515 Kitchen & Cocktails

THE BUZZ ON 515 KITCHEN & COCKTAILS

Specialty drinks $4.00 - $6.00

Highlighted Beers $3.00 - $5.00

Food Specials $4.00 - $9.00

Added Bonus: Small Plate items served 4pm - midnight 
                      $3.00 - $11.00

515 Kitchen & Cocktails Website

For me 515 is all about the couches.  As you will find out reading this blog, getting a good  seat is important to me, preferably a seat at the bar or in a comfy chair.  And yes I have had some memorable times on the couches of 515.  But good luck getting a couch or bar seat during happy hour at 515!  This is a popular place and for good reason.

They have great hours for the happy.... Seven days a week 4-7. They get a  five shot rating in the hours category, for sure. Unfortunately (at least in my book) many people know of these hours and it is extremely popular, especially with the 20 something crowd.

515 is located in a two story house on Cedar street (can you guess the address?) there is a bar downstairs, and a bar, dining room and deck upstairs. The dining area has both sit down tables and an arrangement of couches and comfortable chairs.  The deck has a fire pit and a plexiglass windscreen.

 





I arrived before Jo  a little before 6:00 on a Wednesday night and every seat at the bar, all the couches and tables were full.  Our only option was to sit on the patio.  I generally like sitting outside, but this was a particularly windy day and even with the wind screens it was cold up there. They should have lit up the fire pit!

Since it was Wednesday the Farmer's Market was in full swing.  515 is kitty-corner to the market and you have a nice view from the balcony. Josephine arrived and we studied the menus.  One thing I must say about 515 is they have excellent service. Our waiter Ethan was prompt,  knowledgeable about the menu and immediately brought us water ( always important) which was often refilled. Considering how busy they were, we were well taken care of.  I give the service 5 shots - friendly, attentive and thoughtful.

The happy hour drink specialties include four cocktails - le  pamplemousse,  (autocorrect changed that to pimple mousse), champagne cocktail, the gambit and the cocktail of the moment. In addition you have a $5 stout, $3 lager, $5 Chardonnay and a $6 cab.

I chose El  Pamplemousse and  I joked that this was the type of bar where you don't know the meaning of the names of the drinks.  They have quite a selection of cleverly named drinks that are quite exotic and not cheap, but are unique and delicious.  For the record, Pamplemousse means grapefruit in French, can also mean Fatso, and is the name of a racehorse who was a contender for the 2009 Kentucky Derby. ( can you say google?)

515's Le Pamplemousse drink is Finlandia grapefruit vodka, Aperol, orange juice, grapefruit juice, lemon juice. Since I was fighting a cold it was just what the doctor ordered.   Jo chose the "cocktail of the hour" which was a Cucumber Aperol Cooler made with cucumber vodka, orange juice and seltzer water. They both came promptly and were both delicious. Josephine was particularly happy with the size of her glass!

The happy hour food  menu is not extensive - half salads,  white bean hummus and flat bread,  crab cakes and truffle pomme frites and they were out of the hummus!!!!! A quarter of our choices taken away right there!  Fortunately they also have a large selection of small plates ranging from $ 3 - $11.

Since happy hours are taking a toll on our waistlines, we ordered two half salads, an order of crab cakes and prosciutto wrapped asparagus with  balsamic reduction. It was really nice to see a healthy option on a happy hour menu.

 There are four half salads on the happy hour menu- hearts of romaine, baby greens, red leaf and wild arugula. I assumed the salads were all the same, just with different types of greens. Not the case. When the salads arrived my baby greens salad had red onions and tomato with a balsamic dressing, while Jo's hearts of romaine had cashews and artichoke hearts.  They were both good sized, but I had to request extra dressing for mine. (Which came very promptly).

The asparagus wrapped prosciutto was delicious.  The prosciutto was nicely crisped and was served with an artistic swirl of balsamic reduction that was delicious - but I would have liked more sauce, aesthetics aside. (I see a pattern here).

The crab cakes were good, but they were $9 on the happy hour menu.  There should never be a $9 item on a happy hour menu!!! Normally, the crab cakes are $11, but give me half off for happy hour and then we will be talking value.

It was getting pretty cold on the patio so we told Ethan to let us know when a table opened up.  He shortly came and told us a table was open , so we quickly moved to a single table sandwiched between two other tables. it was too close quarters for my taste, but at least we were inside.

Jo was still nursing her large glassed cocktail, but at  this point I was ready to sample The Gambit. I thought it was a bridge term, especially with the subtitle under the drink "you gotta know when to hold 'me, know when to fold 'em" but master google reminds me that it is a chess opening where a pawn is sacrificed for the sake of some compensating advantage or an opening remark involving some risk that is calculated to gain advantage. I guess it's been too long since I've played chess.

