Edible Santa Barbara – Summer 2014

edible

ISSUE 22 • SUMMER 2014

Santa Barbara Celebrating the Local Food and Wine Culture of Santa Barbara County

The New Solvang The Thrill of the Grill All Aboard to Carpinteria MEMBER OF EDIBLE COMMUNITIES

From antique button bracelets and enameled wall poetry to serving trays made of wood salvaged from the Atlantic City boardwalk—our offerings are as unique as our customers. Find the love at 1324 State St, Santa Barbara, opposite the Arlington Theater. 805 965 6888 www.wondersb.com

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FULL of LIFE

Flatbread Los Alamos, California

field baking since 2003

Restaurant, certified org anic frozen pizzas, field bakes and catering www.Ful l Of L if eFo o ds.co m

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Margerum & MWC32 Join us at our NEW SPACE in the El Paseo Courtyard • Offering limited, library and reserve wines

OUR TWO TASTING ROOMS

MWC32

MARGERUM TASTING ROOM

813 ANACAPA STREET (In the El Paseo Courtyard)

813 ANACAPA STREET (Adjacent to the Wine Cask)

Open Daily 12–6pm • Space available for private events • 805.845.8435 • MargerumWineCompany.com

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ROSMINAH BROWN

J U N E , J U LY, A U G U S T

C AROLE TOPALIAN

summer

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Departments 8 Food for Thought

24 Edible Garden

by Krista Harris

Gardening with Children

by Joan S. Bolton

10 Edible Notables

Standing Sun Winery Global Gardens C’est Cheese Santa Barbara Public Market Dare 2 Dream Farms Vertical Tasting: Tomatoes

13 In Season 14 Seasonal Recipes Gazpacho Verde Make Your Own Sun-Dried Tomatoes Sunny Sautéd Summer Squash

20 Edible Festival Putting the Culture Back

in Agriculture

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22 Drinkable Landscape A Beer and a Watermelon Margarita Walk into a Bar

by George Yatchisin

28 Liquid Assets Rhône Rising

by Louis Villard

32 Edible Road Trip

All Aboard to Carpinteria

by Rosminah Brown

66 Event Calendar 68 Dining Guide 71 Source Guide and Maps 80 The Last Bite The Savvy Home Gardener’s Favorite Tools

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J U N E , J U LY, A U G U S T

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Features

Recipes in This Issue

42 Celebrating the Santa Barbara Food

Soups and Salads

Landscape with Betty Fussell

by Nancy Oster

51 Liquid Kodachrome Vintage Wines Hold History Beneath

Their Corks

by Laura Sanchez 54 The New Solvang How a Small Town Became a Big Culinary Destination

by Shannon Essa

62 The Thrill of the Grill

by Pascale Beale ABOUT THE COVER

A collage of summer vegetables by Steven Brown and Erin Feinblatt.

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14 Gazpacho Verde 64 Grilled Peach, Heirloom Tomato and Arugula Salad

Side Dishes 16 Make Your Own Sun-Dried Tomatoes 18 Sunny Sautéed Summer Squash

Main Dishes 49 63

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Grilled Rib Eye Steaks and Herb Butter Marinated Skewered Grilled Beef and Grilled Vegetables with Herb-Filled Mayonnaise Summer Stew

Beverage 23 The Micheltorena

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Coming This Summer to Historic Los Alamos 550 Bell Street Los Alamos CA 93440 310-200-9194

www.BobsWellBread.com info@BobsWellBread.com Follow Us:

Artisan Bread Hand-made in Small Batches

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FOOD FOR D THOUGHT

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ne of the things that I love each quarter when putting together this magazine is creating the In Season recipes. The process of imagining, researching, writing and testing new recipes is something that I find enjoyable—and I get to eat the results.

Although I never attended culinary school or worked in a restaurant kitchen, I seem to have acquired a willingness to try new things when it comes to cooking. I don’t shy away from making things from scratch, and I’m fascinated with the origins of recipes and ingredients. I guess these are the right components for coming up with recipes for the home cook.

Last quarter you would have found me poring over old cookbooks such as my 1943 edition of The Joy of Cooking (the one that has the chapters on Wartime Emergency Soups and Sugar-Saving Recipes) looking at recipes for jelly roll cakes. The Strawberry Cake recipe that has become one of my favorites is my attempt to bring back the forgotten and much maligned jelly rolls. Made with your own jam, it’s a delicious and easy elegant dessert with countless variations.

My recipe for Gazpacho Verde is inspired by all the gazpachos that my husband and I ate in Spain years ago. I noticed that whenever we ordered gazpacho (always the red variety), it was served with several small bowls of garnish—onions, cucumbers, peppers, sometimes even ice cubes. I liked the participatory nature of adding just what we wanted to our soup, and I brought that idea home with me. Green gazpacho can get its color from green tomatoes, peppers, cucumber, etc. But I saw a Spanish recipe once that called for lettuce and herbs and that is what inspired the version that you’ll find in this issue.

My interest in sharing these recipes led me to come up with the Edible Santa Barbara Cooking Club. In an effort to inspire more cooking and experimenting with recipes, we’ve encouraged people to join us by signing up for our weekly email newsletter, which features recipes, cooking tips and profiles of cooks.

We also set up a group on Facebook and a Pinterest board where people can post photos of what they are cooking, and we are planning some Cooking Club events as well. Whether you are cooks or just interested in cooks, I encourage you to join.

Here’s to cooking many tasty meals this summer— and enjoying the results!

Krista Harris, Editor and Co-Publisher

Join Us

Sign up for the Edible Santa Barbara Cooking Club at EdibleSantaBarbara.com.

We love to hear from our readers. Please email us at info@ediblesantabarbara.com.

Follow us on Facebook and Pinterest at Edible Santa Barbara and Twitter and Instagram at EdibleSB.

8 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

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SANTA BAR BAR A

Edible Communities James Beard Foundation Publication of the Year (2011)

PUBLISHERS

Steven Brown & Krista Harris EDITOR

Krista Harris RECIPE EDITOR

Nancy Oster COPY EDITOR

Doug Adrianson DESIGNER

Steven Brown COOKING CLUB COORDINATOR

Jennifer Gruenke SOCIAL MEDIA

Jill Johnson

Contributors Pascale Beale Jeffrey Bloom Joan S. Bolton Jeanine Brandi Rosminah Brown Bambi Edlund Shannon Essa Erin Feinblatt Nancy Oster Laura Sanchez Carole Topalian Louis Villard George Yatchisin

Contact Us info@ediblesantabarbara.com

Advertising Inquiries ads@ediblesantabarbara.com Edible Santa Barbara® is published quarterly and distributed throughout Santa Barbara County.

Subscription rate is $28 annually. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be used without written permission from the publisher. Publisher expressly disclaims all liability for any occurrence that may arise as a consequence of the use of any information or recipes. Every effort is made to avoid errors, misspellings and omissions. If, however, an error comes to your attention please accept our sincere apologies and notify us. Thank you.

© 2014

edible Santa Barbara

®

Shore Thing

Miro at Bacara Resort & Spa Breathtaking ocean views, locally-sourced ingredients and progressive European cuisine combine for a truly spectacular dining experience at Miró. Join us each month for our “Meet the Masters” dinner series.

Miró is open for dinner Tuesday through Saturday.

For reservations, please call 855.972.4932.

8301 Hollister Avenue, Santa Barbara, California www.bacararesort.com

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Notables

Olive Oil Virtual Tasting Kit Global Gardens

One of the things we love to do when tooling around Santa Barbara County is to sample local olive oil. An olive oil tasting can be as interesting and varied as a wine tasting—and great for designated drivers. But if you can’t get out to go visit an olive oil purveyor or if you’d like to give the gift of a tasting, the Virtual Tasting Kit from Global Gardens is a brilliant idea. With 12 bottles (seven olive oils and five vinegars) and a specially designed numbered tasting palette, each kit will provide a tasting for up to four people. Just add bread and you have a party.

The Tasting Kit is $24 (or $19.20 for members) and is available at Global Gardens, located at 380 Bell St., Los Alamos, open daily 11am–5pm. You can also order the kit from their online store at GlobalGardensOnline.com

Part Deux

Art+Wine +Music At Standing Sun Winery

The unassuming location of John and Laura Wright’s Standing Sun Winery is tucked away in an industrial park at the end of a cul-de-sac between Highway 101 and Avenue of the Flags in Buellton. But what lucky visitors will find here is a truly unique burgeoning art and music scene: a winemaking facility by day and a venue for live music by night. Barrels become tables, amps are plugged in, food trucks arrive, bottles are opened and voilá!— a place to see and hear musical acts of virtually every sub-genre of music.

Recently John added on to his little oasis of creativity with a gallery space for exhibitions of local artists. A high-ceilinged area once used for wine storage has been transformed into a bright and open space. The gallery space will also be used for pop-up restaurants and several local chefs have already expressed interest in cooking there.

“I wanted this to be a small winery with a really big living room,” John says. Big living room, big dreams— and he’s done just that.

Standing Sun Wines is located at 92 Second St. in Buellton. For information on the Standing Sun Concert Series or gallery exhibitions call 805 693-9413 or visit StandingSunWines.com

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C’est Cheese Marketplace and Café

The expanded C’est Cheese Café is now open! They have all the sandwiches and salads we’ve loved, but now there’s really room to sit down and bring a friend or two. And they are open for breakfast. You know you’ve always wanted grilled cheese for breakfast.

They have some classic breakfast items—Eggs n’ Toast, Steel-Cut Oatmeal, Yeasted Belgian Waffle—as well as a Breakfast Crepe with Niman Ranch ham and tomato marmalade. They have also added an in-house bakery turning out all kinds of sweet and savory pastries, including gluten-free options. We love their new outdoor patio and the prospect of lunches and lazy afternoons sipping wine and having a cheese plate with a view of the mountains.

C’est Cheese Marketplace and Café is located at 825 Santa Barbara St., Santa Barbara. Open Mon–Sat 7am–6pm, Sun 8am–4pm. 805 969-0318; CestCheese.com

vertical TASTING

You Say Tomato… …we say you can never have too many tomatoes, especially the warm, summer ripe tomatoes you find in the markets and growing in your backyard. There are thousands of varieties, but we’ve focused our tasting on just a handful of old favorites. These heirloom tomatoes are open pollinated and have become equally popular with the seed-saving set and those who just love their amazing flavor. Seek these out this summer, but don’t limit yourself to just these varieties. Discovering new tomatoes is a summertime rite of passage.

Culinary Destination The New Public Market is Open

The eagerly awaited Santa Barbara Public Market opened in April to throngs of visitors. The site of an old Vons has been transformed into a LEED-certified mixed-use space that has become a mecca for food shopping and dining. A comprehensive list of purveyors offer everything from a sit-down meal to a glass of wine or beer to some groceries to go. All types of food are represented: Belcampo Meat Co., Crazy Good Bread, Enjoy Cupcakes, il Fustino Oils and Vinegars, Green Star Coffee, JuiceWell, The Pasta Shoppe, Rori’s Ice Cream, to name just a few. It will take time to sample all of them, so plan on many repeat trips.

The Santa Barbara Public Market is located at 38 W. Victoria St. (at Chapala St.), Santa Barbara. Open Mon–Thu 7am–11pm; Sun 8am–10pm, though hours may differ for each shop. 805 770-7702; SBPublicMarket.com

A New CSA Dare 2 Dream Farms

Dare 2 Dream Farms is a small-scale Lompoc farm run by Megan and Jeremy Raff, Alan Calaham and their year-round WWOOF-USA Team. They’ve been a wonderful source for baby chicks for those in our area who want to raise backyard chickens. And their eggs sell out quickly at the Isla Vista Food Co-op. But did you know that they also have produce? And we were thrilled to find out that they are offering a community-supported agriculture (CSA) produce subscription program. Using sustainable and organic practices, they boast a huge variety of seasonal produce. Boxes are $25 a week, with the option to add Dare 2 Dream Farms eggs for about $7 a week and/or a loaf of New Vineland Bread for $8 a week.

Pick up locations in Lompoc are at Dare 2 Dream Farms Thu 1–4pm; Sweet Repeats Thu noon–5:30pm; New Vineland Sat noon–4pm.

Delivery is also available to Lompoc, Mission Hills and Vandenberg Village for $5 per week. Purchase a full share for the quarter and get one box for free. Online Sign-ups are at Dare2DreamFarms. com/#!csa-membership/c1pha. You can also email mraff@ dare2dreamfarms.com or call 805 735-3233.

Yellow Pear Fruit size: 1–2 inches Date from: 1805 Good things come in tiny packages. These are lovely little bite-sized tomatoes that work well on an appetizer plate or in a salad. Try cutting them in half if you are adding them to a salad. If you are growing them, it might be hard to resist eating them all as you pick them in the garden. And children tend to eat them up like candy.

Brandywine Fruit size: 1–2 pounds Date from: 1886 or older Tasting of neither brandy nor wine, this tomato does have the rich full taste that you crave in a tomato. You can find Pink Brandywines and Red Brandywines, but they both often have a hint of green on the top. Slice them up for your classic Caprese salad—they pair beautifully with slices of fresh mozzarella or homemade burrata.

Green Zebra Fruit size: 2–3 inches Date from: 1983 Here we have a slightly younger heirloom, or can we even consider it an heirloom when some of us graduated from high school before it was created?

This is a colorful variety to include in chilled soups, pasta dishes or sliced on top of pizza. People are surprised by its sweet and aromatic flavor. To tell when it’s ripe, look for the lighter stripes to turn a pale yellow color.

Black Krim Fruit size: 3–4 inches Date from: possibly the late 1800s, but commercially available after 1990 Named after the Crimea region where they were found, these beautiful tomatoes turn even darker in hot weather. We like the way they turn a dish into something special. Try them chopped up on a bit of toasted bread for outstanding bruschetta. Or for something different make a tomato sorbet flavored with a touch of balsamic vinegar—the perfect dessert for a summer tomato feast.

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in Season this summer Summer Produce Apricots Artichokes Asparagus Avocados Basil Beans, green Blackberries Blueberries Cabbage Cantaloupe Celery Cherries Chiles Chives Cilantro Collards Corn Cucumber Dill Eggplant Figs Grapefruit Grapes Lavender Limes Melons Mint Mustard greens Mulberries Nectarines Onions, green bunching Peaches Peppers Plums/Pluots Raspberries Squash, summer Strawberries Tomatillo Tomatoes Turnips Watermelon

Year-Round Produce

Almonds, almond butter (harvested Aug/Sept)

Apples Arugula Beans, dried Beets Bok choy Broccoli Carrots Cauliflower Chard Dandelion Dates

(harvested Sept/Oct)

Garlic

(harvested May/June)

Herbs

(Bay leaf, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme)

Summer Seafood Halibut Rock Fish Salmon, King Sardines Shark Spot Prawns Swordfish Tuna, albacore White Seabass Yellowtail

Year-Round Seafood Abalone (farmed) Black Cod Clams Oysters Rock Crab Sanddabs Urchin

Other Year-Round Eggs Coffee (limited availability) Dairy

Edible flowers Kale Leeks Lemons Lettuce Mushrooms Onions, bulb

(Regional raw milk, artisanal goat- and cow-milk cheeses, butters, curds, yogurts and spreads)

Oranges Pistachios, pistachio oil

Potted plants/herbs Preserves Wheat

(harvested May/June)

(harvested Sept/Oct)

Potatoes Radish Raisins

Fresh Flowers Honey Olives, olive oil Meat

(Beef, chicken, duck, goat, rabbit, pork)

(Wheat berries, wheat flour, bread, pasta and baked goods produced from wheat grown locally)

(harvested Sept/Oct)

Spinach Sprouts Squash, winter

(harvested July/Oct)

Walnuts, walnut oil (harvested Sept/Oct)

Yams

(harvested Aug/Sept)

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Recipes

Gazpacho Verde What we have here is a very adaptable summer soup. You can make it spicy or mild and you can customize the end result with a huge array of garnishes. It works well as the opening of a fancy dinner party—garnishing will bring out your creative side. And it works equally well as something to keep in your refrigerator for a quick, healthy lunch.

Makes 4–6 servings 1 small clove garlic, peeled 2 green onions, roots and dark green ends removed, roughly chopped 1 small pepper, stem removed (Padron or Shishito for mild flavor, jalapeño for spicy) 1 head Romaine lettuce (or other flavorful green lettuce), end removed, coarsely chopped 2 handfuls of mixed herbs (choose from mint, parsley, basil, tarragon or other soft green herbs), stems removed 1

⁄ 3 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar 1

⁄ 4 teaspoon sea salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste 11⁄ 4 cups cold water or more as needed See optional garnish idea below

Place the garlic, green onions and pepper in a blender or the bowl of a food processor and pulse for a few times until puréed. Add the olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and water and as much of the lettuce and herbs as will fit and purée. Add the rest of the lettuce and herbs and continue to purée. Add additional cold water if needed to achieve a pourable soup-like consistency. Taste and adjust seasoning. Place in the refrigerator to chill for an hour or until ready to serve. If the herbs have all floated to the top, just reblend briefly to combine.

Serve in small bowls or small glasses garnished with a couple or more of the optional garnishes, if desired. You can also set out bowls of garnishes and let each person garnish to taste.

GARNISH IDEAS Thin slices of radish Thin slices of tomato Chopped chives or other herbs A few drops of olive oil Ice cubes (great when serving on a hot day) A fan of avocado slices Fried Padron or Shishito peppers Spicy pickled green beans, sliced or chopped

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Thin slices of cucumber

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Recipes

Make Your Own Sun-Dried Tomatoes Lately dehydrators have taken over the job of drying vegetables and fruits. They are certainly handy. But in the summer, there is something really satisfying about putting the “sun” back in sun-dried tomatoes. These take very little effort and reward you with a homemade ingredient that will perk up salads, pasta and sautés all summer long and beyond.

2 or more pounds of plum or other thick-fleshed tomatoes 1

⁄ 4 – 1⁄ 2 cup salt

Herbes de Provence (optional) Olive oil (for packing in jars), optional

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Cut the tomatoes in half or thirds if they are large. Lay the slices on a rack in a tray or baking sheet. Sprinkle liberally with salt. You can also sprinkle with dried Herbes de Provence for a little added flavor.

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Cover the baking sheet with screening or cheesecloth and set out in the full sun. Bring in at dusk and return to the sun in the daytime.

Depending on the weather and the moisture content of your tomatoes, the drying process could take from a few days to a few weeks. Once the tomatoes are completely dry (they should feel like a dried raisin or apricot), you can bring them in and store them in an airtight container. Or pack them in jars covered with olive oil and store in the refrigerator.

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Recipes

Sunny Sautéed Summer Squash Use your own sun-dried tomatoes in this dish if you have made them. This dish can be either a side dish on its own or you can add it to pasta for a quick one-dish meal. Summer squash come in many varieties — zucchini, yellow crookneck, pattypan, etc. This dish works best with yellow summer squash or a combination of yellow and light green to give it a bright cheery color.

