It's Time for Treats!
Fans of the TV show Parks and Recreation will recognize this issue’s theme of “Treat Yo’self.” In the show, local government employees, Tom and Donna, take a day off to revel in the joys of retail therapy and personal indulgence. And while not all of us have either the means or the desire to follow Tom and Donna to the mall when we’re feeling depleted, there are all sorts of options available in Mendocino County when you’re looking for a little luxury to revive your spirits—and this issue is designed to provide just that.
Here at Word of Mouth, we do the hard work of scouring the region to highlight the truly wonderful producers, farmers, and chefs who can make your day delicious. We know it is tough, but we put in the time to treat ourselves in order to make the very best recommendations. If an exquisite meal strikes your fancy, head to Elk where Matt Kammerer and the Harbor House Inn have brought the first Michelin Star to the county. One meal created by Matt involved slow-smoking sliced squash over locally harvested seaweed. It may sound unusual, but the resulting rich umami flavor was transcendent, and it was all I could do not to lick the bowl.
Harbor House is not the only Mendocino County establishment where excellent food is paired with stellar hospitality. Check out “Eat Well, Sleep Well” (p 6) for an incomplete list of places like The Apple Farm (where you can help make the meals and learn new recipes and techniques in the process), Brewery Gulch Inn (where you get a light dinner buffet as well as breakfast table service), and Glendeven Inn (where breakfast shows up on your doorstep in a basket brimming with goodies).
Few things feel more indulgent than a glass of bubbles, and we’re lucky to have the award-winning Roederer Estate in Anderson Valley creating delicious and affordable sparkling wines. And if you want to explore the deep and varied world of wine-tasting, get some tips from local girl Laurel Livezey, who is currently studying to be a sommelier in NYC.
While treating yourself can feel frivolous, there’s real value in the practice of turning our attention to the aspects of life that comfort and delight us, that build us up and bring a sense of renewal. As I write this, I reflect on how many of us are dealing with pain and stress. I had to turn off the news this morning to take a personal break from the anxiety-inducing broadcast. Sometimes indulgence is taking a walk in nature, carving out a moment from work to take a yoga class, or scheduling a sleep-in snugglefest with the kids. Then I thought of my mom, who made sure to save enough for retirement so she could afford a monthly massage. Treating yourself is about prioritizing happiness. So I invite you to sneak out to see that movie you have been wanting to catch, raise a glass of Roederer to a recent accomplishment, or make a date with your sweetie to stargaze in your pajamas. Get creative and treat yo’self.
Holly Madrigal
Leaning In to Autumn’s Exhale
by Torrey Douglass
If spring is earth’s inhale—drawing in energy, preparing for the task of prolific output, a sharpening of focus right before throwing all intention behind making stuff grow—then fall is its exhale—a grateful sigh after the work is done, a relaxation of tensed muscles. Fall is the time to put down our tools, close our eyes, and lift our faces to savor the sun’s fading warmth. After the rowdy outburst of harvest, there’s a letting go, the quiet of completion. The work is over. What’s done is done. Pencils down and pass your papers to the front.
Essentially, fall is when nature sits back and takes a load off, and you can follow suit. Mimic the trees and shed what is no longer serving you. Mirror the animals and find a comfy spot to snuggle down for a rest—even if it’s only for an hour. Make some space to take a moment and shift from doing to being.
When you snag an opportunity to duck your to-do list and drink in the season’s beauty, it’s nice to have some mulled cider on hand. Not only will it involve all your senses in the exercise of autumnal appreciation, but the cooler nights and abundance of apples practically insist on it. It’s warming, sweet, and tart, with a combination of seasonal spices to perk up your palate. Brew up a batch using the guidelines below, kindly provided by Karen Bates of The Apple Farm. It’s perfect for sharing with a friend or just sipping solo on the porch while the autumn twilight settles peacefully around you.
Mulled Apple Cider
4 c apple juice (available at The Apple
Farm farm stand)
3 thin slices fresh ginger
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp lemon zest
2-3 whole cloves
Simmer on medium-low heat for 10 minutes, strain while pouring into mugs, snuggle up, and savor the season!
Sleep Well, Eat Well
An Incomplete List of the Many Inns, Hotels, and Hideaways You Can Visit for Rest and Repast
by Torrey Douglass
When it comes down to it, the quality of an excursion away is usually captured in how well you slept and how well you ate. When those two aspects are wonderful, you recall the journey with a satiated glow of happiness. “Remember that café? Remember those down comforters? Oh, what I wouldn’t give for another of those beignets …” But when comfy beds and tasty meals don’t materialize, you’re left with little more than chilling horror stories to share with friends. No matter how beautiful the view or delightful the company, if you’re sleep-deprived with a disappointed belly, the trip won’t be remembered fondly.
Fortunately, Mendocino County is brimming with farms, hotels, and inns that will both house and feed you in style. This collection is by no means comprehensive, but it’s a great starting point if you are looking for a place where good eating comes with your stay.
The Apple Farm
It’s appropriate to start the list off with the most novel food/bed combination in the county. At The Apple Farm, you not only eat meals inspired by the seasonal options gleaned from the garden and orchard, you help prepare them. These “Stay & Cook” weekends are designed for eight food-obsessed guests. Arrive Friday afternoon or evening, then spend the next two days making Saturday lunch and dinner followed by brunch on Sunday. The itinerary includes a farm tour and down time to relax by the river, in between picking up pro tips in the kitchen and gathering together to eat scrumptious meals with local wines and seven of your favorite people.
Glendeven Inn & Lodge
Beautifully situated near the tiny hamlet of Little River and surrounded on three sides by state parks, Glendeven Inn & Lodge combines comfort, quirkiness, and charm in equal measure. Their 21-and-over-only policy allows the lobby to double as a wine bar, and an evening wine hour is included in your stay. The abundant garden and 100+ chickens on site contribute to the fresh, hot breakfast that arrives at your door promptly at 9am, so you can enjoy it in the privacy of your room. Fanciful sculpture tucked around the property, as well as the opportunity to help with the nightly llama feedings, add a bit of whimsy.
The Boonville Hotel
You know that urge you get to simplify everything down to just the beautiful essentials and then sit back and savor without fluff or fuss? For over 30 years the Boonville Hotel has been doing just that, serving up impeccably prepared meals showcasing local ingredients at the peak of freshness. The extensive garden out back was contributing to the menu long before it was trendy to do so. Stay for dinner or just drop by for a drink and bar plate. If the weather is agreeable, it’s a delight to eat on the outside deck or patio—particularly on Sunday afternoons in the warm months, when paella prepared over an open fire brings in the crowds (call for reservations).
Brewery Gulch Inn
At every turn, Brewery Gulch Inn gets it. Tired from your drive and not up for turning around and heading out to eat? There’s a light dinner buffet made with local and organic ingredients and just bursting with fusion flavors—perfect for satisfying a body and soul weary from the road. There’s also a delightful selection of local wines. (Since your room is right upstairs, go ahead and have a second glass.) Craving some “Millionaire’s Bacon” or Bananas Foster French Toast after a morning walk on the beach? Sit down and let the friendly staff bring it right to your table. From the hundreds of DVDs available to the multitude of concierge services on offer, Brewery Gulch Inn goes the distance to make your stay both comfortable and delicious.
The Headlands Inn
The Headlands Inn takes its designation as a bed and breakfast seriously. Beautiful ocean views—check. Elegant English gardens—check. Delectable breakfast served on antique china and delivered to your room—happily checked. Not only will the thoughtful staff make sure you are never served the same breakfast twice during your stay, they will make sure your china pattern is different each day as well—a feast for both eyes and body.
