Mamma Lucia, Santa Cruz

The atmosphere here is casual and less hectic than Café Lucio. Italian music, the one major atmospheric element taken from Café Lucio is being played Lucio style…meaning, it’s blaring in the background. All orders are taken at the counter and patrons take their number to an open table; food is then delivered by an expediter. The menu is Italian American, incorporating burgers and fries. The pasta menu consists of ItalAmer staples, pomodoro, alfredo, ragu. Pizzas and Panini are abundant.

 

I ordered the fettuccine alfredo. The portion size is a little smaller than Lucio’s. In other words, a normal portion for one person.  It’s creamy, the pasta is cooked properly, and it’s good. It’s not exactly how Lucio would make it. I don’t taste any nutmeg and it doesn’t have a yellowish hew to it either. Lucio would add an egg yolk to the sauce off-heat just before tossing the pasta through. But as I mentioned, this is ItalAmer cuisine, not hard core Lucio cuisine.

 

Mamma Lucia may be the best spot in Santa Cruz, for an easy, no nonsense plate of food cooked from scratch if you want to bring the kids and not wait for Lucio to cook for you in between cigarette breaks or personally making espresso for 20 people while juggling 10 other meal orders.

The Filling Station, Santa Cruz

Nice shot of espresso. The owner even gave me a small shot of sparkling water, very Italian. The venue itself is really cool. I like the converted filling station and the resulting layout of the café. It’s a couple doors down from Mamma Lucia and a high-end burger place, so it’s easy to find.

Gladstone's, Pacific Palisades

Los Angeles. Not necessarily my favorite place on Earth. I lived in Pasadena for a year and commuted into LA for a year. Knowing what I know now, I'd probably live on the beach.

If I could live on the real estate Gladstone's is bolted to, all of my 12 ficticious children could go to Harvard or Stanford and have money left over for their children to attend as well. The view at Gladstone's is outstanding. Outside of a few places I've eaten in Hawaii, Gladstone's has to take the cake for the best view I've had in SoCal (sorry, no pictures, it was a business lunch).

For such a grand view, I had a humble sandwich, fried cod with tartar sauce on challah with house made potato chips and cold slaw. Fantastic sandwich and all the sides were first rate. The chips were crispy and seasoned with salt. The cod fish was golden brown on the outside, moist on the inside. Even the bun was good. I have to say, I broke concentration during the meeting, simply to enjoy the sandwich and sides. Delicious.

I always find it fascinating that when I eat a really good, simple meal, the lack of a long narrative description (hence my LA story telling). I suppose if you’ve ever had really good panko breaded cod, you know it. I don’t see a downside to a single item of this meal, other than you’ve got to pay for the view.

Tomato Harvest

Summer is in full swing and tomatoes are on pretty much every menu I've put together the last several nights at the beach. Two dishes here, a massive bowl of bruschetta and another massive bowl of panzanella salad. Tomatoes, bread, and copious amounts of olive oil go a long way.

10 Pounds of Mussels

When you have to feed a lot of Italians at the beach, one thing generally satisfies...Mussels. I cleaned and cooked these 3 different ways:

1. Bacon, onions, parsley with a splash of white wine

2. Basic tomato sauce and white wine

3. Nothing but a hot pan and a cover. If you really want to taste the true flavor of a mussel, just fire up a hot pan and let them open.