Makes 4 servings Olive oil 1 clove garlic, finely chopped 4– 6 small yellow summer squash or a combination of yellow and green, cut into slices or half-round slices 4– 6 sun-dried tomatoes (if dried, soak in a little hot water to soften; if in olive oil, use some of the olive oil in the sauté), sliced Salt and pepper, to taste A few leaves of fresh basil, cut into fine slices Grated Parmesan cheese to garnish, optional

Add the fresh basil and toss. Serve as a side dish with a little grated Parmesan cheese. Or add some cooked pasta directly to the skillet and stir to combine and then add the Parmesan cheese if desired.

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Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, summer squash and sun-dried tomatoes. Stir to combine and season with salt and pepper. Sauté for a couple minutes, then cover and let cook for about 15 minutes. Uncover and continue cooking until slightly translucent and tender. Taste and adjust seasoning.

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EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 19

EDIBLE FESTIVAL

Putting the Culture Back in Agriculture THE SA NTA BA R B A R A

JE ANINE BR ANDI

JE ANINE BR ANDI

JE ANINE BR ANDI

Fermentation Festival

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JE ANINE BR ANDI

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raditionally fermented products have made a decided comeback. Think of sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, pickles, vinegar, sourdough, kefir and dozens of other foods and beverages that are created through some aspect of fermentation. The sometimes little-known secret is that many of these fancy and hip products are easy to make at home, and there’s a grassroots movement to help bring that knowledge to more and more people.

The annual Santa Barbara Fermentation Festival, set for Saturday, July 19, is just the sort of event that showcases what is happening in our region and brings the knowledge of traditionally fermented foods to a whole new audience.

It will be the festival’s fourth year and the second year that it will be held at the Center for Urban Agriculture at Fairview Gardens in Goleta. Profits from the festival will directly benefit Fairview Gardens, which supports education, long-term sustainability and the preservation of one of Santa Barbara County’s most treasured urban farms.

With the farm as a backdrop and an important part of the festival, attendees will be treated to hands-on demonstrations, talks by local and regional experts, special activities for kids and the opportunity to sample and shop from 50 fermented food and beverage vendors. New this year will be a “Farm-toBar Happy Hour” held from 4:00 to 6:00pm with tastings of traditional alcohol ferments and talks from local brewmasters and winemakers.

In addition to being delicious and trendy, making fermented foods is an ancient art with far-reaching health benefits. The microbial mystery that is responsible for so many of the foods we love is a fascinating subject. This festival could be just the thing to get us started or give us the confidence to try new things.

The fourth annual Santa Barbara Fermentation Festival will be held on Saturday, July 19, 10am–6pm at the Center for Urban Agriculture at Fairview Gardens in Goleta. Tickets range from $5 to $60. Children 12 years and under are free. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit SBFermentationFestival.com

Come Taste Purisima Mountain, the Santa Ynez Valley’s Premier Certified Biodynamic Vineyard

From Our Vineyard to Your Table SUSTAINABLE FARMING WITH A 40+ YEAR HERITAGE Our tasting room is open daily from 10am– 4 pm.

Come in and enjoy the Zaca Mesa experience.

Eric Mohseni, Winemaker (left) and Ruben Camacho, Vineyard Foreman

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Visit our Tasting Room and Picnic Grounds 2670 Ontiveros Rd. Los Olivos, Ca 93441 Tasting room hours daily 11– 5 805-688-8664

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EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 21

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DRINKABLE LANDSCAPE

A Beer and a Watermelon Margarita Walk into a Bar…

by George Yatchisin

ummer does all kinds of strange things to me, like make me appreciate pilsners and not just crave hop-bomb IPAs as I do most of the less-warm year.

Their mild maltiness and lower alcohol just seem a better accompaniment to a lazy afternoon.

Why am I discussing beer in a cocktail column, you may ask? Well, for this season I thought it might be fun to come up with a beer cocktail, one of those concoctions so old it’s been around long enough to become cool and trendy again (just Google and you’ll see). Realizing not everyone wants beer, even as part of a delicious drink, this issue’s recipe can be made with or without the pilsner. When in doubt, try both.

In essence what you will do is make the cocktail and either pour it into an up glass and say cheers or pour it into a half pint glass and add beer. The base cocktail itself is the paragon of summer with some items you might even be able to grow in your own yard: watermelon, cilantro, lemon and lemongrass.

What you will mix is one of the more distinguished Margarita variations you will ever have. Tequila is the base liquor, so use something that’s 100% agave, as mixtos include sugar and are less tasty. Something midrange works, as you won’t be just sipping it (heck, you’re mixing it with beer!), and TJ’s and Costco are your friends. Cazadores Reposado is a fine house tequila. But instead of triple sec or even Cointreau, you will use St-Germain, the elderflower liqueur.

This adds all sorts of floral notes and not just citrus ones.

Then you do add some lemon juice for a bit of acid, too.

The driving flavor, though, will come from the water­ melon—but what fruit tastes more of summer? Note that you will muddle and not machine-process the melon. This saves you from seeding the watermelon—you can strain them out of a muddled mix, but you can’t once they’ve been pulverized—and it helps integrate other parts of the drink, namely the oddballs, the lemongrass and cilantro. They help add yet more dimensions, taking your tequila on an exotic tour of Thailand. Trust me, they will like the trip and you will too.

As for the beer, not just any pilsner will do. The drink is very different depending on how hoppy that pilsner is, so here’s your chance to learn the value of International Bittering Units (IBUs). The more hops, the more IBUs, the more you’ll pucker. West Coast IPAs are often around 100 IBUs. Pilsners, more about malt, don’t get half that high.

The best local choice for the cocktail is Figueroa Mountain Paradise Road Pilsner, only 20 IBUs but lilting and lovely. By comparison Firestone Pivo Hoppy Pils—trust that name—is 40 IBUs, which makes it fine to drink if you want a stronger pilsner but a bit brutish for this particular cocktail.

The drink’s name is a tip of the hat to the classic michelada, of course, plus a fine local reference to boot.

George Yatchisin happily eats, drinks and writes in Santa Barbara.

He blogs at GeorgeEats.com

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The Micheltorena (or The ’Rena Neat) Makes 2 cocktails 1 generous 1-inch length lemongrass stalk 6 sprigs cilantro 1 ounce lemon juice (preferably Meyer lemon) 2 heaping cups watermelon, cut in approximately 1-inch cubes 2 ounces 100% agave tequila 1 ounce St–Germain Elderberry Liqueur 1 bottle of Figueroa Mountain Paradise Road Pilsner (for The Micheltorena only) 1 pinch sea salt 2 artfully cut wedges of watermelon (for garnishing the glasses)

Cut the lemongrass down its length and then into thirds so you get 6 pieces. Put those in a cocktail shaker along with the cilantro, the lemon juice, and the watermelon cubes. The cubes do not need to be exactly uniform in size, but you want to keep them somewhat smallish so you can muddle them more easily and consistently. Proceed to muddle, and realize this might take some time. Yes, you could put the watermelon in the blender, but then you’d have to clean your blender and pick out all the seeds before blending, too. Muddling saves you all that. Just keep at it, acting like you have to “pop” each chunk. It should be very much a liquid when you’re done. Add the tequila and St-Germain. Add ice and shake well—and again, do this a bit longer than you usually might to integrate all that content— until well chilled.

At this point you can choose which of 2 cocktails to make.

If you want something up and elegant, strain (you must strain to get all the cilantro, lemongrass and watermelon pulp and seed out) into 2 chilled up glasses, give each the smallest pinch of sea salt (it really helps the flavors sing, so don’t skip this step) and stick a melon edge on each rim. That’s The ’Rena Neat.

If you want a longer-lasting drink for a hot summer afternoon, strain an equal amount into 2 half-pint beer glasses. Gently pour the pilsner to fill; it’s very easy to have the drink foam up, so go slowly. (Note: You won’t use a whole bottle for 2 cocktails, so be prepared to make more or drink some beer later.) Give the mildest of stirs. Top each with the smallest pinch of salt, and stick a melon edge on each rim.

That’s The Micheltorena.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 23

EDIBLE GARDEN

Gardening with Children Playtime in the Garden

by Joan S. Bolton Getting Started

CAROLE TOPALIAN

S

chool’s out and there’s no better time to enlist your kids to grow fresh edibles.

Many summer crops grow fast and yield bounty that children like to eat.

Start your kids playing in the dirt early, and they’ll develop an appreciation for homegrown food and healthy habits for life.

If you don’t have children, gather your neighbors’ kids instead. Or simply vow to rediscover your inner child by taking time to view your garden with wide-eyed wonder, kneeling down to breathe in the scents and to inspect your emerging edibles from a ground-level perspective.

With the popularity of school gardens, some parents may even face a bit of role reversal, with their kids being the ones pestering them to plant veggies. Regardless of the youngsters you round up, don’t be intimidated if they seem to have more gardening experience than you do. The following is a quick-start guide, no matter who’s just beginning to dig in the dirt.

Select a sunny spot in your yard with a nearby source of water. Work in compost or other organic material to a depth of eight to 12 inches to improve the fertility of the bed and ensure that it drains well. Older children can use a shovel or rake to help prepare the soil, while the younger set may be content with stomping on dirt clods to break them up.

Solicit opinions about what to grow. Summer crops include beans, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, melons, peppers, pumpkins, summer squash, sunflowers, tomatoes, tomatillos and zucchini. Warm-season herbs are good companion plants for attracting bene­ ficial insects to the fray, and include basil, borage, chamomile, cilantro and dill.

Depending on the ages of your entourage, decide whether to grow their choices from seeds or plants. Large seeds that reliably sprout and are easy for young hands to grasp include beans, corn, pumpkins and sunflowers. Sow any of these directly in the ground.

You may be better off buying transplants of eggplant, peppers and tomatoes, all of which can be fussy about germinating if (continued on Page 26)

24 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

From the grill, from the sea, from the garden— join us for Northern and Southern regional Italian cuisine using local ingredients in our family’s tradition.

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EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 25

EDIBLE GARDEN

C AROLE TOPALIAN

(GARDENING WITH CHILDREN CONTINUED)

tykes might like to grow enormous vegetables, such as championsize pumpkins or baseball bat zucchinis. Or go for oddball colors, such as purple string beans and yellow cherry tomatoes.

Some children may be more excited about bugs than vegeta­ bles. Buy a bag of live ladybugs to scatter at dusk. Supply a magnifying glass to watch the ladybugs devour aphids or to get up close and personal with earthworms, green lacewings and the like.

Take photographs, starting with the first day of planting. Turn over a camera to older children to document their own progress.

Hand-draw and color plant tags out of cardboard, construction paper or oversized popsicle sticks. Laminate them or slip them inside plastic sandwich bags, then attach them to stakes in the garden.

Don’t underestimate the magic of mud. If watering becomes too much of a chore, fill the buckets for your kids, then promise them that after they water their garden, they can have a few extra buckets to make a mud hole or draw pictures on the pavement.

To avoid the “When will we get there?” questions from younger children, tie maturity dates to events they can relate to.

Tell them, “The pumpkins will be ready by Halloween,” “You can pick the beans when Grandma comes to visit in July” or “The corn will be ready for our Labor Day picnic.”

Be prepared to step in and take over weeding and watering duties, or to stand back if your budding gardener insists on tending everything.

Arrange for a trustworthy friend to take special care of the garden if you leave on vacation. There’s nothing worse for a child—or an adult—than to discover that their tenderly nurtured seedlings have died due to someone else’s neglect.

Harvest Time our early-summer skies stay gray. Planting a few seedlings also provides instant gratification and helps remind your kids to water the bare spots where they’ve sown seeds that haven’t popped up yet.

Strategies for the Long Haul Find ways to provide some action during the long gap between planting and harvest.

Choose edibles that grow by leaps and bounds, such as melons or pumpkins. Make a chart measuring how far their vines advance each day.

Build a teepee out of bamboo planting stakes, then train climbing pole beans up the stakes for a shady retreat. Plant a forest of tall sunflowers with a secret, open center in which your child can putter or daydream. Make a bench out of two overturned pots and a board.

Select plants that do something interesting along the way.

Show your child how to squirt a kernel of corn or thunk a melon to test for ripeness.

Older children may get a kick out of growing a pizza garden, complete with peppers, tomatoes, basil and oregano. Competitive 26 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

Growing their own food often results in children eating—or at least trying—vegetables that they otherwise reject. Kids who detest eggplant, for instance, might give it a nibble if they’ve grown their own.

Show your children how to check for ripeness by looking for the last tinges of green to vanish from a red tomato or the swelling of bush beans within their pods.

Put younger children in charge of spotting what’s ready to be picked. Older children can use a pair of sturdy kitchen scissors to harvest their crops.

Praise every effort. By learning to plant, nurture and harvest, your children will gain an appreciation of nature and an understanding of what they can accomplish by taking responsibility for a patch of earth. From such youthful beginnings do mighty gardeners grow.

Joan S. Bolton is a freelance writer, garden coach and garden designer who confesses to a lifelong love affair with plants. She and her husband, Tom, have filled their four-acre property in western Goleta with natives and other colorful, water-conserving plants. They also maintain avocado, citrus and fruit trees and grow vegetables and herbs year-round.

SantaBarbaraGardens.com

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Farm Friendly Certified SBFM Local Oysters, fresh Seafood Pasta Specialties Local Watkins Beef Aged Prime Beef

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EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 27

LIQUID ASSETS

Rhône Rising

The New Ballard Canyon AVA

STE VEN BROWN

by Louis Villard

Rusack Vineyards in Ballard Canyon

T

here’s a new star on the Santa Barbara wine map.

On the west we’ve got some of the finest Burgundy grapes in California coming out of Santa Rita Hills; on the east the blossoming sub-region of Happy Canyon with its Bordeaux varieties. Now blazing into the arena is a third musketeer—Ballard Canyon, which has recently been awarded its own American Viticultural Area (AVA) classification. Locals have known for years about this fine source of Santa Ynez Valley’s Rhône grapes, and now that they have their official classification the region’s growers can shine as world-class producers of Rhône wine.

Next vintage release, look out for the special embossed Ballard Canyon bottles, which the region’s estate Syrah growers have produced in a brilliant marketing coup right up there with Chateauneuf-du-Pape’s iconic crossed keys.

Even within Santa Barbara’s fairly young grape-growing scene, Ballard Canyon is still the baby of the family. The first 28 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

vines were planted in 1974 by Dr. Gene Hallock at Ballard Canyon Winery, now the site of Rusack Vineyards. It wasn’t until 1982 that another vineyard was planted, Daly Vineyard, a few miles north at Walking M Ranches. Neither focused on Rhônes; even when the Rusacks bought the property in 1992, their focus was on Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and the estategrown Bordeaux varieties.

In these humble beginnings, the region’s suitability for Rhône grapes was still not known. It wasn’t until a few vintages of Stolpman Vineyard that Rhône, and specifically Syrah, was considered to be the focal point of the region.

Stolpman bought his land in 1990 and vine planting began in 1992. As an interesting back story and also a vote of Old World confidence for the site’s Syrah potential: The Perrin family— Rhône royalty (owners of Chateauneuf-du-Pape’s Chateau de Beaucastel) and the brains behind the recent Brangelina Rosé, Château Miraval) had shown prior interest in the property.

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ERIN FEINBL AT T

Stolpman first concentrated on becoming a commercial vineyard, planting just about every popular grape imaginable: Cabernet, Merlot, Pinot, Chardonnay… and even some outliers like Counoise. Among his vines was a considerable amount of Syrah, Grenache, Roussanne, Marsanne and Viognier.

And when they tried the wines made by their grape-buying customers, it was these Rhônes that always outshone the rest.

Tom Beckmen and his son Steve were Stolpman customers and also quickly noticed the exceptional quality of Syrah from Ballard Canyon. Upon purchasing the property of Purisima Mountain in 1996, they dedicated themselves to planting Rhône grapes.

As a bit of context, let’s remember that back in the early to mid ’90s Syrah was by no means a popular grape: it was all about Cabernet, Chardonnay and Pinot at the time. Santa Barbara County had one of the original Rhône Rangers in Bob Lindquist, founder of Qupé, but aside from Bob there were only a handful of serious Rhône producers in all of California, let alone Santa Barbara. That is why, in particular, these folks of Ballard Canyon, especially Stolpman and Beckmen, concentrating all their efforts on Rhône, could have been considered maverick—bordering on crazy. Jump to 1999 and three other vineyards were planted with serious attention to Rhône: Harrison Clarke, Sarloos and Larner, and a few years later in the early 2000s, Jonata. Rusack has since replanted most of their original vineyards with six acres (soon to be nine) of Syrah, almost half of their estate.

Part of the reason why Rhône grapes grow so well in Ballard Canyon is the mild temperatures of the area. It sits between the cooler coastally influenced region of Sta. Rita Hills and the eastern 30 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

furnace of Happy Canyon, which during the summer can top 100°. This moderate climate is ideal for Rhônes, especially Syrah.

I tried a selection of Syrahs from Beckmen, Harrison Clarke, Jonata, Larner, Rusack, Sarloos and Stolpman and noted an affinity of flavors— and some striking parallels.

An intriguing blueberry scent pops up in a lot of the wines, a subtler characteristic of the Syrah grape. There was also a lovely savoriness: rich dense fruit, coffee, even some dark tarry flavors. Speaking in terms of terroir, from the wines I tried, there was a significant mineral/limestone characteristic with piney resin flavors, giving a fresh finish to the palate.

If all this has you planning a visit to Ballard Canyon, you’re in for a treat. It’s a stunning drive. A picturesque seven-mile trip along Ballard Canyon Road, starting just west of Mattei’s Tavern off of San Marcos Pass, it ends just southeast of Buellton.

As you climb the crisscrossing windy path into the canyon and hit the crest, you can catch a glimpse southward to the rest of this dazzling sub-region. A natural landscape of rolling vineyards, dotted with Santa Ynez’s historic oak trees and a few American buffalo to boot—this is an unforgettable road trip.

There is actually just one tasting room on the road, that of Rusack Vineyards. The tasting rooms for Stolpman, Larner, Sarloos and Beckmen can all be found in or just around Los Olivos. Stolpman also has a little tasting room in Lompoc’s Wine Ghetto.

Louis Villard has spent the past 15 years working in wine, from making it in the South of France to serving it in London’s Michelin-starred restaurants. Now, he’s trekking his native California and reporting on what’s exciting and new. His blog is SpiltWine.com

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Richard Sanford cradles a cluster of Pinot Noir in the El Jabalí Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills, 2013

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 31

EDIBLE ROAD TRIP

A LL AB O A RD TO

CARPINTERIA Words and Photos by Rosminah Brown

C

arpinteria has long been a sleepy beach town with agricultural fields and greenhouses dotting its foothills. It seems to have become a haven from large development, thanks in part to the purchase of the Carpinteria Bluffs by the public in 1998.

