EAT: From The Abbey to The Squeeze, we’re exploring all sorts of tasty eateries on Stockton’s Miracle Mile and beyond.
It doesn’t matter what draws you to Stockton’s sunny streets. Whether you’re Delta bound, wine-country set, or simply headed downtown for a concert or game, you’ll need nourishment.
Stockton’s dining scene has taken off in recent years. Here’s just a sampling to whet your appetite, whether you’re craving burgers, brews or gigantic pork chops.
Squeeze Burger
With its corrugated metal siding out front, Edison lights over the bar, industrial chairs and distressed wood paneling, The Squeeze is the very picture of a modern, rustic-chic gastropub. And who are we to argue with a cheese-skirted burger?
This burger joint, which began as The Squeeze Inn in Sacramento, has since expanded to Galt and beyond, catching the attention of Travel Channel’s “Food Paradise” and the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” producers. When Guy Fieri says he’s “never seen anything like this,” you know it’s unusual.
With a slight name variation, this yearold Stockton venture adds 22 beer taps and a wine list to the burger offerings. And yes, the cheese skirt — an enormous square of crispy, melted cheese that envelops the burger and extends several inches onto the metal serving tray that serves as a plate — is indeed impressive. It’s also a little hard to eat, without tearing off strips as a starter of sorts — an appetizer to follow your first appetizer of deep-fried asparagus, zucchini or pickles ($6-$8).
Don’t miss: Order up a 1⁄3-pound Squeeze ($9.50) — you can get it without a cheese skirt for $8, but why would you do that? — or a ¼-pound Lil Squeeze ($9). The burgers come with fries or a side salad. For a little more, you can add such burger embellishments as bacon, avocado, mushrooms and pineapple. For more daring diners, a bottle of Monroy’s Original Hot Sauce, a Stockton-made mangohabanero blend whose sweet heat will burn a hole through your tongue, sits on nearly every table.
Details: Open daily in Lincoln Center at 856 W. Benjamin Holt Drive, Stockton; www. squeezeburger.com.
The Abbey, a Trappist pub
We can’t verify the objective miraculousness of Stockton’s Miracle Mile, but this stretch of Pacific Avenue is home to a happy array of cafes, antique shops and this cozy pub. Grab a seat at one of the tall tables and peruse The Abbey’s Commandments, which include “Thou shalt order from the bar,” “Thou shalt, at a minimum, be 21 after 10 p.m.” and “Thou shalt nudge over to make room for thy neighbor.” Then, in keeping with the commandments, belly up to the bar and order up.
The Abbey does burgers ($12), fish and chips ($12) and a grilled Lockford sausage sampler ($14.50), but it’s the beer that’s the big draw here. Among the enticements available by the bottle or on tap: a Hop Hunter IPA ($7) and a King Harbor Swirly ($7) — or, if you’re not hoppily inclined, a crisp Ace Joker Cider ($5.50). Open Tuesday-Sunday at 2353 Pacific Ave., Stockton; www.abbeystockton.com.
Midtown Creperie & Cafe
We’re not sure what we love more, this creperie’s tasty New Orleans-inspired brunch fare or its charming Parisian sidewalk murals. The place is adorable. And we are helpless around beignets.
Mathew and Melissa Grizzle — and exec chef Michael Adams — have brought all their love of NOLA cuisine to bear here with Cafe Du Monde chicory coffee, beignets and crepes named after New Orleans neighborhoods and themes.
The savory Big Easy ($10.49) tucks chicken, fresh spinach and a chardonnay-spiked sauce inside a freshly made classic, buckwheat or gluten-free crepe. Smoked salmon and scrambled eggs adorn a Seventh Ward crepe ($10.99). And, just like in NOLA itself, it’s best not to wear black when biting into the beignets ($2.99), lest you wear a cascade of powdered sugar for the rest of the day.
Open daily for breakfast and lunch at 2319 Pacific Ave., Stockton; midtowncreperie.com.
Midgley’s Public House
If you’re a “Top Chef” fan, you may remember the brash Michael Midgley, who made it all the way to the top six in Season 2. Since then, he has appeared on Food Network’s “Cutthroat Kitchen” and as a judge on “Top Chef Masters.” Midgley may have been felled by “Top Chef” and its always-challenging “restaurant wars” a decade ago, but his 2-year-old restaurant in Lincoln Center runs like clockwork.
The interior brings a sleek, steakhouse vibe with dark wood, stonework and a wellappointed bar. But those outdoor tables, lit by strands of cafe lights, are irresistible on a warm Stockton night. In fact, the entire shopping center, with its brick walks, market umbrellas and patio furniture, is beguiling.
This is a spendy place (entrees run $24 to $70) with a loyal following, although we found that some of the most popular dishes — the cream cheese-filled asparagus cigars ($10), for example, and maple-bacon bread pudding ($8) made with Krispy Kreme doughnuts — may not be as, er, appreciated by out-of-towners.
But the Sazeracs ($9) are spot on, and the grilled Caesar salad ($9, or $18 with grilled shrimp) is terrific. And the giant, towering, double-cut pork chop ($32) with a bourbonbarbecue glaze and apple-carrot chutney is sensational. There’s a $6 fee for split entrees, but that particular dish, which is large enough to feed two, is logistically un-split-able. You’ll understand when you see it.
Details: Open for lunch and dinner daily at 296 Lincoln Center, Stockton; www.midgleyspublichouse.com.
Mile Wine Company
Since its opening in 2013, this wine bar has drawn a happy following. It’s owned by sommelier Paul Marsh, who oversaw the massive wine cellar at Sacramento’s Firehouse Restaurant for five years before opening this venture in a narrow, exposed brick, industrialchic space on Miracle Mile. There’s occasional live music — the stage sports a very cool deconstructed piano — a long bar and small two-tops tucked along a long wall. Plus Marsh hosts winemaker dinners and a weekly sommelier “boot camp” ($20).
Don’t miss: The kitchen does a brisk business in flatbreads, panini and tempting little noshes — be sure to try the deviled eggs topped with bacon jam ($7), which tastes just as good as that sounds. The wine list includes several dozen wines by the glass, including a St. Sophia zin ($7), which is one of just a handful of Lodi wines offered here, although the appellation is only a few miles away. Details: Open Monday-Saturday at 2113 Pacific Ave., Stockton; milewinecompany.com.
Market Tavern
This 3-year-old market and seasonal tavern offers an enormous, crowd-pleasing menu. The restaurant is large and bustling, but wallto-wall carpeting helps dampen the sound. It’s a place with universal appeal, suitable for post-work drinks or celebratory family gatherings. The spirits lineup includes a nice variety of California wines — three out of the nine reds are from Lodi — plus an impressive whiskey menu and four riffs on the Moscow Mule theme. And the dinner menu does a nice job balancing familiar fare with more interesting twists — furikake fries with Meyer lemon aioli, for example.
Don’t miss: We cannot resist the allure of a wood-fired oven and this one turns out eight types of pizza, including housemade sausage with escarole ($15.50) and prosciutto with ricotta and wild arugula ($16), as well as pepperoni and margherita. Details: Open daily for lunch and dinner, as well as weekend brunch at 236 Lincoln Center, Stockton; www.markettavernstk.com.