Westport Hotel
If you want to go farther afield, someplace where there’s little else besides you and the rugged Northern California coastline, you can’t do better than the Westport Hotel. Six charming rooms sit above the Old Abalone Pub serving comfort food, pub classics, and California Coastal Cuisine. If you’re there on a Saturday, don’t miss the afternoon tea (reservations required) so you can feel oh-so-civilized while you drink in those ocean views.
Natural Luxury at Harbor House Inn
by Emily Inwood
photos by Brendan McGuigan
Does being “local” mean having been born and raised in a place, or at least having spent the majority of one’s life there? How does that sort of sometimes-taken-for-granted intimacy compare with the feelings of connection that newer residents feel to this area, especially when it is the very novelty of the place that inspires newcomers to discover and create within their new environs in ways that immediately entwine them with the location’s rhythms and wildness? These questions come to mind when speaking with the new chef at Harbor House Inn in Elk. Here is a man, in fact a team of people, who have embraced what it means to be local by throwing themselves into a lifestyle dedicated to not only learning about their environment and how to reap its bounty, but to sharing their worldly knowledge about products, technique, timing, precision, and sustainability as they relate to our raw and wild surroundings on the rural coast of California.
Matthew Kammerer of Harbor House Inn in Elk California
In January of 2018, chef Matthew Kammerer and a small team including his partner, Amanda Nemec, who serves as the general manager, moved to Elk from the San Francisco Bay Area. They spent the next four months building the landscape of the garden—including raised beds, gravel paths, and terracing—as well as refining the interior appointments of the newly renovated inn perched on the bluffs, in preparation for what has quickly become a celebrated and successful chapter for the historic establishment. Right away, both the pleasures (stunning beauty, wild bounty, slow pace) and the challenges (gophers, deer, erosion) became a part of life for the crew, but their commitment to living close to the elements of nature keeps them flexible, creative, and in communion with the location itself.
Though relatively new to California, Matthew has always been drawn to the ocean. As a child on the New Jersey shore, he went to the beach every day, rain or shine, and at a young age was eating wild seafood like raw clams on the half shell, oysters, steamers, and sushi. One of his earliest memories was having a lobster cookout at his house, where they spread newspaper out on the table and just cracked away. As he grew older, he realized that lobster was a delicacy to most and appreciated having been able to get the shellfish from The Lusty Lobster for “dirt cheap.”
the dining room at Harbor House Inn in Elk California
Matthew chose to attend culinary school at Johnson and Wales after having worked in a restaurant for only four months. “I never thought about being a chef until I was 17 or 18, but I always had this weird curiosity in food that I’d never addressed.” Address it he did, gaining experience in restaurants in Boston, Australia, Japan, Belgium, and, most recently, for three years at Saison in San Francisco, where he eventually became executive sous chef. Notably, his experiences in Australia taught him about small scale, local sourcing, and sustainability; and his experience in Japan taught him about precision, delicate treatment of seafood, and highlighting simplicity—values and skills that easily translate to life in Mendocino County.
Matthew’s team is dedicated to acquiring exceptional products, mostly from the immediacy of the three-acre property which includes a private cove—a “second garden” —where daily buckets of seawater are gathered to make sea salt and weekly harvests of seaweed are collected and processed. The upper gardens are a sprawling and ever-evolving delight of pineapple sage, chard, chamomile, fava beans, potatoes, pink pearl apples, fennel, kiwi, artichokes, horseradish, lettuces, lemons, and kumquats, to name a few. An apple tree with grafts of seven varieties, strawberry spinach, pink lemonade blueberries, and a Szechuan peppercorn tree are among the more unusual plants growing there. They serve as a botanical example, as does the eucalyptus grove on the southern boundary, of successfully introducing newcomers to the established locale.
Matthew’s team also gleans from small farms, fishermen, apiaries, and mushroom hunters, all from within the Westport-Ukiah-Gualala triangle. Local residents work at the inn and restaurant, and an array of ceramics in coastal hues, shapes, and textures are supplied by local artists. Always wanting to support the community and develop relationships, Matthew offers, “If you’re doing something unique and you’re local and you have a great product, we want to know about it. We want the weird stuff.”
Harbor House Inn in Elk California sits on a bluff above the Pacific Ocean
Locals, who make up about twenty percent of the clientele, have been impressed and inspired by what Matthew does with the familiar products they’ve seen for years. For example, albacore tuna from Princess Seafood is aged for four or five days in a cedar box, then smoked over aromatic dried calendula flowers from their garden and served with salted plums from one of the server’s backyard trees. The reaction is often, “I can identify this as albacore tuna, but I’ve never had it like this. I usually just can it.” He is introducing new treatments, processes, and pairings to products around which people who have lived here for years have developed predictable habits.
Matthew believes one of his biggest challenges is to show modern society how to change their notion of luxury. “What is luxury? Is luxury caviar? Or is luxury eating a tomato that’s been picked off the vine a minute or two before you eat it?” In order to offer guests fresh sea salt, mushrooms from local ridges, or fish that were swimming in the ocean this very morning, his team are working around the clock. Matthew thinks true luxury is being able to enjoy something that you can’t easily get anywhere else, which is inextricable with the notion of locality. Visitors from urban areas who compare their experience at Harbor House Inn, the first restaurant in Mendocino County to receive a Michelin star, to other restaurants of equal caliber, comment about what a value it is to experience such fine and simple elegance.
Mendocino has long been a haven for artists and crafts-people who are drawn to the muse-like nature of the area, and it seems Matthew has been inspired by it as well. Dining at the Harbor House is like being immersed in fine art. Each course is a brush stroke of sensual surprise and delight framed by well-timed and careful attention from the staff; a view of the gardens, craggy bluffs, and ocean beyond; appealing soul music in the background; and the classic grace of the building itself. The tasting menu, offered in a flat seating on Thursdays through Mondays, is composed of 8-13 courses, with an optional beverage-pairing.
Exquisitely prepared plates from The Harbor House Inn in Elk California
Sea essences abound, as with translucent and shimmering halibut, cured on kelp, joined by a small knob of horseradish and espelette—an alluringly piquant appetizer—or with equally enticing Spot prawns served with perfectly ripe sungold tomatoes in their basil and sea-salted bouillon, with cress to accentuate the brightness. The nuanced flavors of smoke from different varieties of trees in the area impart many of the dishes, such as grilled zucchini custard topped with trout roe, charred leek, egg yolk, and chive blossoms—a deep treasure of a dish with intense richness and texture.
Flavors and textures aside, each element is precisely executed with intuitive timing, which leaves the diner wanting for nothing. The serving staff includes the chefs at times: as courses ebb and flow, so does the remarkable choreography of service, accentuated by such details as hot towels offered to warm the hands and the presentation of a choice of sake vessels from a handsome wooden box. Each dish is described articulately and simply, as the serving utensils and dishes for each course are arranged or removed. With the crusty, chewy seaweed sourdough, two varieties of cultured butter are offered atop a smooth river stone. The lamb leg smoked over cypress is accompanied by steak knives forged by a local craftsman. The fragrant yerba buena, pine, and marigold tea includes an evergreen sprig dipper for the grilled honey, which tastes of caramelized sunlight.
Desserts tend to be only lightly sweet, with unusual flavors such as hedgehog mushroom cookies and wakame ice cream. French wines, which tend to be high in minerality and acid, work well with the flavors and textures of Harbor House, but several local wines appear on the menu as well as beer, sake, and cider. Thoughtfully paired, the beverages are beautiful on their own, but they burst, expand, and deepen when accompanied by the flavors of the food. It is the willingness to introduce flavors from foreign yet similar climes—to tap into all that the world has to offer while still honoring the spirit and style of the community and environment—that adds a pioneering spirit to Matthew’s version of locality and broadens our belief systems about what it means to belong to a place.