It is also known for its State Beach (touted as the world’s safest), and the adjoining beachfront State campground right at the end of Linden Avenue. Where else can you find casual and inexpensive camping just a few feet away from the town’s popular shops?

Although technically a city, Carpinteria has not lost its beach town appeal.

It is still dotted with the restaurants that have served its beach and agricultural community for years, including beach shack burgers from The Spot, steaks from The Palms and Mexican favorites from

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numerous taquerias, each teeming with customers during the high season.

In recent years, Carpinteria has woken up to host a handful of new community-spirited businesses, sourcing local, organic and, most of all, delicious food and drinks. It might be just the right time to take a journey to Carp (as the locals call it).

While there is ample free public parking near Linden Avenue, the train station is also conveniently located a few blocks from the beach. So taking the train is a great alternative to driving. It is relaxing, with beautiful ocean views. Hop aboard in Santa Barbara with a friend or two for a pleasant 20 minute ride into the heart of Carpinteria. Everything is reachable by foot once you arrive.

At the height of summer when inland is dry and hot, our coastal towns like Carpinteria often stay cool with a blanket of maritime fog, so be sure to layer up for your excursion. Chances are, the morning will start out cool and misty and the chill will wear off throughout the day to blue skies and warm tingly sunshine.

So, where will you eat? Well, we have you covered— morning, noon and night. Carpinteria’s food and drink culture has grown immensely. Here are a handful of places we love for their unique specialties and fresh, locally sourced food—many source from the Thursday afternoon farmers market that sprawls out on Linden Avenue.

BREAKFAST Breakfast is one of the highlights of eating in Carpinteria. While its industry to most visitors may look tourist-driven, its economic powerhouse is agriculture. Lining the foothills inland are miles of farmland with strawberries, citrus and orchid greenhouses.

The hard workers of Carpinteria agriculture are up early, and it’s no surprise that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

More

32 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 33

you know how rewarding it feels to boost back your energy with an acai bowl filled with good things like strawberries, granola and honey. Stop into any of the following for a healthy snack, smoothie or a coffee to perk yourself back up.

EDIBLE ROAD TRIP

Lucky Llama Coffee 5100 Carpinteria Ave. Carpinteria CA 93013 805 684-8811

Leaving Linden and heading down Carpinteria Avenue, you can pit stop for a pick-me-up at the Lucky Llama Café. This is a fun little coffee shop that’s clearly a supporter of local products in its own menu.

And additional local products are available for purchase, like Ocean Ranch Granola.

The organic, locally-roasted coffee beans are supplied

by Green Star Coffee. All the usual suspects of espresso Above: Lucky Llama Coffee drinks are available, with indoor tables and spacious outdoor seating under one of Carpinteria’s famous landmarks—the world’s largest Torrey Lucky Lama’s Mayan Mocha pine tree. If you didn’t have time for a full sit-down breakfast, the café serves up energizing acai bowls. Word on the street is that the avo bowl is amazing too.

Beach Bowl 901 Linden Ave. Carpinteria CA 93013 805 684-6844 TheBeachBowl.com

Worker Bee Café 973 Linden Ave. Carpinteria CA 93013 805 745-1828 » TheWorkerBee.com

One local option for a full, hearty breakfast is the Worker Bee Café, located at the far end of Linden Avenue. Owned and operated by a father and son duo, Rick and Rick Mancilla, the café has a classic diner feel and a “made from scratch” menu that includes free-range farm eggs and gluten-free bakery options. We love the long countertop spanning the length of the diner, and the polka-dot-topped tables at the booths. The sun shines in the windows in the morning as it breaks through the fog and brightens up your plate of chunky corned beef hash or sweet, fruit-topped French toast.

BREAK At some point in the day, you might dig your feet in the sand at the beach, or head out to the bluffs for a stroll. And if you’ve ever exhausted yourself from a long hike, or a gratifying jog, 34 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

Beach Bowl is a full-service juice bar specializing in pittaya (also called dragon’s fruit) and acai bowls, fresh fruit smoothies and organic frozen yogurt. It opened just this past May. Their coffee beans are roasted fresh from Santa Barbara Roasting Company.

Pacific Health Foods 944 Linden Ave. Carpinteria CA 93013 805 684-2115 » PacificHealthFood.com

Pacific Health Foods is a familyrun store with an old-town feel, operated by the Nolls since the early 1990s. They are longtime advocates of healthy living and their store supplies all manner of healthy groceries and lifestyle products.

Check out the juice bar, where you can pick up a freshly prepared shake or smoothie for a quick and nutritious meal on the go. We love the Hemp Date Shake and the Pink Goat Smoothie (made with goat yogurt and pomegranate juice).

More

San Roque Plaza ilfustino.com

Santa Barbara Public Market 888.798.4740

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 35

EDIBLE ROAD TRIP

which sells some of the best strawberries you’ll ever taste.

Zookers has been popular for lunch and dinner, with an atmosphere that is comfortable for casual to business-casual diners, many of whom are locals or workers from nearby business parks. The interior is decorated with orchids from Carpinteria’s nurseries, and if you look carefully you’ll see orchids growing on the trees outside the restaurant. Specialties include the Cobb salad, the Mediterranean chicken kabobs and anything on the specials board. At lunchtime, the half sandwich and a salad (or soup) special is substantial and just under $10.

The dinner menu is more formal, but some favorites are available for both lunch and dinner—like the cioppino, which has been popular since Zookers first opened more than a decade ago.

Nutbelly Pizzeria and Deli 915 Linden Ave. Carpinteria CA 93013 805 566-5944 » Nutbelly.com Nutbelly Pizzeria

LUNCH, DINNER AND DRINKS

Nutbelly has the ambiance of a modern tavern with wood-paneled walls, checkered tiles, updated with quirky and eclectic memorabilia ranging

Zookers 5404 Carpinteria Ave. Carpinteria CA 93013 805 684-8893 » ZookersCafe.com

We must thank Zookers for helping forge the trail for healthy, locally sourced food and for putting Carpinteria on the map as a dining destination years before “farm to table” became a household phrase. This restaurant is the farthest from the train station, but by no means a long walk away. Take the beach side of the street and you’ll pass by the public library and the expansive architecture and lawn of Carpinteria Middle School. If your timing is right, you’ll also pass by the produce stand for Shephard Farms at the corner of Carpinteria Avenue and Maple Street, The Nutbelly: sun-dried tomato pesto, zucchini, artichoke hearts, red onions, sunflower seeds and Parmesan cheese.

from cycling gear to squirrels to photographs from the Burning Man arts festival. It is welcoming to the casual beach diner but is by no means a hole-in-the-wall beach shack.

Nutbelly represents a synergy of local community with an Argentine flair, due to the heritage of one of its owners.

The menu incorporates fresh fruit and vegetables from the Carpinteria farmers market. We recommend a thin-crust pizza with lots of local vegetables. You don’t need to steer away from this pizzeria if you’re trying to cut gluten out of your life: Nutbelly caters to a number of dietary restrictions and allergies. So what does nutbelly mean? It’s slang for a full belly, which is how you’ll feel after noshing on their pizza and sandwiches.

More 36 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

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www.BernatWines.com EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 37

EDIBLE ROAD TRIP

Corktree is ideal for friends or couples wining and dining together so they can share charcuterie plates, tapas or baskets of gourmet French fries. A flight of three wines is about 1½ glasses of wine, so you can take your time and chat over your drinks but still enjoy a variety of tastes.

Sly’s Restaurant 686 Linden Ave. Carpinteria CA 93013 805 684-6666 » SlysOnline.com

Sly’s is a classic steakhouse with a casual beach town feel to it. If it seems like you’ve seen a similar menu at Lucky’s up the road in Montecito, it is because Sly’s is run by the former chef of Lucky’s, James Sly, and his wife, Annie. But this is Carpinteria, not Montecito, and casual diners with shorts and flip-flops are just as at ease sitting at the bar and watching the game as the fine diners at the linen-clothed tables in the back room or the lunch meetings in the front lounge.

The bar at Sly’s Restaurant

Corktree Cellars Wine Bar and Bistro 910 Linden Ave. Carpinteria CA 93013 805 684-1400 » CorktreeCellars.com

Corktree started out as a wine-tasting room, but expanded quickly into a restaurant and they haven’t looked back. It is an excellent choice for a smart-casual lunch—its elegant interior invites you to sit down for a power lunch, but you could just as easily linger over tapas with some sips of local wine from their extensive selection.

Corktree’s food menu is extensive, too, and offers upscale bistro fare like gourmet burgers and salads. Their fig burger is juicy and flavorful, on a soft bun, and there’s a gluten-free bread option. French fries are crisp and come in a wide array of options, such as Truffle Parmesan, and with six different dipping sauces.

Sly’s has a range of steakhouse offerings with a good mix of local flavor, like produce from Carpinteria’s farming community and fresh, local seafood. Everything offered here is top quality, but another thing that makes Sly’s stand out in Carpinteria (and all of the 805) is its line-up of classic cocktails.

Come here for a Moscow Mule served in a copper mug, or an Old Fashioned served with a real Luxardo maraschino cherry. Try the gin and tonic, and request the house tonic (made from scratch with quinine bark). The cocktail menu even lists the year each vintage drink was invented. Sly’s happy hour menu offers a selection of food items in addition to discounts on beer, wine and a cocktail of the day. The happy hour menu is available seven days a week, 4–6pm.

Outside of the happy hours, Sly’s still has delicious food—brunch, lunch and dinner. Ask about More 38 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

Now introducing the 4oz size!

Extra virgin olive oils, flavored olive oils, olive tapenades, table olives, gourmet vinegars, local food products.

Open Daily 11–5

2901 Grand Ave., Los Olivos 805 693-0700 olivehillfarm.com

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 39

EDIBLE ROAD TRIP

with linen-clothed tables, lush plantings and Italiante sculpture.

And it’s great for both lunch and dinner.

The cuisine is undeniably Italian, using vibrant fresh local produce. Pasta from scratch, perfectly al dente. Salads that are crisp and juicy where they should be. It tastes of both Carpinteria and of Italy, two separate Mediterranean climates, and the flavors merge well.

Surprisingly, it also has gluten-free options for pasta as well as desserts.

Local and Italian wines complement the food and in the summer you’ll find the white wines and rosés so refreshing, even if the fog is now rolling back in at the end of the day.

Giannfranco’s Trattoria

their Blue Plate Specials or their fixed price regional French menus ($35 per person or $55 with wine). Beginning July 8 they will be celebrating the cuisine of Provence. For a moderate-size meal at a great price, try one of the many variations on steamed mussels with plenty of crusty warm bread to soak up the juices. For dessert, do not pass up the profiteroles.

Giannfranco’s Trattoria 666 Linden Ave. Carpinteria CA 93013 806 684-0720 » Giannfrancos.com

When it’s time to treat yourself to a fine-dining experience and enjoy a taste of Italy in Carpinteria, Giannfranco’s makes you forget about the sand stuck between your toes. This is a wonderfully romantic spot with a beautiful back patio dotted

Island Brewing Company 5049 6th St. (at the train tracks) Carpinteria CA 93013 805 745-8272 » IslandBrewingCompany.com

Island Brewing Company is Carpinteria’s local brewery (although there are more soon to come) Tasting flight at Island Brewing Co. and it’s located literally across the street from the train station. In fact, the train tracks are adjacent to the tasting room—you may end up relaxing here until you see your train approaching.

The brewery attracts locals and visitors equally. Its popularity is obvious all throughout Carpinteria—any restaurant in the area with a food and wine license proudly shows a tap line with Island Brewing’s signature palm tree handle. So, yes, you can get a pint of their brew at numerous restaurants but come to the source for the widest selection. Newcomers can order a tasting flight, while the regulars go straight to a pint of their favorite. Try the honey avocado beer, as avocados are another popular Carpinteria product, and Carpinteria is host to an annual Avocado Festival every October (it will be October 3–5 this year).

Rosminah Brown is a Santa Barbara native who types fast and eats slow. She once jumped in the Neptune Pool at Hearst’s Castle. She is still upset that JR’s BBQ closed. You can read her blog at gutfud.com.

40 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

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42 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

Celebrating the Santa Barbara Food Landscape with Betty Fussell

by Nancy Oster P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y C A R O L E T O PA L I A N

Cooking and food history are Betty Fussell’s passion.

She has been writing about food for five decades.

Opposite: Betty Fussell at Rancho San Julian

good food writer makes you see the world around you in a new way. Betty Fussell is one of those writers. From Betty you learn that the roots of the corn in that nearby field go back to the Mayans, Aztecs and Incas and that the cows on the hills are reflections of our Spanish, Mexican and Native American heritage.

Betty was born (literally) in an orange grove in Riverside, California. Perhaps it was the fragrance of orange blossoms or the taste of the juice hand-squeezed by her father that set the tone for her lifelong appreciation of food freshly picked and simply prepared.

In her autobiography My Kitchen Wars she describes one of her earliest memories as a toddler on her grandparents’ farm in Colorado. Seeing the door to the icebox ajar, Betty found a thick cube of freshly churned butter on the shelf “smooth and velvety as ice cream,” she says. “I took it out and licked it. It got slippery in my hands, creamed my mouth, melted on my tongue, and ran down my throat. By the time they found me, I had consumed a whole pound of it. It was clear I was destined for a lifelong romance with butter…”

However, in her book Raising Steaks: The Life and Times of American Beef Betty says, “I was a child of the Depression, and our fancy meat for Sunday-noon dinner was boiled chicken or boiled beef tongue, or else a shoulder of lamb, boiled until cuttable with a spoon.” She was a freshman at Pomona College when she tasted her first grilled steak. Betty says, “I didn’t know how to chew it, or even how to use a knife to cut it into bitesized pieces!”

In the intervening 70 years Betty has lived primarily in New York and dined her way around Europe. Practicing the art of French cooking through Julia Child’s cookbook, she went beyond the boiled or pressure-cooked meals of her childhood and eventually began writing her own cookbooks.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 43

Rancho San Julian landscape

In Home Bistro she reveals the secret to becoming an excellent cook: “Forget the cook and look to the ingredients,” she says. “Simplest is best but the quality must be there. Quality is spelled F-R-E-S-H.” And that usually means grown nearby.

Betty has traveled around America studying the evolution of American food. Her earlier books, Masters of American Cookery and I Hear America Cooking focused on traditional foods and how our cooking has changed in the past century. That led her to write The Story of Corn, which won the Jane Grigson Award, in the International Association of Culinary Professionals Julia Child Cookbook Awards of 1993, for its in-depth look at corn’s role in the rituals, culture, food and agriculture of the Americas.

The use of corn to feed America’s cattle awakened Betty’s interest in the history and evolution of American beef production and its cultural legacy, highlighting the contrast between the pastoral romance and industrial reality. She completed her most recent book Raising Steaks five years ago when she was 81.

Having read Betty’s autobiography, I was not surprised when the tall willowy woman in the elegant white Panama hat and persimmon orange top introduced herself with a ready smile and a confident handshake. We were at El Encanto for lunch, joined by Edible Santa Barbara editor Krista Harris and 44 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

Eighth generation land-grant rancher Elizabeth Poett

Edible Community founders Tracey Ryder and Carole Topalian.

We were all eager to find out what had inspired Betty’s recent move from New York to Santa Barbara. She raised her hands. “Three things,” she said: “the sea, the mountains and the architecture.”

Her search for a retirement community began two years ago and, as you might expect, access to good food was the deciding factor. She visited five locations in Santa Barbara, having a meal at each. Her choice was Casa Dorinda, for its Spanish architecture, lovely dining room, and the kitchen in her apartment, which gives her the option to shop the farmers market and cook for herself and friends.

We were seated on the restaurant terrace, with views across the city to the silvery blue ocean and shadowy islands. Betty asked us about local sea urchin, black cod, abalone, ridgeback shrimp, rock crab, spiny lobster and oysters—some of them unique to our area.

As we turned to the menu, our discussion turned to seasonal foods. The peach and kale salad— lightly dressed, with a sprinkling of freshly trimmed Johnny Jump-up flowers —was an easy choice. But since El Encanto’s menu changes seasonally, we decided to order one of each appetizer and salad to share.

Map on the wall of the old dining room at Rancho San Julian

Betty Fussell

That settled, we toasted Santa Barbara with a crisp white wine. During lunch Betty asked us about Rancho San Julian and their beef production. We offered to contact the Poett family to schedule a visit to their historic ranch near Lompoc.

Having read Betty’s book on American beef, Elizabeth Poett not only invited us to visit their 13,000-acre ranch, but asked us to join her family for lunch in the old ranch house dining room.

On a chilly January morning, I met Betty at the Casa Dorinda reception entrance. She had warned me to make room in my car for her walker because she’d torn a ligament in her ankle while coyote hunting with her son Sam (in subzero weather) during Thanksgiving in Montana.

A hands-on researcher, the coyote hunt was research for her next book, titled How to Cook a Coyote. For Raising Steaks, she had crawled through catclaw thorns to track wild game on a former cattle ranch in Southern Texas and participated in a beef-processing workshop at Texas A&M University. In Betty’s busy life, a torn ligament is a journalistic risk — a temporary inconvenience.

As we travel along Highway 1, Betty tells me that Rancho San Julian is exactly the kind of ranch she was searching for when she was writing Raising Steaks. “Ranches like this are so

rare,” she says. “A Spanish-Mexican land grant ranch still owned by descendants of the same family?”

Rancho San Julian was established in 1817 by José de la Guerra to provide meat for the Santa Barbara Presidio and granted to de la Guerra in 1837. The Poetts are one part of the large family of descendants who still own the ranch.

Seventh-generation descendant Jim Poett continues the cattle ranch tradition. His daughter Elizabeth keeps the steers from her father’s herd and sells ranch-raised beef to area restaurants, caterers and at our local farmers markets. With help from Elizabeth’s husband, Austin Campbell, they work the cattle portion of this historic ranch—mostly on horseback.

As we drive through the gate and up to the adobe ranch house, we see that everyone has gathered on the grass, talking and warming up in the morning sun. Jim is holding his copy of Raising Steaks. He greets Betty and suggests we take a short drive to the top of Los Amolas hills for a panoramic view of the valley and hillsides where cows have grazed for almost 200 years.

Drought conditions have altered the landscape and the size of the herd. “Normally, this time of year this landscape would all be green,” Jim says. The cows would be grazing on native grasses, but his year he must bring in hay to supplement their diet. When our EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 45

landscape turns gray, it’s a tough year for grass-fed cows.

The wind has picked up (bringing a hope of rain). Betty holds on to her white Stetson hat, asking Jim more questions about the legendary cattle drives down through the Gaviota Pass and the challenges faced by today’s local cattle ranchers.

Back at the ranch house, candles are lit on the long wooden table in the old dining room where, from about 1850 to WWII, resident cowboys ate their daily meals. A fire in the fireplace warms the adobe walls. The fragrance of beef stew, made with the garden-grown vegetables, draws us to the table. Generations of ancestors look down from photos on the walls. Elizabeth tosses the salad and we pour wine for a toast: “To rain!”