Anyway, a 515 Gambit is kraken dark spiced rum, house-made ginger syrup, lime juice and seltzer. I like rum and ginger, but this wasn't my favorite drink. I liked Le Pamplemousse much better and probably could have used another dose of vitamin C.

At this point a couch opened up and without even consulting Ethan we made a dive for it.  We took our glasses with us, but while Jo was retrieving our water glasses, one of the waiters took the remains of Jo's drink, mistaking it for glassware from the previous party.

When asked,  he tried to retrieve it, but was too late. He offered to have the bartender make Jo half of another. Fair enough! Josephine was raised too well to refuse a free drink. This was the second time that bus-persons, had try to take our plates or glasses before we were quite through. I appreciate promptness, but a little more attention to detail is called for. This waiter made it all better which gives them extra credit in the service department.

I am much more enamored with the couches than Josephine.  She thought they smelled like furniture from a thrift store. Fortunately, I don't have a good sense of smell and stretched out in luxury.

In general Jo thought the ambiance was a bit smelly and dumpy, I on the other hand felt right at home with funky cool chic of the place. I liked the music they were playing, I liked the furniture and the feel of the place. We had a good view of the bar now. Which was a constant game of musical chairs with the young folk coming and going. The only down side was a cold breeze shooting up the stairs and onto my neck.

The happy hour buzz descended with the comfort of the soft cushion, good drinks, a satisfied palate and most important the company of a good friend. It was a little after 7:00 and the place was clearing out. Happy hour had come to an end.

Ethan brought our check inside a book filled with hilarious photos of angry kitties. It was quite entertaining. I headed downstairs to use the facilities and found one door with W and one door with Wand M. Potty parity!   These are the small touches at 515 that I appreciate.

In sum, the service and the hours are great. I appreciate the ambiance and the food and drinks, the prices could be a bit lower, and the popularity is a bit of a downfall in my book, but a very enjoyable time was had.  It reminded me of what I liked about this place. Next time I will get a seat at the bar!

Julie's rating:  4 Shots

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The 515 Kitchen, located downtown on Cedar street right where Cathcart ends, is a quaint little place that serves up some very tasty drinks and appetizers for happy hour. We got there just as the farmer's market was winding down, how convenient to just pick up your fresh produce and then reward yourself with a tall cold one. 

The place has 2 floors so we went upstairs where they have a lovely little deck with seating to enjoy.  They have little lights hanging and a fire pit in the middle that would have been nice if it was on that day.  It was quite windy and cool at that time of day so we stayed on the deck for a little while but had to venture inside after a while.  The place itself is a little funky. They have a small upstairs bar with couches and chairs in one row going back to the deck and tables on the side with both bench and chair seating.  It’s a little dark on the inside, nice for those intimate occasions or if you just feel like lounging around and chatting.  I personally prefer something a bit lighter but Julie was quite comfortable and relaxed in the place.  I think the carpeting could use a good cleaning. 

 For drinks Julie ordered up a le pamplemousse which is finlandia grapefruit vodka, aperol, lemon juice, orange juice, grapefruit juice. It was served in a martini glass and was light and tart.  I had the “Cocktail of the Moment” which they refer to on the menu as “what are they dreaming up now?” It was a mixture of cucumber infused vodka with some other juices and something a little bubbly in it and the best part was it came in a pint size glass.  Talk about a tall cold one.  This drink was light, refreshing and there was plenty of it, just what I like in a mixed drink.

Usually you find lots of yummy fried food on the menu for happy hour because really that’s what people want, but for those calorie counters I was happily surprised that they had ½ salads on the appetizer menu.  I ordered up a romaine salad and Julie had the mixed greens. Both came with fresh grated cheese, I had artichokes and cashews in mine. I’m not sure what came with Julie’s salad. We shared the Spanish smoked paprika crab cakes with chili aioli and Prosciutto wrapped asparagus with a balsamic vinaigrette reduction.



The asparagus is actually on the small plate menu which is served all night, a nice addition to the happy hour menu, both price and size wise.  Nice to know you can get those prices well into the evening.   The crab cakes were crispy and the chili aioli had a nice little kick to it.  The asparagus had just the right amount of crunch to it and the prosciutto was actually cooked so it was crunchy like bacon, very yummy. The vinaigrette reduction was very flavorful too.

It was pretty funny when they brought the check and it was in a book called "Bad Cat"  A bunch of cat pictures with funny phrases.  We laughed for a while at this. A nice touch. They had a very unusual floral arrangement next to the couch I was on.  Indeed the place has many interesting things to look at.  Some old antique looking furniture and the bar and chairs had that old Gatsby feel to them. I admit the couches and carpeting may not be to my liking but it does have it's own type of charm to it.

