8.49, 1/2 lb. burger with onion rings, bacon, cheddar and homemade BBQ sauce – very satisfying and decadent
  • Point Grinder, $7.95, 1/2 lb. burger with bacon, blue cheese, and sautéed mushrooms) – one friend ate this “bareback style” (lettuce wrapped as opposed to a bun; you can order any burger this way) and said it was “fabulous, 4 stars.”
  • Fish in the Sea, $8.95 (Tuna Melt) – generous portion, and tasty. A nitpicky comment: the menu says “open-faced” but it was not served that way
  • Best Ever Oven-Roasted Turkey Sandwich, $7.95 – two of my friends ordered this, and both enjoyed; the restaurant roasts its own turkey. One said “very good, but very big” (two people could easily share this)
  • Chicken Noodle Soup, $3.49/cup, $4.95/bowl – homemade and “delicious”
  • Sweet Potato Fries, $3.25/reg, $4.95/basket – yummy and well-cooked, and the aioli served with it goes perfectly
  • Rough & Ready Salad, $3.49/side, $5.49/full – side salad was “plentiful but dull”
  • Pork in the Hay, $8.95 – I definitely recommend this unusual entrée salad which includes a huge portion of savory slow-roasted pork atop apple and red onion coleslaw
  • Veggie Mash, $3.49 – this side order alternative to mashed potatoes didn’t meet my expectations. It was okay in flavor and texture, but tasted very rich as opposed to being a vegetable dish and I personally wouldn’t order it again.

I’m excited to return to Betty’s Eat Inn, as well as the two original Betty Burgers which serve consistently great burgers, fries, and milkshakes.

On Twitter? Follow me @santacruzfoodie.

Posted in Restaurants | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Betty’s Eat Inn serving up great food on Pacific Avenue in Santa Cruz

Scotts Valley Hop N’ Barley Festival with food, beer, and kids’ activities

Posted on July 1, 2011 by admin

On July 2, Sky Park in Scotts Valley hosts the 2nd annual Hop N’ Barley festival with lots of local food and beer plus kids’ activities.

More than 25 breweries are participating, and the Hop N’ Barley event benefits the Community Housing Land Trust of Santa Cruz County. There will be a kids area, skate park, free parking, bocci ball, 5 local bands, and it’s even dog-friendly!

Delicious food will be available to purchase from vendors including Aptos restaurant SmoQe (which promises lots of barbecued delights), Westside Santa Cruz restaurant burger, and Scotts Valley’s Heavenly Café.

Gates open at 11:30am, and tasting is from noon to 4:30pm. Music lasts from noon to 5pm. For those drinking beer, admission costs $25 and includes a souvenir glass. The event has free admission for kids, designated drivers, and anyone else not partaking of beer. Buy tickets online at http://www.hopnbarley.org/tickets. If you buy online, you’re guaranteed a ticket (last year’s event sold out) and you also get a raffle ticket for each ticket purchased this way.

Breweries offering tastings include local Santa Cruz Ale Works, Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing, Uncommon Brewers, and Seabright Brewery. Others include Gordon Biersch, Sierra Nevada, Tied House, Kona Brewing, New Belgium, and Anderson Valley Brewing.

Skypark is located at 361 Kings Village Rd, Scotts Valley 95066

Read details about the beneficiary non-profit, Community Housing Land Trust of Santa Cruz County, at the Land Trust web site. The organization is “…dedicated to providing a broad range of housing opportunities, with emphasis on ownership, that will remain affordable in perpetuity to very low, low and moderate-income residents of Santa Cruz County.”

On Twitter? Follow me @santacruzfoodie.

