The Hayward Ranch, Hayward, CA

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Roundup of Bay Area old west style roadhouses – part two of five.

A couple of months ago Le Continental visited Rancho Nicasio as part one of my roundup of old western steakhouses in the Bay Area. Today we’re hitchin’ up the horse and riding to the Hayward Ranch in Hayward in the East Bay. Built in 1948 using wood from an old railroad trestle near Sacramento, and thankfully it hasn’t changed much. At one time the original owners, Leonard and Adele Perillo, had 27 Ranch steakhouses in their East Bay / Tri-Valley (Dublin, Pleasanton, Livermore) chain. Now this is the only one left. In 1999 it was purchased by the current owner, Chris Sarantakis, who vowed “I’m not going to change it, I’m going to make it better”.

The big sign is visible from a long way down the road

The restaurant is in a long, low, ranch style building with a rustic interior of walls made from the trestle wood covered with western bric-à-brac, framed pictures, and other clutter (but no cheap beer advertisements or strings of mini white lights – hooray!), and simple old wooden tables and booths.

The menu is typical of old western steakhouse fare and the prices are very reasonable. At dinner you can get a steak dinner with soup or salad, potato or pasta, and vegetable for around $20 or less. They have a bargain early bird menu from 4:00-6:00pm, and they serve breakfast and lunch, too.

I’ve had a steak there many times and have been quite pleased with them, but this time I took the waiter’s recommendation and tried the fried chicken. It was very good: tender and not dried out, with a crispy skin. Not the best fried chicken I’ve had in the Bay Area (and definitely not comparable to the fried chicken I’ve had in the Southern U.S.), but it was a good choice.

fried chicken dinner

A couple of dining companions had steaks: one had the filet mignon and another had a rib-eye. They both said they were tasty and tender.

filet mignon with Bearnaise sauce and sautéed mushrooms

We had some Manhattans with Bulleit rye and they were made perfectly as requested (stirred, not shaken). The service was excellent. Our young waiter was on top of everything and very friendly and affable. For dessert I had the homemade cherry cobbler and it was sooooo good! Perfect amount of fruit, not too thick and gummy, and a crunchy crust. YUM! Don’t skip dessert here!

cherry cobbler

Gorgeous neon sign with cocktail on one side and royal cow on the other.

The Hayward Ranch
22877 Mission Blvd., Hayward, Ca 94541
(510) 537-5522
open 7am – 10pm Monday – Saturday, closed Sundays, bar open until 11pm

Dan Tana’s, West Hollywood, CA

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I finally made it to this historic Italian restaurant that has been on my “to visit” list for a long time. It’s been open since 1964, and remains popular to this day, so I wasn’t too worried about it closing soon. I went with a friend who lives in Los Angeles and we were somewhat surprised that a lot of families were dining there on a Saturday night. Many of the dishes on their extensive menu are named after famous people so they must frequent the place. The proprietor, Dan Tana, has lived a fascinating life as a soccer (football) player in Yugoslavia, an actor (he played a maître d’hôtel in the Peter Gunn episode “The Dummy” in 1960, and was in a 2011 movie called “Coriolanus”), a nightclub owner (he ran the Peppermint West in the early 60s), a restaurateur, and as chairman of both English and Yugoslav football clubs!

The restaurant is decorated in classic Italian-American style, with red checked tablecloths and hanging Chianti bottles, and the walls are covered with art, photos of famous people with Dan Tana, sports stuff, and movie posters. A pretty casual atmosphere (get dressed up or don’t), but the waiters sport bow ties and red or black jackets for that touch of class that I always appreciate.

The menu is overwhelming! Veal and chicken is prepared in 10 different ways! I had the chicken Vesuvius, Brian Kennedy: very tender chicken pieces cooked in white wine, garlic, and lemon, and it was delicious! I had it with spaghetti on the side.

Chicken Vesuvius, Brain Kennedy

My friend had the chicken Florentine, Bob O’Lena (?).

Chicken Florentine, Bob O'Lena

The restaurant is very expensive, as you can see from the menu. But whether you want to splurge in a historic place or just get some spaghetti and meatballs, and maybe see a celebrity, Dan Tana’s is worth a visit! And they are open with a full menu until 1:30am every night!

Dan Tana’s
9071 Santa Monica Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90069
310-275-9444
Open 5pm-1:30am daily

Harry’s New York Bar, Paris, France

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Not a destination for inventive mixology, but this bar has a lot of history. Originally opened as New York Bar in 1911 and taken over by Scots bartender Harry MacElhone in 1923, when it became Harry’s New York Bar. It was a favorite hangout of American expats and celebrities, including Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sinclair Lewis, Coco Chanel, Rita Hayworth, and Humphrey Bogart. Cocktails invented at Harry’s include the Bloody Mary, the French 75 (allegedly, in 1915, before it was Harry’s), the Sidecar, and the Monkey Gland, and possibly the White Lady, though Savoy’s in London claims it was invented there. George Gershwin composed “An American in Paris” at the piano at Harry’s. “Sank Roo Doe Noo” on the sign is a phonetic spelling of Harry’s address (5 Rue Daunou)..

