C Restaurant's Steinbeck dinner was just what the author—and Doc—would have wanted.

There is a pattern to most wine dinners. Each course is an examination of varietals and vintages, as well as the fine art of pairing.

And so the winemaker dutifully describes the terroir and the technique involved while the chef muses on the brushes of blackberry or leather that rise from the glass to complement the appetizer or entree. Dinner guests listen and nod. There is an aura of quiet respect around the table.

But the vibe at C Restaurant + Bar in Monterey was very different on Thursday evening. Yes, there was due regard for the expertise. Yet the atmosphere was anything but still or academic—and this despite conversation led by a Ph.D.

The occasion marked John Steinbeck’s birthday, Feb. 27. Before the dinner and at the introduction of each course, noted Steinbeck scholar Susan Shillinglaw discussed the author, his friend Ed Ricketts and their haunts in Monterey County. 

Food and drink feature often in Steinbeck’s writing. Ricketts likewise was known for hosting salons that could become quite boisterous—as well as for his love of beer and steak (he was heading out to buy more meat for a gathering when his car was hit by a train).

Standing in the shabby living room of Ricketts’ lab before the dinner, Shillinglaw asked guests to imagine Doc’s view from the window. Across the street on the right is the Wing Chong market. To the left was the brothel. In between was the haven of Mack and the boys.

The evening began with a tour of Doc’s Lab—a first for many of the guests. Shillinglaw used the occasion to explain that, in Cannery Row, Steinbeck is asking us to see the world through Doc’s eyes. He was welcoming and convivial with all. She also pointed out that Steinbeck considered food and drink to be social. Meals are shared. And as he wrote in Winter of Our Discontent, “When two people meet, each one is changed by the other, so you got two new people.”

The John Steinbeck Birthday Dinner at C Restaurant was like that. It turned quickly into something friendly, inclusive and most of all noisy. Shillinglaw’s commentary and Chef Matt Bolton’s briefs sparked conversation—and not just about food or Steinbeck.

OK, Bolton’s Wagyu steak with duck fat-fried potato brought a moment of reverie to the table, as did Pastry Chef Michelle Lee’s beer milkshake. Otherwise it was time to laugh, share stories normally saved for close friends or compare the qualities of a Maserati with a Corvette—guests at wine dinners tend to have some spare change. One man leaned over and speculated that “this must have been what it was like at Ed Ricketts’ parties.”

It was the first time C Restaurant held a Steinbeck dinner. Toward the end of the evening, food and beverage director Joe Valencia indicated that it might happen every year.