Pearl Alley Bistro, Santa Cruz

[gregtz]

In visiting from the NY/NJ area for a conference at UCSC with my squeeze, I took a swing through the metroactive.com dining reviews for the area to get a feel for the available options. We wandered into downtown Santa Cruz and came across Pearl Alley (link is not to the current menu). We put in for a table at 7:30 (there was plenty of availability).

We then wandered away for a preprandial drink and snack at Costa Brava Downtown. Decent mojitos and margaritas (a little weak, but these were well drinks at happy hour, so maybe understandable). A sweet but tasty and moist mushroom pate (supposedly w/ cashews, but I detected no crunch or nutty, buttery flavor), served with good olive oil-soaked bread, confit cloves of garlic and roasted pepper. Having the garlic with the pate, and even the slight acidity of the roasted peppers, both helped offset the pate's sweetness. The restaurant had some fun murals, line drawings of jazz musicians in a style reminiscent of Picasso, a clean modern style in warm colors. Bartenders were attentive, friendly, chatty, but the bar wasn't full enough to really test their mettle. Thought at one point that I could use a cigarette, but of course there's none of that in Cali, even at the bar -- or in NY soon. I have seen the future, and suppressing my occasional cravings should be bearable, and my squeeze will appreciate the smoke-free atmosphere. Could go on, but that's another whole topic...

Time for our reservation came, so we wandered over to Pearl Alley. Very friendly welcome, the restaurant was only about half full. Warm colors, with lots of dark wood everywhere (but not ornate or stuffy), including paneling, cabinets, ceiling beams. Felt a little like a warm country inn. Attentive, casual service right off, though we didn't need drinks right away.

The menu changes monthly, focusing on a particular region each month. It's Trieste and the Dalmatian Coast now, and will include Normandy, Tuscan hill towns (San Gemignano), the Basque country and the Languedoc in coming months. (Other than the Basque country, all the regions for this year are in France and Italy (although the Dalmatian Coast includes Slovenia and Croatia these days).)

The wine list is extremely friendly, probably about a hundred choices, organized by region and varietal. About a dozen choices by the glass. Strong on Cali. and the W Coast, of course, but also good choices from Down Under, France and especially Italy. The headings don't generally describe the flavors and aromas, but subheadings in some regions do and each wine gets a short paragraph about its flavors/aromas, origins, etc. VERY reasonably priced, with nearly all the wines under $40 and plenty under $30, though some California reds climb above $200 and a few Cotes de Nuits range close to $500. (The list proudly proclaims that wines are generally priced $8 over retail because they want to encourage people actually to drink them. Eyeballing, that looked about right That's a welcome change from typical NYC wine mark-ups. ) My squeeze is expecting and we'd had a tiring couple of days, so I just opted for a glass with dinner -- details to come after I reveal our dining choices.

A small, somewhat dense white loaf with good crust and dusted with quality salt, accompanied by a dish of grassy, green olive oil preceded the appetizers.

We started off with two apps, a salad of potato and leek with trumpet mushrooms and a "flan" of spinach, carrot and beet. The latter is, I think, a signature dish, as I saw it described in a review. High-quality ingredients without a lot of additional spicing though there was flavorful olive oil slick, but more a terrine than a flan -- not at all custardy. The salad appealed to me as a deconstructed vichyssoise. The generously-portioned salad included greens (frisee, mache) in addition to the named ingredients. The ingredients were impeccably fresh and the textures of chewy mushrooms, melting leeks, potatoes combining crisp edges and soft insides combined with some useful contrasts. Unfortunately, excessive vinegar marred the dish. After a bite, I stopped trying to have wine with it and had to keep taking bites of bread to soothe my palate. It was so acidic that I had trouble enjoying the rest of my dinner. Despite the quality of the ingredients, I also didn't understand why it was $14 for the salad -- out of proportion from most of the other prices.

Other tempting app options included a caramelized onion tart, baked oysters Rockefeller and oysters on the half-shell.

