Quick Bites: Big Italian meals, tap takeover, locals deals and a lucky bartender.

Chef Angela Tamura put on a special lunch as part of the first Pebble Beach Culinary Getaway.

One of the all-too-rare female lead chefs in the county, she steers the kitchen at Péppoli in Spanish Bay (647-7433), which means she claims dominion over the largest wood-fired stove of its kind, a 20-foot-long Grillworks beauty many cooks would trade their first-born for.

Her lunch was as pretty as the coastal setting. It wove from a bright bite of kampachi crudo to vivid homemade pasta with housemade Italian sausage to succulent pork chops fresh off the massive grill sided by a cute wild mushroom risotto cake. 

The desert might have been her greatest coup, an authentic butter cake with a touch of crunch to the crust and tender moisture on the inside.

Meanwhile Péppoli manager and certified sommelier Federico Rusciano and Antinori California Wine Estate Manager Glenn Salva customized wise wine pairings highlighted by a Syrah-Cab Rosato from Scalabrone to start.

The Menlo Park women we sat with were totally enjoying the PBCG combination of workshops and meals, bubbling with the flatbread lessons from The Bench's Aaron Burns and eager to learn sushi rolling Roy's Pablo Mellin—after a power nap.

The lunch bodes well for Péppoli's signature annual dinner event next week, "Under the Tuscan Moon."

Chef Adolfo Veonese of Taverna Aventine in San Francisco and Trattoria Aventine in Hollywood joins Tamura for a choice of prix fixe four-course dinners any time between 6-10pm Friday, Feb. 3 ($95, 647-7490 for reservations).

More food news appears below, in snack size:

• Vino Napoli Wine Bar at the corner of Seventh and Dolores will be converted into more dining space for neighboring Little Napoli Bistro Italiano (626-6335). Owner Rich Pepe claims Péppoli (see above) as one of his restaurants on his website, but while he helped put the principals of the restaurant together for the deal, he doesn't own any part of it.

• Trio Carmel (250-7714) is offering a free flight of red wine to anyone wearing red this Friday and Saturday, Feb. 3-4, in honor of “National Wear Red Day” and the fight against heart disease.

• Abalonetti Bar & Grill (373-1851) has a new locals menu with items like Parmesan-crusted chicken, "mile-high" meatloaf and grilled calamari steak, with sides, for $10.95 each.

• Coronado Brewing Company does a tap takeover Friday, Feb. 10, at Post No Bills (324-4667) in Sand City, on its way to S.F. Beer Week (Feb. 10-19). 

• Wine lovers can now bring Café Rustica food to the Twisted Roots patio in Carmel Valley (594-8282), or order in Boardwalk Sub Shop sandwiches.

• The 4-6:30pm weekday happy hour at Rio Grill (625-5436) has new items like ghost-chile queso dip, lamb-cotija meatballs 2.0, tempura broccolini and truffle potato fritters.

• Zach Houde now directs traffic at the best old-school/under-the-radar bar in the area, Gianni's Pizza (649-1500). "It's like I'm at home: The game is on, I make drinks for friends," he says, "only they pay money."

• The reinvented Hellam's Tobacco (373-2816) on Alvarado should be open for AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am weekend, Feb. 9-12.

• Monterey County visitors spent $160 million a year in local economic benefits in 2016, according to the Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau. Surveys reveal the top three activities are dining in restaurants (87.1 percent), shopping (62.8) and outdoor recreation (34.5). 

• The remodeling of Jacks Lounge at Portola Hotel (649-2698)—doubling the size of the bar and extending restaurant seating into the lobby—is on track to open in March with the debut of the redone Monterey Conference Center this spring.