The dining experience is intended to make guests feel “good and satiated; nourished, but not overly full,” reminiscent of the Okinawan phrase hara hachi bu, which teaches people to stop eating before they are completely full through a practice of eating slowly, using small vessels, and focusing on the food. Indeed, though there are many courses, the food is light, the pace is luxurious, and each serving is just enough to fully savor without over-indulgence. It is just that sort of experience that Matthew wants to share with the world, enlightening people with the wonder and simplicity that nature has to offer, while making minimal impact. Of sustainability, one of the pillars of his ethical vision, Matthew says, “We try not to waste anything at all.” When he speaks of the offal dipping sauce, made of abalone innards mixed with seaweed and served alongside the rest of the abalone; or of the pleasing flavor of chard blossoms when prepared with curious attention; or of the fish heads buried under the tomato plants; or of the chickens, who will eventually provide fertilizer for the gardens in addition to the fresh eggs they already offer daily, Matthew illustrates a way of living with nature in which we don’t take more than we can use, and we use what we take—an important concept for our world today, regardless of locale.
Harbor House Inn
5600 Highway 1, Elk | (707) 877-3203 | theharborhouseinn.com
Emily has called the Mendocino coast home since 1983. She loves to hunt for mushrooms, make pies, and run around outside.
Pazzo Marco Creamery
by Holly Madrigal
It’s a cool 55 degrees inside the aging room of the Pazzo Marco Creamery, and the humidity is about 93%, mimicking the traditional cheese-aging caves of France. It is impossible to tell that a teeming summer forest is alive outside. In here, the smell is hard to describe—almost earthy, but with a pale sweetness, the smell of the wooden spruce planks tinged with the barest hint of natural ammonia. Rounds of hard cheeses in orderly rows fill the shelves to the ceiling. The unique climate of the cheese-aging shed feels almost sacred.
The creamery is located amongst the trees on Fish Rock Road near Gualala. Two small buildings house the entirety of the cheese and gelato operations. Marco was a software engineer in a previous life. He and his partner, Paul, started looking for something creative that would challenge their brains a little bit, as well as something that used local ingredients. Given Marco’s Italian heritage and the proximity of the Stornetta Dairy nearby, they decided that gelato fit the bill.
The duo is largely self-taught. Marco, who speaks Italian, lived in Bologna in 2007 to study at a gelateria. He explains, “Pazzo in Italian means crazy, and Paul affectionately calls me Pazzo. So when we were trying to decide on a name for the company, he said ‘Let’s call it Pazzo Marco!’ I said, ‘No, people will think I’m a crazy person.’ But everyone loved it, so we kept it. But often when we are at market and Paul is standing right next to me, I introduce myself as ‘Marco, and this is Pazzo,’ and he says ‘No, it’s not!’ And I joke, ‘Hey, at least your name is first!’”
Paul and Marco wanted a hyper-local, small-scale focus for their new endeavor. Gelato came first, and they eventually expanded to crafting cheese. “We intentionally scaled our business to be local, and our machine only makes a gallon and a half at a time,” says Marco. Once a week early in the morning, they drive about an hour down Highway 1 to Stornetta Ranch to pick up 500 lbs of milk, filling old-fashioned milk cans, to transform into cheese or gelato. They drive slowly, so as not to jostle the milk on the country roads. (Jostling the milk causes the molecules to get smaller, which results in seeping when the whey is drained off and a much lower final yield.) The milk straight from the cow is about 104º, and it cools to around 88-90º on the drive back from the dairy to their creamery in the woods.
Wondering about the difference between ice cream and gelato? Ice cream uses much more cream, resulting in a higher fat content, and it is whipped to incorporate air. In contrast, gelato is more dense and rich. It is not whipped, which allows for a creamier and more luxurious mouthfeel. “You could say that gelato is better for you!” says Marco. “Gelato is more intense, sorta like Italians” he adds. “If you get a good gelato, it tastes so good you don’t need to eat that much of it. You are satisfied by the third or fourth bite. Ice cream has so much air in it and more fat coating your tongue, so you don’t taste the true flavors. And because it has more fat, it needs more sugar so that you can taste it and it will freeze properly.”
Most gelato makers use a pre-made gelato “base,” but Pazzo Marco makes everything from scratch so they have much more control over the sweetness and flavor. A refractometer allows them to finely tune the amount of sugar in each recipe. “This is where my software brain comes in handy,” Marco laughs. “If we have homegrown strawberries to add to the gelato, I puree them and use the refractometer to gauge the sugar content.” He has developed a spreadsheet for his recipes using the science of flavor. “I plug the brix [sugar levels] of those strawberries into my spreadsheet to see how much sugar is needed. In this way, I maximize the contribution of the sugar from the fruit and not from anything else.”
Pazzo Marco gelato is sold at farmers markets, Surf Market, and Bird Café, among other locales. They have developed over a hundred flavors, making five flavors per week and rotating them in and out with the season. Almond Chai Spice is very popular right now. Liqueur of Amarula (a nut grown in South Africa) is a flavor full of rich caramely depth. “We created a Local Huckleberry, a Balsamic Basil, and I am working on a recipe right now for Honey Lavender and Chevre,” Marco explains. They also do retro stuff like malted milk chocolate, and they make two signature gelatos for Anchor Bay Thai—Matcha Green Tea and a Coconut Pineapple non-dairy sorbetto. Sorbettos don’t include any milk fat, but their Italian gelato machine ensures that it comes out with a silky-smooth texture that is not at all crystalline.
After a few years of making gelato, the two had a fair amount invested in the creamery. They wanted to stay small, and when they started looking around at what else they could do, they settled on cheese. “I love cheese even more than I love gelato,” laughs Marco. His eyes light up, indicating the freshly made cheeses covering every table surface, and he describes the complex alchemy of artisan cheese-making. “Milk is around 87% water and 13% solids,” he explains. “When you make cheese, there is a yield of 10%, so it takes 100 lbs of milk to make 10 lbs of cheese.” They add the milk to the cheesemaking vat, heating to whatever temperature is needed for that particular cheese. They then inoculate it with a lactic acid bacteria, which changes the acid level in the milk. Over a period of about 24 hours, they lower the pH to start forming the cheese. This fends off unwanted bacteria. They add rennet, which interacts with proteins in the milk to form a network of molecules making cheese curds. They use blades to gently slice the curds into small squares, releasing the watery whey, which is drained off. The loose curds are then placed into forms and pressed into shape, removing even more of the liquid, and formed cheese is moved into the aging room to sit for three months to a year, depending on the type of cheese. They are flipped once a week and washed or rubbed with olive oil to help build the rind.
Marco displays the first batch of a new wash-rind cheese, called Serafina, that he is developing—similar to Cowboy Creamery’s Red Hawk, but like an Italian Taleggio. Once the Serafina rind forms, the cheese will be washed in Gowan’s hard apple cider. The alcohol keeps unwanted molds or bacteria at bay, as well as providing a food source for the desired molds. “It’s like gardening, if you think of your milk like your soil. You are tending it to be the perfect balanced microbiome,” explains Marco.
For now, Pazzo Marco, helmed by this dynamic duo, is exactly the size and scale they want to be. The work keeps them in creative and problem-solving mode, and the learning never stops, according to Marco. Pazzo Marco welcomes visitors by appointment and relishes the community that has formed around the Gualala Farmers Market. If you want to taste their delicious—can we say healthy?—creations, stop by and say hello. Tell them Word of Mouth sent you.
Holly Madrigal is a Mendocino County maven who loves to share the delights of our region. She’s fortunate to enjoy her meaningful work at Leadership Mendocino and takes great joy in publishing this magazine.
