Author Archive | Camilla M. Mann

June 12, 2018 – A few years ago, when I spoke to Fabrice Rondia, he talked about “three Belgian guys who want to share the beer culture of Belgium with Monterey.” Rondia—along with Damien Georis and Jonathan Geisler—wanted to create a beer tasting room called Belgian Pacific and a brewery, where visitors would learn about, experience, and appreciate the quality of Belgian brews.

Fast forward three years and the project has progressed and evolved. There are now three phases. A coffee shop set to open in September, the beer tasting room, which will follow later this year, and the brewery, where they will eventually make Leopold 7 beer currently being imported from Belgium

Rondia is now living on the property at 419 Wave Street, just above Cannery Row, where you … Read More

January 9, 2018 – Restaurant 1833 has been closed since Thanksgiving. And, though there is no date set yet for its reopening, the anticipation is palpable. As new owner Constance Laub says, “It’s just so hard waiting.”

The Stokes Adobe first opened as a restaurant in 1950, but its history reaches back to its namesake year – 1833 – when Hoge and Benjamin Day developed the property for Ambrose Tomlinson. James Stokes, a British sailor turned pharmacist, purchased the property from Tomlinson and expanded the structure, adding seven more rooms and a second story. Years later Gallatin Powers acquired the property and opened the first restaurant in the adobe, Gallatin’s. In its heyday Gallatin’s attracted politicians of note as well as Frank Sinatra and the glamorous decadence of Hollywood stars … Read More

December 5, 2017 – When Tanja Roos departs MEarth in February 2018, she’ll be the last of the founding generation to leave.

Roos came to the 10-acre Hilton Bialek Habitat property in 2003 as an intern to work with Craig Hohenberger, who had received approval to use an abandoned Christmas tree farm adjacent to Carmel Middle School for the Habitat, and Ellen Fondiler, who was making preparations for the organic garden. Roos quickly became integral to the Habitat and co-founded MEarth (pronounced Me-earth), a separate not-for-profit organization dedicated to educating and inspiring kids to appreciate the natural world through experience-based learning at the Habitat. The organization’s values mirror Roos’ passions: sustainability, education, stewardship, community, integrity, and leadership.

“I have an unrelenting need to do good in the world,” Roos says. … Read More

November 28, 2017 – The ribbon cutting ceremony has been announced and—if you peek through the windows—there’s already glassware on the table! Staff training is underway and it appears the Carmel Valley Chophouse is just about ready open. Owners say they hope to get final permits by Saturday, when they’ve scheduled the ribbon-cutting for 2-4pm.

Chef Fabrice Roux and Jennifer Roux, the husband-wife team behind Roux, are opening their second Carmel Valley restaurant in the space on Center Street that was previously occupied by Lokal Restaurant. The idea behind the Carmel Valley Chophouse is a tribute to the Valley and its community. Imagine a salt of the earth steakhouse infused with innovation that comes from featuring locally-grown produce.

A native of Laon in northern France near the Champagne region, chef Fabrice began his culinary career … Read More