Mezzo Italiano — Restaurant in Cambria

INTIMATE DINNER ! My wife and I arrived at our Airbnb 5 bedroom house with huge ocean view around 4pm on Wednesday after a very long drive ( almost 6 hours on the road ) from Irvine. We were in Cambria for a one week vacation to celebrate my wife's birthday. After unpacking our luggage and lots more incl our espresso machine we didn't really feel like cooking dinner. Refreshed after a shower and an ice cold hazy IPA ( always bring my own beer when possible ) I suggested to my wife we head into town. We haven't been to the far side of Main St very often or recently ( it's been 12 years since our last vacation in Cambria ) but for some reason we kept driving until we spotted this place...or more so the huge sign. After parking our wheels on the street we stuck our heads inside the front door.....very cosy. OOPS ! We attracted the attention of a male server who informed us there would be a 45 minute wait for dinner. The place looked interesting so we decided to take the last remaining table. Scott the lone server looked like he had his hands full taking care of everyone in the small restaurant ( seats 18 ). The next couple who walked in the door 5 minutes later were politely told by Scott that they could not be accommodated...to reserve a table another night. Somehow Scott managed to grab us a glass carafe of cold water and fill glasses. In the meantime Scott told us the owner was a lady named Victoria also the chef / server. BEER ! I asked for the Firestone Walker 'Union Jack" IPA which hit our table ice cold with a cute chilled glass ( 7.24pm ). My beer tasted very refreshing. AND THEN ! A party of 6 paid and left. FOOD ! Our tummies were screaming for food after just cheese & crackers around 1.30pm at the Tesla Supercharging Station in Goleta. APPETIZER ! The Roasted Cremini Mushrooms, baked with cheese and served with Garlic Bread looked too good to pass up. It arrived at our table ( 7.45pm ) courtesy of Victoria direct from the kitchen. It looked very appetizing and tasted fabulous. ENTREES ! My wife dillied and dallied between a couple of items on the menu ( loves lasagna ) before finally choosing the Rolioli ( homemade pasta filled with ricotta pesto-cheese and baked with your choice of sauce - marinara, puttanesca, mushroom cream or butternut squash served with garden vegetables )...my wife selected the marinara sauce. I decided on the Stuffed Portabella Mushroom ( organic portabella mushrooms, stuffed with organic red & brown jasmine rice, porcini, onion, cheese, with garden vegetables ). Our pasta dishes arrived together ( at 8.04pm ) and looked very generous serves. My wife told me her Rolioli tasted okay but should have ordered the lasagne her fav. I thought my Stuffed Portabella Mushroom tasted pretty decent...a lot going on. GETTING LATE ! We struck up a conversation with a fun couple dining at the bar. DESSERT ! I asked Scott the server about dessert and he said there were a couple of ice cream sandwiches left......Orange & Pistachio Cookie with Vanilla Gelato. Yes please. It came out simply presented on a dish. ( 8.19pm )...it was frozen so it took some getting through but was quite delicious. The orange and pistachio hit the spot. We enjoyed our dinner visit here. Excellent service from Scott...

When you are busy traveling on a road trip or for work, oftentimes you settle for whatever you can get. Sometimes you luck out, sometimes you end up in a bad spot. In the case of Cambria and along highway 1 in the Californian central coast, this place is a gem. The staff is fantastic, the food is made in a homestyle manner, with a lot of attention paid to the quality of ingredients. While we went in the first time because it was the only game in town, the next two times on a recent trip was because the place was so good that we chose it over the other dining options in town.

The Caesar salad is to die for. Yes, it doesn't have anchovies in it, but most places in the US never use them, and it is not lacking in umami or depth of flavor because the owner uses (if I were to make an educated guess) 36 month aged Parmigiano Reggiano, high quality hand torn romaine, and a dressing that is light while vibrant, showcasing the flavors of the olive oil and the lemon. The house made croutons have the right texture, and are not overly oily. Hands down, wherever you are, this is a great salad.

Polenta, parmigiano and the chicken noodle soup are all good options. I recommend, when given the choice of a sauce, getting the puttanesca. While not a true classical one as found in Naples (it lacks the anchovies), the sauce has a great amount of flavor with a nice balance between the capers and olives and tomato. Additionally, the polenta are baked triangles, with a crispy crust top and a creamy, well executed interior (no lumps or grittiness), showing that they took their time to make it right. The eggplant parmigiano features thinly sliced eggplant, cooked with a small amount of beading until crispy, then re-baked as if a lasagna to ensure it comes out piping hot and not soggy. The soup features a darker stock in which the color comes from them roasting the chicken and the bones, giving it a nice depth of flavor and, for lack of a better word, meatiness.

The baked goods are in a homestyle manner--with fresh fruit that is seasonal--and nothing overwhelms the flavor of the fruit (try the raspberry muffins with the whipped cream [true whipped cream, not some sugary disaster]). The shortbread cookies have a delightful texture, melt in your mouth, and have a wonderful depth to their flavor. The pie is more of an Italian crostata, featuring a filling of fresh fruit with limited sugar, and a crust more reminiscent of a friable pate brisee than an American pie crust. One is enough for about three or four people.

The fact you can eat here until basically midnight is a delight, especially since very few things are open in Cambria after 9 PM during the week. And personally, I'd rather go to bed feeling satisfied and fulfilled without feeling an ounce of resentment towards some late...

MEZZO ITALIANO is a cozy, organic, Italian ristorante. Seating just 18, it offers a wonderful experience.

Dining at Mezzo Italiano is like having a cooked-from-scratch dinner at Nonna's with no dishes to wash. (Nonna is Grandma in Italian.)

Victoria, the owner and chef, visited our table. As she described the menu, we learned about her experience with conventional and vegan cooking.

Mezzo translates from Italian as "half. I.e half Italian.

Since it's opening in June 2018, Chef Victoria has used organic ingredients, whenever possible, in her vegan, gluten free, and animal derived dishes. The talented chef creates delicious, cooked-from-scratch meals, (just like Nonna's) and still has time for interesting conversations. (When was the last time you talked with your professional chef?)

Let me use my meal as an example:

Dinner begins with a crisp, properly chilled, lightly dressed, vegan, Caesar Salad, In place of croutons, the chef served mini toast slices.

Ciabatta Garlic Bread, smothered with house-made vegan cheese, soon arrived. The soft, "slipper shaped" pastry, loaded with nooks and crannies, is just plain delicious.

Next, Eggplant Parmesan is presented. The eggplant slices, coated with breading containing house-made, vegan, parmesan cheese, are baked, then gently placed atop cavatappi pasta, highlighted with par-cooked mixed veggies, and dressed, with the warm bite of puttanesca sauce. (Several sauce choices are available.) Absolutely delicious.

Dessert: A scoop of vegan, vanilla "ice cream," and a scoop of vegan, lemon sorbet, are placed on a generous bed of fresh blueberries. A perfect palette pleaser that's large enough to share.

The others at the table enjoyed dishes containing animal proteins. All found their meals terrific.

During her visit to our table, the chef told us of a guest who claimed there's magical powers in Mezzo Italiano's elegant, cut glass window display. The guest was partially right. There's magic here, but it's Chef Victoria.

STUFF: Reservations are accepted. The small patio is dog friendly. There are no children's menu or highchairs. Free street parking. The eatery is wheelchair accessible from the street.

The ADA compatible bathroom is at the far end of the hallway on the left side of the eatery.

A free parking lot, located behind the building, is not wheelchair accessible and requires several steps to enter the restaurant. Enter the driveway on the left side of...