Food Tour Explores Capitola's Hidden Pathways

Motivated by the success of his Santa Cruz food-walking tour, Brion Sprinsock has created a second tour, this time in Capitola.

The idea for the Santa Cruz tour took shape after Sprinsock and his wife, Kristine Albrecht, enjoyed the Chicago Food Planet tour through the Gold Coast, Old Town and Lincoln Park neighborhoods. He was inspired to create his own culinary and cultural tasting tours for Santa Cruz locals and visitors, designed with visits to the couple’s favorite places.

By coincidence, I, too, had been enthused by that very same food tour while visiting my hometown of Chicago and wondered why more cities didn’t offer a similar outing.

It was the Capitola tour that put me into action when I saw the tasting locations. I joined Sprinsock at —along with a couple from Modesto, a mother and daughter from Carmel and Salinas, and a friend of mine from Capitola—to start this week's walking tour.

Bloomsbury is a traditional English tea room, established in 2009. Along with hearing the history of British tea and how long to steep different kinds of tea, we sampled Earl Grey along with a heavenly white-chocolate lavender scone, vegetable quiche, a tea sandwich and the fruity Marilee’s Delight.

On our way to the next stop, , we stepped off the beaten path to discover Averon House. This large home has a history colorful enough to inspire several romance novels.

Gayle’s, established in 1978, features European-inspired cakes, rustic breads, oak-fired meats and more. In the glass-walled sun room, we munched on a sandwich made with in-house bread, a special cole slaw and chocolate mousse cake that sent us into orbit. Along with lots of fun facts, we learned that Gayle’s has created more than 25 million pastries and has been remodeled 14 times.

From there we stopped at several points of interest along the way to Capitola Village, including Noble Gulch Park and the . Sprinsock told us the intriguing stories behind the story that we had never heard before. From there, we ventured onto Central and Cliff avenues to take in a postcard-perfect view overlooking Capitola Village. Pausing to take in this mesmerizing sight, we heard facts about the architecture of beach cottages built over the years.

Then, exactly 86 steps down, a railed stairway took us into the village from an access I never knew existed. At the park by the bandstand, we learned that beaches don’t get formed from the ocean and that this beach was formed by Soquel Creek. Sprinsock said beach towns are rarely found close to the water, as in the case here.

Our village stop was , established in 1998 and home of island fusion cuisine, ocean views and sustainable seafood. We sat on the sunny terrace, where we enjoyed melt-in-your-mouth coconut prawns, served with the perfectly paired Morgan sauvignon blanc, chosen by Executive Chef Scott Cater. Sprinsock related the story about how the current owner, who had never been in the hospitality industry, created this place as his dream of what a restaurant should be. It was hard to leave, but we needed to stay on schedule.

It should be noted that sturdy comfortable shoes are a must, and this tour is best for those who can walk at a brisk pace. Walking up Wharf Road to the Shadowbrook illustrated this need.

Established in 1948, the features romantic dining in a garden setting overlooking the creek and has a quaint funicular to transport patrons. We opted to walk down the steps to admire the lush plants and trees and take the tram ride up afterward.

Our table was set in the Rock Room near the bar, so evening activity had already begun. Naumann Vineyards of the Santa Cruz Mountains was set up for Winemaker Wednesday, which are tastings held each week at this time of the year.

Owner Ted Burke puts a lot of time involving the community into his restaurant programs and said he is excited to be a food tour stop.

“What a fun thing to do for both locals and visitors," he said. "I’m sure they will delight in learning Capitola’s history and all that the Village has to offer."

While devouring pork sliders accompanied by green salad, we heard colorful stories about the restaurant’s history and how it has evolved over the years.

Next it was time for the walk back to the tea room, our starting point. But the great stories accompanied our walk, and we hardly noticed the time passing. We walked by the Rispin Mansion at a closer vantage point than I had ever seen it. We learned that after Poor Clare’s nuns left in 1955, the building was vandalized, but it was good to see it now freshly painted and secure until it may one day return to the glory it has always deserved.

Marsha King of Carmel and Sandra Khader of Salinas, mother and daughter, said they enjoyed the tour.

It’s a great introduction to Capitola, they both said, with fabulous food and an informative, well-planned walk.

Besides the great food and pleasure of learning about our rich history, architecture and culture, perhaps the best surprise is the way Sprinsock orchestrates the experience. He could be described as the maestro of a symphony; he’s that good.

This tour runs on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. from March to November, rain or shine. Cost is $52.50 (a web special) per person and easily takes the place of dinner. Reservations are available on the Santa Cruz Food Tour website or by calling 800-838-3006.

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