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Cattle ranch stories and laughter fill the resonant room.

Jim tells us that the Mexican, Native American and Anglo cowboys on Santa Barbara’s ranches, were well known for their leatherwork, braiding and saddle-making skills.

Far too soon it’s time to leave. Two-year-old Jack comes in looking for his mom, Elizabeth, so we say our good-byes to all three generations of this ranch family.

At the gate, we wait to turn left onto Highway 1. “Look!”

Betty points to the field across from us. A long line of cows marches single file behind the alpha cow. The afternoon sun illuminates their silhouettes. “Perfectly bred geometric rectangles,” she says. “Aren’t they gorgeous?”

If you’ve read her work, however, you know that Betty does not settle for one-dimensional pastoral perspectives of our food landscape or leave myths unchallenged. At 86 she’s still stirring it up with articles in national magazines and newspapers, interviews and talks.

Outspoken and passionate about Santa Barbara’s food resources, she brings local food artisans like Shawn Addison of Figueroa Farms to Casa Dorinda to do tastings of his olive oils for fellow residents, so they can be more aware of their food choices in a place like Santa Barbara. She has also treated them to Global Gardens olive oil ice cream, made from Theo Stephan’s olives in Los Alamos. She sometimes invites

friends for an afternoon tasting on her patio, featuring her latest local food discovery. It may be our local oysters off Hope Ranch or four varieties of avocados picked up from Saturday’s farmers market.

“We live in a very special place,” she says, “And everyone should know that.”

Indeed, and so we should. And you can bet that Betty will continue to do her part to see that we do.

Nancy Oster grew up in Southern California taking for granted things like morning delivery of fresh milk, chicken farms and abalone-shellcovered beaches. Now they are gone and she wishes she hadn’t.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 47

Top: Betty Fussell; right: Austin Campbell and Elizabeth Poett. Bottom: The old dining room at Rancho San Julian; Beef stew, bread and salad; Betty Fussell and Elizabeth Poett.

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Betty’s Recipes

Summer Stew Makes 4–6 servings

Grilled Rib Eye Steaks

3 pounds beef stew meat (including bones, if possible)

1- to 11⁄ 2 -inch-thick rib eye steaks

Salt and pepper (to taste)

Salt, pepper, olive oil

Flour (for dredging)

Bring steaks to room temperature. If frozen, thaw them in the refrigerator first. Dry the meat well with paper towels. Press grains of salt, fresh black pepper into both sides.

Pile hot coals in the middle of the grill and leave until the coals are glowing but without flame. Test the heat by holding your hand 5 inches above the coals: if you can hold your hand there for less than a second, that’s the heat you want. Sear the steaks well, a couple of minutes on each side. Note: If you are not using a charcoal grill, a good substitute is a heavy cast-iron grill pan or skillet. Heat the pan on the stove without oil until the pan is very hot and sear the steaks on each side.

Brush with olive oil on both sides after searing to transmit heat and flavor into the center of the meat. If the steak is thick, move it away from the pile of hot coals (after searing) to cook more slowly. The rule of thumb for a 1-inch-thick steak is 10 minutes for rare, 15 minutes for medium, 20 minutes for well done. Obviously this will vary. You can also test by pressing your forefinger on top of the meat to judge how firm the flesh is. Or you can cut the flesh along the bone and look at the degree of rareness (blood red or brownish).

Remove meat from the grill before it reaches the doneness you want because the meat will continue to cook as it rests. Let it rest for 5 minutes to relax the muscle and draw juices from the surface back into the interior. If you are serving the steak plain, add a pat of herbed butter to the top before serving.

Herbed Butter 1 to 3 tablespoons butter per steak, room temperature, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs (thyme, rosemary, parsley, chives, garlic etc.)

Optional: 1 teaspoon Meyer lemon juice

2 tablespoons olive oil 1 cup good beef broth (hot) 1

⁄ 2 cup good red wine (like a Zinfandel)

Tie in a bundle: 1 sprig rosemary, 2 sprigs fresh thyme 2 bay leaves, 2 sprigs parsley, 1 sprig lavender 2 carrots 1 onion 1 turnip 1 rib celery 1 jalapeño chili 2 large ripe tomatoes (skin on) 3 ears fresh corn to make about 2 cups kernels Chopped parsley for garnish

Cut flesh from the bone and cut the meat into 2-inch cubes. Season the meat with salt and pepper, and dredge meat and bones with flour.

Heat oil in a large, heavy pan like a Dutch oven and brown the beef quickly on all sides. Add broth, wine and herbs. Bring to a simmer, cover the pan tightly and keep at a bare simmer for 2 to 2½ hours.

Chop the carrots, onion, turnip and celery in ½- to 1-inch pieces.

Brown them in a separate skillet in hot oil and add to the stew pot.

Simmer for 5 minutes.

Discard the seeds of the chili and chop the flesh fine. Cut the tomatoes in 1-inch pieces and add, along with the corn kernels. Bring to the simmer again, remove the bones and herb bundle with tongs, and serve stew immediately so that the vegetables (except for the tomatoes) remain crispy. Sprinkle the top of each bowl with chopped parsley (or an herb of your choice).

Mix well.

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50 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

Liquid Kodachrome Vintage Wines Hold History Beneath Their Corks

by Laura Sanchez

A

bottle of wine captures a moment. It contains a snapshot of the year—the dramatic burst of bud break, the pulse-quickening rise and fall of climatic threats, the crystallization of a time and a place — suspended in liquid.

That is the essence of the vintage.

Years from now, a taste will reveal these earthly anecdotes like old photos relate tales of youthful adventures and family resemblances. Histories are released each time a cork slides out.

Polaroids of Past Vintages “It’s an act of faith to plant a vineyard,” says winemaker Rick Longoria. “There are never any guarantees that you’re going to be able to make great wine from it. Special sites are rare, even in a place like this.”

And that’s exactly what makes the 14-year-old wine he pours into our glasses so meaningful.

Longoria makes site-driven wines. As he eases the cork out of a bottle of 2000 Pinot Noir from Fe Ciega Vineyard (then called Blind Faith Vineyard), he explains his intention to let the vineyard and vintage tell its story. He ferments each lot under the same conditions and ages them in neutral barrels, a uniformity of process that ensures that his Pinot Noir from Mount Carmel Vineyard tastes markedly different from his Bien Nacido Pinot Noir solely because it reflects the place and the year.

Fe Ciega is Longoria’s only estate vineyard. He planted it in 1998 on a south-facing bluff overlooking the Santa Ynez River. The nine-acre site was beautiful but remote and its terrain treacherous. Within the first year, one third of the vines weakened and died as the result of a nursery error. Longoria was heartbroken but determined. So he replanted a third of the vines.

In 2000 the vines were only in their third leaf—one out of three had only been trained up the stake that year—so he didn’t anticipate any crop. Instead, he pruned them back aggressively to encourage vine structure and root growth, an investment in future vintages.

Nonetheless, the stronger plants produced a few grapes— two to four gleaming clusters each. The crop was miniscule and didn’t justify the labor and expense of bird netting so he chose to let the few grapes hang.

But from time to time, as he plucked grapes and tasted, he started to sense that there was something unique about the flavor profile. It had its own identity and it tasted really good. The anticipation was overwhelming.

“I equate it to awaiting the birth of a child when you just can’t wait to see its face. We had this new little vineyard and I wondered, ‘What does it look like?’

‘What are its unique features?’”

Birds posed a serious threat. Without nets, the birds would devour the grapes the moment they became ripe. Longoria knew if he waited long there would be nothing to pick. So at 22.4 brix he decided to harvest early and vinify what he could, collecting 300 pounds of fruit from nine acres— the precious equivalent of 140 bottles of wine.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 51

“You just don’t know if you’ll ever be able to make great wine from a new vineyard… until you do,” Longoria said as we inhaled the fragrance of the 2000 Pinot Noir. “Fe Ciega as I’ve come to know it has an interesting herbal earthiness that I equate with coastal sage and an oceanic, low tide aroma,” he said, swirling the wine in his glass.

“This is the purest expression of Fe Ciega I’ve ever made,” he said, explaining that subsequent vintages have shown facets of the original but that it’s never been duplicated. Aromatic waves of fern, cedar and earth emerged and receded. It was lively with acidity and bursts of deep-toned fruit, leather and cigar smoke.

We tasted and contemplated the wine’s ability to reflect the circumstances of that year, speculating about the early pick date’s influence on acids and structure. We wondered out loud about the minerals of untapped soil and young vines producing the Technicolor expression of site that we had just experienced.

And then Longoria paused for a moment, lost in thought. “I knew the second I tasted this wine that we had a special vineyard,” he said. “Because it didn’t just hint at Fe Ciega’s potential. It gleamed with it.”

Q 1979 was the peak of disco, flared denim and “The Dukes of Hazzard.” It was the era of renegade politics and Patty Hearst. Memories of this year came flooding forth as Richard Ward and David Graves of Saintsbury Winery in the Napa Valley shared a bottle of their 1979 Riesling with me — an edgy little wine they made with grapes from Santa Barbara County’s iconic Sanford and Benedict Vineyard.

As we inhaled the almond and fading citrus aromas and admired the deep honey hue, they explained why in 1979 two young Napa winemakers made a Riesling from Santa Barbara County and why rather than its labeled name, they call it The Sniper.

“We heard there was a cool Pinot Noir vineyard in Santa Barbara County, so we took a road trip in March of ’78 to check it out,” Ward says of their exploratory visit. “At that time, there was nothing out in the Sta. Rita Hills. Just cows and farmland on Santa Rosa Road.”

Richard Sanford and Michael Benedict planted their namesake vineyard in 1971, first with Cabernet and Riesling vines and later Pinot Noir. Their pioneering effort proved that high-quality wine grapes could be grown successfully in Santa Barbara County.

52 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

As it turned out, all of the Pinot Noir that year had already been allocated to other winemakers. So Sanford offered Ward and Graves some Riesling. They planned to pick and transport the fruit back to Napa to vinify.

Ward had read about a high-acid Riesling from King Leopold I’s cellar made in 1540 AD. When sold at auction and opened 300 years later, the wine had retained its vibrancy and flavor. That was exactly the style they should experiment with, he thought. They could label it 1540 AD. Ward swirled the liquid in his glass and marveled at how, after 34 years in bottle, the Riesling still revealed the lemony acids and linear focus of its youth.

In early October 1979 he had borrowed a buddy’s truck and loaded it with picking bins (which were wooden then).

But before heading south on the 101, he met Graves and a few others at the San Francisco Opera for an evening performance of Verdi’s Don Carlo. “It’s not a short opera and we were standees. But that’s just how we rolled in those days,” he explained with a wink.

“It was the end of tenure of the great General Director Kurt Herbert Adler, who was Austrian and, from what I could tell, pretty unflappable.

‘Meine damen und heren… there has been a police situation,’” Ward said, mimicking the conductor’s accent as he announced that a gunman had opened fire outside on Market Street.

No one could exit out the front doors of the building.

The opera continued through two more acts. But tension had overtaken the audience. In fact, scripted gunfire onstage startled several audience members. “People really jumped out of their seats,” the two laughed.

Between sips, Graves pulled up a digital account of the October 5 incident. A shooter affiliated with the Symbionese Liberation Army and World Liberation Organization had trapped hundreds of people in office buildings, auditoriums and overhangs for hours. Though terrifying, no one had been injured.

Unfortunately, Ward had parked the truck near Market Street. So at the opera’s conclusion, when audience members were ushered out the auditorium’s side and back doors, there was no way to access it. The grapes would have to wait. Instead he walked to a friend’s house and slept on the floor while Graves ferried other operagoers back to Napa.

In the morning, Sanford called from Santa Barbara. The picking crews were waiting. Ward retrieved the truck and drove from San Francisco to Santa Barbara and back to Napa that day with the grapes.

As their barrel of juice bubbled through primary fermentation, he grew a malolactic culture in his microbiology professor’s office at UC Davis.

“We had no expectation other than it was an experiment.

We thought if we couldn’t get Pinot at least we could have fun doing this,” he said. “For us, putting a white wine through malolactic was iconoclastic so it was interesting.”

The wine’s unconventional elevage meant unpredictable results. No matter how much of the malolactic culture they introduced, it would not complete secondary fermentation.

Ward added an unprecedented number of bacteria and at one point they wrapped the barrel in an electric blanket to encourage it along, with limited success. They bottled it anyway.

“It was a very grassroots effort,” added Graves.

Ward stuck his nose in the glass and inhaled deeply. The wine smelled hazelnutty with oxidation and breathed only an echo of its original fruit. It was captivating and complex. But its focus and sharpshooter past, he explained, is why among the barrels of their Napa cellar, they call it The Sniper. And each time they open a bottle they relive its history.

A Time Capsule How will the environment sculpt the vines this year? What delectable stamp will 2014 place on the wines?

Through documentary films and podcasts, still photos and Twitter feeds, Wil Fernandez and the Vintage 2014 creative team are capturing the essence of the growth cycle. And in gathering the stories, sounds and images of the vineyards’ natural processes and colorful characters, the project is creating a time capsule representative of the vintage.

They will relate these vinous artifacts through a rich multimedia experience.

“Our goal is to connect people with the vines and show them where their wine comes from,” Fernandez says of his many-layered project. “You can check out Instagram, watch YouTube videos, attend events or take part in our tastings.

There’s really something for everyone.” A documentary film series and interactive tastings across the country will offer wine drinkers first-hand experience with the stories behind the liquid.

Recently the team captured the microscopic unfurling of bud break with a high-powered time-lapse camera. The footage is intimate and soulful. And by returning us to wine’s earthly origins, the project offers toothsome insight. For in the years to come, we’ll look back on each of 2014’s temperature fluctuations and rain days, anecdotes and harvest dates like a hazy home movie. And as we sip, we’ll marvel at how brilliantly the liquid translates these vintage-specific details.

Visit Vintage 2014.com for more info.

Laura Sanchez is a Santa Barbara–based wine writer whose work appears in an array of print and online publications. Laura@Nectar-Media.com.

134 E. Canon Perdido Street, Santa Barbara 805-965-7922 SojournerCafe.com EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 53

54 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

The New Solvang

How a Small Town Became a Big Culinary Destination

by Shannon Essa PHOTOGRAPHY BY JEFFREY BLOOM

T

he place: Solvang. The time: early 2000s. The vibe: lonely. That is how I felt, anyway, on the nights I had to spend in Solvang on business trips. There was nowhere to go to have a nice glass of wine and not much to eat besides Danish food. I felt better off in Buellton, and in those days that was not the most happening of towns either. Then, as the decade started making its way to the end, things started to change.

Solvang was not always the culinary desert I had witnessed firsthand in the early years of the new millennium. Besides the Danish restaurants and bakeries that brought tourists en masse to Solvang, there were some bright spots in the 1980s and 1990s.

Early Culinary Days Perhaps longtime Valley residents will remember the Belle Terrace, run by John Martino, which opened in 1980 and served northern Italian cuisine for a few years. Jim Clendenen waited on tables there, and Anne Bunch, currently still in Solvang as head of the kitchen at New Frontiers Natural Marketplace, also worked at the Belle Terrace. It was the early days of Santa Barbara County wine, and John sold bottles of Sanford & Benedict, Zaca Mesa, J. Carey, Firestone and Brander to customers like Ken Brown, Bob Lindquist, Frank Ostini and Lane Tanner—they were all regulars there.

In 1996 the famous Nichols brothers, Jeff and Matt, opened their first Brothers Restaurant in Solvang before outgrowing it and moving on to Los Olivos in 2000. “The brothers were the original team at Mirabelle and they really raised the bar in Solvang,” John Martino told me. “That was the first really great restaurant Solvang had, and when they left Chef Norbert came in.

Norbert really kept the ball rolling.” Mirabelle, with Chef Norbert Schultz in the kitchen, is still there.

In 2004 the film Sideways came out and created the buzz, nationally, about Santa Barbara County wines. Then a few wine tasting rooms opened their doors in Solvang. This was a start. But the tasting rooms still closed early.

Chef Pink and Courtney DeLongpre

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 55

Far right: Chef Seth Nelson and team in the kitchen at Root 246

Mike Brown and Beau Armenta of Root 246

Getting On the Map It was John Martino, somewhat of an unofficial mayor of Solvang, who opened Root 246 for the Santa Ynez Chumash tribe in 2009. It was a big deal for Solvang—an upscale eatery with a celebrity chef.

“We really thought it was time we could bring someone of Bradley Ogden’s caliber to the Valley,” John told me, “and our sights were always set on Solvang.” When Bradley left after three years, Root 246 kept its farm-to-table roots intact but the current managers, Valley natives Mike Brown and Beau Armenta, are shooting for a “something for everyone” menu served in a more casual environment.

Susan Williams at Wandering Dog Wine Bar

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“Beau and I have a direct connection and responsibility to the community. Our parents are here, and if we are not doing the right thing, we will hear about it,” Mike told me. He wants it to be a gathering place for visitors and locals alike. Along with Chef Seth Nelson, Beau and Mike are an energetic team doing some exciting new things: making their own vinegar and charcuterie and running a series of interesting craft-beerpairing dinners.

The Forerunners Wandering Dog Wine Bar preceded Root 246 by two years and the Williams family, which owns it, has seen many changes firsthand.

Residents of Solvang since 1988, they have seen their part of town—the “west side”—go from ghost town to thriving. “When we first moved to Solvang there weren’t that many restaurants and the wine industry was not near what it is today. There honestly wasn’t a whole lot to do up here.” Susan Williams told me.

Susan’s son CT adds, “Right around the early 2000s the most common thing someone would say about Solvang is ‘There are so many empty stores.’ It seemed like a third of the storefronts were vacant. Having Root 246 open and having that presence of a celebrity chef helped. Mirabelle helped. David Cecchini’s place Cecco helped.”

Maybe they helped later, but in 2007 it took some guts to open a wine bar in a block full of empty storefronts. It took about a year and a half to really get going—in the early days, hardly anything in Solvang was open after 5pm. “We made the decision that we would be open until 8pm no matter what, and it was painful,” says Susan. Resilience paid off, and now they are open even later on the weekends.

Wandering Dog started out specializing in wineries that didn’t have tasting rooms or had limited production. “In those days there were a lot of small producers that couldn’t get started—it was kind of a catch 22. No one would bring on their wines because no one had heard of them before, but no one had heard of them because no one was bringing on the wines. So we decided to be an outlet for those wineries,” says CT. As things evolved in Solvang they also evolved at Wandering Dog. They carry more wines from other parts of the world and have an impressive beer list. They also do a popular monthly class exploring a different wine region every month.

Susan Williams has been instrumental to Solvang’s renaissance in another way—as co-creator and current executor of Solvang’s Third Wednesday program. For $20, participants receive a logo glass and can taste two wines or beers at five of the participating wine or beer tasting rooms. Started in 2008, Third Wednesday coincides with the weekly farmers market and has over the years become a very popular event.