A shame I couldn't enjoy my wine with the salad. It was a pinot gris from (get this) Mendocino for (get this) $5.75 a glass. I generally shy away from California whites (esp. chardonnays) because I find them over-oaked and too big for most white wine-suited food (I describe them as too "round" (not the same as "well-rounded"), but I'm not sure that description makes sense to anyone but me), but this slightly sweet, apple-y, pear-y wine was well-matched to my order.

There were a number of first-course choices between the apps and the mains, but between our apps, our mains and our dessert (chosen early -- discussed later), we thought we didn't need the primi.

Entrees were a sole in a saor (apparently a light sweet-and-sour sauce -- I'd never heard of it) with some colorful veggies (red cabbage?) and raisins, and pork loin with grapes, brandied pears and braised greens. (Here's where we get to the Eastern European influence, to my mind, though apparently saor is Italian, from the Veneto, which is the closest region to Friuli-Giulia-Venezia, where Trieste is.) Both dishes balanced sweetness and sourness well, with my grapes and greens providing the bit of acidity and adding some bitterness as well. My pork was flavorful, a bit briny, and moist (not too lean). The slight graininess of the pears, the bursting grapes (a little deflated by a brief turn being cooked with the rest) and the somewhat chewy, spongy pork made a nice mouthful together. (The pork was helpful in soothing my mouth still stinging from the salad's vinegar, too.) A rich, dark brandied sauce (from the pears, I'd guess) added some depth to the generally light, fruity flavors.

The saor was relatively light, but its sourness, the sour/bitter red flavor of the vegetables and the raisins' sweetness bossed around my squeeze's sole a bit (she disagreed) -- in our trip down the Dalmatian coast last summer, we found most of the fish served to be meatier and more fully-flavored than sole, and they probably would have been preferable in this dish to the sole, to my mind. (The squeeze disagreed with me on this, and thought the sole had its own subtle flavor that did stand up to its neighbors on the plate.) Another good set of crisp/creamy potato rounds helped to keep the overall flavor of the dish mild (in a good way) and subtle and mirrored the crispy edges of the sole.

Another option for the entree is the "Mongolian barbecue" -- raw meat and vegetables brought to the table on a sizzling platter, piled on the hot center, with vinegars and sauces poured on tableside. Dry large disk-shaped rice wrappers (a little smaller than an LP) with a platter of water to moisten and soften them come with the dish -- it's really finger food. Very impressive, and lots of work for the server. I'm not generally a fan of this kind of DIY dining, so avoided it, but it looked like fun. It's a bit pricey to have a complete dish (meat and vegetables), esp. if the base is lamb or beef (and chicken or shrimp seems wrong in a Mongolian barbecue -- though maybe expecting any authenticity here is pointless), but the dish is big enough for two with a little added on.

Dessert was a blackberry souffle with flambeed brandy for two -- had to be ordered in advance, but it was easily the most interesting dessert option. Brought blazing to the table, which left the top nicely blackened. It wasn't a very light souffle -- the structure was a little firmer than I think of as a typical souffle, a little closer to a bread pudding (though I wouldn't swear that there was flour). But there was airiness within, a melting texture and some collapsing once we'd pierced the top.

Excellent service overall -- friendly, casual, effective and efficient. I think 2-3 servers, 2 people serving as host/maitre d'/roving helping hand and a bartender, though everyone helped everyone else.

Entrees were just under $20. Total cost was about $100 w/ tax and tip for two, but only one glass of wine between us and no bottled water.

It wasn't very full, particularly for a Friday night, so I do wonder how they survive, particularly with such low prices on the wine.

Overall, an extremely enjoyable evening , despite a couple of missteps in the tastes and questionable pairings in a given dish. Recommended.

[carpet bagger]

What a wonderful description. Thank you keep up the good work.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Thanks for reviving this thread! I will be in Santa Cruz, California, at the end of August and will definitely add Pearl Alley to my list of restaurants to try! I expect we will hear shortly from eG's own very knowledgeable tanabutler who is quite familiar with this area.

Santa Cruz is full of many delightful places for great eating! and I treasure my times there and the ability to enjoy many of them!