Harry’s New York Bar
5 Rue Daunou 75002 Paris, France
Phone: +33 1 42 61 71 14
Hours: Sunday-Thursday 12pm-2am, Friday-Saturday 12pm-3am

Postcard Panorama

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The Paul Cummins Gay 90s

“A Saloon Created For The Carriage Trade”

  • Professors of the Piano and Banjo
  • Beauteous Feminine Cupbearers
  • Gleaming Fire Pole
  • Amazing Oil Paintings
  • Luxurious. Salubrious. Pulchritudinous.
  • Home of the Biggest Drink in the West
  • Greatest Guest Participation Sing Along Nightly

157 North La Cienega, Beverly Hills, California

- from The Jab’s collection

L’Escargot Montorgueil, Paris, France

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I recently spent a nice vacation on the European continent, which explains my lack of posts lately (I could have posted while traveling, but data rates and vacation laziness interfered).

My first day in Paris (my first time in the lovely city) I made a point of having lunch at L’Escargot Montorgueil, on a friend’s recommendation, at its current location in the 1st arrondissement (Les Halles area) since 1875 (according to Paris Historic Monuments Registry, though it started as a shop selling escargots and shellfish in 1832).

The beautiful interior was mostly decorated (as it exists now) in 1900.

I started with their signature escargots with butter, garlic and parsley, which they invented in 1837 and haven’t changed since (watch video), and a somewhat dry, fruity white wine (I never had a mediocre glass of wine in Paris). Magnifique!

For my main course I chose the pork chop. Seriously, it was the best tasting pork chop I have ever had (a close second was the barbecued pork chop at Kreuz Market in Lockhart, Texas), a bone-in rib chop perfectly cooked to a pinkish medium doneness (just look at that brown crust in my slightly blurry photo). I enjoyed a glass of rosé with my pork (often a good choice in France, from what I’ve read). The French are great at taking a simple dish and making it perfect.

The service was exceptional, the atmosphere lovely, and the food was superb. The prices are pretty high but during lunch they have a prix fixe menu (as do most Parisian restaurants) at 35 euros for 2 courses (entrée + main or main + dessert) or 45 euros for 3 courses (entrée + main + dessert) – wine is extra. Since I had bought some French pastries earlier I skipped dessert and had some of those.

Bon Appétit!

L’Escargot Montorgueil
38 Rue Montorgueil, 75001 Paris, France
Telephone: 01 42 36 83 51
Open daily 12 pm – 11:30 pm

Postcard Panorama

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Still open for business!

http://www.thehobnob.com/

Rancho Nicasio, Nicasio, CA

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Roundup of Bay Area old west style roadhouses – part one of five.

We are real lucky in the San Francisco Bay Area because we have five (perhaps more) old western style roadhouses/restaurants. That’s more than in any town in Texas that I know of! In fact, there may be more here than in any other city in the U.S. I challenge my readers to name another city with five vintage western style restaurants!

In the countryside of West Marin County, California, there is a ranching village that looks frozen in the 19th century – Nicasio, population 96 (2010 US Census). In the town there is a church dating to 1867, a one-room schoolhouse from 1871, a town square with a baseball diamond, and Rancho Nicasio saloon and restaurant, built in 1941 on the spot where the Hotel Nicasio (1867) burned to the ground in 1940. The restaurant is in a ranch style building along with a general store and post office.

The bar is filled with taxidermy, old photos of the Nicasio area, and a wagon-wheel chandelier hangs from the ceiling. You can eat in the bar if you prefer, or to avoid a band cover (or a band you don’t care for).

The dining room is a large with many wooden tables and a big wooden dance floor and stage, where bands play most weekend nights (Fri-Sun) starting around 8:00pm (the cover charge varies – sometimes there is no cover and the band passes the bucket) . The best way to experience the Rancho is to book a table at around 6:00-7:00pm so you can have dinner before the show, preferably seeing a country and western band like local western swing acts The West Coast Ramblers or the Lone Star Retrobates or Los Angeles act Big Sandy & His Fly-Right Boys (all personal favorites and highly recommended!).

The West Coast Ramblers

Allow plenty of time to get there because the roads are windy and treacherous and it’s nice to have a stroll around the village before dinner (if you arrive before dark). The food is good. On my recent visit I enjoyed the excellent lamb medallions (and a chilled iceberg wedge salad), but the steaks and the pork chop are also good choices. On summer weekends starting Memorial Day weekend they have barbeques out back with live music. The fog often rolls in during the late afternoon so bring a jacket.

