An Evening That Proved “What Grows Together Goes Together”

The Santa Barbara Independent recaps our five-course dinner at La Paloma — and we’re still thinking about it.

Last week, we had the pleasure of sitting down with Chef John Parker and a room full of kindred spirits at La Paloma for an evening we’ll be talking about for a while. The Santa Barbara Independent was there too, and their recap says it better than we could ourselves.

The premise was simple: pair the bounty of the Central Coast with wines that come from the same land. What followed was a five-course love letter to the region — from a chilled Grenache to open (yes, really) to Blanc de Blancs bubbles alongside a citrus tart to close, with some serious highlights in between.

A few moments the Indy singled out: our 2022 Chardonnay, Zotovich Vineyard earned the description “Japanese-style” for its zingy, bright acidity — served alongside Tutti Frutti sugar snap peas and crispy guanciale, it apparently “screamed spring.” The foot-stomped 2022 Pinot Noir, Bentrock Vineyard — poured alongside a grilled oyster mushroom skewer — was called the reviewer’s favorite wine of the night, from what Matt described as “one of the rock star A plus vineyards of our area.” And the 2021 Syrah, Zotovich Vineyard met its match with Snake River Farms wagyu tri-tip — a pairing so generous the reviewer fully intended to take leftovers home and then didn’t.

The evening came together because Chef Parker and Matt Brady are genuinely on the same page. As Parker put it: “He approached me originally and said, ‘I think we pair really well.’ And from then, we just started talking about it.” That natural alignment showed in every course.

Read the full piece over at the Santa Barbara Independent, and keep an eye on our events calendar — evenings like this one won’t be the last.

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