We arrived early enough to enjoy the spacious West End Tap & Kitchen before it was packed to its industrial rafters. A few architectural details remain from Bonny Doon Vineyard’s tasting room days, but the lively home of piquant flavors and fresh micro-brews has really made the space its own. No wonder it’s so popular, we agreed, after checking out the current menu. I wanted every single item I saw. Lots of flatbread “pizzas,” a substantial list of designer greens, cheese and charcuterie boards, and inviting, non-clichéd main attractions. We cozied into the sage green banquettes. The Beatles were on tap, as well as a tasty line-up of house brews. After consulting with our waitperson, we sampled two brews—the West End Pale Ale, and the W.E. Amber—in satisfying 3-ounce pours for $1.50 each. This turned out to be the perfect solution to our desire to partner lunch with some house signature brews, yet not cope with large pours that might put an end to our productive afternoons.
Both the Pale Ale and the herbacious and hoppy Amber pleased our palates, but the crisp, slightly bitter Pale Ale was my favorite. Jack enjoyed the creamy, slightly caramel-esque Amber. They turned out to be excellent choices. But on to the lunch. We began with a large bowl of housemade pickles, a tangy sweet assortment of cauliflower, carrots (divine!) and cucumbers that we happily munched throughout the meal. A long rectangular plate arrived topped with three duck meatballs ($9), beautifully decorated with both a pale chartreuse chive crème fraîche, and a sweet l’orange sauce (a bit too sweet for me). The meatballs were rich and delicious, and improved in terms of moisture by the sauces. We could only make our way through two of these babies, taking away one for a dinner app later on. Jack’s Niman Ranch ham sandwich arrived hot on a delicious and light (not jaw-breaking) brioche bun from Gayle’s. In addition to the sensational ham, the sandwich also offered melted Brie, bacon and arugula in an aioli well-seasoned with lemon and maple tones. The large sandwich (again, we took half of it home) was joined by a very satisfying salad of mixed baby greens the size of Corralitos. Not the greens, the salad. All this for $13. Stunning! West End Tap is located at 334D Ingalls St., Santa Cruz, and opens at 11:30 a.m. daily.
But wait—there’s more!
East End Gastropub is coming to 41st Avenue. Eastside dwellers can look forward to their very own version of West End Tap, since the owners of West End are moving into the former Tony & Alba’s Pizzeria space at the 41st Avenue and Capitola Road complex. Undergoing massive renovation said to involve Bill Schultz of Schultz Construction—including an expanded Orchard Supply Hardware and an expanded CineLux Theaters—the shopping district also housing Palace Arts will soon welcome the East End Gastropub. No word yet on the menu, but I’m betting that owner Quinn Cormier and his partner won’t tamper with success.
Smart Chicken
Once again this year, through the entire month of November, New Leaf Community Markets will donate one pound of air-chilled poultry for every 10 pounds purchased to Second Harvest Food Bank. It’s time to whip up some chicken noodle soup for wintertime enjoyment, isn’t it? This is a great program that makes sure healthy protein is delivered to Second Harvest partner agencies. Last holiday season, New Leaf donated more than two tons of Smart Chicken—free-roam, grain-fed, no hormones or antibiotics chicken— to Second Harvest. Nice work.
Great tapas! Very flavorful! Great chef and owners!