Christina Waters

It was almost as if it had never closed. The crowd, the smooth flow of service from exhibition kitchen to full bar to packed dining room — Oswald was back and on Day Two was producing flawless meals to a packed house of overjoyed fans.
A modest opening menu, long on the brasserie-style, unfussy, flavor-intensive classics regulars had come to adore from Oswald’s heyday, did chef Damani Thomas and his crew of veterans proud. Most of the staff were the crème de la crème of area service professionals, including many from the original team. Manager Keet Beck made sure no glass was empty, and no table unattended and frankly it was a very impressive reimergence after nearly two years on the sidelines.

While some of us worried about the new location in the corner of a parking garage at the very tip of Soquel and Front, the opening week put that to rest. More…

Desserts were all excellent, including a textbook crème brulée, a sexy molten chocolate torte and a superb almond cake (seen here) topped with vanilla ice cream. And since the new Oswald has a full bar, we were able to enjoy adult digestifs like Fernet Branca with our after-dinner espresso.

Prices? Modest - most entrées $22, and appetizers averaging $10. Low enough to seduce a flourishing brasserie clientele. The wine list, with a small, fine listing of Italian and French varietals as well as California premiums, was also priced encouragingly. The bread - remember just how amazing the Oswald bread and its dense chewy crust always was? — the bread was up to our memories.

Get thee to Oswald immediately and taste what we’ve all missed for the past two years. Oswald - 121 Soquel Avenue @ Front Street - 831/423-7427.

Here’s an example of the Sean Baker all-star line-up of handmade salumi, available to adventurous diners at Gabriella Cafe and at the new Le Cigare Volant cafe at Bonny Doon tasting room on Ingalls Street.

These gorgeous paper-thin specialties taste even better than they look.

Soprasata, prosciutto, coppa, finocchiona, oh my! Taste and you’ll understand why the buzz over salumi.

Yes, chef Giovanni diMaio did deliver what we expected last week at a wonderful Limoncello lunch. I like to use the holidays as an excuse to take my mom and aunt out for lunch, and Limoncello surpassed our hopes. Manicotti with a dreamy ragu, veal piccata with fragrant vegetables — all partnered with glasses of various Italian varietals from the house menu — molto bene. And for dessert, we feasted shamelessly on flawless tiramisu — the kind that’s not-too-sweet yet plush with mascarpone creaminess More…

Here’s another reason why I love to visit the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The museum’s restaurant invariably offers gorgeous lunch dishes for excellent prices.
This salmon tartare, served on a bed of transparent zucchini ribbons and topped with shaved fennel and a long wedge of house-made sesame cracker, was a knock-out with a glass of bubbly.

Everybody loves cheese, but few of us get to hang out with someone whose cheese lore is deep and pungent. That someone would be fromagiere Andrea London who can talk époisses and cabicou ’til the cows come home. How exciting it was to discover last week that London will be part of the new multi-tiered wine, food and biodynamic delivery team at Bonny Doon Vineyard’s new tasting room. Every Friday from 11-5:30, London will be on hand at the tasting room to demystify dozens of fine domestic and imported cheeses.

The array of fromages du jour will be set out along the wine bar that faces The Cigare Volant Cafe, inside the new tasting cathedral. London is an accessible woman who loves talking cheese, and she’ll provide copious tastes to “illustrate” her talking points. Yet another reason to stop by the new attraction at the very busy Ingalls Street depot on the Westside of Santa Cruz.

And according to co-owner Eric Lau, we’re talkin’ weeks. “The goal was for us to be open on the 15th of this month,” Lau told me today. “We’ve got all the big stuff done. But now it’s just the details — furniture, glassware, that stuff.”

Lau went on the record as determined to re-open the restaurant, at the Corner of Soquel and Front Streets in downtown Santa Cruz, “definitely before the first of the year - and hopefully before the first of December.”

That means that within three weeks or so, fans of chef Damani Thomas‘ supple seasonal cuisine will be able to not only enjoy an Oswald dinner, but a cocktail beforehand, thanks to the restaurant’s full bar. “It’s a great space,” Lau agreed. Eighty seats, and eventually lunch and dinner. And after over a year and a half, Oswald’s fans are mighty hungry.

See you there - soon!

So how was this latest trip to Italy? Here are a few choice images - words to follow.

Mint tagliarelli with fresh porcinis — at La Bussola in Firenze. Quite possibly the finest plate of pasta I’ve ever had.

While quaffing a bracing bit of white wine from the French Savoie, I inhaled my new favorite appetizer at Soif. Served in a rustic glazed dish, fat gigande beans were joined by pancetta and those sexy end-of-the-season tomatoes that taste like a Mediterranean smile. Served warm, this dish ($6) was enough for two to enjoy, along with some crisp wine. The more minerals the better. I’m thinking Grüner Veltliner - the wine poised to bump Chardonnay back to the Stone Age.

Pomodori Time! The 17th Annual NatureSweet Carmel TomatoFest®, happens once again on Sunday, September 14, 2008,12:30 pm, at the magnificent Quail Lodge Resort in Carmel.Founder/Director of the TomatoFest®, Gary Ibsen, announced that 60 of America’s finest chefs will attend this year’s TomatoFest to offer guests the opportunity to enjoy world-class cuisine featuring heirloom tomatoes in an unpretentious, harvest-celebration atmosphere. Ibsen says, “Our gathering of culinary artists will showcase a range of unforgettable epicurean creations from classical to innovative More…