[tanabutler]

The chef who cooked the meal described above is no longer at Pearl Alley. I am hesitant to say anything, since I haven't given the new chef a chance. Prior to the departed chef, I never once had a decent meal or service there, and had completely written it off. I will ask around to see if anyone's tried the new guy's stuff.

My top three recommendations for Santa Cruz are Oswald, Gabriella Cafe, and Ristorante Avanti--all three are remarkable because you will see the chefs at the Wednesday farmer's market every week, and those guys know what to do with fresh fruits and vegetables.

[Gifted Gourmet]

My top three recommendations for Santa Cruz are Oswald, Gabriella Cafe, and Ristorante Avanti--all three are remarkable because you will see the chefs at the Wednesday farmer's market every week, and those guys know what to do with fresh fruits and vegetables.

I absolutely concur with Tana on these places! They are all top notch and have made a name for themselves locally ...

[milla]

I would add Soif Wine Bar to the list of recommended restaurants in Santa Cruz.

An ambitious wine by the glass program passionately run by Hugh at the bar and a small but delicious changing menu to complement said wines.

Oswald has always been a delight and a great favorite.

[Gifted Gourmet]

I would add Soif Wine Bar to the list of recommended restaurants in Santa Cruz. 

An ambitious wine by the glass program passionately run by Hugh at the bar and a small but delicious changing menu to complement said wines.

Oswald has always been a delight and a great favorite.

When I was at Soif Winebar last January, I left starving and spent $100+ for two people ... nice selection of wines but way overpriced on the miniature food items .. also it was a bit snobby to boot ...

Oswald's is definitely a "keeper" however ...

[milla]

Sorry about your experience at Soif, GG. They have a new chef now. I have always preferred sitting at the bar at Soif where you can interact with the owners who are usually pouring.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Perhaps because when I order duck breast, sliced, I ought not to expect a few shreds?? That really got to me and my dining companion fared even less well .. sitting at the bar would have changed nothing ..

There are so many great places to eat in and around Santa Cruz that I see no reason to return to Soif .. SC is still a great place to visit and dine well!

[tanabutler]

Though I haven't been yet with the new ownership, Theo's Restaurant in my little town of Soquel (pronounced "soKELL") is reputed to be fabulous. I have a gift certificate there that I hope to use in the near future and will report back.

My only experience at Soif, alas, was not a great one, either. Garlic to the point of a burned mouth (for two days), small portions, way high prices....but the wines are great, and if David Kinch recommends it, I'll give it a second shot. I really like Hugh and Patrice, the owners. And it's a lovely room, with grapevines on the wall that look like antlers, in a certain fashion.

Their wine store, as far as I know, is the only place in town to get Gruner Veltliners.

[Nathan P.]

Just an FYI the new chef at Soif as of a week or so ago is Chris Avila who worked with Chef Kinch at Sent Sovi and Manressa and worked previously at Theos. I know someone who ate there last week and said it was fantastic. That being said I have been a fan of the food at Soif and while the portions are not large I have never had a problem getting full and I am not a small eater. IMO the execution of their dishes is better than Pearl Alley and Avanti (Oswald is equal or better) and I feel that there food is a bit more complex. I think Pearl Alley was better years ago and I preffered Avanti when it leaned towards being more italian and less cal/med. Avanti does offer a nice wine and cheese program and either Pearl or Avanti has a more relaxed dining room than Soif.

My choices would go: 1. Oswald or Soif, 2. Avanti, and 3. Gabriella or Pearl Alley. Part of my difference of opinion with Tana's comments may come from her comment that "those guys know what to do with fresh fruits and vegetables". These restaurant's tend to, IMO, prefer simpler preperation of the local produce in the currently popular cal/med style. Since I tend to prep my vegetables like this at home and I buy from the same farms that these chefs do and tend to shop daily for maximum freshness these dishes do not stand out as much for me.

I have not eaten at Theo's but it looks interesting (a bit pricey for SC!) http://www.theosrestaurant.net/menu/

Soif menus can be seen at http://www.soifwine.com/menu.html though they tend to change frequently so these atend to be out of date.

Nathan