SanLuisObispo.com: Dining/Food

Dining Out: Joe's Place is comfort food at its best

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 09:31 PDT

Drive down Main Street in downtown Templeton any Sunday morning, and the streets are quiet, stores are closed and people are nowhere to be seen. Except, that is, at the corner of Seventh Street, where a small restaurant called Joe’s Place typically has a dozen or more people waiting outside for as long as 30 minutes to get a table and enjoy what owner Joe Ontiveros calls “the best breakfast in town.”

Joe’s Place is definitely a locals’ place. With old-style comfort foods such as biscuits and gravy, eggs with hash browns and huevos rancheros, breakfast at Joe’s is served from opening at 7 a. m. to closing at 2 p. m. Even during lunch hours, many customers opt for the omelets or one of Joe’s nine different Mexican egg dishes instead of soup and a sandwich.

More than breakfast

Local Flavors: New cookbook is sweet to the taste

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 08:19 PDT

With their latest cookbook, “Desserts,” the Central Coast Printmakers present some sweet treats for the eyes as well as the palate.

Patterned after their successful “Hors d’Oeuvres” publication, “Desserts” serves up 30 illustrated recipes from the group’s membership.

“Since some of us are from other parts of the world, many of the desserts have an international flavor,” said Tricia Reichert, who coordinated the cookbook with fellow printmakers Evy Justesen and Mary Kay Ghiglia.

Dining Out: The Big Chill

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 11:08 PDT

Dining Out

When San Luis Obispo County was sweltering in last week’s heat wave, I stumbled into an oasis amid the steamy shops and crowded streets in downtown San Luis Obispo.

Giordano’s Italiano is a charming new fruit freeze shop that serves icy snacks made from fresh whole fruit or chocolate. Owner Dean Giordano makes each of the six flavors on-site twice a week using no artificial ingredients. As the heat wave continued, I had all the excuse I needed to return several times.

Local Flavors: Templeton woman returns from France saying: ‘Fromage’

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 11:03 PDT

For many of us, a vacation sparks a new perspective on things. For Bev Michels, a European jaunt helped inspire a new lifestyle fueled by cheese and soap.

Though she “had always wanted a farm,”Michels had little experience beyond a backyard garden when she and her family moved to rural Templeton in 2000 after “doing the corporate tour of America.”

She plunged headlong into growing organic fruits and vegetables for her family, but kept thinking about the goat cheese she had tasted during a trip to France.

Dining Out: A fixture on Morro Bay’s Embarcadero for 40 years, the new Galley is a haven for seafood lovers

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 09:25 PDT

The reopening of The Galley restaurant on Morro Bay’s Embarcadero was a long-awaited highlight for many locals.

Rumors constantly swirled that the restaurant would reopen sooner than later but then finally, three years after closing for a remodel, the Galley Seafood Grill & Bar reopened in December.

Remnants of the former restaurant are still apparent, but the space has been completely revamped and most changes are for the better. Now an elegant Hawaiian-themed restaurant, it sports all new fixtures and vast windows with some of the best views of Morro Rock and the bay from the Embarcadero.

At Rivenrock Organic Edible Cactus you can buy it in three grades

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 09:27 PDT

What do pet tortoises and discerning diners in New York have in common? The answer to this thorny question is: Rivenrock Organic Edible Cactus from Nipomo.

“I started the farm in 1991 with the idea of being a farmers market garden,” explained John Dicus, Rivenrock’s owner, who is also a budding television and film character actor. “The cactus ended up being an accident after I saw a pile of it at a dump.”

He stowed the spiny find in the trunk of his car, and ended up growing some to use for xeriscapes in his landscape design business.

Dining Out: A taste of Sicily on Spring Street

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 21:50 PDT

The little green house with the quaint picket fence on Spring Street in Paso Robles is a long way from Rome. But this is where Sicilianborn Gaetano Marsano decided to open his restaurant two years ago.

He brought with him more than two decades of Southern Italian cuisine learned from working in his family’s bistro in Rome, as well as in restaurants in Spain, France, Switzerland, and eventually San Luis Obispo, where he worked for Cafe Roma for 10 years.

Through the years he also developed a passion for food and people —which is immediately evident when you walk in the door and are welcomed with his warm hug and exuberant smile.

Local Flavors: Marisol chef has a passion for fresh, local ingredients

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 21:51 PDT

Gregg Wangard, chef de cuisine for Marisol at The Cliffs since November, is proof that you never know where the road less traveled will take you.

Just last year, he and wife Kelly (also a respected chef) were living in Los Angeles and making frequent trips to see her family in Paso Robles.

Typically, the Wangards drove Highway 5, but one day they opted for Highway 101. Intrigued by the Shell Beach area, they serendipitously stopped to inquire about job possibilities, and Wangard found himself in an inspired discussion with Pam Tread-well, The Cliffs’ food and beverage director.

Food Calendar for week of June 4

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 17:06 PDT

SATURDAY

SLO Wine and Grill Affair: A Perfect Balance of Grill and Grape. Noon to 4 p. m. Several local wineries pair grilled creations with their wines. Also live music, art and samples of chocolate, coffee, olive oil, breads and cheeses. Proceeds benefit Transitions-Mental Health Association programs. Filipponi Ranch, Per Bacco Cellars, Calle Joaquin, San Luis Obispo. $30. 541-5144, ext. 175.

SUBMIT YOUR EVENT

Local Flavors: Local gardeners feed needy with backyard bounties

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 22:19 PDT

With the Backyard Harvest chapter she initiated last year, Amy White hopes to help bridge the gap between those who have a green thumb and those who need a hand feeding their families.

