by Christina Waters | Apr 3, 2007 | Food, Home |
Thank God! After years of waiting for something more like the Westside’s old Aldo’s Cafe (brainchild of the original Sestri chef), our waiting is over. Bistro Al Mar specializes in tapas so authentically Old World we thought we were in Madrid last week, sharing a little teaser of fava beans and diced feta, washed down with Spanish white wine.
In the place of the former Xin noodle shop (841 Almar, at the end of the Almar Center strip), Bistro Al Mar has a lively menu wandering the Mediterranean waterfront from Marseilles and Nice, to Genoa and Barcelona. There are even a few North African dishes on offer. The place looks smart, with sensuous fedo and Catalan pop music in the background, and a simple long lace curtain adding privacy to the central dining room. Open for dinners Tuesday – Sunday, Al Mar is already attracting inquiring grazers who like the low prices and sexy menu. I also liked the service — smart and on-the-ball, our server offered to pour samples of wines when we weren’t sure what we wanted. That’s always a sound restaurant practice.
We began our small courses with a large plate of outstanding Catalan semi-dry garlic and pepper sausage “Fuet de Vic” ($7), and a $2 basket of “unlimited refills” focaccia. Yes, Al Mar has your number. 
A country Rusa potato salad, mixed with peas, carrots, tuna, egg, red peppers and capers in an aioli dressing arrived in a glazed pottery ramikin ($7), and my trio of grilled baby lamb chaps, done rare — perfect lamb is always very pink, as far as I’m concerned — came on a generous sea of Tuscan white beans and topped with a fresh sprig of sage ($11). This was a knock-out! Joined by a glass of Ridge Three Valleys Zinfandel 2004, this was a meal to get out of bed for. You know what I mean.
We plan to work our way, slowly and with relish, through the entire Bistro Al Mar menu. See you there!
by Christina Waters | Apr 3, 2007 | Home |
For those of you who’ve been emailing me, the answer is Woodstock’s Pizza, Inc. That’s what’s going in to the old Erik’s Deli space on Front Street. . . . And hold the April 22 date: Santa Cruz’ own irrepressible, culinary performance artist Jozseph Schultz is wok’ing on the wild side again. This time it’s a reinvention of the benefit dinner involving aerial choreography, Persian New Year’s festivities — and authentic cuisine thanks to ethnographer-chef Schultz (the co-founder of India Joze restaurant for SC newbees), to be held at the bohemian 418 Front Street. The benefit bit is to save the luscious old hardwood floors in the alternative arts space.
You’ll be hearing more from me on the Persian New Year extravaganza, but for now save up $50-$75 per, for tickets and that date again is April 22. Find out more about Gail Rich awardee Schultz, at www.indiajoze.com and learn about the 418 concept at www.the418.org.
by Christina Waters | Apr 3, 2007 | Home |
will be open by the time you read this! So rush out and take a look at the wrap-around banquettes, the central espresso hearth and the spiffy revival of Santa Cruz’ original, old Hall of Records building, corner of Cooper & Front Streets. The new Lulu’s will be the perfect place to wait for those DNA test results from the Bahamas.
by Christina Waters | Apr 3, 2007 | Home |
We’ve been busy test-driving the new glut of designer chocolate bars popping up faster than wannabe fathers of little Daniellyn. We’ve been swilling the outrageous 60% cacao dark chocolate with orange from Chocolove for the past year. And it still rules. however, there are serious competitors out there — and I feel an obligation to taste (often) and bring back the results of my fieldwork for readers everywhere.
The Endangered Species folks have got a nifty little number consisted of dark bittersweet chocolate laced with currents and hazelnuts that will do bouncy things to both your tastebuds and your endorphins. and I have always loved, and continue to love, the Lindt dark chocolate truffle bar in the thick, blue package. Okay, so it’s sweeter than the classic, hardcore dark chocolate — but I admit I am deeply devoted to its combination of decadent mouthfeel (truly naughty) and sweet/bitter/chocolate synergy.
But here’s our new find — Dolfin Chocolat: an incredibly packaged dark (noir, in French) chocolate smoothly inflected with crystallized orange peel from Belgium. At around $3.50, it’s pricey, but so is, well, use your own lustful analogies…..There’s not a trace of soapiness that often compromises very high cacao-content chocolates. Impeccable mouthfeel, intensely chocolate flavor and aroma, plus the bitter orange finish — seriously, this bar has it all. You can’t walk across the street in California without tripping over some new, deeply flavorful, gorgeously packaged designer chocolate. So there’s no need to suggest possible emporia. Just go on and get yours!
I’ll be taste testing chocolates as a continuing feature of my column, and to help expand your own appreciation of chocolate terminology and tasting, please check out this excellent (and exhaustive) guide to chocolate terminology (another tip from my buddy Donna Blakemore who clearly has too much time on her hands. Or maybe it’s just chocolate on her mind?)
by Christina Waters | Apr 3, 2007 | Home |
As in Stokes Adobe, in old Monterey. From my seat in one of the many rooms 
of this lumbering old adobe — each room with three-foot walls, each room with its own fireplace — I could spit on a half dozen of the oldest buildings in California. Those would be the original adobes that comprised what was for a brief period the anglo capitol of California. I’ve been to more than my fair share of dinners, wine-tastings and other special events in this architectural gem — the central staircase and interior balcony makes it feel like one of those stagecoach stops in an old Western movie. But more to the point last week was the fact that Stokes is a very reliable contemporary stop for lunch, dinner or fashionable cocktails.
My companions had never visited Stokes, so they were, well, stoked over a menu that spans regional California specialties and stresses fresh, seasonal ingredients. Also, it looks like the Kobe beef burger is a hot new trend. Both the guys in our quartet jumped at the chance to grab a big burger — on soudough bun topped with crystals of sea salt — served along with a passle of fries and pretty salad. 
Mustard and ketchup arrived in their own designer serving trays. No matter how classy the joint, no burger should ever arrive without mustard and ketchup. My lunch of duck leg confit, with warm spinach and garlic vinaigrette, was voluptuous. Two softly boiled eggs, halved and topped with paprika, decorated the larger plate. All the food was beautiful, seriously tasty and served on soft linens by people who knew when to bring bread, butter, water, and when to remove dishes.
Anyone heading toward Monterey should add Stokes Adobe Restaurant to their dining list. It’s large enough, with a large suite of dining rooms, that you can always get a table — no matter how busy the action. Just sitting in a slice of the old West is fun enough all by itself.
