South Bay restaurants pivot for Thanksgiving in pandemic
Santa Clara County’s move back into the purple tier may have forced some local eateries to change their Thanksgiving plans, but Los Gatos restaurants stood ready to meet this Covid-cramped holiday head on.
The Bywater was still finalizing its Thanksgiving takeout menu at press time, but it will likely be a Cajun-rubbed turkey breast and thigh with crawfish stuffing, garlic gravy, pork fat mashers and rolls. General maanger Andrew Burnham says they will have flights of higher-end spirits like Pappy Van Winkle, plus cocktail packages like French 75, Old-fashioneds and Manhattans. And of course, there will be Champagne and wine packs. https://www. thebywaterca.com
Flights is taking orders for individually bagged Thanksgiving meals for pickup, 1-7 p.m. These meals include a starter salad, fresh Hawaiian roll with butter, traditional roast turkey, house-made gravy, creamy mashed potatoes, cranberry jam, roasted Brussels sprouts and a slice of pumpkin pie for $40 per adult and $20 per child. https:// ca.flightsrestaurants.com
For options to the traditional holiday fowl, The Palms is offering Korean kalbi ribs, fried rice, coconut Pacific prawns and Big Eye Ahi tuna for takeout. They are also delivering via Uber Eats. They’ll be open on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, but closed on Thanksgiving day. Call 408402-3811 or order online.
The Pastaria has lots of great to-go options for pick-up on Thanksgiving morning, 9-11 a.m. Choices include “take ’n’ bake” artichoke dip with ciabatta bread, and a pumpkin ravioli kit to make at home. These yummy pillows of pumpkin are accompanied by a browned butter and sage sauce with dried cranberries and walnuts. For dessert, there’s pumpkin cheesecake with amaretti cookie crust, available in three sizes, or apple spice cupcakes with caramel buttercream, caramel drizzle and fall sprinkles, at $18 for half-dozen and $33 for a dozen. To order, call 408-399-3477, or visit https://www.thepastaria.com
Restaurants in Los Gatos closed on Thanksgiving include Luigi’s Restaurant at Campo Di Bocce, Double D’s, Eleven College Ave, Forbes Mill, Lexington House, Southern Kitchen, Steamer’s, The Palms, Wine Cellar and Oak and Rye.
Wine and dine
While holiday stressors are different this year than most — how to see those near and dear to you as opposed to how to get through dinner with certain family members — local wineries still have offerings to take the edge off.
Prolific Vines, on Happy Acres Road, is a tiny production vineyard, perched on a 35-degree southwest facing slope in the eastern hills of town. Owners Julie and Albert Kurkchubasche make just one wine a year—a 100% cabernet sauvignon that is well-crafted by winemaker Denis Hoey, who some may know from his label, Odonata. While the vineyard is not open to the public, club members get to visit yearly to pick up their allocations. https://www.prolificvines.com
Michael and Abbie Lecomte, owners of Oak Tree Winery in San Jose, don’t have a vineyard, preferring to source instead. They offer a 2019 sauvignon blanc, plus three reds, grown in Alexander Valley and made by Niklas Zorn, who has been assistant winemaker at Guglielmo for five years. They make it easy to send a “Gratitude Gram” to someone dear. Shipping to 40 states, with free local delivery. Order at https://oaktreewinery.com/gratitude-gram.