In Santa Cruz, cafés evolve into all-day dining spots as coffee culture shifts

Your favorite coffeehouse might be a restaurant now. In the post-third wave era of coffee, a quality cappuccino brewed with specialty beans by a trained barista is the norm. But some cafés that have traditionally focused solely on beverages now offer full menus of burritos, sandwiches, salads, French toast – even breakfast gnocchi. 

The shift toward expanding food menus reflects an industrywide trend aimed at making storefronts stand out in a sea of great coffee. These cafés are still designed for ease and approachability with quick counter service, but the addition of menus prepared by chefs or large kitchen staffs using seasonal ingredients has made dining a primary reason to visit, blurring the line between a coffeehouse and a breakfast joint. 

In the past, caffeine was the primary reason to stop by a coffee shop. Food usually existed in the form of muffins, bagels and croissants, there for visitors to grab while they used the free Wi-Fi or to stick in a backpack on the way to somewhere else. 

Since the pandemic, roasters such Santa Cruz-based Verve Coffee, 11th Hour Coffee and Cat & Cloud coffee, once focused primarily on coffee, tea and matcha, have gone all-in on food, with all-day made-to-order menus. 

These coffeehouses and others have grown beyond small meals such as avocado toast and overnight oats to more substantial fare like huevos rancheros with poached eggs ($16) at 11th Hour, and toast topped with smoked trout and bright orange roe at Verve. At places like Lulu Carpenter’s in downtown Santa Cruz, foodies are just as likely to walk through the door for a bowl of beef pho ($18) or plate of gnocchi ($12) with poached eggs, mushrooms and pesto as students grabbing a cup of coffee.

“That market has standardized, and now if you really want to be cutting edge in coffee, you have to differentiate,” said Cat & Cloud retail manager Herman Madrigal. “We wanted to show people we are as intentional with our food as we are with our coffee.”

Founded in 2016 in Pleasure Point, Cat & Cloud later opened three more spots in Aptos, Abbott Square Market and Santa Cruz’s Westside. When it began building out its new flagship on Swift Street in 2019, the full kitchen was a priority and made it distinct from the other cafés. It was the “height of the avocado toast era,” said Madrigal, but Cat & Cloud aimed to offer more made-to-order food. 

When the Westside location opened in 2020, it launched a breakfast burrito ($13.50), and its surge in popularity made it a financial pillar for that site.

“It’s one of the most insane, iconic things that Cat & Cloud has created, other than coffee,” said Madrigal. Bacon from craft butcher El Salchichero, crispy potatoes, a creamy and smoky crema and a tomatillo salsa packed with cilantro made the simple, foil-wrapped creation an instant and lasting hit, with around 1,200 sold every week. 

With the help of a culinary team of 20 people, Cat & Cloud has continued to refine the menu at the Westside location. As of April, there are 11 items, including custardy French toast ($14) made with slices of Manresa Bread; overnight oats ($9.50) with ube topped with homemade granola, oranges and edible flowers; and a sandwich with miso-roasted mushrooms and melted brie ($13.40). The Green Goodness bowl ($11.85) is a substantial salad with crispy rice and chickpeas, poached eggs and a lemony dressing. 

Most people who visit the Swift Street Cat & Cloud order food, and that sets it apart from the other locations, which lack full kitchens and offer just a handful of items. “Is this a coffeehouse? It is, but it’s not,” said Madrigal, referring to the Westside spot. He points out that, unlike Cat & Cloud’s other coffee shops, the Westside location doesn’t have outlets to plug in devices, aimed at encouraging a restaurant-like atmosphere rather than a spot to do homework. 

“We want you to come in here, eat and hang out with your friends and have it be social. We have a unique experience,” he said. “If you go to Portola or Aptos, they’re making a different statement.” 

In the 2010s, Santa Cruz-based Verve Coffee Roasters gradually introduced yogurt bowls, sandwiches and toast at its coffeehouses throughout California. After the pandemic, people began working remotely from its cafés, and Verve saw an opportunity to add to its menu as its guests stayed throughout the day. 

“Guests were increasingly looking for places where excellent coffee and good food come together, so we took that as an opportunity to rethink the café experience,” said Anthony Fassio, its chief retail and operations officer, and chef Katianna Hong in an email to Lookout. “We decided to build a chef-led culinary program focused on craft, seasonality, and exceptional ingredients.”

Earlier this year, Verve created nearly 20 fresh recipes with Hong, a James Beard Award-winner, contestant on Bravo TV’s “Top Chef” and one of 50 best new chefs in America in 2018, according to Food & Wine magazine. In April, the company previewed the menu to its Bay Area cafés, including three in Santa Cruz County, more than doubling the number of food options. In May, the menu will roll out to the rest of its locations in the state.

The list includes a mix of prepared brunchy items and pre-made grab-and-go parfaits, overnight oats and salads, and stands out for its inventive combinations, such as toast spread with tangy labneh, bright kumquat preserves and silky prosciutto ($15), and Turkish eggs ($16), a savory Turkish breakfast dish of poached eggs and yogurt, drizzled with chile oil and fresh dill. The menu will refresh three or four times a year with the seasons, including specials during celebrations and holidays, said Fassio and Hong. 

The shift reflects a deliberate industrywide culinary evolution, and supports Verve’s transition “from being primarily a coffee destination to a true coffee and culinary spot,” they wrote. 

They insist that Verve cafés are not restaurants, though. The food adds to the coffeehouse experience, and is designed to complement a cup of coffee. 

“For us, the focus is about setting a new standard for café food as a whole,” they said. “While we will always be a coffee sourcer and roaster at our core, we’re redefining what guests should expect from a café.”

Not every local coffee shop believes investing in more expansive food menus is the best way to reach new customers. Owner Travis Nelson has five food items at Honeylux Coffee in Watsonville, and said he doesn’t plan to add more. Partly, that’s out of necessity; the coffee shop in the Hangar by the Watsonville Municipal Airport has a small kitchen without a hood. But he also believes in the benefits of a compact menu. 

“The simpler the better. There’s no confusion,” Nelson said. “Even out of four or five items, only two or three sell the most.” 

The No. 1 seller is overnight oats, followed by a breakfast bagel with avocado, bacon and poached eggs. 

“People love that, so I’ve veered away from a breakfast burrito or similar item,” Nelson said. “I always thought that if we added something that would compete with it, I don’t know how it would sell.”

There are no plans at Cat & Cloud to reduce its menu. A forthcoming venture – still in the planning stages – will continue to play off the relationship between coffee and dining, inspired by international coffeehouses in Mexico City and Europe.

“Our next iteration of Cat & Cloud will definitely have more than just a coffee shop experience,” Madrigal said. “We find that it draws the most attention, and it creates the most fun for everyone, from guests to the team.”

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