Sweet
The pastry case at Kelly’s –
a delicious argument
in favor of
almost anything.
Summer Fireworks @ Gabriella
Sean Baker, wunderkind chef at Gabriella, has been joined by new pastry chef Jessica Yarr (former sous chef at Theo’s) for what can only be called a culinary summer of love. Baker, who you’ll recall is a Cordon Bleu grad, formerly of Zibibbo in Palo Alto and Millennium in SF, is busy rocking the menu at Santa Cruz’ jewelbox bistro. Only the fresh, and only the local show up on Baker’s restless menus.
Last week Matteo and I feasted on lunchtime halibut confit and freshly-shelled cannellini beans, ringed with Black Cherry tomatoes and inflected with basil and Dijon hazelnut dressing. Then came an amazing salad of greens so vibrant they practically talked back, bathed in a Syrah basil vinaigrette with slices of incredible ripe plums and tissue-thin slices of icicle radish (see above). Our main course was fresh pan-roasted rainbow trout, stuffed with lemons and thyme, served whole to preserve its
beautiful shape, with a side of infant arugula and toasted almonds. Everything was strewn with pungent capers and rich browned butter. . . A few days earlier, my mother and I had lunched at Gabriella and sampled the amazing paté sampler from charcuterie maestro Justin Severino — sensuous rillettes packed with Meyer lemon and capers, campagnola paté loaded with herbs and a rustic ciccioli. A preserved apricot played counterpoint with the organic pork creations. My mom — a Boulder Creek native, now living in San Diego — also had a great time with Baker’s latest pasta creation, a swirl of black hand-cut spaghetti, tossed with heirloom tomatoes, garlic, slices of tiny, tender squid and fat English peas from Half Moon Bay. I gotta say, Gabriella’s kitchen has laid on some serious firepower.
The food at Gabriella was always ultra-fresh, seasonal and local. Now it’s sophisticated as well. Not tricky. Not so conceptual that you have to sit back and have a Socratic dialogue every two seconds about the herbs, or the pedigree of the tomatoes. Let’s just say that chef Baker has eyes in the back of his head. If it’s just been picked, he’s on it. Impressive.
Quickies
Pastry poetry deepens at Gabriella with the handiwork of Jessica Yarr. Imagine polenta cake with sweet corn gelato. Chocolate torte with amaretto whipped cream. Endless hand-crafted truffles in amazing complexity – dark dark chocolate, sherry-tinged chocolate, chocolate romanced by hazelnuts. Yes, yes, yes!. . . . The ribs at Hula’s are good enough to turn even the most stubborn vegan. Well, almost. . . and La Bruschetta up in Felton is not the same since Luca Rubino sold it this spring. You can still find Rubino’s distinctive touch at In Vino Veritas in Scotts Valley. Thank God! . . . Don’t miss the designer fish tacos at Kelly’s on the Westside. . . And if you can find a bottle of Sones Cellars Petite Sirah, buy it. It’s a bottle-full of huge ripe berries and spice, from a local, micro-winery. Or enjoy a glass at Gabriella. Your call.
Fresh Paint
Tom Maderos can paint his way out of a paper bag. He pays attention to the way the light strikes the water. The way the sun hits the cliffs. Come see how the coast looks according to his imagination.
Coastal/Abstracts – a show of work by Tom Maderos – opens on August 3 (with reception from 5-9pm) and runs through the end of the month. It happens at the Attic Gallery, 931 Pacific Avenue in downtown Santa Cruz. For details call 831/457-8143 or tom@ebold.com.
[The image here is entitled West Cliff View 4.]
CatMan
I don’t know who this guy is, but he’s a genius with that big rig he slams up and down Empire Grade these days. Part of an expert road crew, he works his multi-ton Cat with the precision of a surgeon. Completely focused, he can pick up massive baby-blue PVC pipes and lay them back down with the delicacy of Martha Stewart arranging place settings.
Seriously, he’s good. No, he’s better than good. He’s a virtuoso of heavy equipment. You could lay your baby down in the middle of the road trusting that this guy could excavate, lay pipe and fill it all in again without getting so much as a grain of sand in the little one’s eye.
Awesome!
Inside the Flame
A book of sensory adventure: The rituals, passions and discoveries of an engaged life.