Popular Aptos spot opens for dinner
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Hole in the Wall has been a popular breakfast and lunch spot in Aptos since it opened in 2010, but this month they started serving dinner, as well. We interviewed head waitress Kriston Magers about what diners can expect from evenings at Hole in the Wall, and she assured us it would be a totally different experience in every way.
You have a pretty diverse menu—Huevos Rancheros, corned beef hash, acai bowls—what’s the focus?
KRISTON MAGERS: There’s not really a particular focus on the breakfast and lunch menu. That started out just to be American breakfast. And the people that own it are from El Salvador, and they’re the chef and the owners. They wanted to bring that in. Little by little they’re doing more El Salvadorian dishes. We have a whole other sheet for breakfast and lunch where the El Salvadorian dishes come in. We do a pupusas combo with eggs. Pupusas have carnitas, beans, and cheese stuffed inside a homemade corn tortilla. When you order them, they start making them when you order them by hand. The combo comes with casamiento—which is red beans and rice—queso fresco and fresh sliced avocado and a special salsa for the pupusa and a little bit of cabbage.
So what’s on the new dinner menu?
We’re trying to call it “coastal cuisine with an El Salvadorian flair.” There are names like “chile verde,” you know, Mexican sounding dishes, but they’re putting a flair on them that’s all their own. There’s also the mar y terra, which is surf and turf. It’s got grilled prawns, rock fish and skirt steak. We also have the mariscada. It has lobster tail and other seafood. It’s like the Latin version of cioppino.
So it’s mostly seafood?
Yes. But there’s going to be non-seafood items, too. A few of the lunch items are on the dinner menu. If someone comes in and wants a burger, they can get that.
Why did you decide to start serving dinner?
We had the patio open, which is much more seating. For summer, we thought it would be nice to be open at night with the heat lamps and have nice atmosphere with candles and music and maybe dancing. So we’re working on that.
257 Center Ave., Aptos. 685-0210. PHOTO: Kriston Magers serves up drinks while Caryn Calle takes orders. CHIP SCHEUER
