Food & Drink

In the days following Thanksgiving, instead of reheating your turkey dinner in the microwave oven, how about trying something new and exciting this year? Three Central Coast chefs were kind enough to share their favorite leftover turkey recipes: Chef Rick Manson of the Far Western Tavern in Guadalupe, Chef Ryan Gromfin of Central City Market […]

If your oven at home is too small to hold a tom turkey and several casserole dishes, if you find no pleasure in peeling potatoes, if you dread doing the dishes, or all of the above, consider letting someone else do the cooking this Thanksgiving. Several local chefs are more than willing to do the […]

A billboard along the east side of Highway 101 in Nipomo reads “Better for wine. Better for the planet. Cork is the natural choice.” And with those words, a 400-year-old, billion-dollar industry fights back after years of losing market share to the humble screw cap. Many Americans still wrongly associate the easy-to-use and re-use screw-cap […]

Four decades ago, he was a young Vietnam veteran with a vision: to plant Pinot Noir vines where there were only bean fields. His grape gamble paid off, and now, decades later, his peers are celebrating his contribution to the state’s wine industry. Buellton wine producer Richard Sanford is the first Central Coast resident chosen […]

One of the world’s oldest holidays—dating back 2,000 years—Halloween still delights children and adults alike. Whether you go all out decorating your home with cobwebs, tombstones, and flying witches, or just take the annual trip to the pumpkin patch and dole out Butterfingers to trick-or-treaters, Halloween is America’s second-most popular holiday, after Christmas.  Here on […]

From a very early age, I loved to eat and lingered over every meal. My mom has marveled that she’s never seen a child savor her food as much as “little Wendy Lou!” Living in rural Wisconsin, surrounded by cornfields and dairy farms, I grew up on casseroles, cheese curds, and the freezer full of […]

The 200-plus wineries in Santa Barbara County have names as diverse as the wine and the people who make it. There’s the winery that shares the name of a world-renowned tire company, the label founded by the beloved actor who portrayed American frontiersmen, and now a winery named after a British blues-rock band with multi-platinum […]

Fall is a special time on the Central Coast: The days get shorter but warmer, shadows grow longer, the afternoons usher in slightly chilly breezes, and it’s time to enjoy the autumnal colors. Yes, the Central Coast does put on a fall show. To see it, you need go no farther than the vineyards that […]

Zaca Mesa Winery in Los Olivos has a lot of history. And it should; it’s one of Santa Barbara County’s premiere pioneer wineries. Established in 1972, Zaca Mesa developed its own unique method of wine production, since there weren’t many other wineries to learn from at the time. The winery eventually figured out that its […]

The first time the annual Celebration of Harvest event took place at Rancho Sisquoc Winery—on Oct. 23, 1991—it was pouring rain and there was mud everywhere. Jim Fiolek, executive director of the Santa Barbara County Vintner’s Association (SBCVA), recalls the first celebration with fondness. “It had rained so much that the school buses that were […]

With great fanfare every autumn, the acting state governor proclaims September to be California Wine Month. Whether prompted by a drive to boost late-season tourism, highlight the riotous spectacle of harvest, or simply celebrate the love of fine vintages, the move serves to showcase the state’s vinous bounty. For the past seven years, just as […]

Restaurant dining provides a refreshing change of scenery and ensures that, mercifully, someone else will do the dishes. Sometimes, however, the notion of dressing up and heading out just doesn’t sound very appealing. For fine food lovers who’d rather stay home, the Central Coast’s Chef Kurt Alldredge has developed a tasty solution. With the launch […]