Christina Waters

Moss doesn’t grow on Lou Caviglia, who lies awake at night dreaming up ever more tantalizing deals-of-the-century. My friend Susan adores the Martini Dinner specials at Clouds, and she showed me why last week when four of us lived large for very little $$$ at the downtown Santa Cruz watering hole.

Here’s the deal: Clouds offers a long list of specialty martinis, to which you add your choice of light dinner entree. The result? A stiff drink, a delicious dinner and a price tag you can live with. Here’s an example. I don’t like martinis adulterated with fruit, flavorings or sauces. I like mine straight up and pure, i.e. cold gin in a glass.

So I ordered a Tanqueray martini with a dinner order of California roll sushi (see above). The price? $10.95. That’s what you might expect to pay for a martini alone. Are you liking this? I thought so. On the other end of the martini/dinner scale, Susan’s latest boyfriend Rich ordered his drink with a New York steak. Pricetag? $18.95. That’s for a drink and a steak. I don’t know, it sells itself. (more…)

Since the “peace candidate” has announced that we should be sending more troops to Afghanistan, I figure it’s time to party like there’s no tomorrow.

And to help, here’s a new organic, luxurious butter from the nice folks of Clover. Ultra-creamy European-style, seasoned with sea salt, and on your morning multi-grain toast, it’s fabulous. Weighing in at 8oz and just under $5, it’s shameless indulgence of the sort that our forebears rubbed all over themselves during the plague years. From where I sit, now would be a good time to do likewise. At Shoppers & New Leaf.

Yes, I know. Many of you ran out to Shoppers to find this extraordinary frozen sin and it was all gone. Here’s why. My original source, gourmet realtor Dee Vogel, confessed. She kept buying tub after tub of this Ciao Bella gelato, and has by her own admission taken on ballast from eating so much of it.

However - here’s the good news. Ciao Bella Fresh Mint gelato is currently available at Deluxe. If you need to keep up with the very best in high-calorie creamy desserts, then you know what to do. Frankly, it’s an amazing combination of flavors — intensely creamy vanilla gelato, nuggets of dark chocolate, perfume of fresh mint. Mmmmmm.

By now you’ve already finished up your romance with English peas and have moved on to peaches and chiogga beets. We’ve been enjoying the strawberries and tender baby greens — both wild and cultivated — offered by the Farm Cart at UCSC.

Tuesdays and Fridays, the fresh harvest is loaded this time of year with all manner of onions and garlic, leafy greens, blueberries and plums, herbs and beautiful old-fashioned bouquets. Everything is organic, sold by the young growers of the Agroecology apprentice program and utterly delicious. Even if you think you only need spinach for dinner, the seasonal produce might surprise you. Stretch your palate - try some intriguing item you’ve never had before. Tuesday and Fridays, at the corner of High and Empire Grade, noon - 6pm.

Thanks to gourmet realtor Dee Vogel — a woman tireless in her quest for a better mouthfull — I discovered a wicked new way to give my mouth a treat. And thanks to those merciless Ciao Bella gelatistas, I now know about Fresh Mint. Forget about that goopey, green, fake mint-flavored stuff that always tastes like junior high. This is tight-textured vanilla gelato, laced with slabs of dark chocolate and the top-note of fresh mint. It tastes like the middle of summer, only colder.

Dee told me I had to try it. I always do what Dee says, so I ran out to Shoppers and got some. What can I say? She was right. The most fun you can have for under five bucks.

A small plate of cheese.

And figs, and quince paste.

And especially rose jelly.

Jelly that tastes and smells like roses in some English garden.

This was ‘dessert’ at Soif last week, where I toasted the passing of a long-lost friend.

Here’s our new favorite breakfast treat — something as old as the gods of Olympus.

Greek-style yogurt from the clever marketing minds of Greek Gods Yogurt. Greek yogurt is yogurt the way the gods intended it - full fat and ultra creamy. So yes, there are a few more calories in the container of Greek Gods Yogurt with honey, than in the unsweetened, non-fat version. But I’m thinking, why choose? Why not have the best of both worlds?

So I bought one container of the plain, non-fat, and another of the ultra-creamy, full fat with honey - and mixed the two. You can imagine this amazing combination of tart and cream right now, can’t you? It tasted just like the thick, tangy yogurt I had on Crete.

But without the jet lag. (more…)

Smart plates in a sleek, sophisticated setting. (Nothing beats alliteration - nothing.) Anya and I checked out the brand-new lunch menu at Soif last Friday and were treated to some lovely stuff in the way of a chopped salad of romaine entangled with crisp red cabbage, zest of salami and parmigiano, flecks of Kalamata olives, a few chick peas (okay, more than a few) and even goat cheese as well.

This massive portion — easily enough for three women or two surfers, or Kobe Bryant — ran $9. We also shared a sensuous panino of jamon serrano and fresh figs, all gooey and decadent thanks to melted mozzarella, for $12. This baby was one of those monuments to Italian sandwich genius - high fashion on a plate, yet a little impractical in the actual eating. One bite and the opulent contents began to ooze out both sides. So we adjusted the interior as we ate. With the sandwich, I ordered a cup of the day’s soup, a pale yellow fresh corn puree — sweet and creamy — laced with slices of yellow and red cherry tomatoes.

And to drink, I had a hefty glass of freshly-squeezed lemonade, full of fiber and rustic, tangy lemon flavor. Anya had an espresso.

Soif’s lunch menu is simple and direct. Three salads, three panini, a soup du jour and a daily quiche.

Cool beverages, coffees and eight wines by the glass. Soif has done all of the thinking for you — you need only show up.

Soif for lunch is a great downtown place to take your finicky out-of-town guests. On Walnut Avenue, next door to every woman’s fashion pit-stop — Shandrydan.

The word is that Oswald is definitely still in the pipeline. Yesterday there were two trucks out front, at the corner of Soquel and Front Sts., plumbing guys doing something to the interior. So that looks promising. When? Well, you might think about Thanksgiving in a new setting. . . . The word is good on the new Khyber Pass, where Afghan and Pakistani cuisine share the billing. Flavor-wise this makes good sense and since I love the mint-inflected foods of Afghanistan, I’m getting down there very soon. . . . Gorgeous foods, casual setting — that’s the off-beat, high contrast ambience of Fusion at Pearl Alley, where the trained hand of chef Robert Morris (formerly Blacks Beach Cafe) is making plates so pretty you can hardly bear to take a bite. . . . And lunches at Soif now provide a sophisticated downtown setting for smart plates to match the smart pours. Soif does lunch Wednesday through Saturday, noon to 2pm. 105 Walnut Ave in Santa Cruz.

Starting Wednesday, June 25, Soif is open for lunch. See my post at the top of the page. That’s right, wine fans. Now you can enjoy chef Chris Avila’s lunches, Wed - Sat, from noon to 2, at Soif, located at 105 Walnut Avenue, in downtown Santa Cruz (831-423-2020)

Be the first on your block to sample salads, soups, sandwiches with your favorite wine.