Tap Room’s meatloaf is equally satisfying—husky and rich, with a sweet tang from the glaze, yet surprisingly delicate. It comes dressed with a genteel mushroom gravy and plated alongside mashed potatoes and vegetables, all very fulfilling in a hit-the-spot kind of way. But Cassidy notes that nostalgia comes with a risk, particularly with memories such as meatloaf. To present it in a style that deviates from a childhood memory is to invite disappointment—and those childhood memories vary from guest to guest. For some, the best version is a blend of different ground meats. Others want it wrapped in bacon. There are people who cling to certain fillers, from shorn white bread pieces to oatmeal. In their cookbook A Meatloaf in Every Oven: Two Chatty Cooks, One Iconic Dish and Dozens of Recipes, Frank Bruni and Jennifer Steinhauer note the two tendencies of meatloaf presentation. While the dish became a staple at diners, they wrote, “it never made inroads like that into upscale restaurants, but every now and then, an ambitious chef will sneak it onto his or her menu, either presenting it in some exalted form or keeping it simple and serving it as an act of nostalgia.” Some menus lean toward simplicity. For instance, The Terrace Lounge in Pebble Beach features chicken tenders. Sure, the meat is brined in buttermilk and the finished tenders served with a hot honey aioli, but they are reminiscent of the children’s favorite. When Chef Brandon Bollenbacher reimagined the lunch lineup at Edgar’s Restaurant at the luxurious The Quail resort in Carmel Valley, he added a hot dog and nachos, both in recognizable form. On the other hand, The Hay in Pebble Beach features a rustic presentation—nachos spilled from a tin can— that can come with lobster. The culinary environment is changing. Food writer John Koch observed that in uncertain times, diners turn to things familiar. Yet the past 40 years of food programs, celebrity chefs, culinary exploration and fusion have created a culture looking for new twists. “Elevated comfort food hits both notes,” Koch noted. Of course, refinement is a broad concept. Molly Coen, pastry chef at Valley Kitchen at Carmel Valley Ranch (and a contestant on Food Network’s The Ultimate Baking Championship) transforms the cheesecake by presentation. Plated invitingly—crust up, so a dark chocolate hue drapes over the white china, with a golden drizzle of honey and a tuft of cream—it falls into the too-pretty-to-eat category, for a second or so. This is artistry applied to a simple, fulfilling dessert—Coen’s understanding of quality ingredients and technique, set to the comforting memories of treats brought to a family gathering. And one would be pressed to find better. “It’s fun to look at, fun to eat,” Coen observes. “But it’s still just a cheesecake.” The specifics of comfort food can be elusive. Dishes encompassed by the term vary from culture to culture, generation to generation, even region to region. Grits, for example, are the song of the south, but can be difficult to find in Monterey County. At Seventh & Dolores Steakhouse, however, Chef Raymundo Jimenez Aquino considers the dish of humble origins the perfect accompaniment for a thick—and expensive—cut of prime steak. With cream, butter and white cheddar cheese, the corn mush that was fodder for ragged sharecroppers can be sublime. The term itself came into vogue during the 1960s (with some food writers crediting actor Liza Minelli for making it popular). Yet the concept has been around far longer, as a passage from Miguel de Cervantes’ 1615 classic Don Quixote attests: “They did not, however, omit to visit his niece and housekeeper, and charge them to be careful to treat him with attention, and give him comforting things to eat, 38 THE BEST OF MONTEREY BAY ® EAT + DRINK 2026-2027 Nora’s
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