Welcome to Lily Belli on Food, a weekly food-focused newsletter from Lookout’s food and drink correspondent, Lily Belli. Keep reading for the latest local food news for Santa Cruz County – plus a few fun odds and ends from my own life and around the web.
… On Monday, dozens of businesses closed throughout Santa Cruz County to take part in “A Day Without Immigrants.” The nationwide protest encouraged supporters to stay home from work and school or to close their businesses.
Some – such as Watsonville Public House and Slice Project in Watsonville, and Copal Restaurant and Lúpulo Craft Beer House in Santa Cruz – publicly shared their decision on social media. Other businesses, like The Neighbor’s Pub and Samba Rock Acai Café in Santa Cruz, shortened their hours or closed early to show solidarity. Many more simply hung up their “Sorry, we’re closed” signs, sometimes with a handwritten note in English or Spanish.
One person I spoke to, Guillermo Alvarez, owner of The Real Taco food trucks, said the statement he and other businesses are making is greater than any financial loss he might personally face. “No matter how much I lost today, I don’t care about money,” he said, and added in Spanish, “Que nos escuchen en nos ayudan par la future,” which means, “Let them listen to us and help us for the future.” Read the story here.
P.S. Want to know more about the countywide protest on Monday? Check out this story from Lookout’s South County reporter, Tania Ortiz.
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… Last week, I stopped by Tortilla Shack, a new fast-casual burrito bar near Soquel Drive and Highway 1. It’s owned by Quinn Cormier and Geoff Hargrave, who also own East End Gastropub in Capitola and Izakaya West End in Santa Cruz (if you missed my story in June, West End Tap & Kitchen was transformed into Izakaya West End, a Japanese gastropub, last summer).
Tortilla Shack offers customizable burritos, burrito bowls, quesadillas and nachos with tortillas pressed to order and dozens of toppings. With a delivery- and takeout-friendly format, owners Hargrave, Cormier and chef Adam Becerra are hoping to tap into business from nearby Dominican Hospital.
… Attention restaurant industry folks! I’m hosting a small listening session for restaurant industry workers at Lookout Santa Cruz’s office. The meeting will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 18, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. and will be led by me, with a few other Lookout staff members. It’s open to anyone working in the restaurant industry in Santa Cruz County.
A Lookout Listens session is an opportunity for you to share your voice, thoughts and opinions on the issues and topics that matter most to you as a member of the restaurant industry. The goal is for me to gain a deeper understanding of the issues, concerns and interests to help inform my reporting.
Lookout will have questions prepared and will provide light refreshments during this informal meeting.
Spaces are limited to 12 people. Please RSVP if you can commit to the date and are ready to participate.
To attend: Register here, and we will follow up to confirm your registration with an email.
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ON THE MENU
Would Santa Cruz still be Santa Cruz without a fishing industry? After nine rocky years of delayed, shortened and outright canceled fishing seasons, the coastal community might soon have to face that cultural reckoning as the number of commercial fishing boats active in the Santa Cruz Harbor dwindles to fewer than a dozen.
For generations, fishers along California’s Central Coast have relied on two primary catches to make their living: Dungeness crab in the winter and Chinook salmon in the summer. But since 2016, this traditional rhythm has been severely disrupted by a cascade of environmental challenges. Local fishers, some of whom have been working out of the Santa Cruz Harbor, say this year could be a defining moment for the county’s fleet. Watch for the story next week.
EVENT SPOTLIGHT
The first Santa Cruz Mountains Wine Passport Day of the year is coming up on Saturday, Feb. 22. Passport holders have access to more than 30 area wineries, many of which open their doors only for special events. Explore beautiful vineyards, savor a complimentary tasting flight at each winery and enjoy special experiences like live entertainment and food trucks. Passports are $90 each, or $150 for two.
LIFE WITH THE BELLIS
I enjoy cooking and find it relaxing at the end of the day, so I prepare almost all of the meals in my household. My husband, Mike, occasionally makes requests, but mostly he’s happy and grateful with whatever I put in front of him, which allows me the creativity to make whatever I want.
But this marital bliss is broken whenever I try to make Italian meals. Mike’s family is Italian, and he has very specific ideas about how certain dishes should be prepared. Me, I like to improvise, tweak, or even – I dare say – improve certain recipes. He will have none of it. Some of the biggest arguments we’ve had in the kitchen are when I added lemon juice to homemade pesto – it brightened it up! – and too much tomato paste in Bolognese ragú.
The other day I made a meatball recipe I’ve made 50 times. I love it because it’s quick and easy – to save time, you carefully plop the raw meatballs into a slowly simmering sauce, and then cover the pot until the meatballs are firm. Mike ate the dish of pasta I put in front of him, then after dinner came up and put his arms around me, and said, very sweetly, “In this house, we brown our meatballs.”
I used to get frustrated (OK, I still do sometimes), but he explained to me that food is one of the only ways he remains connected to his family’s culture. Now, I make an effort to honor that – and only occasionally roll my eyes when his back is turned.
FOOD NEWS WORTH READING
➤ The Food & Drug Administration recalled NuGo chocolate products in 13 states after discovering that the chocolate, labeled vegan, was found to contain milk. Dairy products are not listed on the packaging, and could cause an allergic reaction. Eleven people reported becoming ill after consuming the chocolate. (Newsweek)
➤ In an effort to cut wait times and improve inefficiencies, Starbucks announced it will trim around 30% of its “overly complex” food and beverage menu by the end of the fiscal year. It hasn’t said which items will be removed. Other changes include bringing back ceramic mugs, handwritten notes and condiment bars with milk and sugar, which were eliminated during the pandemic. (San Francisco Chronicle)