Reduce, Reuse, and Remember to Hit Le REcyclery When You’re in Paris
story and photos by Torrey Douglass
We live in an age where the profit potential of disposability is at war with the sustainability movement, encouraging us to close loops, reduce waste, and upcycle like the lovechild of Martha Stewart and Bill McKibben. Though I fail often, I make an effort to put my weight behind Team Lovechild—composting, recycling, and wringing the usefulness out of every item before it is carted off to the landfill. Imagining second lives for objects others view as depleted is a creative challenge that tickles my fancy, which might be why I like flea markets so much.
It’s also why it was nothing short of delightful to find myself in the serpentine warren of lanes and alleys that comprise the Paris Flea Market on a recent trip to France. Art, furniture, clothes, albums, postcards, toys, dishes, lamps—you name it, they have it, in any style and from any era. I passed a plate of old keys that looked like they were dropped out of a Dickens novel, a case of chunky, hand-blown glass bottles with the iridescent sheen that indicates they’ve spent some time buried in soil, and a 1940s poster promoting a San Francisco fundraiser for the French Resistance. Items fell anywhere on the spectrum between impeccably preserved, high end antiques to broken down junk that belongs on the curb with a hand-written “FREE” sign hung on it. It was a dizzying variety and volume of stuff, one you could spend days exploring—it is, after all, the largest flea market in the world. For set designers, antique enthusiasts, and those of us interested in squeezing just a little more purpose out of the surfeit of consumer products, the Paris Flea Market is a dream.
Rethinking wasteful habits and extending the life of objects is a theme you’ll also find at Le REcyclery, a restaurant and bar built above the tracks in an abandoned train station just a few blocks from the Paris Flea Market. Though I never met the owner, my bet is s/he is also on Team Lovechild. The space is furnished with a mixed collection of (what looks like) flea market cast-offs and a plethora of potted plants tucked into corners, sitting on surfaces, and climbing the walls. On one side is the entrance where people come in off the busy street, while the opposite side features a two-story high wall of glass panes looking out over the railroad tracks. Every day offers a different menu with three choices—a meat dish, a vegetarian dish, and something for the kids. Customers can sidle up to the bar and place their order with a snazzy staff member that looks like they get paid by the tattoo, get a buzzer, grab some vintage silverware, and find a table to wait.
We opted for the mezzanine, up a winding metal spiral staircase that required ducking under various pipes. From there we could enjoy the view of the tables below, an interior wall garden bursting with greenery, and the eclectic oddities sprinkled around the place—antique typewriters, used books, old clocks, and vintage luggage. A fix-it person keeps hours there to breathe new life into defunct appliances brought in by customers—you can even borrow tools if you want to make the repairs yourself. The space also hosts all sorts of community events and classes to bring folks together and spread their motto of “Réduire, Réutiliser, Recycler” (“Reduce, Reuse, Recycle”). Options on the calendar might include films, massage, crafts, and gardening.
The food arrived, and the duck I ordered was delicious, succulent and well-flavored, accompanied by roasted potatoes. The burger my daughter ordered gave her pause as they used an alternative flour and the bun was the color of charcoal (my bet is a grown-up palate would have enjoyed it, and she did like the fries). Reviewers rave about the coffee, and the bar has beers on tap as well as fresh juices. Breakfast, lunch, tapas, and dinner are served during the week, with brunch on the weekends. It’s a good thing the restaurant is large, because it’s clearly a popular spot with travelers and locals alike.
After the meal, we cleaned our plates at the well-signed recycling station. All food waste is composted except the breads, which go to the chickens. You can pay them a visit by taking a door out the back, passing through the patio and al fresco bar, and then seeking out the handful of chicken coops tucked around the verdant gardens. Like other urban gardens, this one is creatively ensconced into a tight space, stretching away from the restaurant in the narrow area between the street overhead on one side and the tracks below on the other.
If your preferences lean toward white tablecloths and sparkling crystal, you should probably give Le REcyclery a pass—the line between charming and scruffy can be a thin one. If you want good food made from scratch with a side of eco-consciousness, put it on your restaurant list for the next time you are in Paris, and use that organic hibiscus juice to give a toast to Team Lovechild.
Torrey Douglass is a web and graphic designer living in Boonville with her husband, two children, and a constantly revolving population of pets and farm animals.
Treat Yourself: A Sweet Affair in Fort Bragg
A Sweet Affair Patisserie is a tiny shop nestled in the middle of Fort Bragg. Within the petite space can be found serious culinary street cred. Brittney Tuomala graduated from the Culinary Institute of America in New York before climbing the ladder in prestigious roles at Brasserie in NYC, becoming pastry commis at Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bakery in Yountville and acting as pastry assistant at Coqueta in San Francisco.
Throughout her career, she has prided herself on creating exquisite works of confection using only the finest ingredients. Having returned to her hometown of Fort Bragg, Brittney opened A Sweet Affair to provide much needed indulgence for locals and visitors alike. Raising two sons keeps her busy when she is not at the bakery.
The patisserie is filled with beauty and humor, as seen in the small sign in the window proclaiming the health benefits of cupcakes. Rainbow-hued macarons and seasonal delights fill the pastry case. The walls are adorned with all manner of fun items like colorful aprons, whimsical mugs, and dishware. The hardest part of a visit to A Sweet Affair is choosing what to get. Here are just a few of the many delicious ways to treat yourself.
Macarons in the Italian style, made of almond flour and egg whites whipped into a meringue cookie with a crispy exterior and soft chewy center. A kaleidoscope of offerings change with the seasons—peach, olallieberry, pistachio, strawberry, raspberry—but the most popular is coconut with caramel. What the heck, buy twelve and have a tasting!
Cupcakes of all kinds (see cupcake health tip)! Chocolate Oreo, red velvet, lemon strawberry, or funfetti. Just the right size to delight yet not overfill.
Passion Fruit Strawberry Mousse Cakes are luxuriant in their sweetness. The fresh strawberries often come from Mist Farm in Mendocino.
Orange Creamsicle Crème Brûlée holds its delicate orange richness within a white chocolate shell that cracks satisfyingly when you tap it open.
The Olallieberry Financier is a decadent brown butter cake baked with olallieberries and homemade jam with honey mascarpone.
A spiral of perfectly toasted meringue covers the not-too-sweet lemon curd tart. Other fresh fruit tartlets and flavors of panna cotta shift with whatever is at its peak of flavor.
A Sweet Affair
401 N. Main Street Suite 301, Fort Bragg
Thurs-Sat 12-5, Sunday 12-4
(707) 961-1362. www.asweetaffairpatisserie.com
Color, Scent, & Taste
Tips from a Sommelier-in-Training
by Laurel Livezey
My story is not unique. Small town girl moves to the big city to pursue a career, wide-eyed and enthusiastic, armed with an undergraduate theatre degree, twenty years of dance training, and a love of musicals . . . and finds herself slinging espresso and waiting tables to make ends meet while fitting in classes and auditions whenever her schedule allows. Little did I know, my ‘survival’ jobs in the hospitality industry would open my eyes to a whole new career.
Fast forward three years. I was tending bar at Vini e Fritti, a Roman-inspired wine and cocktail bar in the Redbury Hotel, when it occurred to me that I might be able to find a bottle of the wine my parents had loved on our family trip to Italy in 2007. That bottle of ‘Inferno’ had become my dad’s proverbial holy grail. I dove into research. Before I knew it, I had spent eight hours reading about the Northern Italian wine region of Valtellina Superiore, and I was hooked. Three months later, I took the Introductory Course and Exam with the Court of Master Sommeliers, and I passed!
The world of wine is fascinating and overwhelming. Wine is meant to be accessible and savored. Even a simple trip to the local grocery store or reading the wine list at your favorite restaurant can be a daunting task. The essential part of my job as a sommelier is to assist my guests in the navigation of the wine list. My ultimate goal is to make sure they are drinking something they enjoy, therefore having the best possible dining experience. We in Mendocino County have the good fortune to be in one of the most abundant wine regions in the world. But we can’t always have a personal sommelier assisting us with our wine selections, so here are some tips and tricks for being your own.
