New Restaurants and Good Hangs for 2025 (Part 2)

January 14, 2025 – The most dramatic food news of the coming months goes big in more ways than one.

San Pedro Fish Market will occupy a massive space in the former Scales Seafood & Steaks on Fisherman’s Wharf—17,500 square feet—and bring along a sizable following from its original spot in the Long Beach port noted in its name. 

That SoCal location is itself crazy large. At 55,000 square feet, it qualifies as one of the largest eateries in the entire U.S. of A.—and it still has to close the doors to the line out front because it hits capacity. 

The signature dish there and eventually here is a choose-you-own endeavor of seafood called the original shrimp tray.

Meanwhile the multi-generational Italian-American family behind it has widened its net with a YouTube series of shorts and Amazon Prime episodes of “Kings of Fi$h.”

The biggest piece of the puzzle, for the local area, will be the impact a famed business will have in taking over the largest property on the region’s most touristy restaurant destination.  

An interesting development unfolded last week as Edible set out to preview “New Restaurants and Good Hangs To Look Forward to in 2025” in the Monterey Bay Area’s food and drink world, for 2025 and then some. 

Make that multiple developments. 

One, there were too many things to get to by deadline, which mandated this follow up. 

Two, reporting revealed a number of good things had already materialized, in the form of new operations open for business as you read.

This sequel, then, will first hit on standout new spots working their magic at present, before dipping into what’s coming around the corner. 

Brewjee Coffee Co.

This spot—which transcends beans by way of creative brew cocktails, pastries, merchandise and a vibe that has it pumping well after dark—debuted in October, and provides outsized personality in a cozy spot just off Main Street in Oldtown Salinas. 

Coffee Conspiracy Co. 

Creator Eddie Alaniz has been in the coffee game for two decades, but only debuted his own shop featuring single-origin and slow-crafted brew in Capitola Mall—in a former Starbucks, no less—recently. Hours are 10am-3pm Thursday-Sunday to start and will expand as he settles in, but the operating philosophy will persist. “Coffee Conspiracy is devoted to creating each drink with intention and delivering an experience that’s anything but ordinary,” Alaniz says, “one that invites you to see things differently.”

Fusion Fare

Downtown Santa Cruz gets welcome infill with a Sichuan-centric spot plating things like braised pork hock, savory pancakes and five-spice wings. Chef Hongmin Mo presides, in the former Rustico Italian Street Food alongside the Red Room on Cedar Street. Official debut hits Saturday, Jan. 18, with what FF calls “a buffet-style welcome.”

La Pizza Piccolo

LPP began slanging its pies from its traveling oven this fall, but its creator’s been at this mobile life for a minute, first with a bike delivery outfit and then NitroCycle 831 and BrewBus, the latter continuing to drip coffee at farmers markets including Mondays in Pacific Grove and Thursdays in Carmel. The Piccolo project does events and catering “It’s fun to fit venues where most food trucks couldn’t,” Baroni says—but draws steadiest enthusiasm with its 5-10pm Wednesday-Saturday residency at Pop & Hiss in Pacific Grove, including monthly specials like January’s fig-prosciutto-gruyere-baby arugula number and Fuck Inflation Fridays $10 pizzas. “I’m having a blast watching people get stoked on my pies,” Baroni adds.

Valley Restaurant & Catering

Let’s cut to VR’s own messaging via Facebook, which cites decades of food legacy from Don and Susan Gibbons of Portobellos, who are handing the soup spoon to long-time chef Miguel Xirum: “This transition marks a heartfelt milestone in the business’s storied history…Miguel, who has worked side by side with Gibbons for over 20 years, brings a wealth of experience, passion, and deep community ties to their new roles as owners.” VR soft-opened Jan. 2, and celebrates a grand debut Thursday, Jan. 16. This one feels like coming home. 

Now for a half dozen more tastebud-activating things to anticipate, in alphabetical order.

Ashby Confections

Jennifer Ashby’s caramels, tortoises and chocolates seduce by way of design and flavor profile, and have the following to verify. Now she’s aiming to shutter her Scotts Valley shop in favor of a spot in the heart of Santa Cruz, in the former Joe’s Pizza & Subs at 1207 Pacific Ave., by early summer. “There are lots of new things I want to do!” Ashby says. “We’re excited to be a part of downtown as it goes through a transformation.”

Fired Up Pizza

This spot qualifies as both tantalizing and hard-to-imagine—which might be related emotions. The ocean-abutting property at 484 Cannery Row has been sitting woefully undeveloped and mired in dispute since time immemorial, but developer Bob Faulis insists he has the vision and Michelin-starred chef partner to realize its rebirth as soon as this summer. He envisions a simple outdoor “pizza platform project,” to use his vernacular, using local foodstuffs including Gilroy garlic. “Look at the great view,” he says. “People are going to be blown away.” 

Low Tide and High Tide at La Bahia Hotel 

With its spot right across from the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk and the Main Beach, La Bahia is sitting pretty, and pretty flavorful, what with plans for 1) a live music-bolstered bar and grill (Low Tide), 2) a Pacific Rim inspired upscale restaurant (High Tide), 3) a pool bar (Plunge) and 4) Champagne bar (Pearl). Estimated open dates of this summer, however—judging from the epic and far-from-finished sitch at the moment—render that optimistic.

Oystertown 

A rare punk rock chef with a specific vision for a raw bar is eyeing late spring for the right moment to shuck the roof off this bivalve in New Monterey. That has raw bar fans hyped, as detailed with “Oystertown Coming to Monterey’s Lighthouse District.”

Santa Cruz Downtown Farmers Market 

OK, fair enough, this isn’t anything new, which is a good thing, as the downtown market ranks as one of the region’s most time-honored and flavorful iterations. But a relocation is in the works, if the details are as-of-yet-unconfirmed. The market will find a new home in May, within a few blocks of its current spot, per Nicole Zahm, market spokesperson and general-do-it-all-star. “It’s a big lift, and we’re excited about the possibilities,” she says. “It’s a move toward enlivening that market over the next one to five years.” 

Tira Nanza Tasting Room 

One of the coolest and under-appreciated aspects of Carmel-by-the-Sea are the little nooks that incubate multiple meaningful shops in one modest pocket. Now family-owned and operated Tira Nanza will occupy the former Kori in one such inlet (Court of the Fountains), swirling as soon as February.