A former recreational therapist, when Julie Kellman fell in love with plants, she moved to Santa Cruz and opened what would become a popular local nursery.
She and her husband, Dan, who went to high school here, met as kids when their families lived in the same hippie commune in Tennessee. They re-connected as young adults in Lake Tahoe and fell in love at Echo Lake.
Julie decided to follow her passions again and cultivate her budding love for food when she and Dan opened Seascape Foods in Aptos in 2005, a community-focused market and deli that places paramount priority on all things local, organic and natural
Julie describes their fresh handmade food as quick, but restaurant quality. Their breads are scratch-made, headlined by the Seascape Sourdough, Whole Wheat and Franchese.
They opened a second location in Aptos at 7506 Soquel Ave.
The most popular sandwich is the spicy Turkey and Bacon, the Brie and Apple is also a crowd pleaser, and the chicken and veggie soup highlights the soup choices.
Hours are 8am-8pm every day.
Where does your passion for locality come from?
JULIE KELLMAN: I grew up in a small town in Tennessee with many small locally owned businesses. Then one day a big box store came in and eventually destroyed all the local businesses. It was really sad and it took away the hearts and passion of the people in town. That’s what I love about Santa Cruz, when I moved here in 1996 there were very few big box stores. Everyone was really supportive and all about local and that’s our passion here—it’s what drives us everyday.
Talk to me about local wine?
JK: the Santa Cruz mountains are an incredible Appalachia and we are really lucky to have so many great wineries and talented wine makers in town. Our main focus is to highlight many of these local wines, especially pinot noir and chardonnay, which our area is very well known for. And beyond wine, we also feature many local beers and ciders. And one thing I love is when the wine beer and cider makers deliver their products themselves and educate me on them.
16 Seascape Village, Aptos, 831-685-3134
What was the commune in Tennessee? I have a cookbook from a vegetarian commune in Tennessee that is fantastic.