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3 weeks ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
A thoroughly French café with undertones of California vibes, Emilie and the Frenchies was opened recently by Mary Jane Dean and her childhood friend and business partner, Céline. They originally met as teenagers when Céline stayed with Dean’s family as a foreign exchange student, developing a special friendship and a shared passion for Santa Cruz’s café culture.
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1 month ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
Geoffrey Hargrave always wanted to one day open his own restaurant, but says that dream went on the backburner while he took an academic detour to get a degree in anthropology and history. But ultimately, he decided to follow his heart and pivot back to the industry. He moved to Lake Tahoe and began cooking professionally before being approached by Quinn, a friend from college who was from Santa Cruz.
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1 month ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
Born in Bosnia, Lejla Borovac came to the United States with her family in the early ’90s to escape war. She studied marine biology at UCSC but says she ultimately found her calling in hospitality. Her industry career began locally in several restaurants in various front-of-house positions, and from there progressed to living and working in both San Francisco and New York City.
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1 month ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
Growing up in Point Reyes, Elena Laughlin always had a passion for the wilderness and specifically mushrooms, intrigued especially by how the fantasy-inspiring Amanita contributed to the magical quality of nature. Attending college in Santa Cruz, her first experiences at Far West Fungi were as a customer, where she fell in love with the food and vibe of the place.
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1 month ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
Tony Vongsana has been at Thai Basil for its entire 30-year history, starting front-of-house work there as a teenager when his mom, Vutshari, originally opened the place. The family had operated other Thai restaurants, but Vutshari wanted something small and all her own. Eight years ago, she retired and the business is now primarily in Tony’s hands with help from his brother, Vincent, and nephew, Justin.
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1 month ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
Before becoming a server at Taqueria Los Gordos in Aptos three years ago, Vianney De La Cruz was helping run her aunt’s Mexican food truck. This experience gave her a perfect skill set for when Los Gordos’ owners came-a-calling, reaching out to her over social media and asking her to become part of their team.
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2 months ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
Originally a house repurposed into a business and then sold to its namesake founder, the now iconic Jack’s Hamburgers holds down the meat-between-buns game in the heart of downtown. When Jack passed away, current owner Connie Hutchinson and her late husband, Scott, beat out multiple other bidders for the chance to carry on the legacy and have been doing so for 35 years and counting.
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2 months ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
Family-owned since 1978 and named after F. Scott Fitzgerald’s notoriously hard-partying socialite wife, Zelda’s has been a pillar of the Capitola Village dining and nightlife scene for more than four decades. Manager Pam Edmonds has seen it all, starting there as a hostess in 1981 and progressing to server, bartender and then manager before pausing to work part-time for several years while raising three children.
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2 months ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
Having each lived twice in both China and Santa Cruz, husband and wife team Stacy Liu and Yunteng Li recently came back into town and opened Noodle Time. Born and raised in China, they initially moved here and lived for 20 years while owning a local restaurant. Liu says when they decided to close, they soon found themselves wanting a return to the industry. But first, they moved back to China for two years to perfect their passions, Liu’s for boba tea and Li’s for making handmade noodles.
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2 months ago | 
goodtimes.sc | Andrew Steingrube
Born and raised in Mexico but not on sushi, chef Claudio Cordova says the first time he tried the Japanese staple delicacy was a transcendental and vivid foundational experience. He developed a deep passion immediately and has been inspired by sushi ever since. His culinary come-up started at a few spots around Santa Cruz. Then he moved to Santa Rosa to work with and be tutored by a highly accomplished sushi chef.