 
All in all I enjoyed happy hour at 515.  The drinks were light and refreshing, the food very tasty and the ambiance probably works for most people and since Julie kept me bouncing around to different seating all the time it was at least entertaining.

Jo's rating:  4 shots

Solaire Restaurant & Bar

THE BUZZ ON SOLAIRE RESTAURANT & BAR 

Happy Hour Sunday - Thursday 4pm - 7pm

$5.00 Drinks

$5.00 Appetizers

Solaire Restaurant Website

Julie's Review:


I have been curious about Hotel Paradox and their new restaurant Solaire for quite some time.  Hotel Paradox is the old Holiday Inn on Ocean Street which then became the UCSC overflow dorm.  I watched with interest as they described the building of this new upscale, boutique hotel.  I figured that the restaurant and bar might be a little snooty, but was very pleasantly surprised. The staff was extremely friendly and the service was excellent.

I love the art and visual concepts that fill the hotel. Their theme is to bring nature inside and they do it in a whimsical, subtle way. The designer of the hotel built the theme around a large pine tree next to the swimming pool - rather than going beach motif, they went forest.

When you walk into the hotel, the Reception desk is a huge tree trunk laid on its side that is probably 20 feet long and six foot high.  As you continue towards the bar there are all sorts of cubby holes with comfy chairs and tables made of tree stumps.  These tables are throughout the restaurant and hotel.  They give a natural feel to the place, like my backyard where we have used logs for seats around the campfire.

Coming around a corner there is a great art piece of plaster squirrels climbing up the wall and ceiling.

Jo was already waiting for me in the bar. The bar has an amazing optical illusion ceiling of blue sky and tree branches overhead. It really felt like we were sitting under a tree outside. The furniture is sleek and modern, but the natural elements make it interesting. 

There was a beautiful sculpture made of tree branches which formed a wave long the wall and the restaurant reception desk was a podium made from a tree trunk.  There were so many things to rest the eye upon. The room looks out at the pool and the bar continues outside to a poolside bar. There was a private event happening at the pool, so we were seated comfortably inside.

 
















There were many staff present and they were all knowledgeable and friendly.  Josephine already had her glass of wine and water and the bartender quickly approached and explained the happy hour specials. The only down side to Solaire is that they haven't gotten their full liquor license yet, which they are anxiously awaiting (should be 30 days if not held up by bureaucracy).

All the happy hour drinks are $5 - three kinds of wine, a bottled and draught beer and two cocktails both made with Soju.  Soju is a distilled beverage, described as Korean sake, that has a high alcohol content equivalent to vodka. Solaire is quite creative in using Soju until the liquor license comes through.  They have a full menu of Soju cocktails that sounded interesting - they usually run about $8, so the happy hour cocktails are a good savings.

The two happy hour cocktails are the Santa Cruz 75 and the Paradox Cosmopolitan.  I started with the Santa Cruz 75 which is a champagne cocktail made with Soju, elder flower simple syrup, fresh lemon and a top of prosecco. While I was waiting for the cocktail, another staff member brought a glass of water which they filled on a regular basis without asking!  Love it.
 

The Santa Cruz 75 was quite refreshing, but I am a Spumanti girl, so it was not quite sweet enough for my tastes.  Next I tried the Paradox Cosmopolitan which was absolutely delicious and you didn’t even miss the vodka.

They have a nice selection of bar appetizers for $5: crispy wings, white cheddar mac and cheese, beer braised meatballs, wonton prawns, fried Castroville artichoke hearts and Monterey Bay calamari.   The food is listed on the menus as being fresh, local, organic, cage free, free range and sustainable food.

We asked the bartender for his recommendation which was for the meatballs and mac and cheese, but we went for the Fire Sauce chicken wings, Wonton prawns and the Calamari.  Josephine had had the meatballs before and said they were yummy.

While we waited for our food, we talked with the staff about the various art pieces which include LED lights installed over the bar that match the night sky when the owner’s twin grandchildren were born.  We will have to come back in the evening to see it lit up.  There is a nice fireplace with chairs and the lamps above all of the restaurant tables are made of twigs.
 

On my way to the restroom, I discovered shelves of books all wrapped in plain white paper –which reminded me of the way we used to cover textbooks in grade schools.  The concept is not to judge a book by its cover.  I had fun pulling out a few volumes and found a variety of reading material from Charles Dickens’ Nicholas Nickelby, the Diary of Cleopatra as well as books I wasn’t familiar with.  There was comfortable seating nearby and I could see curling up with a cocktail, feet up on a stump table, perusing some of the books.  I loved this touch.