Posted in Beer, Benefits, Events | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Scotts Valley Hop N’ Barley Festival with food, beer, and kids’ activities

Dinner Market at Kelly’s Bakery: a bounty of local restaurants & wineries gather for one night

Posted on June 23, 2011 by admin

Ceviche taco made by Nuevo Southwest Grill at a previous Dinner Market

Kelly’s French Bakery and the Swift Street Courtyard are hosting a community dinner market this Saturday, June 25, from 5:30-9pm, and several restaurants and wineries gather for a unique experience. This is the fourth Dinner Market; the first took place in June 2009.

Folks get to choose from a variety of foods and drinks at affordable prices, then sit outside at tables set up just for the occasion and enjoy their purchases plus live music (folk, jazz, and swing). Before selecting which food and drink to buy, each adult pays a $5 admission fee which benefits Santa Cruz Cancer Benefit Group, which has worked since 1995 to raise money for organizations (such as Hospice of Santa Cruz County and WomenCARE) and fund new research. Kids 12 and under are free. With each ticket purchased, attendees receive a complimentary raffle ticket for prizes including a Ward Coffey surfboard and a $300 Southwest Airlines gift card. You can also buy extra raffle tickets if you want to increase your odds.

Restaurants, stores, caterers, and wineries will all have booths at the Dinner Market. The six wine vendors include Vine Hill Winery and Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard. The brewery Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing will be selling organic beer. Food vendors include Feast for a King Catering (Saturday’s choices include Pomegranate Chicken and Strawberry Lemonade), Cafe Ella (selections include Savory Bread Pudding), Nuevo Southwest Grill (Ceviche Tostada and more), and el Salchichero (Brisket Tacos is one offering). el Salchichero is Swift Street Courtyard’s newest retailer; read about the butcher shop that opened in February 2011.

For full list of vendors and selections, see Kelly’s Bakery web site. Everyone is encouraged to bring their own plates, utensils, and glasses from home – and cloth napkins if possible – to save on waste.

The Details:

June 25, 2011

5:30–9pm

Swift Street Courtyard parking lot (402 Ingalls Street, Santa Cruz)

$5 Admission; food and drinks for sale

For more info call (831) 423-9059 x102

On Twitter? Follow me @santacruzfoodie.

Posted in Beer, Benefits, Events, Restaurants, Wine | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Dinner Market at Kelly’s Bakery: a bounty of local restaurants & wineries gather for one night

Vegan cookbook author and restaurant owner Ann Gentry at Bookshop Santa Cruz

Posted on June 22, 2011 by admin
cookbook photo vegan family meals

Food prepared from Vegan Family Meals cookbook, photo courtesy of Andrews McMeel Publishing

If you’re interested in cooking healthier food that still tastes great, I recommend attending restaurant owner and vegan cookbook author Ann Gentry’s appearance at Bookshop Santa Cruz on Wednesday, June 22 at 7:30pm. She’ll be discussing her newest book, “Vegan Family Meals: Real Food for Everyone” (published June 2011, 272 pp., $25), and food prepared from Vegan Family Meals will be served.

Gentry is the founder of Real Food Daily (RFD), a pair of vegan restaurants in L.A. that serve absolutely delicious food. After operating RFD as a food delivery business for 5 years, Gentry opened her first restaurant in Santa Monica in 1993 and now there are two — plus a possible airport location in LAX opening in 2012.  I try to dine at RFD when I visit L.A.; during a meal there I feel like I’m rewarding both my body and soul.

Vegan Family Meals has the potential be a fabulous cookbook for vegetarians, vegans, and even meat-eaters. As Gentry proclaims in the introduction, “it’s not necessary to become vegan or vegetarian to enjoy the benefits of eating plant-based meals.” Even if you’re not ready (or never will be ready) to quit eating meat and fish, you can eat healthier and this book will help with its easy, satisfying recipes.

