A travel author/colleague called with a question earlier this week: What’s your favorite tasting room in Monterey County?
He might as well ask me to pick my favorite Golden State Warrior, and I’ve got at least seven of those. (For the record, Andre Iguodala, Andrew Bogut, Draymond Green, Klay Thompson, Marreese Speights, Steph Curry and Leandro Barbosa are a few of them.) And the Warriors number only 15. Last I checked the area has 55 wine-tasting rooms.
So instead of one answer my colleague got a bunch – including Chesebro and De Tierra (hit the blog for why) – and inspired me to name the food stories at the top of my mind as we go to print. A starting five, if you will:
1. El Palomar Restaurant, the huge place near The Great Wall and The Wild Plum in downtown Monterey, always seem to underachieve, doing little with the soaring space other than decent Mexican and Latin dance nights. (OK, they did wreck the kitchen.) Now, after weeks of kitchen rehab and fresh paint, El Palomar has galloped off and The Other Side (372-1032) marks a nice improvement. New carpets and a redone patio are next.
It has experienced restaurant people in place with longtime local chef Marie Ramen, who has worked in the kitchen at Carmel Valley Ranch and at Casanova under Didier Dutertre, and her son Cliff Jansen at the front of the house. They currently operate Marie’s Garden in Carmel behind Portobello’s, as they have for a couple of years.
Jansen says the music will continue and expand with DJs Friday and Saturday, Latin live music Saturday and more bands, period, of all genres, all the time, to take better advantage of the substantial square footage.
With cooks sticking around, “El Palomar Favorites” remain, with the popular chili verde ($14) and posole ($12) leading the way.
I tried the new fish tacos on Jansen’s recommendation and the blackened basa with Greek yogurt and grilled green onion hit the spot for a fair $12.
And bartender Rigo, another Palomar holdover, might be the most sweetly eager in the industry.
2. Speaking of favored wine tasting spots, TrioCarmel qualifies because it enjoys not just one excellent local wine label, but three: Pelerin Wines, Ian Brand & Family Winery and Mesa Del Sol Vineyards, plus contemporary art, a central Dolores Street spot (between Ocean and Seventh), a motherlode of infused olive oils and fun vinegars and an intimate wine seminar series that continues 6-7:30pm Friday, April 24 ($20 per person, $10 for Trio Club members). This one’s an in-depth tasting of the famously fickle and never-more-popular Pinot Noir grape.
Winemaker Chris Weidemann (of Pelerin) and certified wine professional Tom Farmer (of vast stores of wine knowledge) lead a globetrotting tour of the Pinot Noir grape exploring how old world, new world and local expressions taste, from Savigny-les-Beaune 2011 to Pelerin Rosella’s Vineyard 2010.
3. BigSurRoadhouse just introduced a new seasonal menu from (relatively) new Exec Chef BrendanEsons. Check out the eye-popping photos of items like the seared scallops in Sherry sauce ($16) and the duck breast ($29) on the blog.
The items are spendy, but that’s Big Sur in these rarefied foodie times, and the lunches are more affordable. More importantly, BSR has a new culinary identity after its Cajun-California era – and one that works with the stylish, contemporary and minimalist decor surprisingly well.
I’m craving the duck confit ($15) with duck skin cracklings, and the hazelnut cake filled with chocolate ganache and served with cherry ice cream and salted caramel ($10).
Lunch happens noon-3pm and features inventive sandwiches like the roast beef on Esons’ own housemade bagel with horseradish cream cheese, pickled red onion, arugula and roasted pasilla peppers ($13 with French fries or green salad). He’s making all the sauces, pastas and breads too.
4. Carmel Valley Ranch embarks on an ambitious remodel of its still-underappreciated Lodge restaurant with design by Rodrigo Vargas Design, SB Architects and The Paul Davis Partnership. Anticipate a flexible new floor plan that includes two new dining spaces enclosed by barn doors and a massive 1,500-square-foot terrace offering valley and vineyard views. In the meantime, Tim Wood is collaborating with McIntyre Wines on a paired dinner 6:15pm Friday, April 24 ($105, 626-2599). Wood, voted Best Chef in Monterey by Weekly readers earlier this month, pairs five courses of things like Spanish-style risotto and lamb fondue with a range of McIntyre’s finest.
CVR is also introducing estate wines done by Peter Figge of Figge Wines, starting with a Reserve Dry Rose in May followed by a Pinot, Chardonnay and reserve Pinot in the coming months.
5. One of the oldest and most storied local wine operations, Cachagua Valley’s Rancho Galante of GalanteVineyards fame, is up for sale for $11 million. Its tasting room was the first in Carmel.
QUICKBITES
• Esteban Restaurant (375-0176) offers a Taste of Spain dinner 5:50-9pm Thursday, April 23, with strolling reception stacked with a range of Spanish foods, Chock Rock wines, and interactive paella cooking ($85).
• Carmel High School students sell handmade bowls and fill them with soup for the Empty Bowls soup and bread community supper benefiting Ag Against Hunger 5-7pm Thursday, April 30, at CHS ($20, contact Diana Vita 624-1821, ext. 2780).
• Those wondering how local restauranteur David Fink globe trots can join him to float around Italy and Spain onboard Silversea Cruise Line’s Silver Spirit and visit renowned restaurants and wineries and participate in exclusive tastings and dinners. Starting at $3,850. MmMmtravel.com.
• Welcome to the world, Ezekiel Stardust Montoya, born exactly at high noon on April 20 to Domini Anne and Iran Montoya. Got a good feeling about you, kid.
• Many of Monterey County’s finest specialty foods get a little spotlight on the blog, with help from costumes.
• More on the blog: Insight from “Tips for a beginner” by star chef HughAcheson at Pebble Beach Food & Wine 8.0, courtesy Daniel V. DeCamp.
• A lively benefit dinner benefits Run for Rachael this Friday. More on that and other inspiring locals bouncing back from catastrophic events on, yes, the blog.
• That’s also where to learn more on how John Cox of Sierra Mar has introduced a drought-friendly way to save billions of gallons of water, and a peek at De Marco’s New York-Style Pizzeria.
• In spotlighting DeMarco’s by-the-slice options, I neglected to mention Pelican Pizza has pie by the slice.
• Carmel Valley’s Wills Fargo now dishes a doggie meuu with things like a raw beef patty ($4), cod fish skin bite ($2.50) and pig ear chews ($3). Hallelujah. And introduces its own wine brand on May 1.
• Follow @MontereyMCA on Instagram and Twitter.
• Plato: “The greatest wealth is to live content with little.”