The Food Scene The Fresco Valley Café was the next place to open, in September 2010. The original Fresco Café is a landmark in Santa Barbara.

In 2009 owners Aric Christopher and Matt Raab approached the owners about opening a new location. Matt’s father lived in the Valley so he’d spent a lot of time in the area, and he wanted a place that felt like home. They found their location, which is off

Matt Raab of Fresco Valley Café

the main drag in Atterdag Square and rebuilt it from scratch in seven months.

Now they are a firm Valley favorite serving a wide range of menu items all sourced from local and organic products; all their wines are from Valley wineries. Their outdoor patio is a peaceful respite from the hustle and bustle a block away and their dog menu is renowned.

“We have people come here and just order for their dog,” Matt tells me. These are no ordinary doggie meals—dogs get steak, salmon and Angus beef patties. Non-canine diners have an impressive list of salads, sandwiches and specials to choose from.

“Solvang has changed a lot since we opened—there are more heavy hitters here making this a dining destination where it used to be primarily just a place to eat Danish food. When we opened we were the only [non-Danish] restaurant besides Root 246 and the [now closed] Café Angelica. Then some good spots opened up around us. This is good for everybody,” says Matt. “We are stoked that we chose Solvang because in 10 years, in the direction we are headed, it’s right on track to where our vision is.”

Craft Brewing While Matt and Aric were serving their first salads, Cari and Steve Renfrow were putting the finishing touches on their brewery and restaurant. The Solvang Brewing Company opened in October 2010 at the beginning of the craft beer craze. The couple got their craft beer start when Cari worked at the Sierra Nevada Brewery while in college; with a free case a week as an employee perk, both Steve and Cari started to develop the palate and passion of craft beer aficionados.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 57

Alfred and Lisa Mesa (behind the bar) at The Good Life

Assistant brewer Logan Preston (left) and brewmaster David Lusk at the Solvang Brewing Company

Moving back to Solvang at the beginning of the recession, Steve (who was in construction) and Cari (who was trying to start a teaching career when teachers were being laid off left and right) realized they needed to reinvent themselves. Cari Renfrow is a fourth-generation Solvang resident (Steve and Cari’s adorable baby son, Brice, is fifth generation)—they started thinking about Cari’s heritage and what Solvang meant to them.

“When we moved back to Solvang, we would have friends and family visit and there was no place to go out. We started buying craft beer and having gatherings at home,” says Steve.

Cari adds, “We wanted to open up something for our friends, for us, and for our community; something we are passionate about.”

In what used to be the famous Danish Inn, the Solvang Brewing Company was born.

Steve and Cari were driven and motivated from the very beginning, but the early days were not easy for them. They had hired a brewer who wasn’t right for them, and they were not happy with their own product. They saw the craft beer scene in the Valley growing, and they knew their product was lacking.

They had to, once again, start anew—and this time it paid off.

Steve managed to lure San Diego–based brewer David Lusk to Solvang and ever since, the craft beers at the Solvang Brewing Company have met and even exceeded the high standards of the Renfrows and are winning craft beer medals and competitions.

Though it is a brewery first and a restaurant second, the menu has something for everyone and the food is high quality with much of it sourced locally. David Lusk makes 17 beers—12 that 58 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

are full-size batches and the rest five-gallon batches where he experiments with styles and flavors.

Now the beer community has grown in Solvang to the point where it is virtually as strong as the wine community. At Alfred and Lisa Mesa’s Good Life Craft Beer and Wine Cellar, the couple offers both Central Coast wines and California craft beers.

“There is a huge beer community here,” Lisa says. “Everybody brews.” They also serve local food products—everything is from California. The almonds are Fat Uncle, the olives are Fusano and the chocolates are Stafford’s. The Good Life’s charcuterie plates are brought in from Succulent Café across the street.

“We told Brian [chef and charcuterie-master at Succulent Café] all we ask is that everything be from California,” Lisa told me. When they opened a year and a half ago, there were still a lot of empty storefronts around them. There has been a lot of growth since. “The more places that open here in Solvang, the better it is,” says Lisa.

There is another hub for beer aficionados in Solvang, but this one is not a restaurant or a bar. Chris Kelly and Sandy Harrison’s shop is part brewing, winemaking and cheesemaking supplies, part community center for enthusiasts and part coffee klatch (without the coffee) where all manner of topics are discussed with people you wonder why you have never met before.

I first met Mike Brown, the manager of Root 246, there.

He works with Sandy and Chris on the Root 246 beer-pairing dinners. “Chris and Sandy sell brewing supplies,” says Mike. “But Valley Brewers is also a meeting place of creative minds. I tell them when they get bigger they will need a table that seats 24 to throw ideas around.”

Valley Brewers decided to open up in Solvang because of the Solvang Brewing Company and Succulent Café opening up and it has proved to be a good fit. Chris and Sandy have classes and a popular home brewing club that meets once a month.

A Little Bit of Italy Brian and Kathy McInerney had planned to open an Italian-style deli with outdoor seating, until they met Chef David Cecchini and their concept changed into a northern Italian one. Cecco Ristorante was opened in February 2011.

David Cecchini has a lot of experience—he started working at a young age at his family’s restaurant in Burbank, before moving on to Glendale to open a restaurant with his brother.

When a third brother, who was supposed to cook, went into the insurance business instead, David and his other brother flipped a coin to see who would be working in the kitchen. And with that coin toss, Chef David Cecchini was born. He’d move on to several other restaurants including the Wine Cask in Santa Barbara before starting Cecco.

He lives in Santa Ynez now, but he used to live right up the street. There was an opportunity about six years ago in a building that is still vacant.

“I really thought, ‘If you build it they will come,’” David told me. “The people that I talked to back then—and I was very close to signing —were pretty negative about opening a place in Solvang. They thought it would not work. And those people lived right across the street.” Years went by, things started changing, and then he met Brian and Kathy.

Pizza at Cecco

Bruschetta and Caprese salad at Cecco

The time was right. They built Cecco, and the customers came. Brian tells me they had the restaurant 90% done when David decided he wanted a wood-burning pizza oven; it took another four months to open.

“Without David, we don’t have a successful restaurant. It is his food, where he came from, his history, his ability—his family had over 50 years in the restaurant business. When you start any relationship you look at the core, and the core was solid,” says Brian.

Cecco has rounded out the dining options in Solvang with inspired Italian cuisine. “In the last year there were seven restaurant spaces that were vacant—two are still empty,” David tells me. “But there are a lot more choices than one used to have.

Every one suits a certain person.”

The Charcuterie Renaissance

Chef David Cecchini of Cecco Ristorante

Succulent Café and Charcuterie Bar, Cynthia Miranda and Brian Champlin’s über-popular eatery across from Cecco, also came about because of David Cecchini. Cynthia and Brian came to Solvang to help him open Cecco, and then stayed to open their own place. Both veterans of several Santa Barbara restaurants and owners of a catering company, they were looking specifically for a place to sell sandwiches during the day and operate their catering company from the kitchen.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 59

Fried chicken salad at Succulent Café and Charcuterie Bar; right: the patio at Succulent.

Bacon burger at Succulent

“We thought it was going to be a mom and pop shop—I was going to be on the hot line, Cynthia was going to be in the front, and we’d have a dishwasher. It was going to be a three-man show,” Brian says. It didn’t work out that way—they opened with seven tables inside and a few tables outside and were a runaway hit from the get-go. They thought they would only open for lunch and serve a few sandwiches while using the kitchen primarily for catering but it was so popular they started serving breakfast and then dinner. Now they have expanded into the space next door with their charcuterie bar.

Brian is very passionate about charcuterie, and makes his own bacon, pancetta and pastrami, his own pâtés and terrines, and coffee-cured duck prosciutto. The couple are also into food preservation and do their own pickling.

“How do we use tomatoes when tomatoes aren’t in season?” asks Cynthia. “It just makes sense that you would go to the farmers market, purchase everything, jar it just like our grandmas used to do and then be able to have those tomatoes throughout the season.”

It is now a little hard to imagine Solvang before all these places opened up. “When we moved in here, this whole block was a ghost town. Wandering Dog Wine Bar was instrumental in getting focus on this side of town. There were a lot of empty storefronts, and I think we were a part in helping the resurgence of this side of Solvang,” says Cynthia. “And when we came to Solvang it was perfect timing. We couldn’t have planned it any better,” Brian adds.

Now there is yet another new kid on the block: Bacon and 60 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

Brine. Housed in a tiny space opposite Fresco Café in Atterdag Square, the focus of partners Courtney and Crystal “Chef Pink” DeLongpre is on smoked and cured meats and fermented foods. Chef Pink is the new celebrity chef to come to town; she appeared as a contestant on the Food Network’s “Cutthroat Kitchen” twice (winning once) and worked for many well-known chefs before landing in Santa Barbara to helm her own kitchens.

Courtney grew up in the Valley. Since the birth of her child four years ago she has been obsessed with fermented foods and discovered she had a knack for working with things like sauerkraut and kombucha. Customers of Bacon and Brine are able to try fermented foods on their menu items and buy them to go, and it is the goal of the DeLongpre’s to educate and enlighten their customers on the wonders of fermented foods.

The small menu is dictated by what the farmers have and what part of the animal Chef Pink is working with.

“I have always put the rancher and the farmer before my ego and before my food. This is a really good opportunity for me to do that, because we are so close to everyone,” says Chef Pink. “All of our great abundant produce and all of our great proteins are being raised up in the Santa Ynez Valley. And what better way to be immersed in that community than to open up a little spot right here?”

Q It is inspiring to see the strides Solvang has made in becoming a culinary destination rather than just a stop on the tour bus route from Los Angeles to San Francisco.

“We believe beer should be fun, innovative and invigorating,” Steve from Solvang Brewing Company told me. “It is the unique qualities of the product we all strive for and that is why we call it a craft. Creating a product worthy of the consumer requires integrity, hard work and a lot of passion.” His words could be spoken about the wine, food and beer scene in Solvang and all the people behind it.

We can thank all who took the chance to use the local bounty of the Santa Ynez Valley to create a place we now want to visit, eat and drink in. To them, we raise a hearty Skål— cheers, in Danish!

Shannon Essa is the author of restaurant guidebook Chow Venice! and splits her time between Santa Barbara and Europe, writing and leading wine-, beer- and food-based tours in Spain and Italy for Grapehops Tours.

Where to Eat and Drink in Solvang Bacon & Brine 453 Atterdag Rd.; 805 688-8809 BaconAndBrine.com

Cecco Ristorante 475 First St.; 805 688-8880 CeccoRistorante.com

Fresco Valley Café 442 Atterdag Rd.; 805 688-8857 FrescoValleyCafe.com

The Good Life Craft Beer & Wine Cellar

RANCHO OLIVOS FREE OLIVE OIL TASTING OPEN DAILY 12–4PM Mention this ad for your discount 2390 N REFUGIO RD SANTA YNEZ, CA 93460

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1672 Mission Dr.; 805 688-7111 TheGoodLifeCellar.com

The Bistro at Hadsten House 1450 Mission Dr.; 805 688-3210 HadstenHouse.com

Mirabelle 409 First St.; 805 688-1703 MirabelleInn.com

Root 246 420 Alisal Rd.; 805 686.8681 Root-246.com

Santé Wine Bar & Lounge 433 Alisal Rd.; 805 291-0547 SanteWineBarLounge.com

Solvang Brewing Company 1547 Mission Dr.; 805 688-2337 SolvangBrewing.com

Succulent Café & Charcuterie Bar 1555 Mission Dr.; 805 691.9444 SucculentCafe.com

Wandering Dog Wine Bar

1539 C Mission Dr.; 805 688-8880 WanderingDogWineBar.com

What to Do in Solvang Check Out Valley Brewers 515 Fourth Pl.; 805 691-9159 ValleyBrewers.com

Visit the Farmers Market Summer Hours; Every Wednesday, 2:30 – 6:30pm First Street between Mission Dr. and Copenhagen Dr.

Enjoy the Wine & Beer Walk Third Wednesday of every month, 3–7pm SolvangThirdWednesday.com

Go to the Theater

Solvang Festival Theater & the Pacific Conservatory Theatre; Summer 2014 Season: June 12 through September 7; SolvangFestivalTheater.org; PCPA.org

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 61

The Thrill of the Grill

by Pascale Beale

W

hen I was growing up, barbecues were something that occurred rarely and usually on a special occasion. They were not an every-weekend occurrence. They were neither practical in rainy London, nor easy to produce as few people had a trusty Weber (or its equivalent) tucked away in their homes. In fact I can safely say that we never cooked a barbecue in London in all the years that I lived there.

You might find it odd then, that I am writing about grilling food but bear with me. My earliest memories of barbecues come from France, specifically in my grandparents’ garden, in August, where the family would gather for an annual get-together. Lunch in the garden at their house took on epic proportions. The location for the pique-nique/barbecue was some distance from the kitchen so everything had to be

prepared ahead of time and carried en masse to the designated spot. My grandmother had plates, table linens (yes, there were tables) for such an occasion.

All the men in the family would gather around a rickety barbecue to prepare the braise (you know the moment when the coals are perfect for cooking over, red underneath and covered in white ash), much discussion ensued as to the perfect way of doing this. Smoke would billow around and sometime later an announcement would be made, “c’est pret”—It’s ready. With this came a flurry of activity, the women ferrying the dishes to be cooked, over to the barbecue. The men doing the cooking with a constant banter going backwards and forwards between the two as to when the meat was ready.

This banter doesn’t change, by the way, whether you’re in France or in the United States. My grandmother always prepared lamb kebabs, tiny lamb chops and merguez sausages.

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The grillade would then be served with a variety of salads, accompanied by chilled rosé, followed by a sampling of cheese and an afternoon siesta under the trees.

It was chaotic, magical and delicious.

Marinated Skewered Grilled Beef and Grilled Vegetables

Each of these had its own particular preparation: Herbes de Provence here, a dash of Dijon mustard there and so on.

The grillade would then be served with a variety of salads, accompanied by chilled rosé, followed by a sampling of cheese and an afternoon siesta under the trees. It was chaotic, magical and delicious.

Up to this point in time I had never actually grilled anything. Prepared the food, yes—grilling it, non! I finally got my chance some years later staying at our old farmhouse in the South of France with my brother and some friends. We decided to make a barbecue in the outside fireplace on the terrace.

The extremely old fireplace had a few missing bricks, and the chimney wasn’t exactly straight. To say that it didn’t draw well would be an understatement. Much discussion ensued as we prepared the braise. A considerable time later we finally deemed it ready to cook on. We made, as per tradition, tiny lamb chops and merguez. Our eyes stung, we coughed a lot, we debated when the meat was ready (apparently this is not a generational thing), there were a few charred bits, but we were thrilled with the result. We sat under the vine-covered terrace, drinking chilled rosé, laughing at our attempts. This ritual was to be repeated annually.

You can imagine, therefore, my surprise when I first arrived in California to not only see a barbecue in everyone’s garden, but to discover that they were actually used more than once a year. These gleaming cauldrons were also (in theory) so much easier to get going than the ones I had been used to in France. I was smitten and purchased a chic black Weber. I felt empowered and invited my new American friends over for a barbecue. I prepared lamb kebabs and merguez sausages served with salads. Isn’t this what everyone cooks on the grill? This was 1985 in Los Angeles. I remember a few quizzical looks: What?

No hamburgers, no tri-tip, no hot dogs, no buns? It wasn’t until I started going to other peoples barbecues that I discovered a whole new realm of cooking outdoors. I had never seen tri-tip, let alone tasted it. Ribs were a revelation. An architect friend of ours cooked an extraordinary whole filet mignon on his grill.

Then there was corn-on-the-cob with melted butter. There were grilled vegetable salads with charred onions, corn and tomatoes, and there was grilled ahi, salmon and Santa Barbara shrimp. The taste of summer took on a whole new dimension.

I started to experiment and barbecued everything in sight.

I made what I called “veggie packs,” basically tons of summer vegetables all chopped up and placed inside a foil pouch, drizzled with olive oil and herbs and cooked over hot coals.

Once cooked, I’d pour a mustard vinaigrette over the top, my version of the grilled salad.

My trusty Weber is still in my garden. It has a few dings in it and shows signs of wear. I am still perfecting the art of getting the barbecue going correctly, but I love cooking outside, even if the smoke drifts into your eyes now and then. I love the taste of grilled vegetables and the charred bits on corn, and, once a year, I still make tiny grilled lamb chops, lamb and beef kebabs and merguez sausages.

RECIPES Marinated Skewered Grilled Beef and Grilled Vegetables with HerbFilled Mayonnaise This is a delicious way of preparing beef for a grill. A lot of the preparation can be done in advance and the recipe multiplies easily if you are serving a large crowd.

Makes 8 servings

FOR THE BEEF 1

⁄ 4 cup olive oil

8–10 stems (1 ⁄ 4 cup) fresh oregano, chopped 10–12 stems (1 ⁄ 4 cup) fresh thyme, chopped Freshly ground pepper Coarse salt 2 pounds rib eye beef, cut into 1-inch cubes

Soak 16 bamboo skewers in water for a minimum of 30 minutes.

In a small mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients except the beef so that it creates a thick marinade. Pour over the cubed beef and toss to coat well. Leave to marinate for 1 hour. Whilst the meat is marinating, prepare the onions and the zucchini.

FOR THE ONIONS 8 medium-sized red onions, peeled and quartered Olive oil 1 teaspoon Vincotto or a sweet vinegar, such as a balsamic Salt and pepper

Pour a little olive oil, Vincotto, salt and pepper into a shallow pan placed over medium heat. Add in the onions in quarters and cook very slowly for 45 minutes to 1 hour. The onions should be very soft. Be careful as you turn them to try and keep them in the quarters.

FOR THE ZUCCHINI 8 medium-sized green or yellow zucchini or a mixture of both, ends trimmed and thinly sliced lengthwise Olive oil Salt and pepper

Pour the olive oil in a large frying pan placed over medium-high heat. Add in the sliced zucchini, a little salt and pepper and cook for 4–5 minutes, turning them once. They should have softened slightly. Keep warm until they are ready to be used.

(Continued on next page)

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 63

FOR THE HERB-FILLED MAYONNAISE 1 egg yolk 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 2 tablespoons vegetable oil Mild olive oil Juice of 1 lemon (approximately 1–2 tablespoons) 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley (1 cup), finely chopped 8–10 sprigs ( 1 ⁄ 2 cup) de-stemmed fresh oregano, finely chopped 1 small bunch fresh cilantro, finely chopped Salt and pepper

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Put the egg yolk, mustard and lemon juice into a blender. With the motor running on the lowest speed, very slowly add the vegetable oil in a teaspoon at a time. You should have a very thick mixture.

