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.
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… After closing suddenly in August, Humble Sea Tavern in Felton has reopened with a new vibe. Humble Sea Brewing Co. has partnered with Lance Ebert of SC Bread Boy, who is now the “pop-up in residence.” Ebert is offering a menu of smash burgers and French classics through the tavern’s kitchen, while Humble Sea manages the bar and front of house. The tavern is currently open Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons and evenings, with plans to expand Ebert’s menu and add more days soon. More here.
… Exciting news for Pleasure Point: Downtown Santa Cruz restaurant Mad Yolks is opening a second location, in the old Chill Out Café on 41st Avenue. Chill Out was a popular local spot for burritos for 25 years; it closed in December 2022, and the space has been vacant for more than a year. The location is small and hasn’t been updated for many years, but boasts an enclosed patio behind the restaurant and a prime spot in one of the hottest neighborhoods in the county.
Brothers Henry and Peter Wong opened Mad Yolks, an egg-themed breakfast and brunch restaurant that focuses on sandwiches and Japanese iced teas, on Pacific Avenue in December 2022. The Wong brothers also opened Poke House on Pacific Avenue in 2017.
Henry Wong told Lookout that the project is still in its very early stages, and many details are still being finalized. The menu might be slightly different than the downtown Santa Cruz location, based on the tastes and preferences of the Pleasure Point neighborhood.
Now, tourists and locals alike can look forward to a new eatery in the area, following the closure of Cliff Café in November, and Kaito ramen house’s move up 41st Avenue to the Capitola Mall. Flashbird Chicken announced that it would launch another location in the old Kaito spot in mid-2022, but it has yet to open.
… Speaking of Flashbird Chicken, Sam Woods, the executive director of operations at Santa Cruz Sky, the restaurant’s parent company, hinted in an email that she would have news about the location on 41st Avenue soon. Stay tuned.
Woods also shared that Alderwood Pacific in Santa Cruz, another restaurant owned by Santa Cruz Sky and which closed in September, will not reopen. The sister restaurant to Alderwood Santa Cruz opened in February 2023, but closed “temporarily” seven months later. Woods said that due to a disagreement over the lease with the landlord at 1108 Pacific Ave., Alderwood Pacific would not be reopening.
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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Few things make a diner’s eye skip from one menu item to the next than the word “vegan.” That’s why at The Grove Bakery and Cafe in Felton, chef Jessica Yarr opts instead for a low-fi mushroom symbol, rather than using the much-maligned term. At The Grove, vegan and vegetarian options blend seamlessly into her “plant-forward” menu, which prioritizes plant-based ingredients but includes some animal products as well. Check out her philosophy in this story from Friday.
EVENT SPOTLIGHT
Calling all chefs – the 43rd annual Clam Chowder Cook-Off is Saturday, Feb. 24, and Sunday, Feb. 25, at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Amateur and professional chefs can compete for the best Manhattan or Boston clam chowder at this popular annual event. The deadline to register to participate is Feb. 12. Go to beachboardwalk.com/clamchowder for more info.
LIFE WITH THE BELLIS
I broke my vegetarian streak last weekend, but it was for a very important reason: After four postponements, Dungeness crab season finally opened last Thursday, and nothing was going to stop me from getting my hands on some fresh local crab. We picked out five beauties at Sea Harvest in Moss Landing on Sunday morning, all well over 2 pounds. Marco has recently become very curious about things that crawl and wiggle, and was fascinated by the crabs slowly scuttling in our ice chest. He reached out a finger to touch the mottled violet and ruby shell, and drew it back with a happy scratch. To our surprise, he wanted to hold one, so Mike put one of the sleepy, ice-chilled crustaceans in Marco’s hands. He seemed content to hold the many-legged sea creature, occasionally giggling and screeching with happiness.
His afternoon nap coincided with the cooking and eating, and we didn’t really know how to react when he raced to the ice chest when he woke up, only to find that all of his new friends were gone. The parenting books definitely did not prepare us as we looked down at his little confused face staring into the empty ice chest. My husband and I panicked, and told Marco that “the crabs went home,” rather than the truth.
FOOD NEWS WORTH READING
➤ Oregon, once a craft beer mecca, suffered one of its worst years in 2023. Around 30 of the state’s 400 breweries closed, and more have contracted or are seriously struggling. Consumer habits have changed, business leaders say, and breweries are struggling to adapt. (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
➤ California fast food chain In-N-Out Burger is closing its only location in Oakland due to ongoing issues with crime. Despite making steps for safer work conditions, the chain reports that employees at this location are regularly victimized by car break-ins, armed robberies, property damage and theft. (Eater SF)