Serious about espresso and fresh-dripped coffees, and yet invitingly playful in terms of its neighborhood ambiance, Coffeetopia is the go-to caffeine emporium for thoughtful bohemians, students, surfers, cyclists, software designers and commuters. I often meet my literary friend for kvetch sessions at the cozy Coffeetopia on Capitola Road. And I find myself even more often at the Mission Street branch of this java junkies’ joint. In addition to fresh-baked tea breads and superior dark roast, Coffeetopia now boasts another secret weapon: Mission Hill Creamery artisanal ice creams. OMG is an appropriate response to that information. If you can’t get to the Saturday farmers market for some of David Kumec‘s outrageous, organic, all-Straus Family Creamery specialty, then you need only hit your local Coffeetopia. Gather ’round now, because this is the serious part: Salted Caramel. Mission Hill’s version of this paradigm-shifting flavor is every rockstar cliché you can think of, starting with “barely legal.” It’s rich, creamy, complex and salty, all joined together in perfect balance for a genuinely adult dessert. At Coffeetopia one can always find Mission Hill Creamery’s Salted Caramel, Vanilla Bean, Chocolate, Turkish Coffee and an ultra-dreamy Strawberry at $8 a pint.
GAYLE’S CELEBRATES Cupcakes topped with tiny flags, cookies with red, white and blues sprinkles, tarts laden with strawberries and blueberries—the bunting-draped display cases at Gayle’s were a star-spangled tribute to the Fourth last week. Not that one needs a holiday as an excuse. Gayle’s mere existence is all the reason you need to treat yourself to a tart. Any tart.
LA DOLCE VITA Congratulations to Bargetto Winery, whose La Vita 2006 took a double gold from California State Fair judges. The beautifully balanced blend of dolcetto, nebbiolo and refosco—all grown on the winery’s renowned 40-acre Regan Estate Vineyards above Corralitos—is hand-crafted and aged for several years in oak before resting for another year in Italian glass bottles. Stop by the atmospheric tasting room for a taste. The Bargetto Winery tasting room, located at 3535 N. Main St., in Soquel, is open from noon to 5pm daily.
HOT PLATE This week it has to be a superb entree of rare hanger steak I enjoyed at the Davenport Roadhouse. Chef Tim Edmonds has expertise to burn, and he applied it liberally to this vertical creation built upon a foundation of lemon-infused fresh artichoke hearts and mashed potatoes. The beef slices were topped with a glaze of green olive tapenade and then with a crown of braised mizuna greens and shaved fennel. Every bite was miraculous.
Send tips about food, wine and new dining discoveries to Christina Waters at xtina@cruzio.com. Read her blog at http://christinawaters.com.
