Hops and Fog listed in Edible Monterey Bay's - 14 Best New Restaurants of 2024 (Plus 17 Bonus Spots to Know)"
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Article from Edible Monterey - Marc C. Anderson
December 24, 2024 – If you only read one Monterey Bay food story this year, you picked a good one.
This rundown of all the new restaurants and other epicurean endeavors covers a lot of independent, family-run, flavor-forward territory.
Individually, the new spots remind attentive eaters that a lot of hustle and heart need to collide to debut even a single spot. Miracles exist among us.
Collectively, they indicate how rich the tri-county area is with enterprising tastemakers.
Without further ado, here appear the newest—and best—eateries to come to life in the year gone by.
They come paired with a potent prologue (of spots that launched right before 2024) and bonus epilogues (including outstanding operations that aren’t exactly restaurants but more than merit a shout out themselves, and notable operations that changed—or at least tweaked—their identities).
Right Before ‘24
31st Grill • The familial team behind Emma’s Bakery & Cafe took a year to build out the former Norma’s in Salinas, and rewarded patient appetites in the final weeks of 2023 with a loaded breakfast-lunch-dinner diner-style slate starring pancakes, huge salads and burgers, among a ton of other options.
Margins Wine Cubby • The tasting space and boutique shop debuted last December and is the culmination of winemaker Megan Bell’s love of underappreciated regions, varietals and vineyards, setting up on Santa Cruz’s Westside in the Swift Street Courtyard.
The Midway • Santa Cruz Community Farmers Markets favorite and former La Posta chef Katherine Stern brought vibrantly fresh flavors to Soquel Avenue, next to the Rio Theatre, starting at the end of ’23. Seasonal, well-sourced and comforting themes carry the menu across plates like smoked black cod toast and braised brisket, and a simple elegance flows in the aesthetics of the space too.
Ranking 2024’s New Restaurants
All comparisons are odious, as Bill Shakespeare once said. But they are also fun. So here comes a comparison listing our favorite debuts, 14 all told, with links to additional coverage built in, low to high. Please share any omissions or feedback via mark@ediblemontereybay.com or @MontereyMCA on Instagram.
14 • Tipsy Putt • The family-owned micro-chain’s minigolf is underthought on design and overpriced on greens fees, but the food is legit underappreciated itself, with quality quesabirria, flatbreads and smashburgers, plus bottomless mimosas to lubricate putting around the new Cannery Row pillar.
13 • Jack’s Bao • This house of steamed bao and noodle wonton soups broke out at 751 Cannery Row in New Monterey and at 49 Rancho Del Mar in Aptos in early fall.
12 • Piccolo Panini Grill • Maurizio Cutrignelli, who also orchestrates upstairs Osteria al Mare, gives Monterey’s Coast Guard Pier a much-needed sandwich shop featuring fresh-baked house breads layered with signature giardiniera and authentic Italian recipes like the Alla Floriana with Genoa salami, fresh mozzarella and marinated artichoke.
11 • Hops & Fog Brewing Co. • Pent-up demand meets delicious supply here. Puritanical Pacific Grove’s first brewery provides heartfelt hospitality and a solid lineup of old-school pizzas, soups and salads to complement the craft beer..
10 • El Bistro by the Sea • The Mission Street sanctuary in Carmel caught fire on social media with molten French toast cubes and birria burgers, but deserves a longer look for $6-$10 locals specials on 11 items like quesabirria and the plato ranchero.
9 • Maido Sushi Cafe • The family-run eatery builds upon a adored farmers market tradition with a brick-and-mortar outpost in Marina which does simple and superlative rolls, and doubles as a destination for Third Wave coffee.
8 • Cultiva Artistic Cuisine • San Juan Bautista’s main drag gets a glowing new entry that goes entirely plant-based with plates like kabocha squash curry soup and “Alma” sandwiches with avocado and creamy “cheezy” spread with carrots, celery and onions, all fueled by nearby Green Thumb Farm.
7 • Oyuki Sushi • The upstart mom-and-pop started rolling out Japanese-Peruvian fusion in Santa Cruz last January, via signature dishes like the causitas, baked mussels and Nikkei-style nigiri.
6 • Dos Pescados • Over in Aptos, one of the most anticipated debuts of the year fills sizeable britches in the former Palapas with coastal Mexican-Californian intrigue like spicy lemonade sauced oysters, leche de tigre kampachi and guajillo-glazed short rib.
5 • McCann’s and 36° North in San Juan Oaks • Arguably the most ambitious undertaking of the year succeeds with upscale steaks and cocktails in a breathtaking space with 36°, plus an outstanding tavern grill in McCann’s, all set against the soothing fairways of SJO.
4 • Pete’s Fish House • This arrival works on multiple levels. It elevates a sublime ocean-view spot in the heart of Capitola in the former Sotola. It draws upon family history running Margaritaville and Stokes Adobe. And it honors family patriarch Pete Orr, who prioritized great seafood, great wine and great company.
