Halibut on pesto risotto, Schooners, Cayucos, Ca.
Love & Garlic's Grazing Box
Angele's Steak Bite, Napa Valley, California
The Fourth of July Weekend brought some challenges, mainly what is open in California. Luckily, we had a wonderful dining experience on Friday, July 3rd, outdoors at https://www.ristoranteallegria.com/. I ordered the Ahi Tuna and the dessert of Tirimisu was delightful! Sunday, July 5th, was another dining Win! Harris Ranch now is serving outdoors, though a little hot and no misters, I did think I saw Richard Hatch of Survivor Fame and we survived under the patio umbrella. I ordered a Wedged Salad and shared a tri tip sandwich with sweet potato fries. Our friends ordered Mountain Oysters, which are famous at Harris Ranch. Whenever I try something new, I say it tastes like chicken. My culinary bravery was in full effect as Mountain Oysters are the testicles of a bull breaded.
Grilled Artichokes, Fried Calamari at Pismo's Coastal Grill, Fresno, CA.
Pismo's Coastal Grill Restaurant
Over the past month, I've gone on a food journey of sorts. As a cookbook author and publisher, I have an essential business, I am fortunate to work part- time in marketing for a catering company, part time producer for a television station and my significant other is the proprietor of a winery which is also an essential business. My son had been being home schooled prior to the corona virus, so when restaurants started opening up a couple of weeks ago, we decided to take advantage of the opportunity.
We Californians pride ourselves on good food and wine. Did you notice there is a period at the end of the sentence? Don't get me wrong, I LOVE cooking, while sheltering in place, I made my Grandma Rose's Spaghetti Sauce twice, my Noni Julie's Anise Biscotti Cookies (and my grandma/noni is alive and well, kicking it at 99 years of age, so it's fun to tell her that I just baked a dozen of her now famous sprinkled cookie concoctions.) I've made batches of pesto sauce, yes, with the pine nuts and extra garlic. And, I made a Tuscan chicken with Marsala wine sauce one day too.
Noni Julie's Anise Biscotti Cookies
But, it's fun to explore the California coastline, so a couple of weeks back, I asked my significant other to fly us to Monterey, he obliged. So, on the fly, we explored Big Sur for a little while, my daughters' future wedding venue and on a friend's recommendation (a local), we sat outside at Grasings in Carmel. The food was fabulous and I especially appreciated the use of real silverware while dining alfresco. They got creative with my mimosa (the way they had small containers for the freshly squeezed orange juice and the champagne was in an enclosed drink container and everything we ordered including the salmon and the Cesar salad was scrumptious.
Next on our food journey stop was about a week later in Napa Valley. We dined outdoors at Angele, it was a warm day in Napa, about 90 degrees, the food and service were excellent and the olives were yummy! The steak bites were a little on the medium rare side, but I like them that way!
Surprise birthday grazing box from my new employers was quite a TREAT... and then we were off to San Luis Obispo, rented a Lincoln Mark 8, let the boys, aka, teenagers, boogie board in the Ocean for an hour and then headed to Schooners for Cippino, Halibut and pesto risotto. The halibut was overcooked so we asked for a do over, and guess what they did the same thing, overcooked. But the Cippino was delightful and lasted in the fridge a couple of days past the weekend excursion.
To celebrate all A's, and 35 units completed in one semester of high school-- and craving more seafood, my son suggested Pismo's Coastal Grill. There we tried the fried calamari (which was so-so, much better at Schooners). I ordered a beet and goat cheese salad, which was tasty, and my son had a messo messo (so so) fish sandwich which he apologized to himself over. "I should have read it more closely, I don't like sweet and savory!) They spoiled us with more iced tea that one should drink when not utilizing public restroom, LOL.
Our food journey thus far has been a magnificent cacophony of celebrating the California Coastline, the Wine Country, and the heart of the Valley.
Forgot to mention the Grilled Artichokes at Pismo's Coastal Grill in Fresno, yummy!
Update, this article was written at the beginning of June, to date, I've added two exceptional dining experiences to the list.
Exceptional Calamari at: https://www.bluewatergrill.com/locations/catalina-island
Gina Meyers is a cookbook author, https://www.ginameyers.com
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