Tomatoes on rosemary skewers

ASSEMBLE THE SKEWERS Skewer the end of 1 piece of zucchini. Add a piece of marinated beef onto the skewer and wrap the zucchini around the beef so that it cups halfway around the beef cube. Add a piece of the red onion and bring the zucchini around on top of it. Keep alternating between the beef and onions and forming the zucchini in an s-shape around them (keep the items spread out a little so everything can cook evenly). Fill all the skewers in the same manner.

Thirty minutes before you wish to grill the beef, light your barbecue or, if you have a gas-fired grill, preheat it 15 minutes before grilling.

Once the flames have subsided but the barbecue is still hot, cook the meat for 8 minutes, turning the skewers over 2 or 3 times during the cooking time. This will give you medium-rare meat. Remove the skewers from the barbecue and place them onto warmed dinner plates.

FOR THE TOMATOES 16 small to medium tomatoes, preferably different varieties, cut in half 8 long rosemary stems, left intact Coarse salt Fresh pepper

Once the vegetable oil has been completely mixed in with the mustard, slowly drizzle in the olive oil, always with the motor running, but now at a faster speed. You will need at least ½ cup of olive oil. Once the mayonnaise is nice and thick you can add in all the herbs, some salt and pepper. If you like to have your mayonnaise a little sharp, then add in a little more lemon juice.

Serve a large spoonful of this alongside the grilled beef and vegetables.

Origins: Mayonnaise has a number of possible origins. It has been said that Duc de Richelieu or his chef created the sauce after capturing the port of Mahon on the island of Minorca in 1756, and named it Mahonnaise. But other historians contest that theory and say it comes from the Duke of Mayenne in 1589 who took the time to finish his lunch of chicken with cold sauce before he went into battle and thus the sauce was named after him! Either way the sauce is an emulsion of egg yolks and oil.

Grilled Peach, Heirloom Tomato and Arugula Salad This is a variation of the salad that’s on the cover of my Summer cookbook. I love the combination of tomatoes and peaches and have made many versions of that salad.

I particularly like this one. Grilling the peaches intensifies the sugars in the fruit and gives this salad a slightly charredcaramel taste. The sweetness of the fruit is delicious against the peppery arugula.

Makes 8 servings

FOR THE PESTO VINAIGRETTE 4 tablespoons olive oil

Carefully thread 4 tomato halves onto each of the rosemary stems.

The easiest way to do this is by pushing the skin side of the tomato onto the twig-like end of the rosemary. Place all the rosemary skewers onto a plate and add a little salt and pepper to each one.

Grill these on the side of the barbecue where the temperature is less hot. They will need to cook for 5–6 minutes, turning them once or twice. Serve alongside the marinated beef and with the herb mayonnaise.

64 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

Juice and zest of 2 lemons 1 cup arugula leaves, roughly chopped 1 cup basil leaves, roughly chopped Pinch of coarse salt

Place all of the ingredients in a blender and run until you have a thick pesto vinaigrette.

Local-Organic-Delivery-Market

Santa Barbara Gift Baskets and Gift Certificates

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Specializing in Local, Seasonal, Organic, Pesticide Free Produce, Local Grass-fed Meats, Poultry, Fresh Fish and many wonderful local artisanal food products Grilled Peach, Heirloom Tomato and Arugula Salad

FOR THE SALAD 2 pounds large heirloom tomatoes, approximately the same size as the peaches, halved and cut into wedges 4 – 6 large peaches, halved, pitted and cut into wedges 2 tablespoons olive oil Salt and pepper

Place the tomatoes into a large salad bowl. Place a griddle pan over a medium-hot flame on the stove. Place the peaches into a bowl and add the olive oil to the wedges. Toss so that the peaches are coated. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over the peaches.

Place the peaches on the griddle and cook for 90 seconds. Carefully turn the peaches onto the other cut side and cook again for 1 minute.

Carefully remove the peaches from the griddle and add them to the tomatoes. Drizzle the pesto vinaigrette over the salad, toss carefully so as not to break the fruit and serve immediately.

Pascale Beale grew up in England and France surrounded by a family that has always been passionate about food, wine and the arts. She was taught to cook by her French mother and grandmother. She is the author of The Menu for All Seasons. Her new book, Salade. will be released in 2014. Visit her website and blog: The Market Table at PascalesKitchen.com

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JOËLLE OLIVE OIL Extra Virgin – Cold Pressed Estate Grown in California JoelleOil.com

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EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 65

SWUIM NM T EERR EEDDI IBBLLEE EEVVEENNTTSS S AT U R D AY – S U N D AY

S AT U R D AY

T H U R S D AY

JUNE

JUNE

JUNE

Key to Wine Country

Winery Picnic with Pascale Beale

Edible Santa Barbara Summer Issue Release and Fermentation Festival Party

20–22 JU NE

All day, various locations throughout Santa Barbara County Purchase a key and receive invitations to exclusive events and experiences, special wine tastings, offers and discounts. You can attend as many special events as you’d like…there is no limit to what you can see and do. To purchase a key, visit SBCountyWines.com/key-to-winecountry.

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11am–1pm at Zaca Mesa Winery Los Olivos A delightful picnic with dishes featured from Pascale’s new cookbook Salade will be served along with stories behind the recipes, wine and a cookbook for each guest. $50. To reserve, call 805 688-9339 x311 or email angela@zacamesa.com.

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5–8pm at Telegraph Brewing Co. Join us to celebrate the release of the summer issue of Edible Santa Barbara and the beginning of summer. Free to attend with food and beverages for sale to benefit the Santa Barbara Fermentation Festival at Fairview Gardens.

T H U R S D AY

S AT U R D AY

S AT U R D AY

JUNE

JUNE

JUNE

Palmina Meets Italy Winemaker Dinner

Santa Barbara Wine Festival

Red, White & Blues Festival

2–5pm at the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum Swirl, sip and savor wines from premier Central Coast wineries complemented with sweet and savory delectable delights on the beautiful grounds of the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.

For details and to purchase tickets visit SBNature.org/winefestival.

Join Buttonwood and Longoria Wines for the annual Red, White & Blues concert in the Buttonwood vineyard.

Both Longoria and Buttonwood wines will be sold at this event. Bring a blanket and a picnic, and dance to some great blues music by Coco Montoya. $40; call 805 688-3032 for more information.

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7pm at Beer + Wine at the Santa Barbara Public Market Join chef David Cecchini of Cecco Ristorante for a traditional Italian farmto-table dinner featuring course-by-course wine pairings by Palmina Winery and select Italian winemakers. $95. Limited to 45 guests. To reserve, call 805 770-7701 or email betty@wineplusbeer.com.

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2–6pm at Buttonwood Farm Winery

T H U R S D AY

W E D N E S D AY

T H U R S D AY

JULY

JULY

JULY

Buttonwood Farm Winery Seasonal Cooking Class

Edible Santa Barbara Supper Club

Beer Pairing Dinner

6–8pm at Buttonwood Farm Winery Enjoy an evening of farm fresh seasonal dishes paired with Buttonwood’s estate grown wines. This class will feature chef David Cecchini of Cecco Ristorante, making traditional Italian dishes using local farm ingredients. Dinner to follow, family style. $50/members; $55/nonmembers.

805 688-3032; ButtonwoodWinery.com

At Scarlett Begonia, Santa Barbara Join us for an intimate Edible Supper Club on the patio at Scarlett Begonia.

Chef Avery Hardin will introduce us to his signature farmers market inspired menu that will surely treat your tastebuds to a unique and delicious experience. Visit EdibleSantaBarbara. com for more information.

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7pm at Root 246, Solvang Valley Brewers and Root 246 are co-hosting this special dinner paired with craft beers from The Bruery. $70, reservations required. Call Valley Brewers at 805 691-9159.

S AT U R D AY

S AT U R D AY

S AT U R D AY

W E D N E S D AY – S U N D AY

JULY

JULY

JULY

JULY 30 – AUGUST 3

Santa Barbara Fermentation Festival

Los Alamos Third Saturday Evening Stroll

Celebrate Gatsby Style

10am–6:30pm, Fairview Gardens, Goleta

5–8 pm, downtown Los Alamos

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Featuring fermented foods experts, hands-on demonstrations and dozens of artisan fermented foods vendors.

New this year: the science of gut health, kids “get cultured” zone and Farm-to-Bar Happy Hour. For more info and to purchase tickets, visit SBFermentationFestival.com.

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The Los Alamos merchants on Bell Street invite everyone to join the fun and experience Los Alamos community charm first hand with its new Third Saturdays program. The theme for July is “ORANGE—sunshine, vibrancy, flowers.” Ongoing. For more information call 805 344-1900.

66 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

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6–9pm at Riverbench Winery, Santa Maria Step back in time at Riverbench’s 1926 Craftman style House and dance under the stars to a five-piece jazz band while sipping on sparkling wines. Recreate a bygone era and come dressed in flapper and gangster attire. Appetizers and dessert will be served. Call 805 937-8340 or email lperez@riverbench.com for more information or to RSVP.

Old Spanish Days Fiesta A celebration of Santa Barbara’s heritage, through music, parades, fiestas, dancing and family events. Serious foodies frequent the mercado at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church with its wide array of authentic Mexican cuisine and entertainment. Full listing of events can be found at OldSpanishDays-Fiesta.org.

For updates and more details on these and other events, visit EdibleSantaBarbara.com

A U GUST

F R I D AY – S AT U R D AY

S AT U R D AY

AUGUST

AUGUST

1–2

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Carpinteria First Friday and Saturday

Barrel Tasting & Winemaker Luncheon

5–8pm Friday, 10am–4pm Saturday, held around Carpinteria

Noon–3pm at Flying Goat Cellars Winery

Spend the first weekend of every month discovering Carpinteria’s quaint shops, locally brewed beer, live entertainment, sweet deals, delicious food and art walks.

Winemaker Norm Yost offers a rare opportunity for you to visit his winery and enjoy a sneak preview of delicious vineyard designated 2013 Pinot Noirs.

Grilled seasonal dishes will complement barrel tastings and new release wines. To reserve call 805 736-9032 or email info@ FlyingGoatCellars.com.

T H U R S D AY

S AT U R D AY

S AT U R D AY

AUGUST

AUGUST

AUGUST

Edible Santa Barbara Supper Club

Funk Zone Second Saturdays Art Walk

In The Vineyard & On The Farm Dinner

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Goodland Kitchen in Goleta

1–5pm, all around the Funk Zone

4:30pm at the Bernat Family Vineyard

Join us for a summertime al fresco Edible Supper Club at Goodland Kitchen.

Chef and owner Julia Crookston will hold a very special pizza night, featuring farm fresh local ingredients from their wood-burning outdoor oven. Visit EdibleSantaBarbara.com for more information.

Various establishments in the Funk Zone will host different events so you can enjoy local art, food and wine as you cruise through Santa Barbara’s fun and funky neighborhood. FunkZone.net.

A unique experience that takes farm-totable one step further by allowing diners to eat and drink locally produced foods and wines right at the source where the vines grow, wines are made and produce is nurtured. $125; Reservations required, contact Lindsey Nicastro at 805 757-1435 Lindsey@BuySantaBarbaraWine.com.

S AT U R D AY

S AT U R D AY

W E D N E S D AY

AUGUST

AUGUST

AUGUST

Buttonwood All Farm Dinner

Chicken Dinner at Bell Street Farm

Solvang Third Wednesday

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5pm at Buttonwood Winery, Solvang Beginning with passed appetizers, Button­wood’s farm-to-table feast takes place pond-side in the middle of their 39-acre vineyard and will feature farmraised meat, farm-grown fruits and vegetables, as well as their award-winning wines; everything on the table raised, grown and produced on Buttonwood Farm. $125; for reservations call 805 688-3032.

6pm at Bell Street Farm, Los Alamos On the third Saturday of each month, enjoy a prix-fixe chicken dinner at Bell Street Farm. Endless antipasti bar, family-style rotisserie chicken dinner with roasted vegetables and potatoes, a cookie plate or affogato. $40 per person, not including tax or gratuity. For reservations, 805 344-4609; BellStreetFarm.com.

3pm–7pm in downtown Solvang Stroll through the lively streets of Solvang while tasting at five participating wine or beer tasting rooms. $20 includes the tastings, a specialty logo glass and a map to help you navigate your way through all the fun. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit SolvangThirdWednesday.com.

F R I D AY – S U N D AY

S U N D AY

SEPTEMBER

SEPTEMBER

FigtoberFest

Santa Barbara Taste of the Town

5–7

SE PT E MBER

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FigtoberFest is a multi-day beer and music festival in Live Oak Campground featuring both local and national music performances throughout the weekend.

Enjoy beer tasting from top notch breweries from throughout California, activities, gourmet food tasting, food trucks, camping and much more.

Overnight camping available. For more information please visit FigMtnBrew.com.

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Noon–3pm at the Riviera Park Gardens, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara’s original tasting event that benefits the Arthritis Foundation and features 40 local wineries and 40 local restaurants. For more information, visit TasteOfTheTownSantaBarbara.com.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 67

edible Dining Guide

Santa Barbara County has its own unique food traditions — from Santa Maria barbecue to Santa Barbara spot prawns and the

world-class local wines that accompany them— so we’d like to help you find some of the area restaurants that create the distinctively Santa Barbara dining experience. Restaurants are invited to advertise in this guide because of their emphasis on local, seasonal ingredients and their commitment to real food.

The Lark

South County Arlington Tavern

Ca’ Dario Pizzeria

21 W. Victoria St. Santa Barbara 805 770-2626 ArlingtonTavern.com

29 E. Victoria St. Santa Barbara 805 957-2020 CaDarioPizza.net

Offering a winning combination of local, farm-fresh fare, exceptional service and a unique relationship between beer, wine and food. Chef Ron True crafts his seasonal menu using only the highest-quality, simple and honest ingredients. Farm Friendly Dining Certified. Dinner Mon– Sat 5–10pm, Sun 5–9pm; bar 4pm–midnight, Sun 4–10pm.

Located just steps away from Chef Dario Furlati's flagship eatery, Ca’ Dario Pizzeria offers a casual, urban atmosphere to enjoy authentic pizzas, salads and appetizers. The 30-seat restaurant boasts a welcoming bar, perfect for enjoying local or Italian beers on tap. Open for lunch Mon–Sat 11:30am–2:30pm, dinner Mon–Sun 5–9:30pm.

Backyard Bowls Santa Barbara Locations: 331 Motor Way 805 845-5379 3849 State St., La Cumbre 805 569-0011 Goleta Location: 5668 Calle Real 805 770-2730 BackyardBowls.com Santa Barbara’s most innovative breakfast and lunch spot featuring Acai Bowls and smoothies. They also offer oatmeal, yogurt and more.

The Bistro Bacara Resort & Spa 8301 Hollister Ave. Goleta 877-804-8632 BacaraResort.com The Bistro offers a casual and relaxed oceanside atmosphere for all ages. Rich in fragrant olive oil and local vegetables, menu highlights offer traditional Italian dishes, such as pastas and brick-oven flatbreads, complemented by lighter, coastal cuisine. After an extensive renovation, the new dining room incorporates Santa Barbara’s beautiful panorama.

Book Ends Café 602 Anacapa St., (upper patio) Santa Barbara 805 963-3222 Book Ends Café offers unique handcrafted sandwiches and seasonal selections of farm-fresh salads, quiches and treats, all prepared with ingredients sourced from local farmers. Enjoy organic, fair-trade coffee while sitting on the secret and tranquil rooftop patio. Mon–Thu 8am– 6:15pm; Fri–Sat 8am–2pm.

Bouchon 9 W. Victoria St. Santa Barbara 805 730-1160 BouchonSantaBarbara.com Bouchon sources all of its ingredients using an “as-freshand-as-local-as-possible” approach. Experience fine dining, excellent regional wines and relaxed service in a warm, inviting ambience. Private dining in the Cork Room is available for groups of 10–20. Dinner nightly 5–10pm.

68 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

C’est Cheese Café and Marketplace 825 Santa Barbara St. Santa Barbara 805 965-0318 CestCheese.com In addition to being a local source for the finest cheeses and artisanal foods, C’est Cheese also serves breakfast and lunch—sandwiches, soups, salads and, of course, grilled cheese sandwiches. Mon–Sat 7am–6pm; Sun 8am–4pm.

Cielito Restaurant 1114 State St. Santa Barbara 805 965-4770 CielitoRestaurant.com Cielito showcases bold and sophisticated flavors with Mexican and Latin American inspired cuisine featuring the highest-quality, local and seasonal ingredients from land and sea. Full bar, award-winning wine list. Lunch, happy hour, dinner. Private dining available.

Tue–Sun 11:30am–2:30pm; Tue–Thu & Sun 5–9pm; Fri–Sat 5–10pm.

Giannfranco’s Trattoria 666 Linden Ave. Carpinteria 805 684-0720 Giannfrancos.com Experience authentic Italian regional cuisine at this family-owned and -operated trattoria in downtown Carpinteria. Chef Giovanni prepares each dish from the freshest local and imported foods to offer his creative take on Tuscan grill specialties. Weekday lunch served 11am–3pm. Weekend lunch served noon–3pm. Dinner served 5–9pm. Closed Tuesday.

Goodland Kitchen & Market 231 S. Magnolia Ave. Old Town Goleta 805 845-4300 GoodlandKitchen.com The Goodland Kitchen is a quick service café specializing in delicious, well prepared, affordable breakfasts and lunch, served outside under the Magnolia tree. They prepare food fresh daily, in small batches w ingredients from local farmers to provide an exceptional and unexpected culinary experience in the heart of Old Town Goleta. Mon–Fri 8am–2:30pm.

131 Anacapa St. Santa Barbara 805 284-0370 TheLarkSB.com The Lark features artisanal and seasonal ingredients that celebrate our local community. Enjoy dinner and drinks in the architecturally urban-inspired dining room, at the communal table, the bar or out on the patio by the fire.

The private and classy Pullman Room is available for your next special event. Open for dinner Tue–Sun 5–10pm; until 11pm on Fri and Sat.

Lucky Penny 131 Anacapa St. Santa Barbara 805 284-0358 LuckyPennySB.com The Lucky Penny take-away café offers wood-fired pizza, artisan coffee, handmade pastries, seasonal salads, fresh squeezed juices, beer and wine. Enjoy your meal onsite in the picnic area or grab it to go. The perfect place to stop as you meander along the Urban Wine Trail in Santa Barbara’s Funk Zone. Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner 7am–9pm seven days a week.

Miró Bacara Resort & Spa 8301 Hollister Ave. Goleta 877-804-8632 BacaraResort.com Miró offers progressive European cuisine, an interior inspired by the Spanish artist Miró and breathtaking views of the Pacific. Chef de Cuisine Johan Denizot's locally-sourced ingredients are accented with unique international flavors. Miró Wine Cellar houses an extensive collection of 12,000 wines spanning 13 countries and 75 international appellations.