An Exercise in Tasting at Home
Pour yourself a glass of your favorite red or white wine. In a well-lit place, take a minute to observe the liquid in your glass. Is it clear? Hazy? Bright? What colors do you see? If you’re drinking red, is it deep purple or more of a ruby? If you’re drinking white, is it the color of straw? Is it deep gold? Is there any evidence of gas or sediment in the glass? Many of the clues to the age of a wine can be found in how it looks.
Now put the glass to your nose. What do you smell? What kind of fruit are you getting? Citrus? Orchard fruits? Red fruits? Deep black fruits? Get as specific as you can. Is that Meyer lemon or white grapefruit? Black currant or huckleberry? What is the fruit quality? Tart? Ripe? Cooked? What else do you smell? Is the wine floral? Earthy? Do you smell grass or even hints of river rock or—of all things—plastic beach ball?
Now take a sip. Let the wine move over your whole tongue and hold it in your mouth. What do you taste? Do the flavors on your palate match what you smelled in the glass? If not, how are they different? Once you have taken your sip, does your mouth feel dry? Do the flavors linger? Describe the finish.
What you have just done is a very quick version of what is known as the deductive tasting grid. This is the method sommeliers use when blind (or deductive) tasting. If you have ever seen the documentary ‘Somm’ (it’s on Netflix, and I highly recommend it), you have seen how quickly a Master Sommelier uses the grid to determine what might be in their glass without looking at the label. But you can also use the deductive tasting grid to start determining what flavors you find pleasurable in wines you know, which will help you in selecting new bottles to try. You have the power to be your own personal sommelier!
At the end of the day, wine is an experience that varies from person to person. I will never understand the pretension that comes with some high-priced wine. Wine is, at its essence, a food, and it is meant to be shared and enjoyed. I have two pieces of advice on enjoying your wine experiences with abandon. First and most importantly, drink what you like! Rules, schmools. Who says you have to drink white wine with fish? A light red goes just as well with that beautiful fillet of salmon or bowl of steamed mussels. If you do want some guidance on food pairing, however, the main motto I follow is “what grows together, goes together.” Wine is influenced by its place (terroir), much like regional cuisine. And if you’re really at a loss for a wine pairing, don’t forget about champagne, one of the most food-friendly wines in the world!
Second, don’t be afraid to explore. Ask your server for a taste of that wine you’ve never heard of. If you know you like Napa Valley Chardonnay, try a Chardonnay from France next time. I also encourage you to give wines you think you don’t like another chance. Not all wines of the same grape varietal are created equal. While I have been happy to have a spit bucket present at some tastings, aspects like where the wine is made and which winemaking techniques are used can have a profound effect on the flavor.
If you are interested in learning more about the vast world of wine, I recommend The Wine Bible by Karen MacNeil, an informative, fun, and incredibly well-written book, perfect for those new to the subject as well as seasoned beverage professionals. Cheers and happy drinking!
Laurel Livezey is a Mendocino native currently based in New York City. She is an artist, performer, and beverage professional pursuing certification with the Court of Master Sommeliers. She is and will always be a true California girl.
Noyo Food Forest
by Anna Levy
photos by Ree Slocum
It is one of the final days of the 2019 summer season, and there are several teenage interns still hard at work in the gardens at the Noyo Food Forest. Among the tomatoes, kale, artichokes, peas, and much more—some of which will be sold at upcoming farmers markets, school cafeterias, and through other avenues—it is easy to see that the students work with a sense of pride and a confidence grown from spending much of the summer in the dirt.
That is, of course, by design. The Noyo Food Forest, with its signature Learning Garden spread out over roughly half an acre on the Fort Bragg High School campus, was founded in 2006 by three coastal residents—Katrina Aschenbrenner, Susan Lightfoot, and Kim Morgan—who envisioned accessible garden spaces for the community to use. From their initial work, Director Emily Forster explains, the Learning Garden has “sprouted as the flagship project and has evolved to the current center of agriculture education and the farm-to-school program.”
To that end, each year the organization pulls in about 25 interns from local schools. The program, like a food forest itself, is multi-layered. Interns, who must have completed 8th grade and range from 14-19 years of age, are tasked with the many activities that go into farming successfully, including planting, weeding, harvesting, and washing. They also attend workshops, participate in community-building activities, and sell produce at farmers markets, including those in Fort Bragg and Mendocino. Overall, they contribute to the annual growth of “about 4,500 pounds of food that is consumed,” says Emily.
In exchange for their work, whether during the summer season or in the after-school program that runs Tuesday-Thursday for much of the academic year, interns earn a stipend. That has remained a priority, though there’s no dedicated financial support for it; the money all comes from additional fundraising and donations. Equally valuable, though, is the fact that interns have a chance to acquire skills that can be used well beyond the end of the internship experience. Among other things, students gain knowledge, confidence, and a stronger sense of responsibility over the course of their time with the organization. “I truly see a transformation for some of them between day one and the end of the program,” Emily notes.
It is not, however, only through the internship program that the Noyo Food Forest influences coastal residents. The non-profit also aims to positively impact the larger community, making the process of growing food more accessible to anyone who is interested. The organization hosts field trips for preschool students as well as those in Kindergarten through 8th grade. In an effort to help young people understand where their food comes from and how they can become a part of that effort, summer camps and other groups can also come for educational time in the garden.
The farm-to-school program has become an integral part of food services in the Fort Bragg Unified School District (FBUSD). As part of the effort to make organic, fresh food available to everyone, the Noyo Food Forest works with FBUSD to help supply food for the school cafeterias at a discounted rate. Emily estimates that the school district uses “a little over 100 pounds a month, on average,” though there’s naturally less to choose from in the winter. It’s a unique partnership that she praises, acknowledging her gratitude for the fact that the organization can lease land from the district right on the high school campus. “It really is farm-to-school,” she explains. “You can just walk it right over.” It’s right in line with their motto: Growing Community.
The Food Forest has a similar presence at other local organizations, delivering food to programs that include the Senior Center and the Food Bank. Emily talks about the possibilities of becoming more engaged with such organizations and future interns, noting that, “we’re currently identifying areas to re-establish relationships,” as well as looking for new ways to expand their program moving forward. “I love the idea of meeting with and talking with other people, getting really excited about ideas together, about how we can all amplify the knowledge and our connectedness,” she says.
Always exploring additional ways to have a presence in the community, the organization also hosts the annual Earth Day Fest in Fort Bragg. It has become one of “the biggest in the Mendocino County area,” Emily explains, all with an aim to encourage thoughtful awareness of the larger world and how we each affect it. With a range of exhibitors, performances, and local food and drinks, the 14th annual event is scheduled for April 2020 and will take place at the Learning Garden.
Beyond the Noyo Food Forest’s efforts to engage young people in learning about food, however, the organization wants to make sure that adults in the community also feel empowered when it comes to gardening. To that end, free and low-cost workshops are available to those who would like to learn about how to successfully grow their own food. Taught throughout the year, the workshop topics range from discussions on seasonal gardening to workshops on composting, small engine repair, vermiculture, basic carpentry, and more.
All of this, of course, requires funding, particularly as the Noyo Food Forest remains committed to making sure that learning about food systems is accessible to all who are interested. The organization looks for ways to reinvest through earnings off of what they grow, selling their produce not only at area farmers markets but also through local restaurants, caterers, and CSA partnerships. In addition, they are supported by grants and donors, including a long list of local businesses, organizations, and community members.
One key event that offers an opportunity for community members to become involved is the annual Harvest Dinner, which takes place each November. Hosted by the North Coast Brewing Company, the fundraiser will incorporate local businesses and the garden’s own produce. All proceeds benefit The Learning Garden’s internship and farm-to-school programs.