3 • Solstice at The Village Big Sur • A rare thing (a new Big Sur destination) finds expression through chef Tim Eelman’s obsession with live fire-roasted, -smoked and -grilled seafood, complemented by dynamite wines from manager Matt Peterson. Much anticipated, much appreciated and still uncompleted, with a bodega sidecar on the way for the coming year. (The Village Coffee Shop opened first in early summer.)
2 • Cavalletta • The Aptos contemporary Italian gem hails from the same team behind Trestles, one of 2021’s coolest debuts (over in Capitola), and stars housemade pastas, inventive salads and a bunch of options—signature pizza included—fired in the huge dome oven visible in the open kitchen.
1 • Hook & Line • Chef Santo Majano gives the former Soif in downtown Santa Cruz fresh life, with emphasis on fresh—and sustainable—seafood rendered resistance-proof across plates like bouillabaisse, Tomales Bay mussels in lemongrass fish broth, whole fried Monterey Bay rockfish and uni toast with horseradish crème fraiche.
New Non-Restaurant Restaurants (Eateries/Shops/Breweries/Bars)
Ol’ reliable Mirriam Webster defines a restaurant as “a business establishment where meals or refreshments may be purchased.” For the purposes of this review, Edible is narrowing it to include spots where one can sit down and order a meal, which inspires this addendum.
Barrel Room • Carmel Valley now flows an honest-to-goodness sports pub with this simple and elegant tap house, featuring draft craft beers, wines from Boëté Winery, a big patio and sizable redwood slab bar.
Bottega del Lago • The companion spot to Lago di Como on Santa Cruz’s east side does a market-cafe two-step, with a plunderous stash of paninis, Roman pizza, salads, gelato and coffee.
Dani O Bakeshop • Owner-operator Danielle Orlando channeled a high-level corporate pastry career into a homespun farmers market donut darling and online trade before introducing the popular bakery in the Capitola Mall at the end of summer.
Marmee’s Wine Bar • Lady & Larder unleashed peak cheese on Carmel Valley in 2023 with its mesmerizing snack boards, then added a seasonal wine bar named after their hospitality queen mother in May.
Mmm Churros • The most heartbreaking and life-affirming food story of the year, and beyond, lives here. This shop moved from Salinas to Hollister to debut earlier this year, then closed after the fatal car accident of its co-creator Priscilla Jones. It has since reopened on Tres Pinos Road with her widower Mike Jones operating the inviting spot in her honor.
Nico’s New Zealand-Style Ice Cream • Portland-born Nico’s brought its blended soft serve and frozen fruit to Cannery Row in October, then promptly added a second spot on Locust Street in Santa Cruz the following month.
Otto’s Bread Company • The upstart bakery from earnest entrepreneur Otto Kramm starting slanging superb sourdough, chocolate chip cookies and Viennoiserie-style croissants in late spring, offering both a welcome retail and wholesale hub to Oldtown Salinas.
Pop & Hiss • Locals remain captivated by happy disbelief that quiet Pacific Grove has its own bar-record shop-live music venue—with two stages and a beer garden, no less—buttressed by mobile food operations like La Pizza Piccolo.
Kafe Toribashi • A pioneering take on a South Korean trend makes for a fun use—DIY ramen!—of a cool space on Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey, but when you’re making instant noodles yourself it doesn’t quite qualify as a restaurant.
Watsonville Public House • Massive cheers go up to a new community hub that enjoys a nano brew setup, gorgeous polished wood bar and a supremely welcoming vibe, elevated by the presence of My Mom’s Mole food truck, one of the many impressive food businesses cultivated at El Pajaro CDC.
Reinventions
A number of adept adjustments have given already-proven spots fresh identity. In alphabetical order:
Chloe’s Kitchen • The former Mo’s Dumplings in Westside Santa Cruz took on the name of its patron recipe lieutenant, Chloe Mo, while adding creative Chinese plates and doubling down on its signature item, the dumpling.
Emerald Mallard • Humble Sea’s Felton taproom gained a cult favorite in this bird, whose chef Lance Ebert specializes in smash burgers, spicy fried chicken sandwiches and more refined French bistro takes on smoked trout, duck sausage and hand-cut pappardelle with short rib Bolognese.
Ibiza • Barceloneta’s dynamic duo swapped out their Spanish-inspired, paella-pedaling, nightlife-leveraging restaurant for a daytime, smart fast-casual concept featuring wraps, salads, and beverages predestined for a tasty picnic at the beach.
Izakaya West End • West End Tap & Kitchen in Santa Cruz found rebirth this summer as a Japanese gastropub featuring dynamic dishes like okonomiyaki fries, koji cream wild halibut, karaage fried chicken and miso bone broth-pork belly ramen.
The Lantern Room • The reimagined Monterey Beach Hotel empowered its culinary all-stars to recommit to local sourcing in the Lantern’s fly fourth-floor ocean view setting.
Written by: Marc C Anderson
This article was written and posted on Edible Monterey Bay December 24, 2024 To read it directly on their website please click the link below