The Pasta Shoppe (in Santa Barbara Public Market) 38 W Victoria St. Santa Barbara 805 770-3668 Dedicated to providing an authentic Italian experience, The Pasta Shoppe offers farm fresh, organic ingredients, hand-made daily pasta prepared by a former Eataly pasta artist. The Chef’s Counter offers an intimate dining experience, while observing an Italian kitchen at work.

Take-away fresh pasta, with gluten-free options. Pasta making and cooking classes. Mon–Wed 10am–8pm, Thu–Sat 10am–11pm, Sun 9am–8pm.

Renaud’s Patisserie & Bistro Loreto Plaza at 3315 State St. Santa Barbara 805 569-2400 Arlington Plaza at 1324 State St. Santa Barbara 805 892-2800 RenaudsBakery.com Renaud’s is a bakery specializing in French pastries and French-style cakes, as well as a bistro offering an extensive menu for lunch and dinner. Open Mon–Sat 7am–5pm, Sun 7am–3pm.

Full of Life Flatbread

North County The Baker’s Table 3563 Numancia St. Santa Ynez 805 688-4856 TheBakers-Table.com

Sama Sama Kitchen 1208 State St., Santa Barbara 805 965-4566 SamaSamaKitchen.com Sama Sama creates meals inspired by Indonesian food and local farms and markets. Their food and cocktail menu is constantly changing depending on availability from our local sources. They are locally owned and operated and part of the Shelter Social Club family. Lunch Mon–Wed 11am–2pm. Dinner Mon–Sat 5–10pm and Sun 5–9pm.

Happy Hour Thur–Fri 4–5pm.

Scarlett Begonia 11 W. Victoria St., #10 Santa Barbara 805 770-2143 ScarlettBegonia.net Scarlett Begonia will always strive to have interesting, thoughtful food. Menus change weekly with an innovative, fresh approach to breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Showcasing progressive modern cuisine, Scarlett Begonia features sustainable, organic, high quality ingredients coupled with innovative cooking to provide one of the most food-centric experiences in Santa Barbara. Open for dinner and cocktail hour Tue–Sat 4–9pm, breakfast and lunch Tue–Sun 9am–2pm.

Simply Pies 5392 Hollister Ave. Santa Barbara 805 845-2200 SimplyPiesSB.com The pie cottage offers sweet and savory pies, quiches and salads handcrafted with fresh, local organic ingredients.

Vegan, gluten free and sugar-free options. Open Tue–Fri 7:30am–5:30pm; Sat 10am–5:30pm.

Sly’s 686 Linden Ave. Carpinteria 805 684-6666 SlysOnline.com Sly’s is known for great food, with an emphasis on farmers market and local produce, great cocktails and great times in Carpinteria. Open Mon–Fri for lunch 11:30am–3pm, lounge menu weekdays 3–5pm; dinner Sun–Thu 5–9pm; Fri and Sat 5–10pm; and weekend brunch & lunch Sat– Sun 9am–3pm.

Sojourner Café

The Baker’s Table offers artisanal baked goods handcrafted from organic, local and fair-trade ingredients. The café incorporates carefully selected, high quality ingredients in order to offer soups, salads and sandwiches to feed the body and soul. Open Tue–Sat 7:30am–2:30pm.

Ballard Inn & Restaurant 2436 Baseline Ave. Ballard.

800 638-2466 805 688-7770 BallardInn.com Chef Budi Kazali's award-winning cuisine, an extensive wine list, exceptional service and a romantic atmosphere create a memorable dining experience in the heart of the Santa Ynez Valley. Open for dinner Wed–Sun 5:30–9pm.

Bell Street Farm Eatery & Market 406 Bell St. Los Alamos 805 344-4609 BellStreetFarm.com With farm-fresh cuisine and sophisticated yet comfortable de sign, Bell Street Farm offers a distinct environment to enjoy a meal, snack or a wine tasting. The market showcases picnic baskets and accessories for creating a portable meal, as well as gifts and merchandise from local artisans. Open Fri–Mon 10am– 6pm.

Beto’s Place at Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. 45 Industrial Way Buellton 805 694-2252 FigMtnBrew.com Opening in the spring of 2014, Beto’s Place will feature casual California cuisine with an emphasis on fresh, local ingredients. Chef Beto Huizar offers a full menu featuring gourmet versions of brewpub favorites like burgers, chicken wings and fish tacos. He takes finger food to the next level with appetizers such as mac and cheese bites, beer battered calamari and several kinds of sliders. Open daily 11am–9pm.

Cecco Ristorante

134 E. Cañon Perdido St. Santa Barbara 805 965-7922 SojournerCafe.com The Sojourner has been serving unique dishes created with wholesome natural ingredients for 35 years. They purchase organic produce from local growers, carry local wines and beers and are known for their innovative desserts. Hours: Open Sun–Wed 11am–10pm (desserts and drinks until 10:30); Thu–Sat 11am–11pm.

The Wine Cask

475 First St. Solvang 805 688-8880 CeccoRistorante.com Award-winning Chef David Cecchini offers rustic Italian cuisine, handmade fresh pasta, artisan pizza from an authentic wood-burning oven, grilled meats, seafood, salads, an extensive wine list including Santa Ynez Valley & Italian varietals, plus premium draft beers. Reservations accepted. Open 11:30am–3pm & 5–9pm.

Fresco Valley Café

813 Anacapa St. Santa Barbara 805 966-9463 WineCask.com The Wine Cask Restaurant features the freshest local ingredients, the best wine list in town, and seasonal signature cocktails. They offer fine dining in their exquisite Gold Room and casual dining in the courtyard, and at santa11:30am–3pm. barbara their Intermezzo bar. Lunch: Tue–Fri Dinner: Tue–Sun from 5:30pm. Last seating at 9pm Sun– Thu, 10pm Fri–Sat.

bouchon

442 Atterdag Rd. Solvang 805 688-8857 FrescoValleyCafe.com Fresco Valley Café offers a broad menu of dishes made from scratch using homemade family recipes and organic and fresh local ingredients. You will also find fresh pastries, a fine list of local beer and wine and a plentiful catering menu. Wed 11am–8pm; Thu–Sat 11am–8:30pm; Sun 11am–8pm.

225 W. Bell St. Los Alamos 805 344-4400 FullofLifeFoods.com On weekends Full of Life Flatbread converts their production flatbread bakery space into a restaurant and offers an extremely innovative menu based almost entirely on what is grown locally and in season. Open Thu–Sat 5–10pm; Sun 4–8pm.

Global Gardens 380 Bell St. Los Alamos 805 344-2222 GlobalGardensOnline.com The Global Gardens Caliterranean Café is located inside their new Los Alamos destination store featuring an extensive tasting bar, house-made balsamics and an allorganic, hyper-local menu that changes weekly. Call or see their website for hours of operation.

The Hitching Post II 406 E. Highway 246 Buellton 805 688-0676 HitchingPost2.com From Santa Maria–style barbecue to more contemporary cuisine such as smoked duck breast, ostrich, homemade soups and outstanding pastries, The Hitching Post II also offers their own world-class Hartley Ostini Hitching Post Wines. Open daily. Cocktails/wine Mon–Fri 4pm, Sat–Sun 3pm. Dinners only Mon–Fri 5–9:30pm, Sat–Sun 4–9:30pm.

Industrial Eats 181 B Industrial Way Buellton 805 688-8807 IndustrialEats.com Industrial Eats features wood-fired ovens, craft butcher shop, tap wines and beers, killer pies and the coolest coffee machine on the Central Coast. Open every day 10am–9pm.

Los Olivos Wine Merchant & Café 2879 Grand Ave. Los Olivos 805 688-7265 LosOlivosCafe.com The Los Olivos Wine Merchant & Café brings together the best flavors of the Central Coast. Their award-winning wine list offers over 500 wines, to enjoy with their fresh, seasonal and local cuisine, or to enjoy at home. Open for lunch and dinner daily 11:30am–8:30pm (8pm Sun) and breakfast Sat & Sun 8–10:30am.

Root 246 420 Alisal Road Solvang 805 686-8681 Root-246.com Craft-food and drink finds its home in the Santa Ynez Valley at Root 246. They offer a comprehensive collection of over 175 rare whiskies and over 60 craft beers. Join their team for a memorable evening of culinary classics with modern-craft twists. Dinner Tue–Sun 5–9pm; until 10pm on Fri and Sat; Sun Brunch 10am–2pm; $4 Happy Hour Tue–Fri 4–6:30pm.

Succulent Café Wine Charcuterie 1555 Mission Drive Solvang 805 691-9444 SucculentCafe.com Specializing in handcrafted and artisan culinary goods.

Featuring buttermilk biscuit breakfast sandwiches, gourmet sandwiches and salads and unique localcentric plates. Lunch 11am–3pm, Dinner 5:30–9pm; Sat/Sun: Breakfast 8:30am–noon, Lunch noon–3pm, Dinner 5:30–9pm. Charcuterie bar Wed–Mon 9am–9pm.

Happy Hour 3–5pm. Closed Tue.

EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 69

presents

Currently showing on PBS Television Check Your Local Listings or go to ediblefeast.com

www.ediblecommunities.com

70 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

edible

Source Guide The Edible Source Guide is a compact listing of all of our advertisers. Please visit them to pick up your free copy of the magazine and let them know how much you appreciate their support of Edible Santa Barbara.

BREWERIES AND DISTILLERIES

Figueroa Mountain Brewery Quality craft beer has been the focus of family-owned “Fig Mtn Brew” since they started production in 2010. Try their famous Davy Brown Ale or Hoppy Poppy IPA at their flagship tasting room and beer garden in Buellton (45 Industrial Way, Open Mon–Thu 1–9pm and Fri–Sat 11am–9pm) or their new tasting room in the Funk Zone in Santa Barbara (137 Anacapa, Suite F, open daily 11am–9pm).

805 694-2252; info@FigMtnBrew.com Telegraph Brewing Co. Handcrafting unique American ales that embrace the heritage of California’s early brewing pioneers and use as many locally grown ingredients as possible. Visit the tasting room at 418 N. Salsipuedes Street, Santa Barbara, Tue– Thu 3–9pm, Fri–Sat 2–10pm, Sun 1–7pm.

Telegraph beer is available at many restaurants and grocery stores in Santa Barbara County and throughout California. TelegraphBrewing.com CATERERS AND PRIVATE CHEFS

Le Petit Chef Personal chef, private parties, cooking lessons.

With her Weekly Meal Delivery service, Le Petit Chef now proudly offers healthy, gourmet, seasonally inspired dishes delivered to your door every Tuesday and Thursday. Sign up via email to receive weekly menu updates at denisse@lepetitchefsb.com. 805 637-3899; LePetitChefSB.com New West Catering Uniting the artistry of fine restaurant cuisine with the versatility of full-service catering, New West Catering is your unparalleled choice for special events in the Santa Barbara County wine country and beyond. 805 688-0991; NewWestCatering.com FARMERS MARKETS

Santa Barbara Certified Farmers Market Eight markets, six days a week. See schedule on page 23. 805 962-5354; SBFarmersMarket.org FARMS AND RANCHES

Casitas Valley Farm & Creamery A multi-enterprise system using Permaculture principles to provide our local community with

certified organic crops, artisan crafted cheese, and sustainably raised, heritage pigs. Farmstand open Sundays 11am–4pm at 4620 Casitas Pass Rd., Ventura (Hwy 150); 805 649-8179; CasitasValley.com

Drake Family Farms Making locally produced farmstead artisan goat cheese in Ontario, California. At Drake Family Farms every goat has a name and their goat cheeses are made on the farm with milk exclusively from the farm’s own animals.

Available at local farmers markets and at DrakeFamilyFarms.com Fat Uncle Farms Fat Uncle Farms grows almonds in Wasco, just north-west of Bakersfield, and they sell fresh whole raw almonds as well as roasted and flavored almonds and many other almond products at the Saturday, Tuesday, Friday and Thursday farmers markets. 866 290-0219; FatUncleFarms.wordpress.com

Indonesian food inspired by our local farms & markets.

1208 State St. Santa Barbara samasamakitchen.com LOCA L LY OW N E D , OP E RAT E D & PA RT of the S HE LT E R SOCIA L CL U B fam ily

Rancho Olivos Located in beautiful Santa Ynez, Rancho Olivos creates distinctively fresh artisan extra-virgin olive oils from their sustainably grown Italian and Spanish varietals of olives. Open for olive oil tasting daily noon–4pm. 805 686-9653; RanchoOlivos.com FOOD PRODUCTS

Bob’s Well Bread Bob’s Well Bread is about great bread, made the old fashioned way—handcrafted in small batches and baked to perfection in a custombuilt, stone-deck oven. They use only the finest ingredients, sourced locally and seasonally, in all of their products. Opening Summer 2014 at 550 Bell St., Los Alamos; info@BobsWellBread. com; 310-200-9194; BobsWellBread.com Crazy Good Bread Co. Crazy Good Bread makes the good life a little bit better, with handmade artisan breads. Be breadventurous and try one of their many flavors of levain loaf, crisps or croutons. Open Mon– Thu 10am–5pm; Fri 9am–5pm; Sat 8am–3pm.

4191 Carpinteria Ave. #12, Carpinteria; 562 270-0680; CrazyGoodBread.com

“on the fly”

Farmer’s Market Menu Every Tuesday Always 3 courses plus a craft cocktail.

Always interesting. Always delicious. $35

1/2 off

haPPy hoUr Full bar, all drinks and nibbles 4:30-6:00 Tues-Sat

11 West Victoria in Victoria Court

805-770-2143 www.scarlettbegonia.net

breakfast & lunch: tues–sun dinner: tues–sat

Goodland Chai Co. Goodland Chai offers the perfect blend of tea, spices and organic sugar in a bulk chai tea that is full-bodied, full of flavor without being overly sweet—what chai should taste like.

GoodlandChaiCo.com Green Star Coffee Green Star Coffee sources only the finest Certified Organic Fair Trade coffees and teas from the premier growing regions around the world. GreenStarCoffee.com Joëlle Olive Oil Joëlle Olive Oil offers a full line of fresh, coldpressed, extra-virgin olive oil estate grown in California. Award winning in international competitions, all of their oils are unfiltered, extra-virgin and date-stamped for year of production. JoelleOil.com EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 71

GROCERY STORES & PRODUCE DELIVERY

Isla Vista Food Co-op A community-owned food co-op open to the public and highly regarded for its sustainable business practices and high-quality foods.

Highlighting tri-county local, organic, fair-trade, farmer-owned, vegan, vegetarian, kosher, raw, gluten-free and all-around sustainable ways of being. Open daily 8am–10pm. 6575 Seville Rd., Isla Vista. 805 968-1401; IslaVistaFood.coop Lazy Acres Santa Barbara’s best source for wholesome, natural and organic foods and products with real people dedicated to providing unmatched personal service. Mon–Sat 7am–11pm, Sun 7am–10pm. 302 Meigs Rd., Santa Barbara; 805 564-4410; LazyAcres.com Los Olivos Grocery Los Olivos Grocery offers a wide selection of local products, wines, beers and produce.

Their delicatessen is a valley favorite, with a wide lunch menu. Breakfast is served on their enclosed patio. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, BBQ is offered. Open daily 7am–9pm; 2621 W. Highway 154, Santa Ynez; 805 688-5115; LosOlivosGrocery.com Mesa Produce A local ‘mom and pop’-owned produce stand offering farmer-direct produce at competitive prices. Although seasonal local products are their focus, they also carry a full line of produce items. Handmade jams sourced from Santa Barbara County, no-pesticide fruits; local organic produce, olives and olive oils, organic nuts and raw honey. Mon–Sat 10am–7pm; Sun noon–6pm. 2036 Cliff Dr., Santa Barbara 805 962-1645.

New Frontiers Natural Marketplace New Frontiers Natural Marketplace is a full service natural foods grocery store and deli.

Located in Solvang at 1984 Old Mission Dr. (corner of Alamo Pintado and Mission Dr.); 805 693-1746; NewFrontiersMarket.com

Tecolote Book Shop Since 1925

1470 eaSt Valley rOad upper VillaGe Of MOntecitO

805 969-4977 Gift WrappinG • ShippinG • Special OrderS BOOk SearcheS • authOr appearanceS 72 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

Plow to Porch Organics Local organic/pesticide free/chemical free and all natural produce delivery service and organic market. The market carries a wide array of seasonal and local food products, located at 3204 State St. (walk through Buddha’s Garden), Santa Barbara. Open Mon–Fri 10am–7pm.

805 895-7171; PlowToPorch.com Santa Barbara Public Market The Santa Barbara Public Market, located in the heart of the performing and cultural arts district, will house handcrafted, regionally sourced and sustainably made food and wine.

With an ardent focus on local farms and artisanal ingredients, the Santa Barbara Public Market will present residents and visitors alike with a well stocked pantry for daily foraging.

SBPublicMarket.com Whole Foods Market Founded in 1980 in Austin, Texas, Whole Foods Market, a leader in the natural and

organic foods industry and America’s first national certified organic grocer, was named “America’s Healthiest Grocery Store” in 2008 by Health magazine. 3761 State St., Santa Barbara; 805 837-6959; WholeFoodsMarket.com HOTELS & INNS

Bacara Resort & Spa Nestled on the bluff and beaches of the Gaviota coast, Bacara offers relaxed luxury and incomparable natural beauty. Additional features include a four-story spa, wellness center, zero-edge saline swimming pools, restaurants, lounges and tasting room. BacaraResort.com Ballard Inn & Restaurant Comfortably elegant accommodations, attentive staff and award-winning cuisine make the Ballard Inn & Restaurant one of the most sought-after small luxury inns in the Santa Ynez Valley Wine Country. 2436 Baseline Ave., Ballard. 800 638-2466, 805 688-7770; BallardInn.com PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

American Riviera Bank Offering a local and sustainable approach to banking. The founders of American Riviera Bank are a carefully selected group of successful, prominent, experienced and influential community and business leaders who understand the unique needs of the Santa Barbara community. Mon–Thu 8am–5pm, Fri 8am–6pm. 1033 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara; 805 965-5942. AmericanRivieraBank.com Community West Bank Five, full-service branch offices in Santa Maria, Goleta, Santa Barbara, Ventura and Westlake Village. With an emphasis on business banking, they offer a full range of commercial and retail banking services, focusing on mid-market companies and their owners/operators, agriculture, manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, technology companies, service companies and retailers. CommunityWestBank.com RESTAURANTS—EDIBLE DINING GUIDE

A listing of Local Restaurants is on page 68.

SCHOOLS

The Family School The Family School provides challenging personalized academic and artistic programs that establish a strong educational foundation and inspire a love of learning. SYVFamilyschool.org SPECIALTY RETAILERS & PRODUCTS

Buckaroo Chunk Wood Grills The unique, patent pending carbon steel air system gets these grills to cooking temperature in minutes. The grills have stainless steel construction, firebrick bottom and use any hardwood chunks. View video demos at Facebook.com/BuckarooChunkWoodGrills.

