Once an employee of the Point Market at Pleasure Point, Sasha Nemonchok partnered with the owners this year to develop his vision for a sister store on East Cliff at 14th Street, right above the beach and the eponymous Black Point.
It’s a reinterpretation of the bodegas of Philadelphia with a strong Santa Cruz spin—a friendly mix of corner store, cafe and deli, top shelf and bottom, staples and luxuries. Black Point Market stocks necessities, from sunblock and candy to beer, wine and kombucha. House Chef Hunter pours espresso and slings hot and cold sandwiches, soups, fresh-baked cookies and pastries, and other prepared entrées and sides.Â
What’s the vibe you’re going for?
SASHA NEMONCHOK: I wanted a bodega-like feel. It’s your corner market. It’s your one-stop shop. Whether you’re a local or just passing through for a day or a week, we just wanted to make sure we had what you would need. So the basics like your butter and milk and eggs, baking supplies, things that you might need in a pinch, like, ‘Oh my god, I need corn starch,’ or something like that. A little bit of beach stuff.Â
We’re making a point of appealing to everyone, so that just means we typically have an affordable option and then an upper-scale option. Fancy honey, cheap honey. Fancy hot dogs, cheap hot dogs. Everyone deserves to be here, is kind of our mentality.
What’s happening at the deli?
Gourmet-to-go sounds a little pretentious, but maybe convenient comfort food is one way to put it. We’re focused on nostalgic sandwiches, sandwiches that bring back memories, so like chicken salad and tuna salad, those are key. We make an authentic Cuban. There’s a hoagie, and that’s an east-coast-style sub packed full of ham, capicola, salami. Meatball subs should be coming pretty soon here. Our meatloaf is insane… all fresh, made from scratch. It’s all chef-driven, straightforward, simple food, nostalgic food.
Black Point Market, 2-1400 East Cliff Drive, Santa Cruz. 713-5842, Instagram: @blackpoint.market, facebook.com/blackpointmarket.
