The Opening of Tourist Season, Part II

I arrived early at Ventana, so I got to watch the chef meet with the staff and explain the night’s menu.

While I was waiting for the kitchen to open, I had a drink at the bar. I overheard a conversation (not an easy feat, as I am hard of hearing) down the bar. “Oh, you should contact Big Sur Kate,” she said to the new kid on the block. With all the social graces of the hermit that I am, I raised my hand. “I’m bigsurkate,” I said. And then, Pam, a local, joined me.

After a lovely conversation and exchange of ideas, including the new kid on the block, I ordered the pork tenderloin. It was divine! And the salad? Absolutely heaven!

I really need to learn how to photograph food, but frankly, I was so tickled I remembered to photograph it before I dug in. Usually, I am 1/2 way through the meal before I think of it!

This was the menu for the evening. It is often changing, so you may see different offerings when you visit.

I packed up 1/2 my dinner to take home for another night, said good-bye to my new friends, and wandered down to Nepenthe for an after dinner dessert drink.

There I meet a lovely couple from PG who had lived in John Soper’s house on Burns Creek for a year. They, too, read bigsurkate. So much for playing “tourist.”

Then, my home on the South Coast beckoned and I tackled the windy road home, behind more traffic than I had seen all winter!

It will probably be the last time I play tourist until summer is over, but one never knows!