As expansive as the Noyo Food Forest is, Emily is looking forward to the organization’s continued growth. “We hope to create more opportunities for young adults to grow and connect with more children,” she says. “There’s so much opportunity for collaboration and shared resources.” Whether that’s through the school district, the internship programs, the support for adults interested in learning more, or other avenues, it’s clear that the Noyo Food Forest will continue to make an impact.
As the summer season winds down, the organization is well into the planning for what’s ahead. The next student interns are, after all, ready to get their hands dirty.
Interested in becoming involved? Here’s how:
Take a class: On Saturday, November 9, for example, instructor Jes Pearce will be teaching a workshop on how to create and manage production goals for your home garden. Full schedule of workshops is available at www.noyofoodforest.org.
Eat: Attend the annual Harvest Dinner in November. Reservations are required, and tickets will be available through the organization’s website. You can purchase produce at the Fort Bragg and Mendocino farmers markets.
Celebrate: Slated for April 2020 and free to attend, Earth Day Fest has grown in popularity in the last 14 years. Keep your eyes out for the finalized date and participants.
Donate, volunteer, buy a t-shirt, reach out: Information on supporting the Noyo Food Forest is available at www.noyofoodforest.org.
Noyo Food Forest & Learning Garden
Open Mon–Fri 10am–2pm
300 Dana St, Fort Bragg | (707) 357-7680 | noyofoodforest.org
Anna Levy writes, cooks, and plans travel of all sorts whenever she can. She lives on the Mendocino Coast with her husband and two dogs.
Roederer Estate’s Award-Winning Sparkling Wines
by Ree Slocum
When Roederer Estate was planning their tasting room and winery in Anderson Valley, they considered that many people from the Bay Area, as well as locals, use Highway 128 from Cloverdale when traveling to the coast. The “wine road” wanders through miles of vineyards, trees, rolling hills, and the quaint, yet hip, little towns of Yorkville, Boonville, Philo, and Navarro. Fine eateries and wine tasting rooms are peppered throughout the corridor, some with international reputations, inviting harried travelers to slow down, unplug from the hustle and bustle of normal life, and sample the delightful treats awaiting.
Arnaud Weyrich of Roederer Wines
Roederer built their winery and tasting room into a hill nestled in the shade of trees and surrounded by the lush Roederer Estate vineyards. The beautifully-designed tasting room is bordered by flowers and shrubs and is staffed with warm and knowledgeable people who help provide guests with the Roederer experience. A large, verdant lawn combined with patio seating and umbrellas are right outside, and the grass beckons children and dogs to frolic as adults enjoy their wine. Roederer has created an ambience which encourages relaxation and enjoyment of the location, fellow travelers, and their crisp and elegant sparkling wine.
Arnaud Weyrich, VP of production and winemaker at Roederer Estate, spoke about the atmosphere they strive to create. “The tasting room is tucked back from the highway, taking a step away. I’ve always thought of us as blending into nature. We thought it’d be great to offer people a rest stop on their way to the coast or to the valley. They could slow down, park their car, enjoy the patio overlooking the valley and mountains surrounding them. Maybe meet friends here and take in the feeling of the place created by Roederer. You can sip a glass of bubbles, and talk and remake the world,” he laughed.
the tasting room at Roederer Estate
Arnaud first found his way to Roederer Estate as an intern after graduating from Ecole Supérieure d’Oenologie, a prestigious school in France renowned for its winemaking and vineyard management program. He left the organization for a few years and returned to Roederer in Philo along with his wife and two children in 2000, as assistant winemaker and supervisor of operations. Arnaud muses, “Once you discover a place, you either hate it or you love it. I was part of the second group.” He has a love for Mendocino County, with its “sense of remoteness, wilderness all around you, rugged terrain and the rough Pacific Ocean next door, and a way of life that’s different. And you’re not that far from the Bay Area and San Francisco.”
When asked about differences between champagne and sparkling wines, Arnaud explained that there are specific rules and laws in the various French appellations for growing and making wine. Champagne is the term for sparkling wine grown and created in the Champagne appellation in France. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunière make up 98% of grapes planted in the Champagne region, though a particular champagne can be created using a single variety up to as many as seven varieties of grapes.
In the US, there are no rules or laws governing growing and making sparkling wine, and “appellation” basically means “region,” which is registered as an AVA (American Viticultural Area). In Anderson Valley’s AVA, Roederer Estate uses the same time-honored tradition of growing and blending Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes and wine, but they do not add Pinot Meunière. Their organic and biodynamically grown grapes are harvested from the Estate’s own vines. Then, according to their website, “Oak-aged wines from the estate’s reserve cellars are added to the blend, creating a multi-vintage cuvée in the traditional Louis Roederer style.”
With his soft French accent, Arnaud described his winemaking style at Roederer: “This isn’t wine made by one person. It’s not just me. It’s team work. There was somebody before me, and there’ll be somebody after me. There’s a house style that we want to be able to repeat to bring that consistency of who we are. Then I bring a little bit of something of myself . . . a sensitivity to what the wine brings. It’s to bring pleasure. It is something that is a pleasure wine but also that’s serious. It’s been aged and blended in a way you can have fun with but also pairs with food.” Neither food nor wine should overpower one another, Arnaud added. “They need to complement each other. That’s what I’m trying to do in making these wines.”
According to the winemaker himself, Roederer Brut pairs well with oysters and shellfish. Brut Rosé is fantastic with salmon, pizza, and pasta. L’Ermitage has aged five years longer and can go with more serious food that has a lot of butter or cream, like aged hard cheeses that tend to show nutty flavors such as French Comté or Boont Corners from Pennyroyal. L’Ermitage Rosé works well with more salty cheeses such as Parmegiano Reggiano, as well as Dungeness Crab cake and steak tartare.
We rarely take the time to slow down, and to do so feels almost indulgent. So indulge! Next time you find yourself ready for a treat, surround yourself with nature, good friends, and a glass of Roederer’s bubbles (and sometimes food pairings) at Roederer Estate’s tasting room.
Roederer Estate
4501 Highway 128, Philo, California
(707) 895-2288 | roedererestate.com
Ree Slocum is a fine art freelance photographer and writer who calls the edge of the wilds in Mendocino County “home.” She takes pleasure living with bird song, the breathing fog, and wildlife’s cast of characters when not on assignments. See more at reeslocumphotography.com.
Photos pp 31 & 33 courtesy of Roederer Estate. Photos p 32 by Ree Slocum.
Princess Seafood Market & Deli
by Anna Levy
What a difference a few years makes. Back in the winter of 2016, the women behind the Fort Bragg-based fishing operation, Princess Seafood, were focused primarily on selling their catch through direct sales, farmers markets, and a few larger contracts. Today, to sit down for an interview with Heather Sears and Wendy Holloway means trying to find an open corner of a picnic table on the busy, sun-drenched patio of their brick-and-mortar market and deli in the Noyo Harbor, which they opened in May of 2018. Though Heather is often still out fishing, sometimes gone for months at a time, the two women are just as focused on making sure that the shop—which sells a variety of fish, prepared foods, a range of fresh sandwiches, and other deli items—is thriving.
Prior to 2018, the women primarily sold their catch off the boat, so when a space became available in the harbor, Heather approached Wendy to see if she was interested in a different kind of adventure: taking the chance of opening their own fish market. For Wendy, who was working as a fish biologist monitoring various species in coastal streams, it was a surprising turn, but one that proved intriguing. Soon, they started piecing together their vision, expanding their initial idea from just a market to a vision of a market that also served food.
