“Dining scene” is a handy phrase. It is tossed around casually by those promoting local tourism, by restaurateurs, food writers and people in routine conversation about the pluses and minuses of a city. Replace “dining” with “food,” “restaurant” or “nightlife” and it means the same thing. But what does it mean, exactly? “I don’t even know,” says Anna Marie Bayonito, chef at Sticks in Pebble Beach. The veteran chef is onto something. Dining scene is also a nebulous expression, one that references avoid. Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary, for instance, draws a blank. Seek more online and you’ll be able to sketch together a vague definition—the perceived quality of the dining experience, perhaps. For the most part, the phrase comes with attachments that are hardly clarifying, such as “vibrant dining scene,” “trendy dining scene” or “Old World dining scene.” Yet somehow this manages to convey a message. The phrase creates a context that allows us to fill in the details, whatever we might consider those to be. “You can feel it,” Bayonito explains. “It’s the way they are doing things, the vibe of the location.” She’s right. And that’s why the remark is so elusive. There are many layers to a dining scene, and any of those may be considered as a draw by one group or a reason to stay away by another. Staking a place out as “trendy” will attract hipsters but put off old misers. Still, the phrase begs for some form of annotation. In her role as marketing and branding director with Carmel restaurants Pangaea Grill and Sur, Ashley Wolff is well placed to understand the phrase and its nuances. She describes a dining scene as something closer to a mixed-use development, with scenes within the scene. “A new wave [of restaurateurs] comes in and creates sleek dining experiences,” Wolff says. These occupy trendy or upscale spaces, but they are only part of the whole. “You also have the nostalgic places.” So new concepts like Spotted Duck in Pacific Grove need venerable restaurants like Cannery Row’s The Whaling Station and Sardine Factory nearby. Or as Wolff puts it, “What does Alfredo’s bring [to the scene]?” The dark, day-drinking haven unchanged—apart from swabbing the soot-stained walls from indoor smoking days—for 60-plus years is a Monterey favorite. Alfredo’s Cantina, in this scenario, exists as a reminder, a font of familiarity, a place one can count on. 26 The Best of Monterey Bay ® EAT + DRINK 2024-2025 Scene It A common expression is often used to define dining in a location, but does it really mean anything? By Dave Faries Spotted Duck scene.indd 1 4/16/24 5:39 PM
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjAzNjQ1NQ==