May 2021 – mmm-yoso

Roadtrip (During Covid-19) – Orale and Mt. Olive Organic Farm (Paso Robles)

May 31, 2021 mmm-yoso Markets & Grocers, Mexican Restaurants, Paso Robles/Cambria/San Luis Obispo County, Road Trip, Taco Shops, Travel

We slept well after our wonderful dinner at Aubergine and when we woke the next morning, the Missus was ready to go. So, we grabbed some coffee to go from our accommodation and headed out to our next stop; Paso Robles. We made pretty good time; getting into Paso Robles in a bit less than two hours. We went to the hotel to see about early check in and left my mobile number for them to contact me when our room was ready then headed into town.

There was a craft fair going on when we arrived downtown that was pretty sparsely attended. There was quite a bit of street parking available, even though it was a Saturday (at the beginning of November 2020).

The Missus just loved the area around the Downtown City Park, spending a good amount of time at the General Store….we also bought some cookies for Frankie's favorite Auntie at the Brown Butter Cookie Company. If you've read some of our earlier posts, you know that the Missus just loves Olive Oil. So we ended up spending some time at the Pasolivo Olive Oil Tasting Room. The woman there was so knowledgeable and we ended up purchasing two bottles ($40 each!). The Missus really enjoys the olive oil from Pasolivo.

Pasolivo Olive Oil
1229 Park St.
Paso Robles, CA 93446

There also seems to be a pretty active arts and crafts scene in Paso Robles; we spent some time in the Studios on the Park.

As we left the shop, the Missus mentioned being a little hungry, it was around 1030, so I searched around for something to eat. We didn't want anything too heavy and on the way back to the car we picked out Orale, a Taco Shop.

There was both a parklet and patio seating available, there were folks eating in the parklet, so the Missus and I decided on the patio.

I ordered two Al Pastor Tacos ( 2 "street tacos" with beans and rice $11) and the Missus decided on the Veggie Tacos with Beans and Rice ($11). I was surprised that our order came with chips and salsa.

The chips were nice and crisp, the salsas standard issue, but no complaints here.

Of the tacos; the Missus' choice was better. I was pretty surprised……

The pasilla peppers, onions, and black beans made for a nice combo. The zucchini was basically filler, but there was a nice mild smokiness to this and the queso fresco added a mild milkly-acidity to the tacos. The tacos were served with double corn tortillas, standard issue, but it held up well. Speaking of standard issue, the beans and rice defined that to a "t". The Al Pastor was nicely charred, but mushy in texture and lacking in enough sweetness-tanginess-salt-smokiness. As a matter of fact; I really enjoyed the nicely charred onions and cilantro more.

Still, this was enough for lunch, and we weren't stuffed which was good since our room wasn't ready yet.

Órale Taqueria
834 11th St.
Paso Robles, CA 93446

I hadn't received a call that our room was ready as we returned to our car. The Missus didn't feel like doing a wine tasting, so I had to figure something else out. I checked my "list" and found that since it was Saturday, the Mt. Olive Organic Farm Store was open. So, we headed on out of the town, past several wineries and found the shop.

It was such a charming place with goats and alpacas hanging out in a pen in back of the building.

We got a kick watching them hanging out.

We did some shopping, the young lady working was very sweet. Along with produce, dried fruits, there were a nice variety of items…..including olive oil, which we ended up purchasing.

We really enjoyed this stop. Just as we were paying for our olive oil, my phone went off and I received a text from our hotel, letting me know our room was ready. Perfect timing.

Mt. Olive Organic Farm
3445 Adelaida Rd.
Paso Robles, CA 93446

We headed back into town and really enjoyed the scenery along the way. It sure is beautiful here.

We made it to the hotel, got to our room with enough time to take a short nap before having head out for our evening reservations for a Sensorio.

There was something about Paso Robles which we really enjoyed, the pace, the friendly people, the vibe. It was too bad that we would have only one evening in the town.

Roadtrip (During Covid-19) – Croissant from Pavel’s Backerei (Pacific Grove), Mission San Carlos Borromeo and Dinner at Aubergine (Carmel)

May 30, 2021 mmm-yoso Croissants, Fine Dining, Memorable Meals, Monterey/Carmel/Monterey Peninsula, Road Trip, Travel

We woke quite early on our "getaway day" in Pacific Grove. But we just took our sweet time packing and such.

While the Missus was getting ready, I decided to head on back to Pavel's Backerei to grab a croissant to share. It was just past 7 am and I guess the "Art Store Cats" knew we were leaving and decided to not be in the window on this morning?

There was also a line outside the bakery….even longer than the last time. It did move quickly though and before I knew it I had made it in.

Where I ordered a croissant and ogled the donut bigger than my head….. I purchased my croissant and headed on out.

Pavel's Backerei
219 Forest Ave.
Pacific Grove, CA 93950

And while I was sad that the Art Store Cats weren't available, it didn't mean that there weren't interesting things to see……

Sadly, the croissant wasn't very good; lacking in butter, not flakey enough, and too doughy.