Over time, they expanded their hours and added musicians. Last winter, they invested in a large tent so that customers could enjoy their meals without having to worry about the weather. The tent, which was Wendy’s idea, “was actually nice and cozy,” Heather says, laughing. “She was right, as per usual.” Now open six days a week, “Princess,” as it’s often called, has become a destination in the Noyo Harbor, a quick and easy favorite for both locals and tourists. Hungry customers line up for crab red pepper bisque, grilled prawn po’boy, and a locally caught poke bowl.
Heather and Wendy have a long history dating back to their first fishing trip together in 2004, when Wendy served as Heather’s first crew member. Though they both readily acknowledge the many adventures they had together on the ocean, Wendy says that for Heather, who has been fishing since she was a child and who bought her first boat when she was 21, “it’s been kind of a dream, to be able to have something like this where you have a local fish market where people can actually access the local fisheries.”
The whole endeavor has given them a chance to share the importance of fishing in a mindful and responsible way with those in Mendocino County. When it comes to what is considered local, Heather notes: “We don’t stretch it. We’re trying to be really transparent [about the process],” especially because there’s not a formal regulation for what can be considered local. “When you look at the global seafood market, when you think of the big picture, even California would be local,” she says. “But even that feels a little deceiving.”
Princess instead focuses on what comes into the Noyo Harbor. Though they feature their own fish, they also buy fish caught by other boats. “You have to,” Heather says. “You can’t fish for two species at the same time,” she explains. “The whole boat setup is completely different” depending on the fish being caught. “So if we were just to sell what I would catch, we would have one thing, and that would never work.”
As a result, they work with others in the harbor community who have different fish to offer. Wendy estimates that they buy from about 10 different boats. “There are some guys who go out and catch, you know, eight rockfish and a couple lingcod,” she says, “and then we buy that.” Heather chimes in, “They’re the best quality,” noting that small boats that go out for just one day at a time are able to access fish that she can’t bring in as easily in her larger boat. The result is “perfect, gorgeous, snow-white fillets” that meet both their standards and customers’ expectations.
As two people committed to ethical fishing practices—borne from their own respect for nature and backed up by the clear laws and guidelines in place by California as a whole—Heather and Wendy’s commitment to giving customers an excellent product is also balanced by the desire to help others understand what goes into the process. “You don’t just get to go out there,” Wendy explains. “It’s a lot of work and a lot of effort. People are kind of risking their lives to go out on the ocean. It comes at a cost to do it responsibly.”
“There are so many different kinds of fish being caught in different ways,” Heather elaborates. “It’s not all the same, and so sometimes you wind up paying more for a higher quality. You pay more to support your community.” All of that, though, is part of the joy of being able to share what Heather calls “a precious natural resource” that comes straight from the otherworldly existence of the ocean. “I really want people to know how beautiful and amazing our tiny little fisheries are,” Heather continues. “It’s hard to put into words, so I’d rather just have them see and say, ‘Look! Look at this fish!’”
Luckily, with Princess Seafood, it’s possible to do just that, even for those of us who have never fished on the ocean, for those of us who know nothing about how to find our way through the water, under the stars, looking for the best of the best to bring back home. Instead, we can enjoy the hard work that Heather, Wendy, and their crew has set into motion, whether in the fish we buy to serve at home, or in what we can enjoy on a picnic table on their sun-drenched patio in our own backyard harbor.
Princess Seafood Market & Deli
Open Sun, Mon, Wed, Thu 10am–6pm, Fri & Sat 10am–7pm
32410 N Harbor Dr, Fort Bragg | (707) 962-3123 | fvprincess.com
Anna Levy writes, cooks, and plans travel of all sorts whenever she can. She lives on the Mendocino Coast with her husband and two dogs.
Photos courtesy of Princess Seafood or Holly Madrigal.
Blackberries: Worth the Thorns
by Torrey Douglass
The heat of summer can persist well into the fall months in inland Mendocino County, where, in some years, September is more of an August 2.0. While we are usually more than ready for the relief of cooler weather, there are some benefits when summer stretches, for as long as the warmth is around, the blackberries are, too.
This non-native invader is scrappy and opportunistic, thriving in thin soil and dry conditions that discourage plants with gentler natures. If you don’t have blackberries on your property, just keep your eyes open while driving county roads. You’ll often see cars pulled over at large thickets growing just past the shoulder, with people reaching gingerly over the thorn-encrusted tendrils to pluck the juicy gems. Wonderful on their own, in muffins, or sprinkled over cereal, they also make a knock-out tart. Brave the thorns and bring this concoction to your next potluck—and listen to the Mmmms roll in.
Blackberry Tart
For the dough
¼ c very cold water
1 c unbleached flour
¼ tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)
¾ stick of cold butter cut into small cubes
For the filling
Melted butter
Approx. 3 c of fresh blackberries
2-3 Tb sugar
Cut the cubed butter into the flour either with a pastry blender or by hand—I use a Cuisinart and it works great. Add ¾ of the water and mix or stir with a fork until it forms clumps. Keep adding water until a dough is formed, damp and uniform but not overly sticky.
Divide the big ball of dough into two. Wrap each in plastic, then squash into disks. Chill in the fridge for at least an hour, then roll it out to 1/4” thickness on a floured surface. The rolled dough does not need to be a perfect circle. Place the rough circle of dough on a cookie sheet on top of a piece of parchment paper to keep it from sticking. Sprinkle the top with a little flour so the fruit doesn’t make it too soggy as it bakes. Add the fruit in a tight circle in the center in one layer, then sprinkle with sugar.
Fold the dough over the fruit—it will not meet, so some of the fruit will still be visible in the center. Brush the top of the dough with melted butter, then sprinkle with more sugar and put in a 400° oven for 45–55 minutes until the crust is lightly browned. Slide onto a rack to cool.
A Legendary Martini from The Golden Pig
Legend says this classic cocktail—an Espresso Martini invented by Dick Bradsell, a famous bartender in London—was brought to the once-named Cottonwood Saloon, now known as The Golden Pig, in Hopland. We mixed it up a bit, using organic Square One Vodka made with Bergamot Oranges, illy Espresso, Orgeat Syrup, and a few dashes of chocolate bitters.
Orange Chocolate Espresso Martini
Ingredients:
2oz Square One Orange Vodka
1oz Orgeat Syrup
1 shot illy Espresso
3 dashes chocolate bitters
Prepare the espresso beforehand and let it chill. This will help to minimize the dilution, making your drink colder and even tastier!
When shaking, remember to “wake the drink to life,” not “rock it to bed.” This will improve the frothy foam on top of your final drink.
When straining, make sure to pour the drink briskly and swiftly from your shaker. This will result in a beautiful foam on top of your drink.
The Golden Pig
13380 Highway 101, Hopland | (707) 670-6055 | TheGoldenPig.com
Sunday–Thursday 11am–9pm, Friday & Saturday 11am–11pm
The Mendocino County Homebrew Festival
by Scott Cratty
Q: What’s more fun than barrel full of Stickee Monkee?
A: The 3rd annual Mendocino County Homebrew Festival! The Fest is an informal, low-key, but serious competition, brimming over with unique taste experiences all crafted with passion by equally unique, sometimes slightly off-beat people. In other words, this is a very Mendocino event, full of real people, taste, and life.
The Mendocino Homebrew Festival features original homebrew from throughout Northern California and offers more taps than you can get to, full of quality brews that you can get nowhere else. Think you have tried it all before? Here are a couple of last year’s brews: “A complex mix of malted grains, rye, and wheat, with fresh honey at EOB, along with an addition of fresh roasted coconut and fresh ground Fijian Kava added in secondary fermentation,” or “Light wheat beer with home grown red beets cooked/mashed and strained into secondary fermentation, along with a few ounces of agave nectar, and dry hopped with fresh whole Centennial.” You can’t get these creative combinations just anywhere.
