On Blame it on the Food we’ve basically gotten to the point where we just write about the places we like.  Enoteca is no exception here, we like it. One of the reasons we’ve become fond of it is because as our cousin who works in the food industry says, when the management is good in a restaurant and there is a positive vibe in the work environment, the place shines all around.  This is exactly how the environment is at Enoteca La Storia because the owners have created this and are so nice and professional and therefore so is their staff. They always seem to welcome customers and they feel bad if you have to wait for a seat.  They feel so bad that they often give you a complimentary glass of Prosecco to sip on as you wait.  Enoteca has only gotten more and more popular since the first time we visited.

I’ve actually been meaning to write about Enoteca La Storia in Los Gatos so many times in the last year but it is very dim inside in the evening and it makes it really hard to get decent photographs of the food and space. So I finally accumulated enough photographs to give you a feel for the interior and a bit of the food. It is a wine bar that serves some food and you can sit at the bar or at tables.  The backroom has some larger tables that seem like they could be reserved for larger parties. When people come into the wine bar they typically talk, eat, drink, eat a bit more and drink and hang out for extended periods. This is actually something I really like about it, you can meet friends at 8pm and hang out from there on out ordering snacks, wine, and to end, one of their really tasty desserts.

The food ranges from cheese to salumi boards (domestic and imported salumi) and crostini as well as paninis, salads and great desserts (carrot cake bites and chocolate cake with bacon bits). The majority of the food is nicely displayed and served on cutting boards.  For wine you can order half glasses, glasses, and bottles to share or flights.  We typically get a glass of wine each (or a Pliny de Elder, they often have that too), a cheese and salumi selection (Are Salumi & Charcuterie the Same Thing?) and then an awesome dessert like the chocolate cake with bacon bits on top!  If you come with at least four people the better deal is to buy a bottle (it is something like after the first bottle corkage fee, you don’t have to pay quite as much for each additional bottle).  Check it out on an upscale date night or plan to meet a couple of friends for chatting and good times.  It is kind of a bar for when you want to keep it classy, not really a hip spot so to speak but definitely not hipster – trendy maybe for the older crowd (40’s and up in age and not a kid or family spot).  On Fridays and Saturdays it can get fairly busy so keep that in mind.

416 N. Santa Cruz Ave.
Los Gatos, CA 95030
Phone: 408-625-7272
Email: info@enotecalastoria.com

I am bummed that I missed out on the Purple Onion for at least the last two years in Los Gatos.  Why did I avoid the Purple Onion Cafe in Los Gatos?  I think it was the unassuming exterior and the lack of a somewhat large and inviting sign out front (just small writing on the windows).  One time we even went to eat breakfast at Southern Kitchen across the street and there was such a huge line that we possibly, maybe thought about trying out the Purple Onion but then just decided to wait at Southern Kitchen without even walking inside to check it out.  That was stupid!  The Purple Onion reminds me of a spot you would find up in Yountville in Wine Country.  They serve some specialty products such as Lavender soda, nice quiches with mixed greens and flower petals, fresh squeezed orange juice, and crumb coffee cake.

Breakfast and lunch are served at the Purple Onion and it is open early until about 4pm everyday, but closed on Mondays.  The Purple Onion has a really fresh breakfast menu with quiche, breakfast burritos, mixed fruit with lots of great baked goods such as their crumb coffee cake.  They serve illy coffee and you get free coffee refills.  Something that I like about when you eat at the Purple Onion is that you still feel good when you leave, like you haven’t loaded up on the worst, greasiest breakfast from a diner.  This is a good quality in a breakfast/brunch spot and I like that after working out in the morning or meeting a friend for a light weekday lunch.  The atmosphere inside is also very clean with round cafe tables and you order at the counter and find a seat either inside or ouside on a side patio with places to sit with your dog.   The prices are what you would expect for the LG but you get a quality product in return and fast service without a long brunch crowd wait.

Next, to try the egg salad sandwich and lunch specials!

This is their special grilled cheese filled with avocado, sprouts and tomato.  They grill the sandwich with cheese and then add the other goodies.   The menu at Los Gatos Cafe is huge and it is pretty hard to choose what to order.  We liked this and it even came with a coconut chocolate chip cookie!

Happy Hound in Los Gatos was pretty good.  They made us huge burgers with grated cheese and thick sliced red onions.   A+ on presentation.  B- for sloppy eating, not quite packaged like an In-n-Out burger.  It was around $9.50 for a cheeseburger, fries, and drink which is pretty expensive.  The folks that worked there were fast and friendly and the place was really clean.

When we walked in I realized that we should keep our coats in the car if we didn’t want to walk out smelling like a burger and fries joint.   A couple sitting sitting at the counter , who seemed like regulars, were both having Mexican hot dogs.   Next time, hot dogs por favor!

Easy & Enjoyable Saturday Afternoon at the Burrell School Winery

• Great Deck & View: You can buy a bottle of wine and sip it on the deck at Burrell School Winery with friends.  The view is beautiful and looks out over the vineyard towards the Monterey Bay.  Open Thursday through Sunday, 11am to 5pm.

• Short Weekend Drive: 25 minute south of San Jose, 15 minutes south of Los Gatos

• $5 Tastings or Buy a Bottle to share on the deck

• Free Tastings for You & Three Friends when you are a Wine Club Member: If you are a member you pay $70 for three bottles four times a year.  With this you receive free tastings including three guests and often can enjoy pick-up parties in the garden when you stop by for your wines.  We do this often when friends are visiting from out of town or even on Friday afternoons.