And soon enough we were off to our next stop; Carmel. We arrived quite early to the city that has no street addresses, we were staying at 7th Ave & Casanova Street, no street lights, and where you need a permit to wear high heels……really, you do. We got to 7th and Casanova early and were able to check-in! Dropped off our bags and then headed out.

I'd heard some really good things about the Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo, it was the center of Missions in California and Saint (as of 1988) Junípero Serra is entombed there. There were no other visitors when we arrived. We paid our $6 admission and walked on in………

This Mission is the only Spanish Mission in California that has its original bell and bell tower. The grounds are beautiful and on this day as the only visitors, tranquil….

We were captivated by the place……

One could only imagine how things were when Junípero Serra himself walked these grounds from 1770 to his death in 1784.

And while there are controversies about how Native Californians were treated by the "Catholic Invasion", much of what we see as today's California has sprouted from the seeds planted by Junípero Serra. Who was canonized by Pope John Paul II on September 25, 1988.

It is well worth visiting regardless of your views.

We then drove back to the Green Lantern Inn, parked our car and just decided to do some exploring….which included a walk down to the beach…..

And then doing some shopping……

Because we were able to check in early, we even managed to have a nice afternoon nap, before heading off to dinner, which was at the only Michelin Starred place in SLO-Cal, Aubergine. I had picked our accommodation because it was basically a half block from the L'Auberge Carmel, where the restaurant is located. During this time of Covid, dining was carried out in the courtyard of the hotel. We arrived and were seated in a manner of minutes. There were heaters provided, the staff was amazing.

Service was indeed at the Michelin level. It was impressive to see….when it started raining, the chef came out to help his staff clear the water from the tops off the tents……while still working to serve the Wagyu Beef mains in person. After having been thru more than a couple hefty wine pairings, we decided to get a single "Sommelier's Tasting" ($155) to share. We told our Server that a single glass would be fine, but he insisted on splitting the tasting……more points for the service here.

The amuse bouche courses were a great indicator of what the meal would be like. From the decadent anchovy ,artichoke, spinach tart with bee pollen, think savory, complex sweetness, mild vegetal flavors, wrapped in crispness. And the briney Taylor Sheldon Oysters with caviar! My goodness! The South African Bluefin was excellent, perfect texture, very clean tasting……

First up was the Sawara – Japanese Spanish Mackerel in a Nasturtium "Pesto", which was more like a broth.

The calamansi pickled carrots were amazing…..the fish, perfectly cooked, moist, flakey, the "pesto" added an interesting mild bitter-sweetness to the dish.

The smoked maitake mushrooms in a shiro dashi was amazing.

Such wonderful smokey-earthy flavors, which held up to the savory broth; which had hints of sweetness to balance things out.

You definitely wanted to get every drop of the abalone porridge……my goodness this was so good! The pieces of abalone were so tender; buttery-sweet-savory, with a mild oceany brininess. The tomato added a hint of sweet-acidity to help cut the luxurious richness of the porridge….a porridge!

Also at this time some Parker Rolls were brought out.

Which did really well with the Aged Duck.

My goodness, the dry aging of the duck breast made this so tender. The fat had rendered off perfectly….this was a plain amazing dish.

And then for the last main…..well, it was "drama" time……

My goodness, triple seared a technique that I believe originated in Japan. Just the smell of the meat almost knocked me off my seat!

A small container of a wonderfully balanced jus was brought out.

And then a plate with several purees. And then the dish was put together on the table.

This was another amazing dish; from the wonderful, pure, clean beefiness…….to the texture, the perfect bite……..just crazy good. The eggplant puree was awesome as it seemed to capture the "soul" of the eggplant. An unforgettable dish.

The Missus enjoyed the wine pairing and desserts.

From the service to the food, this was an exquisite meal, and I'm quite surprised the place only has one Michelin Star. Dinner was not cheap coming in at a grand….but heck, with no international trips on the horizon, this was the meal we needed and wanted.

Aubergine at L'Auberge Carmel
Monte Verde & 7th St.
Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA 93921

Arriving back at our accommodation, one block from the L'Auberge Carmel, I broke open a beer I had gotten earlier in the day. I had gone out while the Missus was resting looking for a shop to grab a bottle.

Walking up the street I saw a couple; she had a mask on and he was walking around sans mask. They came across a sign stating that there would fines starting at $100 (This was during November of 2020) for not wearing masks. The guy freaked out and he and the woman, who I'm assuming is his wife started getting into quite the argument. I walked on over….not quite sure what response I would get, reached into my back pocket and pulled out a spare mask I had in a baggy.

"Good afternoon sir, why don't you try this on to make sure it fits?"

"Uh….um…oh……."

I was ready for some kind of weird response…perhaps he'd yell at me…..or worse, so I said:

"Getting fined for not wearing a mask, whether you believe in it or not sure can ruin your day, and we're loving Carmel and I would like to make sure you do too!"

The woman sighed and thanked me. The guy, nodded ok, and put the mask on…….

And hopefully, we had a happy ending to a rather tense situation…….

I'm still not quite sure why I did it. Maybe it was the tone of sad disappointment in the woman's voice….I'm not sure; but I'm hoping all worked out well.