••• 805 Living has an item about High on the Hog Catering‘s monthly bacon offerings: “Santa Ynez Valley natives and married chefs Brett and Amber Stephen cure and smoke one or two special flavors for in-the-know aficionados.”
••• “Less than one month after presenting its latest funding idea to the county supervisors, the Santa Barbara County Vintners Association announced a retooled assessment model this week, proposing to add a one percent fee to all in-state sales for Santa Barbara County wineries. Since that amount is tied to the California sales tax, it is a much easier metric to track than the previously proposed assessment of 1.5 percent of all tasting-room sales. In addition to tasting-room sales, the new one percent fee would include all wine-club sales to California residents.” —Independent
••• Can’t stop, won’t stop: Having just opened their fourth establishment, the Venus in Furs natural wine bar, Misty Orman and Brandon Ristaino of The Good Lion, Test Pilot, and Shaker Mill break ground next week on their fifth one, Bank of Italy, in the 1924 Ventura landmark. They’re shooting for December 1. Photo by Rob Tran.
••• Chef Justin West, most known for his time at Julienne, is helping Noemi take its Roman pizza to the next level. Co-owner Aymiee Ricks says we can expect more seasonal toppings.
••• You may recall that Flying Embers, makers of hard kombucha, is partnering with Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. for a “joint taproom experience” at the latter’s Funk Zone bar. It’s scheduled to open today, September 18. “Both local Central Coast brands look to not only serve existing brands available to the public, but to also create new and inventive liquids right there on site,” says the release.
••• Acme Hospitality is keeping mum about its plans for Paradise Cafe, but there’s clearly a lot of interior work going on. The door to the dining room was open yesterday, so I peeked in. And they’re evidently trying to decide which shade of gray to paint the exterior.
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The grey for Paradise is awful. Hope they change their minds. Grey is a drab and trendy color that doesn’t fit the building or the area. Abused and banal, greys are the ‘70s browns of the 2010s. It’s 2020. Let’s leave them in the past.