In providing a way for fruitful gardeners to donate their overabundance to neighborhood food banks and meal programs, the nonprofit, volunteer- based program collected more than 5,000 pounds of vegetables from dozens of Central Coast gardens in its inaugural year.

As a volunteer in a local soup kitchen, White realized “the glaring lack of fresh produce” typically available for those services, so when she saw a magazine article about the original Backyard Harvest program in Idaho, she immediately contacted the coordinator, who coincidentally was also named Amy—Amy Grey.

Dining Out: Comfort food comes home

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 22:18 PDT

Those who miss the old Denny’s restaurant at Calle Joaquin Street and Los Osos Valley Road in San Luis Obispo can take comfort that a better diner has opened in its place.

Zaki’s Golden Waffle is a new breakfast and lunch eatery specializing in classic American dishes—and, of course, waffles.

Owner Zaki Shabbar retained many of Denny’s colorful and retro-style furnishings that give the restaurant its big-city diner ambience. Purple and red booths line the walls and a long counter provides an ideal spot for patrons dining alone.

Dining Out: A tip of the sombrero to Señor Sancho’s

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 16:41 PDT

My visit to Señor Sancho’s restaurant actually started when I was sitting in my hairdresser’s salon, musing about the Mexican food I used to eat in Southern California, and wishing I could find the same in Paso Robles. She said I didn’t have to go far—Señor Sancho’s. And I am happy I did.

Walking in the door, you feel transported to Baja. Every inch of the walls is decorated with surfboards, colorful flags and banners, and vast amounts of Mexican paraphernalia. And the ceiling isn’t spared, with everything from piñatas to bicycles and inflatable toys hanging just above your head. The atmosphere is definitely meant to put you on the beach in Cabo.

Plenty of menu items

Local Flavors: Huasna Valley Farm offers a way to share their bounty

Tue, 27 May 2008 22:59 PDT

After a decade of farming, Ron and Jenn Skinner took a year off to fine-tune their operation and make a few infrastructure improvements, but now their Huasna Valley Farm CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program is back in business, supplying members with 31 tasty weeks of fresh fruits, vegetables and free-range eggs.

“We simplified a little,” said Ron Skinner of some changes made in the off year, but that’s certainly not apparent looking at the array of crops grown at the family’s farm.

Along with a handful of apprentice farmers, the Skinners literally grow everything from A to Z—depending on the season, a CSA share might contain everything from asparagus to zucchini, beets to scallions or greens to green beans.

Food calendar for week of May 27

Tue, 27 May 2008 19:31 PDT

WEDNESDAY

Avila Coasters Wine Event. 5 p. m. Appetizers by Chef Adolfo Flores of Avila Grocery and Deli and wines by Vita Luce Winery. Avila Wine & Roasting Co., 53 San Miguel St., Avila Beach. $19. Reservation, 627-1918.

SATURDAY

Bursting with berries

Tue, 20 May 2008 23:28 PDT

The sweet scent of strawberries always reminds me of spring.

Living on the Central Coast, the juicy berries are grown in abundance, making them as fresh and accessible as they come. Currently at the peak of their season, they can be found ripe at roadside stands, farmers markets and grocery stores.

Though best known for their use in desserts and other sweet treatments, strawberries are far more versatile than most people think.

Dining Out: Sushi by the plate

Tue, 20 May 2008 23:26 PDT

I rarely try unusual and unfamiliar dishes at Japanese restaurants for a couple of reasons: the high price and uncertainty about whether or not I’ll like the unusual dish.

I’m not proud of my lack of culinary adventure, but I tend to run up a big enough bill at sushi restaurants by indulging in favorites such as spicy tuna, sashimi and tempura.

A new restaurant in Grover Beach has opened me up to new possibilities, and I think it will do the same for other budget-minded Japanese food lovers.

Local Flavors: Life is sunny-side up for these Atascadero hens

Tue, 20 May 2008 23:27 PDT

It’s a lucky bird that ends up at Marianne Jefferson’s Truly Natural Free Range egg and chicken farm in Atascadero.

“This is what people envision when they read ‘free range’ on a label,” said Jefferson, gesturing towards the lush, sunny pasture where about 60 chickens were lazily pecking in the grass or at crumbs of homemade bread. (At night, the birds are safely ensconced in spacious coops custom-built by Jefferson’s husband.)

The ‘natural’ name

Food Calendar for week of May 21

Tue, 20 May 2008 23:03 PDT

UPCOMING

Avila Coasters Wine Event. 5 p. m. May 28. Appetizers by Chef Adolfo Flores of Avila Grocery and Deli and wines by Vita Luce Winery. Avila Wine & Roasting Co., 53 San Miguel St., Avila Beach. $19. Reservation, 627-1918.

Afternoon of Epicurean Delights.

Food Calendar for week of May 14

Tue, 13 May 2008 19:45 PDT

FRIDAY

Cheese and Wine Pairing. 1:30 p. m. Laura Werlin pairs American artisan cheese with Treana, Liberty School and Austin Hope wines. A book-signing follows the seminar. Space is limited. Paso Robles Inn, 1103 Spring St., Paso Robles. $35. Reservations, 238-6979, ext. 217.

FRIDAY THROUGH SUNDAY

Local Flavors: Coffee-tasting event is brewing with possibilities

Tue, 13 May 2008 21:41 PDT

Gone are the days when the only choices to be made about coffee were “black or with cream” and “regular or decaf.” Now, the java faithful have a myriad of decisions, even about where their beans have been.

Much like wine grapes, coffee beans will present various flavors depending on where they are grown.

On Saturday morning, coffee aficionados can find out what some of those differences are thanks to a free event brewed up by Tom Richardson, owner of Central Coast Refreshments, a company offering a full line of cafe-related products and equipment to clients in San Luis Obispo and northern Santa Barbara counties.