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.
…This week, Thai kitchen Hanloh made its first appearance in the community since exiting Bad Animal in December. Chef Lalita Kaewsawang is collaborating with Scotts Valley-based meal prep company Golden Roots Kitchen to offer three Thai dishes for pick up or delivery on July 14: lemongrass and chicken coconut soup ($21.50), red chicken curry with kabocha squash, Thai basil and green beans ($25), and bun chay, a Vietnamese noodle bowl, with tofu ($23.50).
All of the items can be ordered a la carte through Golden Roots’ website, along with its seasonal and organic menu of breakfast items, entrees, salads and desserts. Place your order by Thursday at goldenrootskitchen.com.
… Pleasure Point Butcher Shop has closed its Portola Drive location in order for owner Tim Estrada to focus on opening a new concept, Carne, in Live Oak. The space at 21511 East Cliff Drive – in the shopping center where the Sunday farmers market is held – will house a full-service butcher, marketplace and eatery, and aims to open this summer, according to its website. Chef Anthony Kresge, formerly of Reef Dog Deli and several other area restaurants, will lead the kitchen. More info on this exciting new spot coming soon.
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… A new distillery is brewing in Watsonville. Co-owners Elisha M. Wood-Charlson and Chad Kecy founded Fathom with an emphasis on gin and wine spirits, in partnership with Watsonville’s Anatum Winery, and are working on opening a tasting room on Hangar Way. More info at fathomspirits.com.
… Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust’s Week of Seafood Giving will take place next week, from July 13-19. The campaign supports the nonprofit’s Community Seafood Program, which provides sustainably harvested Monterey Bay seafood to families facing food insecurity through relief organizations like Second Harvest Food Band, Grey Bears and Pajaro Valley Loaves and Fishes, while supporting area fishers.
MBFT hopes to raise $10,000 next week with the help of a dollar-for-dollar match for donations. On Monday, it will host a Pint Night with Fisheries and Ocean Trivia at Other Brother Brewery in Seaside, and a five-course dinner with chef Diego Felix at Sarah’s Vineyard in Gilroy on July 16. Find out more at montereybayfisheriestrust.org.
I’ll also mention here that my 2025 story on MBFT’s mission was recently honored with an award for Food Writing/Reporting by the California News Publishers Association – be sure to give it a read.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
It’s peak hot dog season, so I’m going to re-up my 2024 guide to the best hot dogs in Santa Cruz County. Scoop Dogs in Watsonville is no longer open, but the other five spots offer incredible dogs year round.
ON THE MENU
My roundup of the best things I ate in June is coming out tomorrow, and it’s full of summer hits, including a killer smash burger, a hearty coastal salad, a blue corn cookie and a punchy poke bowl made with local salmon. Don’t miss these flavors of the season.
EVENT SPOTLIGHT
Some of the best barbecue masters will descend on Moss Landing at the end of the month. You read that right – on July 26, the inaugural Black Smoke Invitational welcomes California pitmasters for a culinary festival in the tiny Monterey Bay fishing village alongside the Moss Landing Antique Fair. A panel of celebrity judges includes Tyler Florence, Matt Horn, Kevin Bludso, and David Olson. Tickets are $90, and include barbecue tasting and all-day live music.
LIFE WITH THE BELLIS
The Persian cucumbers in our garden are coming out in force, and after picking more than a dozen last week, I decided to make pickles with Marco, 5, and Cecilia, 3.
First, we walked around our block to see if we could find a grapevine in one of our neighbors’ yards, because grape leaves have natural tannins to help keep pickles crisp. We didn’t get far before we ran into our first neighbor, who didn’t have a grapevine but invited us to pick avocados off of her tree. Marco and Cecilia also spent a few minutes throwing sticks into the creek that ran through her backyard and chatted with her cat through a window.
Next, we stopped by the mulberry tree a few houses over and were delighted to see that the sweet berries had started to ripen. At the next house, Marco spotted a grapevine and after checking with the neighbor, we harvested a few leaves.
Back in the kitchen, I trimmed the pickles and combined water, salt, garlic and some flowering dill from the garden in my crock, layered the grape leaves over the cucumbers, and submerged everything with weights. Marco and Cecilia had a blast, and it was such a lovely way to spend a summer evening.
FOOD NEWS WORTH READING
➤ Did you eat a hot dog on the Fourth of July? More than likely, you did – but how did the cozy Frankfurt sausage transition into the iconic American summer dish? Food writer Jaya Saxena explores the history. (Ravenous)
➤ More than 250 years ago, early Americans showed off status through food. Food historians in historic restaurants in Maryland share what people in different social classes ate in colonial America, including the Founding Fathers, and which dishes are still on the menu. (NPR)