Wine & Crab Taste-off The gorgeous fresh Dungeness crab and sea scallop quenelles created over at Capitola’s lively Paradise Beach Grille won the hearts of judges and tasting patrons alike at last month’s utterly delicious Wine and Crab Taste-off. Chefs Stephen Hanecak and Javier Martinez knocked me out with this delicate shellfish mousse and its rich broth infused with chardonnay, bay leaves and peppercorns. Here was a visual presentation to match the beautifully balanced flavors. I sampled this dish along with a glass of crisp unoaked 2009 chardonnay from Savannah-Chanelle that made for a perfect flavor echo with the seafood.
El Salchichero on the Verge Really. Chris LaVeque—butcher, ditch digger, marketer, you name it—projects the opening of his long- (long-) awaited El Salchichero artisanal butcher shop for Friday, Feb. 11. “I’m 99 percent sure that will be the date,” he chuckles. After a year of transforming the industrial space in the Westside Swift Street complex into a custom-tiled state-of-the-art facility, LaVeque is just as anxious as we are to open his doors. The hardest part, he admits, was just “turning a barn into a butcher shop.” LaVeque and his team have been at it around the clock. “I’ll still be doing farmers markets, but I’ll be at the shop seven days a week,” he told the Weekly. Cuisinistas are already lining up to check out the debut line of salamis and bacon made by LaVeque at what he happily calls “your old-school butcher shop.”
New Clouds, Same Silver Lining Even in the current economy Lou Caviglia admits that he’s still having fun spinning the food and libation concept of his downtown Clouds. “’The Restaurant week’ model worked outrageously well for us,” he told me this week, “and so we decided to keep on doing it.” The result is the new, improved and substantially revamped Clouds’ three-course, $25 prix fixe menu. The special twist —one that will please the downtown landmark’s regulars—is that the fixed menu will rotate cuisines each month. “We’ll start with Italian, then southern USA, Greek—it will provide lots of incentive for regulars,” Caviglia added. Also on tap: brunch. Think fried chicken with maple syrup and waffles and Bananas Foster French toast with mascarpone. Clouds Sunday Brunch starts Feb. 13th, 10am-2pm with live jazz by some of the UCSC jazz groups. . . .
Big Changes Around Town Davenport Roadhouse is up for sale; Hawgs is undergoinga major remodel. Vida is gone, but my informants tell me a burger/diner joint is about to emerge. And out on the wharf, a big “Splash” is about to occur where Carniglia’s once stood. Check back for details!
Christina Waters blogs about food and culture at http://christinawaters.com. Send tips about food, wine and your latest dining discoveries to xtina@cruzio.com.
