Today we decided to meet for lunch at SantaCafé after Carollee’s haircut app’t. She called me as she was leaving Max’s and I started walking down to SantaCafé. She arrived about ten minutes before i did and waved at me as i walked in. She had ordered a liter of San Pellegrino and was patiently wating for me. After I arrived we ordered a 2006 Van Duzer Estate Pinot Noir Willamette Valley and our usual starter of Deep-fried Calamari with a spicy dipping sauce. The wine was bright cherry-berry fruit with good acidity and very tasty with the Calamari. The Calamari was very good, almost half heads, perfectly cooked with a very light, crisp batter. As we were finishing the Calamari we ordered our mains - Carollee had a Shrimp & Crab Louis, while I had the soft-shelled crab. The Pinot was quite good with both. The SS crab was quite spicy and the Pinot held up to it. I finished with a very short double espresso. This was a very good mid-day main meal.
Inside or out on the patio??? I love their outdoor seating, and for many years that was the location of my birthday dinner as the manager at the time always made sure we were well taken care of, even allowing me to bring my own stemware without any problem.
We generally prefer inside. this time ouiside on the patio was crowded and inside was not.