Breakfast selections include Tofu Benedict with Roasted Corn Hollandaise and French Toast with Fresh Raspberry Syrup, and dinner ideas range from One-Pot Vegetables and Tofu with Sesame Rice to Pinto Bean Enchiladas. Other dishes include soups (Yucatan Yam Picante, for one), snacks (Spicy-Sweet Roasted Almonds), salads (Mixed Oak and Green Leaf Salad with Sesame-Hiziki Croquettes, Garbanzo Beans, and Ginger-Tahini Dressing), desserts (from Almond-Jam Thumbprint Cookies to Vanilla Cupcakes with Sweet Vanilla Buttercream Frosting).

This is Gentry’s second cookbook, and she’s experienced at preparing vegan meals for herself and her family (not to mention serving as Executive Chef to magazine Vegetarian Times). Vegan Family Meals features information on macrobiotics, nutrition, and more. Gentry includes many tips on cooking techniques, utensils and equipment plus recipe variations, menu pairings, and helpful explanations (Wonder what exactly makes a particular food a “superfood?” See page 23 for an overview and then page 24 for specifics like goji berries). At the end of Vegan Family Meals, you’ll find extensive resources such as a natural foods company list, web site addresses for selected books and organizations, and a very comprehensive index.

As the author reminds readers, vegetarian, vegan, macrobiotic, and whole foods ingredients are now available at mainstream supermarkets across the US, so they are convenient for everyone – not just for those of lucky enough to live in the Bay Area with its plethora of farmers markets and independent fresh food shops. It appears that chefs everywhere can benefit from this exciting new book, and I look forward to being one of these!

Reading Location:

Bookshop Santa Cruz, 1520 Pacific Ave, Santa Cruz 95060

On Twitter? Follow me @santacruzfoodie.

Posted in Cooking & Chefs, Events | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Vegan cookbook author and restaurant owner Ann Gentry at Bookshop Santa Cruz

Restaurants for Father’s Day 2011 in Santa Cruz and nearby

Posted on June 18, 2011 by admin

An example of the delicious food found at Johnny's Harborside

Father’s Day is a great time to enjoy a meal at one of your favorite restaurants, and many restaurants in Santa Cruz and nearby will feature special menus for the occasion.

Silver Spur

Santa Cruz restaurant Silver Spur serves fabulous comfort food for breakfast and lunch and is normally not open on Sundays (much to the disappointment of myself and its many fans, who stand in line on Saturdays for a spot). But Silver Spur is open this Sunday from 8am-2pm to honor Father’s Day. It will offer its regular menu – including great scrambles made with eggs or tofu and decadent cinnamon rolls – plus specials. Call 475-2725 for more information (they don’t take reservations).

650 Soquel Drive, Santa Cruz

Johnny’s Harborside

On Father’s Day, Johnny’s will serve its regular brunch menu with a beautiful view, plus brunch specials from 10am-2pm, followed by its regular dinner menu plus dinner specials from 2-9pm. Brunch specials are Dungeness Crab Omelet ($13) and Smoked Steelhead Benedict with BBQ Hollandaise ($13); dinner specials are Cumin-Spiced Wild King Salmon with Sautéed Summer Vegetables & Caramelized Onion Risotto ($26) and Surf & Turf with Braveheart Ribeye & Grilled Giant Spot Prawns plus Sautéed Summer Vegetables, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, and Garlic Bread ($29). Call 479-3430 for reservations.

493 Lake Avenue, Santa Cruz

Sushi Garden

On Father’s Day, Sushi Garden is serving lunch (11:30-2:30) and dinner (5-9:30) at both its Capitola and Watsonville locations. And customers can get one free roll if they bring a coupon from this week’s Good Times (p. 26) and make a lunch order for $20 or more or a dinner order for $40 or more. Recommended: the restaurant’s generous and tender maguro sashimi.

820 Bay Avenue, Capitola (across from Nob Hill), (831) 464-9192

1441 Main St., Watsonville (Target Shopping Center), (831) 728-9192

Bittersweet Bistro

Aptos restaurant Bittersweet Bistro is offering several steak specials in honor of Dad. Starting at 5pm, customers can choose a $15 Filet Mignon, Skirt Steak, Rib Eye, or New York Steak. Bittersweet is also serving $15 bottles of Kenwood “Yulupa” Cabernet Sauvignon during this time. Call (831) 662-9799 for reservations.

