Bring on the basil with crispy pork, panang salmon and beef-braised noodle soup.
Those rank among the early best-sellers at brand-new Coconut Thai (3555 Clares St., Suite RR, Capitola), after it soft-opened Sept. 21.
Co-owner Kae Dailes, who operates the space with fellow Thai-American Nuni Saiboh Poytress and two other longtime Thai restaurant pros, also spotlights the lon tao jeaw (a salty, creamy Thai dipping relish made with fermented yellow soybean paste often served with steamed rice and fresh vegetables).
“Authentic, and something you’ll never find around here,” Dailes says. “We cook from the heart, and for the heart—very healthy.”
Hours run 11am-3pm, 4:30–9pm weekdays and noon–9pm Saturday–Sunday, coconutthaisc.com.
MAIN MANE
Sometimes news can be filling and in-filling, which is the case as Santa Cruz’s Pacific Avenue soon gets a major foodie upgrade. Chef Desmond Schneider (formerly of Alderwood and Pete’s Capitola) and bartender Juli Mireles (voted one of 2024’s Best Bartender in Santa Cruz by Good Times readers for her work at Redroom Cocktail Lounge) are opening Mane Kitchen & Cocktails in the space previously occupied by Betty’s Eat In (1222 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz). The concept the duo envisions blends classic French-bistro techniques with California and Mediterranean flavors, featuring a raw bar, locally sourced seafood, and a cozy, Roaring ’20s-inspired interior. The optimistic aim is an end-of-October opening.
RUNWAY REALITY
Woody’s at the Airport at Monterey Regional Airpot—the farm-fresh, casual-vibe restaurant known for generous portions and laid-back charm that helped it earn best airport restaurant in the country from USA Today readers—is in talks to take over the dining concession at Watsonville Airport (formerly Ella’s). Airport leadership decided chef Tim Wood and company were the top pick from three finalists, and now the deal for the 2,400-square-foot restaurant and cocktail lounge awaits lease negotiations and approval from the City Council (potentially by Oct. 28), woodysmontereyairport.com.
POPPING UP
Starting this Thursday, Oct. 2, Far West Fungi’s Santa Cruz Store & Café hosts 2-5pm weekly MycoMixers. Attendees can anticipate complimentary—and flavorful—bites, product samples, and happy hour discounts on café favorites. The friendly Far West Fungi team will help host, while atypical mushroom products and new flavors also figure in. The October featured item, to kick off a rotating spotlight concept: mushroom tacos. @farwestfungi on the socials for more.
NUTRISH DELISH
Neal D. Barnard is an American animal rights activist, physician and founding president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. He’s also the author behind a range of books advocating plant-based eating patterns, and he’ll discuss his latest, The Power Foods Diet, 4:30-6:30pm Sunday, Oct. 5, at Colligan Theater in Santa Cruz. Guests can anticipate insightful science behind health, weight loss and the healing power of good food. Somewhere Hippocratus—he of the “Let thy food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food” refrain—is raising a kale smoothie. Tickets on Eventbrite.com.
FLEET FLAVORS
The first ever Oyster Fest was originally set for Saturday, Oct. 11, on Church Street in the heart of downtown Santa Cruz, but is delayed for now…The Santa Cruz Warriors host their Sea Dubs Fan Fest 1-3pm Saturday, Oct. 25, to celebrate the start of the 2025-26 NBA G League season, at Kaiser Permanente Arena; the event is free, but sign-up is requested, am.ticketmaster.com/scwarriors/buy/FANFEST2025…Tickets are now on sale for the Big Sur Foragers Festival, returning Jan. 22–25, 2026, with a weekend of culinary events, guided foraging hikes and community support—all benefiting the Big Sur Health Center, bigsurforagersfestival.org…Supreme minister of mycology Paul Stamets, transport us from here: “Mushrooms are the most understudied organisms on the planet, yet they hold the key to solving many of our problems.”
