Manresa wins a third Michelin star, plus paninis in Davenport and Fried-Chicken Dinners
Yes, David Kinchis stoked about his latest culinary triumph. The Michelin folks, those very picky, very discerning arbiters of dining excellence, awarded a third star to Manresa, the innovative Los Gatos restaurant built by the creativity and hard work of chef Kinch and staff. Basking in the food industry’s equivalent of a triple Oscar, Kinch emailed me with some words of thanks and pride.
“I have always personally regarded any recognition from Michelin as the highest sort of honor in our industry,” he writes. “Right now, I am so happy and proud of the wonderful staff and family we have at Manresa. They truly deserve this!” Kinch also admits that keeping those stars is always a challenge. “We will continue to work hard to offer the best and most pleasurable experience for our guests. That is the most important part of all.”
Not only has Kinch’s own aesthetic regard for ingredients and presentation propelled his dining room to glory, but so did the alliance with Love Apple Farms as his exclusive grower of rare, bio-dynamic, and seasonally perfect herbs, fruit, flowers, and produce.
Congratulations are obviously in order to Love Apple’s Cynthia Sandberg for her tireless fieldwork on the part of Kinch and his eclectic requests for various unexpected plantings. And, watch your PBS programming in November for the chef documentary Mind of a Chef—the second half of Season 4 showcases Kinch, his coastal backyard, and the fields of Love Apple Farms at mindofachef.com.
Autumn Wine Dinner: Alfaro at Chaminade
If you hurry you might still snare a reservation for this Friday’s (Oct. 30) Alfaro Wine Dinner at Chaminade. Served out on the terrace patio—the one with the exceptional view of the Bay below—the dinner starts with wine and passed hors d’oeuvres at 6 p.m., followed by a five-course dinner created by Executive Chef Kirsten Ponza. Joined by “endless” Alfaro wines will be seasonal items like pork belly with legumes and chestnuts, Caesar salad, roast bell pepper soup, and a red-wine-braised pork shank with roasted fennel and potatoes. Dessert? Spiced maple crème brûlée provides the sweet finish. Reservations, $110: 831.475-5600; chaminade.com.
Tasty Bites
We split a very large, delicious Monterey Panini ($12) while ocean-watching at the Davenport Roadhouse last week. The sandwich, which comes with either excellent fries or a delicious salad of greens and pickled carrots, is loaded with roast chicken, mushrooms, jack cheese, spinach, and garlic aioli. The ocean view is free.
Another delicious idea just came down by email—turns out that starting Nov. 1, Ristorante Avanti will be running a Fogline Farm Fried Chicken Dinner every Sunday night. That’s fried chicken with potatoes and gravy, Brussels sprouts from Rodoni Farms with pancetta and pumpkin seeds, all for $24. Now that sounds like a plan.
We also discovered tasty little oat-filled treats called Aussie Bites at New Leaf recently. But now they’re gone! Plump little oatmeal raisin cookies from Udi helped console us ($5.79/box). Gluten-free.
Wine of the Week: Muns 2009 Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir
I celebrated my recent trip to England with a bottle of this spectacular creation ($40), served with the last of our local king salmon. Full of earthy, musky spice, plums and a nose of—trust me on this—geraniums and bay leaf—this complex, well-balanced wine underscores the ability of our region to create significant pinot noir. Another score for winemaker Tony Craig. Made from Ed Muns’ estate grapes—14.1 percent alcohol. Don’t know if there’s any left, but it is so worth tracking down from the winery. munsvineyard.com.
MICHELIN MAN Chef and owner of Manresa, David Kinch, is elated about a third Michelin star of excellence awarded to his restaurant. PHOTO: NICK VASILOPOULOS
