EDIBLE: John Pisto talks life and history before a free demo in Carmel.

John Pisto sits at the center of his world: the kitchen. His kitchen. Before him lays a cutting-board countertop that would be the envy of most restaurants. In a minute he’ll lay down a huge cooking pan layered with forest-fragrant dried candy cap mushrooms. Later he’ll cover the counter with a landslide of creations: fresh-carved duck and pork pancettas and prosciuttos he’s been aging in his wine cellar, local olive oils, a crusty baguette and jar after jar of marinated olives, pickled okra, pickled hot peppers, pickled cauliflower and skunky umami-rich pickles.

Next to him, around him, behind him, appear bottles of hot sauces, bowls of spices, tins of sardines and at least six types of capers. In one fridge (of the half-dozen scattered around his property), vats of submerged corned beef approach their due date (and pastrami fate). On adjacent counters linger a Fleetwood Heavy-Duty Gravity-Feed Food Slicer, a Keurig espresso maker, a FoodSaver vacuum sealer and a Moffat Turbofan restaurant-grade convection oven.

Above wine glasses in hanger racks come more and more jars, tubs and bottles, and above that, endless framed pictures of familiar faces: wine pioneer Ernie Gallo, actor Andy Garcia, late pal Julia Child and old ironside Clint Eastwood, who would enlist Pisto to cook for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am celebs so Eastwood could have them all in one place before shooing them to their hotels – straight there – to wake for early tee times. On the stove, a huge pot of Old World-style sauce brims and bobs with knobby meatballs and plump Italian sausages, awaiting a visit from his kids and grandkids.

This is why Pisto isn’t lonely without the bustle of the half-dozen-deep restaurant dynasty he built in Monterey that includes Whaling Station and Domenico’s, which he later sold, like all of them. It started with a line-out-the-door closet at the mouth of Fisherman’s Wharf, where Captain’s Gig sold fish ‘n’ chips for $1 and beers for $0.25. “I don’t miss it,” he says. “I’m doing it now.”

That means experimenting and exploring, hosting and storytelling, soaking up and re-engineering anything he learns about food. The other day he decided pickling tomatillos would be worth a try. He plucks some from a covered clay pot, slices them swiftly and – boom – they’re a subtle and sweet revelation.

The rabid curiosity led him to the world of mushrooms, and he hasn’t left since. This week that passion leads him to a free public program on “Mushroom Grubbing and Cooking” 7pm Wednesday, Feb. 22, at the Carmel Woman’s Club. For the Carmel Library Community Day event, he plans to go big with a mushroom risotto recipe in a paella pan so big it takes a flatbed to drive it and six people to carry it. He’ll talk about foraging and climate’s effects on fungi. At least that’s the plan. His stories, particularly those about fungi, can multiply in any direction. That happened in his kitchen, not far from a poster of a young Pisto, now 75, holding mushrooms and a sign that says, “Warning! Picking and eating wild mushrooms can kill you!”

The stories include the time Ken Kesey of Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test fame picked him up in his bus for a big weekend in the woods. Or how he stalked David Arora after hearing him talk, until the mushroom expert – who told him, “You can’t keep calling me. I’m trying to work” – adopted Pisto to cook for his world-traveling mushroom missions and now regularly stays at Pisto’s guest house.

There were other stories – of accidentally getting all of Fisherman’s Wharf stoned and of finding magic mushrooms in Pebble Beach. (Get those and a lot more on the blog, www.mcweekly.com/edible.) The real story, though, is simpler. “I’ve never been happier,” he says. “I wear shorts every day and do what I want.” Which is a lot to digest. In the best possible way.

~ QUICKBITES ~

• The Flying Artichoke at the Salinas Airport (759-9096) is open for breakfast and lunch (and banquets) 8am-3pm Monday-Saturday. The Choke Burger – seasoned ground chuck sirloin with grilled and sautéed artichokes and melted Swiss ($9/lunch) – is proving a best-seller, while the fried artichokes ($7) and pork sandwiches ($10) are also “flying” out of the kitchen.
• The new Artemis Turkish Kitchen (622-9242) on Ocean at Mission in Carmel is open daily, after a bout figuring out a faulty hood. Insiders say the lamb is quite popular. Lunch service starts as soon as next week.
• The Soberanes Fire was a big blow to South Coast commerce. Now landslides and cracked bridges have rendered Big Sur an island. Businesses are hurting, including Nepenthe, where the focus is admirably on the employees. If you’re a restaurant owner or manager looking for a little extra skilled manpower, front or back of the house, email ahahn@nepenthebigsur.com.
• Big Little Lies – filmed largely in Monterey, Pacific Grove and Big Sur – starts showing this week on HBO (Sunday, Feb. 19). Be still my Tabasco-pumping heart. More on the blog.
• Another major piece of the ambitious puzzle at 1 E. Carmel Valley Road, in the heart of the village, debuts with the grand opening of the new and multifacetedJoyce Vineyards tasting room. The party happens 1-5:30pm Saturday, Feb. 18, with wines by the glass (including the premiere of the year’s new Rosé), new merchandise, and special pricing on bottle purchases for new releases. Casey Frazier will be performing throughout the event and Kuki’s food truck will be selling food. Photos on the blog.
• Carmel City Council’s epic inability to develop a smart (and modern) policy on counter service slogs on. Get the latest on how it affects places like Carmel Belleon p. 11.
• Locally sown Ratel Cider pointman Bryan Laschiver just kegged his new three-apple-and-one-pear cider and his apricot cider, which debut early April.
• Monterey Bay Village and VNA & Hospice bring Dr. Stephen Brabeck to talk “Food as Medicine: The Health Benefits of Extra Virgin Olive Oil” 2:30pm Wednesday, Feb. 22, at The Carmel Foundation’s Diment Hall (620-8701).
• Trió Carmel’s (250-7714) Wine Seminar Series hosts Chef Dyon Foster, founder of Chef’s Palette Spice Rubs Company from 6-7pm Friday, Feb. 17. The event will “demystify food and wine pairing,” but at a max of 24 guests ($30/nonmembers; $20/members).
• It was one of those moments when the clouds above parted and the beam of glorious light hit with the angelic sound “Auuuuuuuuuuhh!” A woman at AlvaradoRamen (643-9556) was slurping from a porcelain bowl. Finally no more suffocating beneath all the single use plastic bowls and ramekins. But alas, she brought her own bowl, which is the plan for me next time.
• Edible Monterey Bay reports Jason Balestrieri and Kevin Hincks, former #1 and #1 at Cantinetta Luca, are opening a fancy butchery-charcuterie hub at 1534 Fremont Ave. in Seaside this summer. The Meatery will reportedly occupy more than 2,000 square feet with upscale artisanal pancettas, sausages, bacons and more.
• Melville Tavern’s (643-9525) half-price Wednesday pizza night is over. Luckily everyday $3 beer specials can still catch my tears.
• Seriously, check out the live owl box Haute Enchilada Cafe webcam. It has baby owls. It’s linked on the blog.
• The remake of Asilomar Conference Grounds’ Social Hall terrace continues, well behind schedule, but with great promise. Adjacent Phoebe’s Cafe (635-5310) remains one of the earthier and cozier best kept secrets in Monterey County with great panini, beer and earthy salads, even real cocktails.
• House of Gyros in Seaside (717-4624) is going from falafel wraps and spit-roasted lamb to more Indonesian fare with its new owners. But it’s going to take a while to redo given the amount of kitchen work they want to do.
• Joe Pesci, who appears on John Pisto’s wall: “I’m just some lunatic macaroni mushroom, is that it?”