Summit Road Wine Tour Idea after the jump…

Quick Saturday Afternoon Santa Cruz Mountain Wine Tasting Day Trip

• Easy Three-Winery Tasting Tour: 15 Minutes from Los Gatos

Santa Cruz Mountain Wineries: http://www.scmwa.com/

Summit to See Wine Trail: http://www.summittoseawinetrail.com/

Stop #1:

Regale Winery: http://www.regalewine.com/

Daily Selection: $10 tastings for 5 wines, exquisite view and interesting mural painting in new structure

Winemaker’s Selection:  flight of six wines, with an emphasis on Pinot Noirs and Cabernets, for $15.

NOTE: You are welcome to purchase wine by the glass or a bottle to share and spend some time enjoying our beautiful Italian inspired decor. Picnics are welcome with wine purchase.  The Bocce Ball court is available on a first come, first served basis.  We ask that you limit play to one hour if some one is waiting to play.

Our tasting room is open Saturdays and Sundays from Noon to 5:30 p.m.  Please call (408) 353-2500 or CLICK HERE for reservations.

Stop #2:

Burrell School Winery: http://www.burrellschool.com/

Cute tasting room next to the old school house and a great deck to sip your wines

Thursday through Sunday, 11am to 5pm.

Stop #3:

Loma Prieta Winery: http://www.lomaprietawinery.com/

26985 Loma Prieta Way – Los Gatos, CA 95033

OPEN for Passport Days the third Saturday of January, April, July, and November, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (open other Saturdays sometimes as well)

On our way to Sur Le Table in LG this weekend we decided to walk into the Icing on the Cake Bakery to see what pumpkin items they baked this fall.  Lucky for us, we found the Harvest Moon moist pumpkin cookie with an orange glaze.  Other fall themed treats were a Buttery Pumpkin Muffin with Cream Cheese Icing, Pumpkin Loaf, and Pumpkin Pie Bars with a Shortbread Crust.  They also had their popular cookie, the Brownie Pecan Chunker.  The Harvest Moon and Brownie Pecan Chunker cookies were sinfully tasty and well worth the $5.25 we paid for the two.  I was delighted by the variety and selection of amazing looking baked goods.

I had remembered the recipe for their Chocolate Cherry Chunk cookie from the July 2008 Bon Appetit magazine R.S.V.P./Readers’ Favorite Restaurant Recipes and decided to google it: http://pinkstripes.wordpress.com/2009/04/20/cherry-and-chocolate-chip-cookies/ This cookie has alcohol-soaked dried cherries with semi-sweet chocolate chunks.

http://www.icingonthecakebakery.com/

Bakery Hours:
Tuesday-Saturday 9am-6:00pm
Sunday 9am-3pm
Monday CLOSED

Lou’s is a tiny little unassuming breakfast spot on Los Gatos Blvd that we’ve driven by on more than a few occasions without thinking much of it until we finally decided to give it a try.  The interior of Lou’s is like a step back in time to the classic American diner period.  It’s interior is worth the stop alone just for it’s uniqueness.  The menu has all the classic breakfast items and a list of daily specials like different scrambles, breakfast burritos, omelettes, different types of pancakes and homemade corned beef hash. The service is great and the portions are huge.  The prices are a little higher than most but that’s Los Gatos for ya.  It’s worth the stop if you are in the area for the atmosphere alone but the food is high quality and done right too.

(google map)

Hours: Mon-Sun. 6:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.   CASH ONLY

Zach: I loved the  interior of this place.  The corned beef hash was great and I liked the bite I had of the buckwheat pancakes and the omelette. The key to a good diner in my opinion is their use of potatoes and the hashed browns here were excellent. For an example compare the hashed brown photos from Lou’s and SC Diner and you will see what I mean. This place comes highly recommended from me.  The only problem for me was the price and the fact that it was cash only but you do get a large amount of food and it is LG after all.

Even on a slow stroll at a banana slugs pace you might miss this tiny little sushi joint in Los Gatos.  I’ve been wanting to check this place out for the last couple of months mostly because of its minuscule size.  It only seats eight at a time.  The place was full when we walked up but the wait was short as the sushi chef/owner kicked a couple out when he noticed us looking in.  As soon as I walked in I almost turned around due to the strong fishy smell lingering in the air, but I was determined to give this place a chance, due mostly to my love of all restaurants/bars cozy and tiny.  After examining the menu, John and I decided on splitting three rolls: the Volcano roll (tuna, scallion, tobiko, Japanese fire sauce), Pat’s Homerun roll (eel, macadamia nuts, “special sauce”)  and my old standby the Spicy Salmon roll (Spicy Salmon is not on the menu, but you can ask to have salmon substituted in a spicy tuna roll) ($21 total).  While I watched the chef whip up some pending orders, I could tell he’s been doing this for a while.  He throws a roll together in about two seconds flat and palms all six pieces of the sliced roll in one hand as he throws it on your plate.  We quickly received our rolls before I had a chance to forget what I ordered (common occurence) and it was almost exactly what I pictured it to be.  All of the rolls were good. Not fantastic and not bad.  Not the best ever but then again not as bad as the initial smell led me to believe it would be.  When all was said and done, we were out of there in what seemed like 20 minutes if not less.  Give it a shot if you’re in the area.

John: Overall, I enjoy SOTR for its fast service and tasty rolls.  The establishment is BYOB, which we did not know (and seemed to be the only ones who didn’t).  If you bring your own sake they will give you a bucket of ice, sake decanter, and cups.

www.sushi-on-the-run.com