mlshanks
Oct 31, 05, 1:41 pm
Sure everyone knows the best places in L.A. & San Francisco...
(...L'Orangerie & Campton Place... YMMV)
But stray outside of the urban mainstream, and most out of state travelers are lost-lost-lost... Here's five of my personal food treasures off the beaten path, but WORTH the journey, in the terra incognita of the rest of California.
1) Santa Maria Barbeque. Beef tri-tip sirloin rolled in salt, pepper, and paprika (or red pepper) and slowly grilled over red oak coals. Served with fresh salsa, piquito beans (pinks), and flour totrillas or crusty rolls to mop up the meat juices. While half the restauraunts in town serve it... On summer weekends there's a score of volunteer organization on the street corners in town doing barbeque for charity... And its *all* good.
2) Dudley's Bakery (Santa Ysabel) 60 miles NE inland from San Diego's Lindbergh Field, in the rural ranching backcountry that tourists rarely see, is a mecca of baking. Dudley's does breads that people will form 45 minute long lines for bread that will remind you of those bad pictures of old Soviet Russia... But this bread so GOOD that it's worth the wait... Remember to bring a tub of fresh butter and a knife for their Danish Apple Nut Bread, hot out of the oven, the bag left open so the mosture can escape. Sure they bake cookies and cakes and danishes; but friend, its the bread that people line up for. Remember to lock at least one loaf in the trunk....or you might not get home with any. :) http://www.dudleysbakery.com/breads/index.htm
3) If you are a fresh food fanatic, then Saturday mornings in Santa Barbara are for you. Start at the 6-8 a.m. fisherman's farmer's market down in the marina, where you can buy the freshest fish and live crabs, shrimp, lobster, and mussels right of the boats as they come in. Then it's on to the downtown farmer's market (Santa Barbara & Cota Streets) for the best seasonal produce imaginable. Maybe even not imaginable to those from back East who don't have 2-3 growing seasons a year. :eek: Strawberry, avos, citrus, and baby salad greens are staples...how about a booth with 14 different fresh mushrooms, a row of more Asian produce than most Chinatown markets, a stand of nothing but antique breed tomatoes, and a vendor who specializes in small pressings of fine nut oils (including Macadamia). This is produce heaven.
4) The best steakhouse in the West is Johnny McNally's Fairview on the Kern.
It may also be the most off the beaten path. It's 12 miles north of Kernville, or which is 60+ miles NE of Bakersfield.... Or more than 180 road miles from LAX (and almost due north in the middle of the Southern Sierras). This is the place to go for steak. Big tender steaks. And when I say big, I mean big enough that many require a separate plate for the trimmings like a baked potato, vegies, adn bread... Like their giant 40 oz. of prime, melt in your mouth, locally ranched beef. Sure, the trout right out of the Kern river is good too. But the beef is to die for. If this were in L.A., you'd be paying $250 for the steak...and making a reservation 6 months in advance.
5) Superior Dairy (Hanford): Welcome to the time warp. Somehow, in the middle of California's Central Valley, time seems to have stood still. How else do you explain this perfectly preserved gem of a 1940s soda fountain restaurant, still upholstered in the pink and white naugahyde and the waitresses in ruffled aprons. And they still serve the food right. Ice cream so rich you will feel your arteries constricting. Milkshakes and Malts in the metal mixing cup that you can stand a spoon in. Grilled cheese and Rubin sandwiches. Hand formed hamburgers. Perfect french frys. And it's across the street from the court house...which still has a cannon in front of it.
O.K. people, I've shared some of mine, now it's time to share YOUR CA food secrets..
(...L'Orangerie & Campton Place... YMMV)
But stray outside of the urban mainstream, and most out of state travelers are lost-lost-lost... Here's five of my personal food treasures off the beaten path, but WORTH the journey, in the terra incognita of the rest of California.
1) Santa Maria Barbeque. Beef tri-tip sirloin rolled in salt, pepper, and paprika (or red pepper) and slowly grilled over red oak coals. Served with fresh salsa, piquito beans (pinks), and flour totrillas or crusty rolls to mop up the meat juices. While half the restauraunts in town serve it... On summer weekends there's a score of volunteer organization on the street corners in town doing barbeque for charity... And its *all* good.
2) Dudley's Bakery (Santa Ysabel) 60 miles NE inland from San Diego's Lindbergh Field, in the rural ranching backcountry that tourists rarely see, is a mecca of baking. Dudley's does breads that people will form 45 minute long lines for bread that will remind you of those bad pictures of old Soviet Russia... But this bread so GOOD that it's worth the wait... Remember to bring a tub of fresh butter and a knife for their Danish Apple Nut Bread, hot out of the oven, the bag left open so the mosture can escape. Sure they bake cookies and cakes and danishes; but friend, its the bread that people line up for. Remember to lock at least one loaf in the trunk....or you might not get home with any. :) http://www.dudleysbakery.com/breads/index.htm
3) If you are a fresh food fanatic, then Saturday mornings in Santa Barbara are for you. Start at the 6-8 a.m. fisherman's farmer's market down in the marina, where you can buy the freshest fish and live crabs, shrimp, lobster, and mussels right of the boats as they come in. Then it's on to the downtown farmer's market (Santa Barbara & Cota Streets) for the best seasonal produce imaginable. Maybe even not imaginable to those from back East who don't have 2-3 growing seasons a year. :eek: Strawberry, avos, citrus, and baby salad greens are staples...how about a booth with 14 different fresh mushrooms, a row of more Asian produce than most Chinatown markets, a stand of nothing but antique breed tomatoes, and a vendor who specializes in small pressings of fine nut oils (including Macadamia). This is produce heaven.
4) The best steakhouse in the West is Johnny McNally's Fairview on the Kern.
It may also be the most off the beaten path. It's 12 miles north of Kernville, or which is 60+ miles NE of Bakersfield.... Or more than 180 road miles from LAX (and almost due north in the middle of the Southern Sierras). This is the place to go for steak. Big tender steaks. And when I say big, I mean big enough that many require a separate plate for the trimmings like a baked potato, vegies, adn bread... Like their giant 40 oz. of prime, melt in your mouth, locally ranched beef. Sure, the trout right out of the Kern river is good too. But the beef is to die for. If this were in L.A., you'd be paying $250 for the steak...and making a reservation 6 months in advance.
5) Superior Dairy (Hanford): Welcome to the time warp. Somehow, in the middle of California's Central Valley, time seems to have stood still. How else do you explain this perfectly preserved gem of a 1940s soda fountain restaurant, still upholstered in the pink and white naugahyde and the waitresses in ruffled aprons. And they still serve the food right. Ice cream so rich you will feel your arteries constricting. Milkshakes and Malts in the metal mixing cup that you can stand a spoon in. Grilled cheese and Rubin sandwiches. Hand formed hamburgers. Perfect french frys. And it's across the street from the court house...which still has a cannon in front of it.
O.K. people, I've shared some of mine, now it's time to share YOUR CA food secrets..