Polish up your steppin’-out boots, put your Stetson on, and head out to the Rancho for a wild time!

Rancho Nicasio
1 Old Rancheria Road, Nicasio, CA 94946
(415) 662-2219
Open for lunch Mon-Fri 11:30am-3:00pm, Sat-Sun 11:00am-3:00pm
Dinner Sun-Th 5:00pm-9:00pm, Fri-Sat 5:00pm-10:00pm

The Bear Pit, Mission Hills, CA

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Recently I was watching the 1961 comedy Bachelor In Paradise, starring Bob Hope as an international playboy writer (A.J.Niles) who moves in to a suburban house in the San Fernando Valley near Los Angeles to write a book about how Americans live. It’s a pretty good movie and it’s particularly fun to watch for the scenes in mid-century suburbia (especially the house interiors), filmed on location in Woodland Hills and the around Los Angeles. In one scene Niles goes to a barbecue restaurant called The Pig Pit, that was in a great mid-century modern style. Well, I don’t know if that place was a studio invention, but in the San Fernando Valley there is a great little BBQ joint called The Bear Pit Bar-B-Q that has been open since the late 1940s. The food is good, the decor has original elements like wagon wheel lamps and old beer signs, and the neon sign is pretty amazing, with working animated neon arrows. Do you think The Bear Pit inspired the movie version? The next time you’re heading along the I-5 why don’t you take a quick detour to The Bear Pit and think about it over some BBQ ribs?

A.J. Niles and realtor Rosemary Howard (played by Lana Turner) visit a tiki bar in the movie. I don’t know if the bar was made for the movie or if the scene was shot in an existing tiki bar. Here’s the movie trailer with part of the tiki bar scene. How do you like those drink garnishes? Practically a jungle in a glass!

The Bear Pit
10825 Sepulveda Boulevard, Mission Hills, CA 91345
(818) 365-2509
Open Sun-Thurs 11:30am-9pm, Fri-Sat 11:30am-10pm

The Hitching Post, Casmalia, CA

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The Hitching Post in Casmalia is the last stop on our tour of historic Santa Maria style barbecue restaurants. (I previously covered Jocko’s in Nipomo and the Far Western Tavern in Guadalupe, which is due to move to a new location soon [now due to move in the fall, but subject to change]). Around the turn of the century Casmalia was a thriving town of 1500 people, mostly ranchers and oil field workers and their families. The railroad ran through town to a terminal on the coast called Port Petrol, and the Casmalia Hotel was the center of town activity. In 1944, after the railroad line was closed, the owners of the hotel demolished the hotel rooms, and reopened the old Italian restaurant as a steakhouse called the Hitching Post. In 1952 the Ostini brothers, Frank and Victor, bought it and it’s still in the same family to this day.

The interior at the Hitching Post is nothing fancy. It’s basically a large room with some western art, artifacts, and old photos on the walls (there was a fire in 1988 so everything inside was redone not too long ago). But the thing that sets it apart from other barbecue joints in the Santa Maria area is its indoor oak pit under glass (fired with local red oak of course).

Dinners are pretty expensive at the Hitching Post but they do come with relish tray, shrimp cocktail or fruit cocktail, salad, potato or grilled vegetables, garlic bread, coffee or tea, and ice cream. I was surprised to find that pinquito beans and salsa are not served with the steaks, there was no tri tip on the menu, and the steaks were not covered with dry rub before cooking. So it seems that the Hitching Post is not exactly a Santa Maria style barbecue place in the strict sense, though they do cook the steaks over local oak. However, the Hitching Post opened before Jocko’s or the Far Western Tavern, so perhaps they have always been a classic steakhouse and have never changed their menu (instead of a place serving traditional Santa Maria style cookout meat on a skewer with the accompanying dishes). Who really cares anyway, because the steaks are good! My 22 oz. T-bone (aka porterhouse) was perfectly cooked and very tender and juicy. A great steak – a New York and filet steak in one – and worth it at $44 (with all the sides). They also offer local favorite top sirloin, as well as ribeye, New York and filet (in two or three sizes each). After two steaks in two days I ordered the grilled veggies as my side, but the restaurant claims the Los Angeles Times said their French fries are the best in Southern California, so you may want to get some with your steak.

There is another Hitching Post location in Buellton, which opened in 1986. Easier to get to from U.S. Highway 101 than the Casmalia location, but not as charming.

The Hitching Post
3325 Point Sal Rd  Casmalia, CA 93429
(805) 937-6151
Open Mon-Sat 4:30pm-9:30pm; Sun 4pm-9pm


406 East Highway 246  Buellton, CA 93427
(805) 688-0676
Open daily 4pm-9:30pm; dinners served starting at 5pm daily