It is a great vibe for sure, and a worthy memory, but this competition will also have amazing beer because it has one of the best prizes on the planet. The winner of the Brewer’s Choice Award gets to hang out at Anderson Valley Brewing Company, brew their beer at scale with the Brewmaster, and have it served at the Tap Room and likely elsewhere as well.
The Winners’ Circle at the Mendocino Homebrew Festival
For a humble admission price, your ticket includes a tasting glass, beer, your chance to cast your three votes for the People’s Choice Favorite, live music, and a room full of exemplary people and discussion. Farm-to-Table food and other merchandise, as well as the warm feeling of knowing you are scoring a great time while also supporting an important cause, just adds to the bounty.
It all happens November 2nd from 3-6pm at the Conference Center in downtown Ukiah. (If you are really into great beer and fun times, you can get in an hour early, along with the Brewmaster panel, by purchasing a Very Important Taster Ticket.) Brewer sign-up information can be found on the website.
All this fun has the compounded benefit of supporting one of the best local nonprofits around. All proceeds from this event go to the Good Farm Fund, a community nonprofit which produces several of Mendocino County’s most enjoyable events. Good Farm Fund came into existence as a way for local small farms to support each other so that they can survive, inch toward thriving, and produce more sustainable, top-quality food to create a more resilient community. It provides direct economic development support to small farmers in Mendocino and Lake Counties, as well as funding ‘Market Match’ programs, which help low income customers shop at local farmers markets, increasing local food security for all members of the community.
If you are not a Ukiah native, it helps to stay the night so you can experience downtown Ukiah and the rest of the Feast Mendocino festival. The Homebrew Festival is a kick-off for this annual celebration focused on fun and food, particularly mushrooms, running November 1-10. For overnight attendees, I recommend starting with a visit to the Saturday Farmers Market just a block from the Festival from 9am–noon. Weather permitting, Ukiah’s downtown merchants will be putting on sidewalk sales, and the Fest will feature an outdoor entertainment lounge.
If you love great beer, make sure you check out the Fest’s major sponsor, Draft Punk in Laytonville. While you are in the county, you should also investigate Ukiah Brewing (Ukiah), Anderson Valley Brewing (Boonville), North Coast Brewing (Fort Bragg), and Overtime Brewing (Fort Bragg). If you enjoy the Mendocino experience, join the Homebrew Festival email list so you get a heads-up about their always-sold-out events.
To purchase tickets, for more information, to see the video of last year’s winner brewing at Anderson Valley Brewing, or to enter a brew, visit MendoHomebrewFest.com. Email ExploreUkiah@gmail.com or call 707.467.5766 for room deals.
The Best Stop-Spots Between SF and Mendocino Co
How To Stay Fed, Watered, and Caffeinated on the Trip
We’ve all been there: the late flight, the early flight, the Bay Area appointment, the … something that has us driving on Highway 101 and thinking only about where to stop for something to eat or drink. Word of Mouth has you covered. This collection of spots are some of our personal faves that raise the bar on flavor, value, or just plain convenience. Enjoy!
Plank Coffee
Where: 227 N Cloverdale Blvd, Cloverdale
plankcoffee.com
What: Plank is my favorite stop in Cloverdale for a fantastic americano, a delicious shrub of the day, or a choice of yummy gluten-free (or regular) confections created by the Flour Girl (who also has a pop-up shop in Cloverdale). The service is always friendly, the ambience is great, with both tables and comfy chairs, and they have a few local-interest books for sale. Great stop before or after traversing the winding curves of Highway 128. – Dawn
Diavola Pizzeria and Salumeria
Where: 21021 Geyserville Ave, Geyserville
diavolapizzeria.com
What: Diavola, right off of Highway 101, is a delightful stop after a long day, particularly when it starts with a trip next door to Locals Tasting Room, where you can buy a bottle to enjoy with your Diavola fare. The environment is warm and happy, no doubt in part because the menu is so satisfying, with pizza as tasty as it comes, house-cured meats, a reliance on local sources, and the thin, crispy breadsticks that point heavenward on each table. I’m hungry just thinking about it. – Anna
Healdsburger
Where: 48 Healdsburg Ave, Healdsburg (of course!)
healdsburger.com
What: There are lots of great options for a meal in Healdsburg, yet if you’re looking for something casual but good—as I often am when I’m in the midst of our epic drive north or south—Healdsburger is an easy choice. They’re big on the burgers, it’s true, with a range of options so interesting that it would take a good while to get through all of them (Lamb Burger with Feta and Grilled Onions, anyone? A Cajun Cheeseburger with jalapenos, perhaps?), yet there are also sandwiches, hot dogs, and salads available, including a few vegetarian choices. Don’t forget to grab a milkshake—Chocolate Peanut Butter calls my name—before choosing one of the small tables indoors or from the spots available on the patio. – Anna
SEA Noodle
Where: 286 Coddingtown Center, Santa Rosa
seanoodlebar.com
What: This Thai fusion restaurant is my go-to when passing through Santa Rosa. Chicken coconut noodle soup with extra vegetables is so rich and flavorful that it keeps me coming back. Plus, their craft mocktails like the Lychee Iced Tea let me imbibe without getting tipsy. – Holly
Crooks Coffee
Where: 404 Mendocino Ave, Santa Rosa
crookscoffee.com
What: This family-owned coffee shop was a lovely discovery one early morning on the way to the airport. Crooks offers a light food menu for breakfast or lunch and a range of hot drinks, including temptations such as a Lavender Rose Latte and a Crème Brûlée Hot Chocolate. Open at 5:30 a.m. during the week and until 11:00 p.m. on weekends means this is a great stop for stretching your legs and breaking up that long drive, regardless of the time of day. – Anna
Hana Japanese Restaurant
Where: 101 Golf Course Dr, Rohnert Park
hanajapanese.com
What: When I want to treat myself on the drive between Mendocino County and the Bay Area, I head to Hana, which offers incredible food and an atmosphere that belies its nondescript exterior. The sushi is always fresh, and it’s usually possible to get a seat that allows you to watch the chefs at work. There’s also a strong wine list and clear guidance on the sake that might suit you best (if you’re not the driver, of course!). Don’t forget to make a pit stop before you get back on the road, as the bathroom is sure to soothe the weariest. – Anna
Amy’s Drive Through
Where: 58 Golf Course Dr W, Rohnert Park
amysdrivethru.com
What: With delicious breakfast, lunch, and dinner designed for those interested in conscious eating, Amy’s menu offers vegetarian and vegan spins on classic fast food as well as options such as salads and chili. Almost everything is organic, and when it’s not, they’ll make sure you know that before you order. I often go for a veggie burger with spicy sauce, fries, and a milkshake, happily knowing I’ve eaten well at this quick, inexpensive, and always-satisfying favorite. – Anna
Café Zazzle
Where: 121 Kentucky St, Petaluma
zazzlecafe.com
What: Open ‘til 9:00pm, this is one of those places where everything on the menu is so good it is hard to choose. Voted Best Restaurant in Sonoma County by two different publications, the menu is diverse. The fish tacos come blackened, with melted cheese between the two tortillas, and are topped with fresh coleslaw and a creamy chipotle sauce. Accompanied by rice and beans, this is a delicious value. The peanut sauce noodles are also great! See? It’s hard to choose. – Holly
Bel Campo Restaurant & Butcher Shop
Where: 2405 Larkspur Landing Cir, Larkspur
belcampo.com
What: Bel Campo serves up hearty, carnivore-pleasing dishes spotlighting the high quality meat they raise on their farm near Mt. Shasta. My husband usually goes for their succulent burger, while I’m partial to the bacon Caesar salad, always with a side of sweet potato fries dipped in house-made ketchup. A relaxed café vibe that’s walking the walk (and, speaking of walking, just steps from the Larkspur ferry terminal), it’s a delicious way to kick off a trip to the city. – Torrey