Soif’s Surprising Second Act

July 18, 2023 – Soif Wine Bar is closing Sunday and moving to the long-vacant Dr. Miller building in downtown Santa Cruz—former home of the iconic Caffe Pergolesi. 

Soif founder Patrice Boyle passed the reins to Alexis Carr and Dede Eckhardt just over a year ago and they have been operating out of the wine shop portion of the business while a deal was hammered out with new restaurant operators Santos Majano and Lejla Borovac. 

Now renovations will get underway for the new restaurant—to be called Hook & Line—but the name “Soif” will live on at 418 Cedar St.  

In 2002, Boyle, retired as general manager of Bonny Doon Vineyards and opened what was then a brand new restaurant concept that included a wine bar and wine shop. 

“My original plan was to have a small wine bar with some retail, to get it started, and then just swan in on Friday nights for a glass of Champagne. That hasn’t happened yet, but I think I’ve finally got it right, because I plan to be at the new place regularly doing exactly that. I am very proud of Dede and Alexis for taking this on,” she said in a news release.

For their part, Carr and Eckhardt say they are honored and thrilled to continue the Soif legacy of providing a dynamic selection of wines to their hometown of Santa Cruz—and to continue the legacy of Soif as a female owned and operated business.

The new Soif will provide wines by the glass, bottle and case. Soif will also continue to provide wine services for special events, wine classes for the adventurous, and of course the Soif wine club will live on. We’re told to anticipate delicious, wine-friendly food. 

As always, Soif will maintain its focus on wines that are thoughtfully and sustainably made, highlighting small producers that are true to their origin and terroir. Expect selections that are expressive of the vineyard, vintage, and the region; wines that are not a commodity, but limited and handmade with great provenance and flavor.

Here’s the transition schedule. The present Soif location, at 105 Walnut Avenue, will close its doors on July 23. Until then it will be open from 1pm until 8pm—with Farang Thai pop up on Wednesday and Amelia Telč of Brutta serving her amazing southern Italian fare from Thursday to Sunday. 

Once Soif exits the Walnut Avenue premises, the process of transforming it into the new restaurant, Hook & Line, will begin. It will be quite a different scene, with the bar area more integrated with the restaurant, and more seating. An outside parklet is planned, that will provide an additional 15 seats when completed. Majano and Borovac still hope to open this fall.

The future new location of Soif in downtown Santa Cruz, the former home to the iconic Caffe Pergolesi in the Dr. Miller building on Cedar Street, is in the process of being readied for its new chapter. Carr and Eckhardt are working with various Santa Cruz city agencies to facilitate the rapid opening of the new space. They told Edible Monterey Bay the work will involve a kitchen remodel that may take some time, but that they planned to keep the Terroirist Wine Club going in the interim.

Caffe Pergolesi was a beloved and eclectic—even for Santa Cruz—coffee house located in a cool Victorian-era home. The walls of the place were covered with graffiti and sticky notes, making it perhaps the original analog Twitter feed. 

The house included a lobby, themed rooms with antique couches and church pews, plus an outdoor courtyard, and hosted art shows and concerts. It will be interesting to see how this place, owned and operated by Karl Heimen from 2003 until August of 2017, will be transformed. The space seems well suited to convivial gatherings of wine lovers. 

Meanwhile, there is wine to be sipped in the here and now, plus procured for future enjoyment. If you would like to show your support for this local business, come stock up on wines before the transition, to make the move easier. 

Says Carr, “Our cellar has some rare and allocated wines, including producers such as Thierry Allemand, Didier Dageneau, Coche Dury, Francois Raveneau, and more. So, this is a great time to make sure your cellar has something truly fantastic!” 

She and Eckhardt look forward to bringing in many more treasures in the coming months and years, and invite you to tag along on what promises to be an educational and perhaps somewhat sentimental, journey.