These 6 new restaurants and businesses opened in SLO County in June
From a creekside cider tasting room to a reptile zoo and a butterfly rest stop, San Luis Obispo County has welcomed a wave of new spots this summer. Here’s a quick tour of what’s opened and who’s behind it.
Here are key takeaways:
- SLO Cider opened its second location at 750 Monterey St. on June 12 after 18 months of work, tucking a creekside tasting room behind Mission Mall. “We are so stoked to be here, and it’s unique,” creative partner Pete Ayer told The Tribune. “You have to be adventurous. There’s no parking lot.”
- Melo Mela Kitchen, an Italian-California restaurant from father-and-son owners Glenn and Beau Bianchi, soft-opened two months ago at Bianchi Winery in Paso Robles. Winemaker Todd Weiher said of the new spot: “Melo Mela highlighted it was just the evolution of the winery, too. I think we were ready for it.”
- Salina Rooftop reopened under the Charlie Palmer Collective on June 26, with Michelin-starred chef Charlie Palmer calling the renovated bar atop The Piccolo at Paso Robles Inn, “a garden oasis” that blends Central Coast ingredients with a Mediterranean aesthetic.
- Mabel Lounge inside Atascadero’s Carlton Hotel shrunk its former “airplane hangar” size lounge into a cozy 2,425-square-foot space serving cocktails with house-distilled gin on June 4, according to founder Aaron Graves of management company Everlygrove.
- BK’s Reptiles and Zoo opened May 22 in Grover Beach, where owner Andrew Barton stocks 30-plus reptiles and amphibians — including a 13-foot reticulated python. He told The Tribune, “It just stuck with me. Now here I am. I had to build this place instead of living a normal life at a computer.”
- A Satellite of Love moved from its Walker Street spot of eight years to a hybrid storefront at 1235 Monterey St. in San Luis Obispo on June 6. It shares the space with Divers and Grow Nursery, with owner Malik Thorne operating the spot with four of his friends and business partners.
The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.