787 Rio Del Mar Boulevard, Aptos

 

Hindquarter Bar & Grille

Hindquarter is open on Father’s Day for both brunch/lunch and dinner (in case you hadn’t heard, the restaurant is now open every Sunday for brunch beginning at 10:30am). For Father’s Day, Hindquarter will be serving its regular menu plus Father’s Day specials. Brunch/lunch is served from 10:30am-2:30pm and dinner service begins at 5:30pm. Call (831) 426-7770 for reservations.

303 Soquel Avenue, Santa Cruz

Ideal Bar & Grill

Ideal Bar & Grill offers its regular menu plus Father’s Day brunch specials including Chorizo Omelet ($14), Sirloin & Eggs ($14, with an 8oz. choice sirloin cut), and Pork Salad ($16). The restaurant opens at 8:30am this Sunday, and dinner begins at 4pm. Call (831) 423-5271 for reservations.

106 Beach St., Santa Cruz

On Twitter? Follow me @santacruzfoodie.

Posted in Restaurants | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Restaurants for Father’s Day 2011 in Santa Cruz and nearby

Santa Cruz Crow’s Nest Restaurant $6.95 deal ends Thursday for the season

Posted on May 22, 2011 by admin

Crow's Nest, home to bargain dinner from September-May

If you live in Santa Cruz or anywhere nearby, for a fabulous dinner deal this week get yourself to Crow’s Nest by Thursday, May 26 and pay only $6.95. Otherwise, wait until September when summer season is over and the deal returns.

The restaurant’s tasty, affordable “Deal with a View” (the venue has a great oceanside view) is valid with selected entrees on the second floor, in the upstairs bar/lounge area called Breakwater Bar & Grill.

Here’s the deal: Every Monday through Friday from September through May, you can choose from three entrees AND receive salad bar, fries or soup – all for $6.95. Entrée selections are Tuscan Chicken Sandwich, Fish Tacos, or Aloha Burger. Usually the salad bar is $8.50 in the Breakwater or $10.50 downstairs in the main dining room ($5.95 with entrée downstairs). During Deal with a View, I am usually full after eating just the salad bar, but because it’s so tasty I often eat the salad bar plus half of my fish tacos or chicken sandwich. Then I save the other half for leftovers — all for $6.95! The burger is ok – I’m sure it’s some people’s cup of tea – but I prefer the other two selections). The tacos are made with herbed tilapia, and they come with scrumptious sauce plus salsa on the side. The chicken sandwich contains moist, char-grilled meat, and the accompanying pesto aioli and provolone provide perfect balance. The salad bar has gourmet toppings like gorgonzola, hearts of palm, and blue cheese dressing with chunks of real cheese. Deal with a View is available from 6pm until the kitchen closes (the lounge itself is open until 9pm).

What’s in a name? Plenty in this case-located far above the Santa Cruz Harbor is a Coast Guard lookout, called a “Crow’s Nest,” which is a weather station, observation tower and rescue operations base. Beneath this Crow’s Nest is the restaurant Crow’s Nest. It first started as a coffee shop in 1964, and became a full restaurant in 1969. Current owners Ted Burke and Bob Munsey – who also operate popular Shadowbrook Restaurant – took over in 1978. They added the second floor, home of the Breakwater Bar & Grill, in 1983.

The Details:
Deal with a View, $6.95 dinner Monday through Friday
Upstairs at Crow’s Nest through May 26, then again in September
Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor, 2218 East Cliff Drive, Santa Cruz 95062
(831) 476-4560

On Twitter? Follow me @santacruzfoodie.

Posted in Food & Food News, Restaurants | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Santa Cruz Crow’s Nest Restaurant $6.95 deal ends Thursday for the season