Sometimes it is surprising what high quality restaurants you find in unassuming little towns. On a recent trip to Santa Cruz we were quite interested at visiting Mentone https://www.mentonerestaurant.com/ run by David Kinch, former owner and chef of Manresa. The restaurant isn’t located in Santa Cruz but several miles out in the small town of Aptos. And even though this is obviously not another approach on high-end dining from Chef Kinch, you still see many philosophies from Manresa utilized at Mentone, e.g. quality of ingredients, flawless cooking, some interesting flavor combinations, plating etc. Mentone can easily compete with many of the more upscale Italian places in SFO and it is great to hear that Mentone will expand to Los Gatos which is much closer to home but for now at least we will also have a good place when visiting Santa Cruz for a weekend trip.
Salumi plate - Coppa, finocciona
Flannery beef tartare, dijon, shallot, chive, parm, potato chips
Eggplant, calabrian pesto, fromage blanc, preserved lemon, mint
Tocco, bolognese, housemade corzetti, pecorino
Pizza funghi, chanterelles, hen of the woods, caramelized onions, taleggio, mozzarella, balsamic
Pork belly & scallops, roast red kuri squash, braised fennel, scallop sauce
Lemon curd, fior di latte, pistachio
Hazelnut gelato
Good cocktail program