800 428-1788; BuckarooGrills.com

Chocolate Maya Chocolate Maya scours the world for pure, luscious chocolates and offers incredible savory bars, truffles, bonbons and gift baskets as well as a wide choice of organic and fair-trade chocolate products. Monday–Friday 10am–6pm, Saturday 10am–5pm, Sunday 10am–4pm. 15 W. Gutierrez St., Santa Barbara. 805 965-5956; ChocolateMaya.com Global Gardens Global Gardens is a grower/producer of highly awarded Certified Organic EVOO. The Caliterranean Café located inside their new Los Alamos destination store features an extensive tasting bar, house-made balsamics and an allorganic, hyper-local menu that changes weekly.

Call or see website for hours of operation.

380 Bell St., Los Alamos. 805 344-2222; GlobalGardensOnline.com Grapeseed Co. The Grapeseed Company creates botanical spa and skin care products handcrafted from the byproduct of wine plus antioxidant-rich local and organic ingredients. Located at 21 W. Ortega St., Santa Barbara and open 11am–6pm Mon–Sat. Closed Sun. 805 4563655; TheGrapeseedCompany.com Here’s the Scoop Here’s the Scoop offers the finest gelato and sorbet made fresh daily from local farms and farmers market fruit. They specialize in seasonal flavors as well as traditional Italian flavors.

Mon–Thu 1–9pm. Fri–Sat noon–10pm and Sun noon–9pm. 1187 Coast Village Rd., Montecito. 805 969-7020; ScoopSB.com il Fustino Purveyors of the finest and freshest olive oils, specialty oils, and vinegars attainable in today's market. All oils are grown and milled in California. il Fustino products are secured from small boutique growers and provide unparallelled taste. Located at 3401 State St. Santa Barbara; 805 845-3521 and in the Santa Barbara Public Market at 38 W. Victoria St.; 805 845-4995, Santa Barbara; ilFustino.com Isabella Gourmet Foods A boutique artisan grocery combing the down-home charm of a New England general store with an upscale boutique setting. Open Mon–Fri 9am–6pm; Sat 10am–6pm; Sun 11am–5pm. 5 E. Figueroa St., Santa Barbara.

805 585-5257; IsabellaGourmetFoods.com Massage Envy Spas At the locally owned Massage Envy Spas you can choose the massage or facial best suited to you. Located in Santa Barbara at the Five Points Shopping Center and in Goleta at the Calle Real Shopping Center. Open Mon–Fri 8am–10pm; Sat 8am–8pm; and Sun 10am– 8pm. MassageEnvy.com McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams McC’s was founded in Santa Barbara in 1949 with one goal: to make the finest ice cream in the world. Seventy years later, the dream is alive.

Authentic, handcrafted ice creams, made with love by people obsessed with getting it right.

728 State St., Santa Barbara; McConnells.com

Olive Hill Farm Gus Sousoures has been making his olive oils for many years in the Santa Ynez Valley and now you can taste and buy them, along with other oils, vinegars and gourmet food products at his cozy store in Los Olivos. Open daily 11am–5pm; 2901 Grand Ave, Los Olivos; 805 693-0700; OliveHillFarm.com Tecolote Bookstore Tecolote Bookstore is an independent bookstore located in the upper village of Montecito at 1470 East Valley Rd. Open Mon–Fri 10am–5:30pm, Sat 10am–5pm, closed Sun. 805 969-4977 Wonder A local, independent boutique, Wonder delights with its eclectic collection of unique, finely crafted gifts, home accents and jewelry. Open daily 10am–6pm; Closed Sun; 805 965-6888; 1324 State St., Arlington Plaza, Santa Barbara; WonderSB.com Valley Brewers This local, independent shop supplies everything needed not only for home brewing, but for home winemaking and cheese making.

They also offer classes and have a popular homebrewers club with monthly meetings.

Open Wed–Sat 10am–6pm, Sun 10am–4pm and Mon 10am–6pm. 515 Fourth Pl., Solvang; 805 691-9159; ValleyBrewers.com WHOLESALE PRODUCE DELIVERY

Harvest Santa Barbara Delivering freshly harvested wholesale produce—sourced directly from local family farms to schools, restaurants, hospitals and retail businesses. Their mission is to be the catalyst for a healthier, more sustainable food system by strengthening the ties between farmers and the community. 805 696-6930; HarvestSantaBarbara.com WINERIES AND WINE RETAILERS

Alma Rosa With certified organic vineyards in the Sta. Rita Hills, Alma Rosa focuses on Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, as well as other food friendly wines with the high acid and extraordinary balance for which Richard Sanford’s wines have been known since 1976. Open 11am–4:30pm daily. 7250 Santa Rosa Rd., Buellton. 805 6889090; AlmaRosaWinery.com Alta Maria Vineyards Alta Maria Vineyards and its subsidiary wine brands. They strive to make the best wine possible in a conscious manner utilizing organic and sustainable techniques along with conventional methods, which leave no indelible mark on the people, places and products around us. Tasting room open 11am–5pm daily. 2933 Grand Ave., Suite A, Los Olivos; 805 686-1144; AltaMaria.com

“Where Every Goat Has a Name” Farmstead Artisan Goat Cheese Locally produced on the farm with milk exclusively from the farm’s own animals.

Available at local farmers markets and online.

DrakeFamilyFarms.com

(909) 947-8688 EdibleSantaBarbara.com SUMMER 2014 | 73

Au Bon Climat Tasting Room and the Jim Clendenen Wine Library Celebrating 30 years of winemaking in Santa Barbara County, Au Bon Climat is world renowned for beautifully balanced and elegant Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The tasting room features a large selections of cellar aged library wines and Jim Clendenen’s eclectic smaller labels. Open daily noon– 6pm; 813 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara, next to the Wine Cask.

805 845-8435; AuBonClimat.com

Flying Goat Cellars Flying Goat Cellars specializes in vineyarddesignated Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and sparkling wine. They offer four expressions of méthode champenoise Goat Bubbles: Rosé, Crémant, Blanc de Blancs and Blanc de Noirs. YNOT is a blend of Pinot Noir from all Santa Barbara County vineyards. Thu–Mon, 11am–4pm.

Lompoc Wine Ghetto, 1520 E. Chestnut Ct., Unit A, Lompoc; 805 736-9032; FlyingGoatCellars.com

Beckmen Vineyards Begun in 1994 by father and son team Tom and Steve Beckmen, Beckmen Vineyards is the oldest biodynamic vineyard in the Santa Ynez Valley, producing some of the most acclaimed Rhone varietal wines in California. Visitors are welcome at Beckmen’s wine tasting cottage and picturesque picnic area 11am–5pm daily. 2670 Ontiveros Rd., Los Olivos; 805 688-8664; BeckmenVineyards.com

Foxen Winery & Vineyard Bill Wathen and Dick Doré have been making wine together since 1985, when they founded Foxen Winery & Vineyard at the historic Rancho Tinaquaic in northern Santa Barbara County. Visit the two tasting rooms at 7200 and 7600 Foxen Canyon Rd., Santa Maria.

Open daily 11am–4pm. 805 937-4251; FoxenVineyard.com

Buttonwood Farm Winery In 1968 Betty Williams came to Buttonwood, creating a life that found expression through a connection with the land. The vineyard now has 33,000 vines with a mix of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Marsanne, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Syrah. Visit the tasting room at 1500 Alamo Pintado Rd., Solvang. Open 11am–5pm daily. 805 6883032; ButtonwoodWinery.com Cambria Estate Winery Farming for over 25 years, Cambria specializes in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. They are committed to sustainable practices in both the vineyard and in the winery. Visit the tasting room 10am–5pm. 5475 Chardonnay Lane, Santa Maria; 805 938-7318; CambriaWines.com Carr Vineyards & Winery Established in 1999, Carr Vineyards & Winery specializes in ultra-premium, limitedproduction wines from Santa Barbara County.

In the heart of Downtown Santa Barbara or in Old Town Santa Ynez: 11am–6pm for wine tasting, wines by the glass, flights of wine, wine on tap at 414 N. Salsipuedes St., Santa Barbara; 805 965-7985; and 3563 Numancia St., #101, Santa Ynez; 805 688-5757; CarrWinery.com Casa Dumetz Making wine from their organic vineyard in Malibu and from the Tierra Alta vineyard in Santa Ynez. Visit the tasting room Thu noon– 7pm, Fri–Sat 11am–7pm, Sun 11am–6pm or by appointment. 388 Bell St., Los Alamos.

805 344-1900; CasaDumetzWines.com Consilience Consilience has produced some of Santa Barbara’s boldest, most expressive Syrah. Sister label Tre Anelli carries the tradition in foodfriendly Spanish and Italian varietals. Both labels make wines with unique flavor intensity, and source from vineyards in Santa Barbara County. 2923 Grand Ave., Los Olivos; 805 691-1020; ConsilienceWines.com

74 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

The Good Life A craft beer and wine cellar featuring California craft beers and central coast wines. Open daily Sun–Thu noon–9pm, Fri–Sat noon–11pm.

1672 Mission Dr. (Hwy 246) Solvang.

TheGoodLifeCellar.com Grassini Family Vineyards Boutique winery specializing in handcrafted production of Bordeaux varietals. They focus on farming the vineyard to its fullest potential using renewable and sustainable resources.

An artisan approach helps make wines that represent the uniqueness of Happy Canyon.

Tasting room 813 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara; 805 897-3366; GrassiniFamilyVineyards.com The Hitching Post II The Hitching Post II offers their own worldclass Hartley Ostini Hitching Post Wines.

Open daily except major holidays. Cocktails/ wine tasting at 4pm, dinners only 5–9:30pm.

406 E. Highway 246, Buellton. 805 688-0676; HitchingPost2.com Ken Brown Pioneering vintner, Ken Brown began his career in Santa Barbara County in 1977 and now focuses on extremely small lots of Pinot Noir, Syrah, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc from the most outstanding vineyards of the appellation. A beautiful new tasting room is open Thu–Mon 11am–4:30pm. 157 W. Highway 246, Buellton. 805 688-9400; KenBrownWines.com Les Marchands Wine Bar and Merchant A world-class experience in a relaxing atmosphere, free of intimidation. Pick out a bottle from the extensive wine shop or enjoy shared plates and a glass at the wine bar. Open daily 11am–10pm; until midnight Fri and Sat. 131 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara; 805 284-0380; LesMarchandsWine.com Los Olivos Wine Merchant & Cafe Specializing in premium California wines with a focus on highlighting the Central Coast. They

feature Bernat Wines, which are estate grown and made by owner Sam Marmorstein. Open daily 11:30am–8:30pm. 2879 Grand Ave., Los Olivos. 805 688-7265; LosOlivosCafe.com

Malibu Family Wines Home to Semler and Saddlerock wines—made from their vast 1,000 acre vineyard in Malibu.

Visit their serene outdoor picnic grounds and sip to live music on the weekends. Join the wine club for seasonal shipments and complimentary tasting flights. Daily 11am–6pm. 2363 Alamo Pintado Ave., Los Olivos; 805 688-8105; MalibuFamilyWines.com Margerum Wine Company Margerum Wine Company is committed to creating handcrafted wines using only the highest quality grapes so that they can make wines that are indicative of the place where they are grown. They have two tasting room located in the historic El Paseo complex: Margerum Tasting Room and MWC32, which features their reserve and limited production wines. Daily Noon–6pm with the last tasting at 5:30pm; MargerumWineCompany.com Martian Ranch & Vineyard We take our farming more seriously then we take ourselves. Come to Martian Ranch & Vineyard where you can experience wine tastings, weekend tours of the vineyard, daily tours of the winery, farming lessons and scenic picnic areas! 805 344-1804; MartianVineyard.com Municipal Winemakers After spending their formative years traveling and studying terroir and techniques, Municipal Wine is now working hard to make honest, interesting and delicious wines for the people of this world. They do this with love—carefully and slowly. Tasting room open daily 11am– 6pm at 22 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara; 805 931-6884; MunicipalWinemakers.com Qupé For 30 years, Qupé has been dedicated to producing handcrafted Rhône varietals and Chardonnay from California’s Central Coast.

Employing traditional winemaking techniques and biodynamic farming practices, they are true to type and speak of their vineyard sources.

Open daily 11am–5pm. 2963 Grand Ave., Suite B, Los Olivos; 805 686-4200; Qupe.com Riverbench Vineyard & Winery Since 1973 Riverbench has produced some of Santa Barbara County’s finest Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes. With their initial harvest in 2006, they have now begun producing their own wines with winemaker Clarissa Nagy.

Tasting Room is open from 10am–4pm daily.

6020 Foxen Canyon Road, Santa Maria.

805 937-8340; Riverbench.com Refugio Ranch Vineyards Their family believes that it is “terroir” that gives a wine its soul. They grow 26 acres of organic grapes on their vineyard overlooking the Santa Ynez Valley, and they feel deeply

connected to the land and its remarkable terroir. Visit their beautiful tasting room at 2990 Grand in Los Olivos to explore the current releases. Thu, Sun & Mon 11am–5pm; Fri & Sat 11am–7pm. 805 688-5400; RefugioRanch.com

Cooking Club!

Sanford Winery Home to the oldest Pinot Noir and Chardonnay vines in Santa Barbara County, Sanford produces distinctly complex wines from their iconic vineyards. Make reservations for a VIP tasting or stop by to sample a flight at their picturesque tasting room. Downtown SB location coming soon! 5010 Santa Rosa Rd., Lompoc; 800 426-9463; SanfordWinery.com

For people who love to cook and people who love cooks!

Sign up by going to EdibleSantaBarbara.com and you will receive:

The Winehound The award-winning Winehound features the world’s best wines—from the everyday to a luxury cuvée—all top dogs, no mutts. Open Mon–Sat 11am–7pm, Sun noon–6pm.

3849 State St., Santa Barbara. 805 845-5247; TheWinehound.com

• Our weekly Cooking Club newsletter with recipes, cooking tips, inspiration, chef profiles and special features.

• An invitation to join our private Cooking Club Facebook Group where you can chat with members and post photos of your food.

Zaca Mesa Winery & Vineyards A Santa Ynez Valley estate winery dedicated to Rhone varieties. Since 1972, they have handcrafted wines from grapes grown in their vineyards to express their distinct character and genuine quality. Open daily 10am–4pm. 6905 Foxen Canyon Rd., Los Olivos. 805 688-9339 ext. 308; ZacaMesa.com

• An invitation to be a collaborator on our special Cooking Club Pinterest Board.

• Advance notice of all Edible Santa Barbara events and the occasional Cooking Club member only events.

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edible Source Guide Maps Los Alamos

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1. Refugio Ranch Vineyards 2. Qupé 3. Alta Maria Vineyards 4. Consilience and Tre Anelli 5. Olive Hill Farm 6. Malibu Family Wines 7. Los Olivos Wine Merchant & Cafe 8. Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. 9. Los Olivos Grocery 10. Rancho Olivos 11. Beckmen Vineyards 12. Ballard Inn & Restaurant 13. Zaca Mesa Winery 14. Foxen Winery 15. Riverbench Winery 16. Cambria Winery 17. The Family School

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1. Valley Brewers 2. Succulent Café Wine Charcuterie 3. Fresco Valley Café 4. Solvang Visitors Bureau 5. Cecco Ristorante 6. The Good Life 7. Root 246 8. New Frontiers 9. Buttonwood Farm LAUREL AVE. and Winery

INDUSTRIAL WAY

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1. Hitching Post II 2. Buellton Visitors Bureau 3. Ken Brown Tasting Room 4. Alma Rosa Tasting Room 5. New West Catering 6. Industrial Eats 7. Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. and Beto’s Place 8. Sanford Winery

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1. Full of Life Flatbread 2. Global Gardens 3. Casa Dumetz 4. Bell Street Farm 5. Bob’s Well Bread Bakery

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edible Source Guide Maps VIA RE

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1. Here’s the Scoop 2. Cava Restaurant & Bar 3. Tecolote Bookstore 4. American Riveria Bank

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18. Sojourner Café 19. C’est Cheese 20. The Wine Cask 20. Grassini Family Vineyards 20. Au Bon Climat 20. Margerum Wines 21. Book Ends Café 22. Telegraph Brewing Co. 23. Carr Winery 24. Plow to Porch 25. Renaud’s, Loreto Plaza 26. Il Fustino 27. Whole Foods 28. The Winehound 29. Backyard Bowls, La Cumbre 30. Mesa Produce 31. Lazy Acres

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1. Municipal Winemakers 2. The Lark 2. Lucky Penny 2. Les Marchands Wine Bar and Merchant 3. Riverbench Winery 4. Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. 5. Backyard Bowls, Downtown SB 6. Chocolate Maya 7. McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams 8. Grapeseed Co. 9. Scarlett Begonia 10. Bouchon Santa Barbara 11. Arlington Tavern 12. SB Public Market 12. The Pasta Shoppe 12. Il Fustino 12. Cazy Good Bread 13. Wonder 13. Renaud’s, Arlington Plaza 14. Ca’ Dario Pizzeria 15. Sama Sama 16. Sanford Tasting Room 16. Cielito Restaurant 17. American Riveria Bank

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.

RD

the last Bite

RAKE a big plastic leaf rake is useless in the garden, unless you have a lawn. Opt for a tiny hand rake—the bamboo rakes will grab everything if the curved ends are left on, but prune the ends for a perfect tool for getting amongst shrubbery

FELCO #2 PRUNERS no other pruners match them—a pair will easily last 15 years

HAWS WATERING CAN

the balance of these cans has never been matched—they are available in plastic, but a copper one makes the ultimate gardener gift

GARDEN FORK

you should have two, to divide perennials— use back to back and pry plants apart

A WORD TO THE WISE

DANDELION WEEDER

every gardener should get a tetanus shot every 10 years

you must get the full taproot or you’ll get a new plant, double the size

GARDEN SCISSORS

for cutting twine, flowers, trimming—have several pairs on hooks around the garden so there’s always one close at hand

WAXED STRING*

for tying hearty plants—lasts through the wettest conditions, and the wax means it holds its knots tightly

JUTE* is soft

and won’t cut through tender stems (tomatoes, delphiniums)

A LONG THIN TROWEL

is best for planting small bulbs, like iris and narcissus

DO NOT use wooden tools for prying rocks or roots out, they don’t bend, they snap— have a PRY BAR at hand

A TIP: never, ever buy a cheap tool—you

will bend and break 6 of them, and then go grumbling to buy the quality tool you should have purchased in the first place. A good tool, treated properly, may outlast you!

MESH GLOVES WITH RUBBER GRIPS

A POT OF SAND WITH OIL IN IT is a must for

storing tools over winter.

Oil the handles with LINSEED OIL at the end of the year, and put the metal blades into the sand until spring.

80 | EDIBLE SANTA BARBARA SUMMER 2014

* string too short to be

of any use is good to leave out for nesting birds

great for gardening—they let your hands breathe while protecting them from punctures— also handy for de-shedding the cat

Illustrations by Bambi Edlund

•

Garden wisdom by James Bennett