  

When I got back our food had arrived.  Neither Josephine nor I were impressed with the Won Ton shrimp, but the chicken wings were tasty.  I was very happy with the calamari. It was a generous serving size and had both the rings and the tentacles flash fried.  There were a few fried fresh green beans included, that were so tasty we thought they could be their own appetizer.   The calamari came with a citrus aioli that was absolutely delicious.  One of the staff members brought us a spicy dipping sauce which tried as well and Jo was happy with the plain cocktail sauce.  Overall, the food was quite tasty and satisfying.

We had given our J & J Buzz card to one of the staff, so the manager Andrea came over to talk with us about the restaurant and hotel.  They have a lot of plans and really want to connect with the locals’ scene.  I was curious about the rooms at the hotel, so she got a key and showed us one on the first floor. 
 

Outside all the rooms are comfortable lounge chairs and the requisite stump table.  The rooms were very nice inside.  They included a wall with natural wood paneling, a lamp with a natural wood base and I’m sure there was a stump table in there as well.  The room had flat screen TV, free Wi-Fi , nice bedding and two complimentary bath robes.  The room was very comfortable and not your typical hotel room.
 

Andrea took us back to the pool area and showed us the tree which inspired the design of the hotel. One of the plaster squirrels was frisking on the stump table and we were told her name is Simone and she is the hotel mascot.  There are cabanas that you can rent for groups and they are thinking of opening up the pool to locals for a $20.00 a day, during the summer.  So, if you want a quick escape to lounge poolside, this could be your place.

Overall – I was impressed with Solaire – I like that happy hour goes until 7:00 Sunday through Thursday, the service was excellent and attentive, the food and drinks were delicious at reasonable prices and the ambience was unique and entertaining.  All they need is their liquor license. I left feeling  the intoxicating buzz of a new happy hour discovery.   I will definitely be back to try the other appetizer offerings and can’t wait ‘til they have a full bar.  I say check it out!!

Julie’s Rating:  4.5 shots!

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 Jo's Review:

The Solaire Restaurant & Bar is located in the new exquisite Hotel Paradox  off of Ocean Ave., the main strip into town from highway 17. A lot of detail has gone into putting this hotel, restaurant & bar together.  The whole theme of the building is based on a  tree that is located near the pool area. When you walk into the lobby  the front desk is a large tree trunk, very stunning . As you walk through to the restaurant you pass a beautiful glass panel enclosure of the redwood forest, a conference room by the looks, it has a very warm and calm feeling to it.  The restaurant and bar area has a hostess station also made up of a tree trunk and a long flowing sculpture of tree branches making waves as it moves down the walk way to the pool area.  

I was clicking pictures left and right and it seemed like a very natural thing to do there because all of the staff would just smile at me and if they caught my attention explain about the different sculptures and art work, and the idea behind it. All of the staff were very friendly and attentive.  While I waited for Julie to arrive, the bartender was asking me what I wanted. I hadn't even looked a t the menu yet so he offered water which I gladly accepted. 

They are still waiting on their full liquor license so for now they have a few specialty cocktails, beer and wine.  The cocktails are made with a Soju drink, a type of Korean sake. Julie started with the Santa Cruz 75. This drink was served in a champagne glass, I didn't taste it but Julie seemed to like it. I had the house Cabernet sauvignon, a generous pour which is always appreciated when ordering wine. I hate those giant glasses of wine with a sip of wine in them. Food wise they had a great selection.  We went for the chicken wings that had 3 different sauces to choose from. I chose the hot one (I happen to be a connoisseur of chicken wings being an east coast girl brought up close to Buffalo NY), so I have high standards when it comes to chicken wings. 

We also ordered the Won Ton Prawns and the fired Calamari. The wings were great, very tasty, they had a nice crunch and were juicy inside. The sauce was hot , but not too hot, I wish it had come with some blue cheese or ranch to dip with and you really need a celery stalk or 2 for garnish. The fried prawns were o.k. but it had too much breading on it and not enough flavor. The calamari was very good with both the tubes and tentacles . A citric aioli was served with the calamari that Julie just went crazy for and it was good, but I prefer the standard cocktail sauce for my calamari, also yummy. The owner suggested the chipotle sauce with the calamari which we tried.  It was good, had a nice little kick to it.

We munched and laughed with big smiles on our faces and after another glass of wine for me and the Paradox Cosmopolitan for Julie, we were happy with a nice buzz going on. Julie's drink came in a  martini glass with a twist.  It was nice, Julie prefers a sweeter drink but I liked that fact that it wasn't that sweet.

All in all it was a very nice happy hour.  The bar is next to the pool and part of the bar extends outside so you could sit out there and enjoy happy hour as well.  They had an event going on at the time so we couldn't sit there this time but next time ( and there will definitely be a next time). The food was tasty, the drinks good and the atmosphere warm and inviting. I look forward to visiting the Solaire Restaurant & Bar again when they have their full liquor license (should be around July) to see what fancy drink cocktails they will come up with.

Jo's rating 4 shots!