jeninni kitchen + wine bar
542 Lighthouse Ave., Pacific Grove
(831) 920-2662, www.jeninni.com
People don’t know how to describe what is happening. According to the menu, it’s eggplant. But it would be just as realistic to label the eggplant fries “lightly fried cumulous clouds” or “long, thin pillows of paradise.” There is much to recommend this forward-leaning Spanish hub of charcuterie, market pickles, North African spice, zesty fried octopus, lamb molletes and intriguing small-batch wines. But this aubergine is required eating. (Honorary mention: eggplant-calamari Parmesan at Massaro & Santos on the Coast Guard Pier.)