In the 1980s there was an Oldsmobile ad campaign that featured Lisa Marie and Priscilla Presley (Elvis’ daughter and wife, respectively). As the mother and daughter came peeling around the bend in a zippy red Cutlass Calais, a slogan reminded viewers, “This is not your father’s Oldsmobile.”
For the venerated car company, it was an attempt to reach for a younger audience who’d grown so familiar with the product they had all but forgotten it. Is it a bad car? Not really. It’s just that people had become a little bored with it.
Just like the Presleys’ taking a spin in that Oldsmobile, some chefs are trying a new spin on another tried and true classic—tri-tip. At Presqu’ile Winery on March 18, seven chefs from restaurants, caterers, and food trucks participated in the venue’s second annual Tri-Tip Cook-Off, competing in three categories: best traditional, best modern, and people’s choice. I was invited to be a judge for the contest, a job I took very seriously, like I was picking the next Emperor of Mars or something.
If the idea of hard-core wine enthusiasts playing god with the consecrated barbecue dish, thumbing their noses at fire-roasted salsa in favor of pomegranate saffron-infused gastrique gives you chest pains, don’t worry. The chefs playing around with these recipes aren’t icy elitist food snobs looking to burn down your favorite steak house and put up a vegan cafe. They’re purists themselves, looking to find new ways to have fun with a classic.
One of those chefs is Ronny Cavazos with BBQ in the Stix, a food truck and catering company so committed to authentic tri-tip they put an actual wood-burning fire pit inside. BBQ in the Stix walked away with the People’s Choice award for their tri-tip, which included a surf-and-turf interpretation of a tri-tip sandwich.
“We were just messing around in the truck one day,” Cavazos said. He and his crew were working on creating a shrimp po boy sandwich and “threw some tri-tip in.”
From there, they crafted an inspired sandwich with a ciabatta bun, chipotle aioli, wild-caught shrimp, tri-tip, and a fire-roasted salsa. Lines for BBQ in the Stix were backed up throughout the day, so it came as no surprise to me that they nabbed the People’s Choice award.
“I think people enjoyed the overall flavor and our presence,” Cavazos said. “We like to talk to people and answer questions. We just have fun and enjoy it.”
A contender for Best Modern was The Pairing Knife from San Luis Obispo. Executive Chef Jessie Rivas put together a play on tri-tip bruschetta, with a bold olive salad and balsamic reduction.
For his entry, the Tri-Tip Man served Oaxaca cheese and arugula with tri-tip on flatbread pizza, one of the cleverest innovations of the day.
But it was Valle Fresh’s tri-tip taco that claimed the prize for Best Modern. I was honestly impressed with every modern take but after one bite of Valle Fresh’s taco, I knew this one was the winner.
Chef and owner Conrad Gonzales already has a strong reputation for creating stunning and innovative tacos, like his slow-braised pork belly taco with chevre and salsa verde. This was the second year Gonzales’s tri-tip taco won the top spot at Presqu’ile’s cook-off, with a dish inspired more by history than haute cuisine.
Gonzales said even though the guidelines for the contest encourage thinking outside the box, it’s important to pay respect to the original dish. To do that, he starts by preparing the meat the same way it’s always been done, over a wood fire.
“We still keep to that original style,” Gonzales said. “It gives you that smokiness. But what we do differently is we slice it super thin afterwards. Once we slice it, we put it on a cast iron grill and re-sear it.”
The meat takes on an entirely new flavor thanks to the cast iron process. From there, Gonzales adds classic tomatillo verde sauce and a fresh pico de gallo. The taco is finally topped with a handful of micro cilantro and garnished with lime.
“We genuinely enjoy this stuff,” he said. “That’s why we’re still sticking to the same platform, respecting the history by barbecuing over the red oak. We’re still showing respect to that same cut of meat we had at barbecues as kids.”
Gonzales’ tacos are smartly constructed, refined, and chic in a way that is deceptively effortless. When I asked him what makes them stand out (I believe my exact word was “amazealicious”), he told me he believes the secret to his success is in the preparation of his handmade tortillas. Most modern tortillas are manufactured on machines or steel plates. But Gonzales stays true to their ancient roots by stone-grinding them, using the same methods the Aztecs used centuries before him.
“This is true to indigenous form,” he said. “By grinding it on those stones, you’re getting that similar flavor that they did centuries ago. It’s not the same from a machine.”
There is something distinctively high-art about fusing archaic techniques with modern sensibilities. It reminds me of an artist painting in oil and then manipulating the images in Snapchat. It’s a fusion of two worlds that seem immediately opposed to one another, but as a singular completed work, it feels groundbreaking and symbiotic.
But if all that still has you about as eager to welcome nouveau tri-tip as a mainstay as I am to welcome flip-flops into high fashion, you’re in luck. There was still plenty of old-school representation at the event. Most of the chefs offered a traditional tri-tip dish alongside their modern takes. Higgies and Popolo stuck exclusively to the traditional side with Popolo and Chef Leon Castillo scoring best traditional for their straight-up, old-school cool tri-tip. (I wrote one note on my scorecard next to Popolo’s name: “perfect salsa.”)
So while we may not be quite ready for sous vide tri-tip infused caviar croquettes, these chefs at least proved that stepping outside the box of tradition sometimes delivers exquisite results.
Rebecca Rose is pretty sure she saw Elvis working at a Jiffy Lube in Tampa in 1997. Contact her at rrose@santamariasun.com.
So you survived the Ides of March without getting stabbed by a young rival? Congrats! Celebrate by treating yourself to some of the best local food and drinks:
Stop everything and get down to Naughty Oak Brewing and try their Americano Coffee Brown. Infused with cold brew from SLO Roasted Coffee, it’s delicious but not overpowering. They don’t serve food, but customers are welcome to bring their meal. Plus, their bar is beautiful and the staff is super friendly. Visit them at 165 Broadway suite 102, Orcutt.
Wandering Dog Winery is one of my favorite places in Solvang and not just because they welcome dogs with open and loving arms. The dog-themed winery is celebrating its 10th anniversary in April. Starting April 1, they will be offering $10 by-the-glass wine specials, highlighting a different wine every month. That same day, they are hosting a release party from 4 to 8 p.m. to debut their 2014 Leila pinot noir (I’ll be there). Celebrate with owners C.T. and Jody Williams at 1539 Mission Drive, Solvang.
Ever heard of cone cabbage? Babé Farms is producing a grill kit for the pointy veggie that will be available at the Santa Maria Costco (possibly as soon as April). The Far Western Tavern recently featured its version of the grilled product in March. Keep your eyes peeled at more local restaurants for this unique and flavorful vegetable.
This article appears in Mar 30 – Apr 6, 2017.