by Dorothy Maras-Ildiz
Turkey here, Turkey there…turkey, turkey everywhere ….well, almost. Trends in Thanksgiving dining habits have shifted dramatically in the past few decades. Back in the day, you’d be hard-pressed to find any restaurant open on Thanksgiving Day with the exception of maybe Denny’s or Sambo’s ( remember them ? ) and a couple of out-of-the-way Chinese places. Families gathered around the Norman Rockwell-esque dining room table, squished in on odd chairs and maybe a piano bench to make room for everyone and there was always the ubiquitous ‘kids table’ off in the Siberian corner of the room.
The ‘good silver’ and never-before -seen china made their way to the lace table clothed table along with great grandma’s candlesticks and the giant, ugly turkey shaped platter. Dad broke out the Hamilton Beach electric knife to slice the still steaming bird in a rare display of domesticity and Mom whisked away at what she hoped would be ‘lump-free’ gravy. Then all hell would break lose – Crazy Uncle Ed and Auntie Mary Jane always had a little too much to drink and knocked over a few wine glasses, which proceeded to tip over great Grandma’s candlesticks which ignited the lace tablecloth which proceeded to begin to flambé the ugly turkey platter, prior to being doused out by Mom’s lump-free gravy. Meanwhile the Siberian Kids Table remained accident free. Good times were had by all.
Restaurants have aggressively stepped in to resolve this problem as well as the fire dangers, and alleviated the need to source, shop, and plan, cook, clean up and douse table-top fires. All the consumer is left to do is figure out which place they’d like to go and pick up the phone to make a reservation. No fuss, no muss, no fire.
Below are a few brilliant options located close by:
Fandango – 831.372.3456 – Open 12-7:30 PM www.fandangorestaurant.com . Pre-fixe Four Course Thanksgiving Day menu 34.95 adults, 16.50 Children.
Asilomar Conference Center – 831.372.8016 Open 2pm – 6pm www.visitasilomar.com Thanksgiving Buffet Dinner – 42.00 + tax + 10% Service Fee Adults, Children (Ages 5-11) 21.00 + tax + 10% Service Fee. Seriously…this is what the website states…this is one of those confounded ‘word problems’ you never liked in school.
Max’s Grill – 831.375.7997 Open 4pm – 9pm www.maxgrill.com Serving Three Course Thanksgiving dinner with many options to select from 32.95 Adults and Children Under 12 – 18.00 ( and the remaining math is done by the establishment at the end of your meal ! )
NEW! NEW! NEW! In P.G ….
Jeninni kitchen + bar – 831.920.2662 –Open 12 pm -7pm Thanksgiving Day – www.jeninni.com please check their website for the Thanksgiving menu details. This very promising and so far, well received place located at 542 Lighthouse Ave., in Pacific Grove is going to not only knock the socks off of your taste buds, but it will hit a culinary homerun, kick the extra point following a touchdown and shoot a 3 pointer with nothing but net from the half-court line. Chef Jeffrey Weiss and gracious host/owner Thamin Saleh are a formidable team, to say the very least.
Great P.G. Restaurants Closed on Thanksgiving, but open day before, day after and mostly every other day of the year….
Passionfish, The Beach House at Lovers Point, The Red House Café, Fifi’s Café and many, many others.
Now Closed….Not Surprised …
There is the distinct smell of death that takes over a restaurant when it is ‘time’. The grim reaper has sharpened his scythe and stands waiting by the door for the inevitable death knell to toll, so he can walk in and finish it off – quickly. The RGR (Restaurant Grim Reaper) has taken another swipe at P.G’s restaurant scene. Not unexpectedly, the reaper preys upon the weak, the forlorn, the lost and the crippled. They are easier to catch. So, with that – we say goodbye to Breaker’s Café / Sushi Noodle Bar in the Forest Hill Center.
At one time you couldn’t find a seat at Breaker’s Café on a Saturday or Sunday morning. People sat on the wookity benches outside waiting to be seated. Once inside they enjoyed large, steaming hot plates of hotcakes and eggs, served by John Stidham and his crew of pros. Then it was sold…and things slowly changed. The food wasn’t so large, tasty or hot, but the prices remained ‘up there’. Slowly, the herds of customers thinned out to just a trickle of a couple of wayward stalwarts coming in to sit at ‘their place’ at the counter over a cup of Joe. Following that came the recent ‘sort-of’ re-formatting of the place into a sushi/noodle bar. Mostly, that involved just changing the signage and little else. Seriously…if we don’t trust you to make eggs and hash browns, do you think we will be gung-ho to try out some raw fish at your sorta new place? Nope. Not me and obviously not anyone else either.
So, farewell Breaker’s Café/Sushi Noodle Bar. I hope you morph into something fabulous in the future. The market is here. The people are waiting, but you’ve got to DELIVER THE GOODS or the Restaurant Grim Reaper will reappear with his shiny scythe ready to whirl.
Gift Cards…It is what we really want for Christmas
Please spare your friends, the kid’s teachers, the boss and co-workers from the recycled, re-gifted kiwi scented candles, boxes of bloomed (old) chocolate candies and god-forsaken fruitcake/door-stops. Instead, give them what they really would like to have and will use; A gift card to one of your favorite local restaurants. Any denomination will do. You don’t have to buy them a five-course meal and a bottle of ’85 Margaux. Enclose it in a nice card and add in a list of your favorite dishes to order, just for fun. It will appreciated far more than an ugly tie, bad perfume or some kitschy thing on the clearance aisle.
Most, if not all restaurants will happily issue either a gift certificate or gift card. Call your favorite place today and make everyone’s holiday a happy one.
