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EAT THIS: FOCACCIA SANDWICHES AT MELROSE CAFÉ
All things considered, if pressed, I’d say my favorite food is sandwiches. Few things call to me like passionately crafted ingredients skillfully stacked between two slices of bread, and I’ve chronicled many of my local favorites, including the tri-tip Rollie sandwich at LG Meats Capitola, a vegan sweet potato and avocado sandwich at The Grove Cafe and Bakery in Felton, banh mi by pop-up Back Door Bánh Mí, a blackened fish sandwich called The Grotto at Seabright Deli.
My current sandwich obsession is fueled by bakery Cameron Meyers and her farmers market stall, Melrose Café, and her stunning, springy loaves of focaccia. If the deeply golden, bubbly loaves don’t catch your eye as you walk past her stall at the Westside Santa Cruz or Live Oak farmers markets, the colorful fillings will. The menu changes weekly, but think roasted eggplant and Jimmy Nardello peppers with fior di latte mozzarella, El Salchichero chorizo with roasted potatoes, greens and aioli made with fresh eggs, and a breakfast sandwich finished with vibrant, zippy scallion pesto.
You might think someone learning the art of making focaccia would do so in Italy, the bread’s homeland, but Meyers honed her craft in about as un-Italy a place as possible: remote Alaska.
Read the story of Meyers’ unconventional journey here.
BEST OF THE WEEK AHEAD
Below, find a curated list of the best food and drink events in Santa Cruz County for the coming week. At the top, I share my picks of unmissable local happenings.
NEWS OF THE WEEK
ICYMI – here are food news stories from Lookout that you might have missed.
- Fate of Silver Spur discussed at community meeting (Lookout)
- New Leaf Market to open larger Capitola grocery story on Nov. 9 (Lookout)
- Once endangered, Pacific bluefin tuna rebounds as a sustainable choice in Santa Cruz County (Lookout)
- Lily Belli on Food: Will Santa Cruz find a new grocery store for downtown space? (Lookout)
- Santa Cruz Mountains harvest wraps up ‘fabulous vintage’ (Lookout)
