The hottest new haunt in the San Lorenzo Valley at the moment is not exactly new. The way the deer gazes out over the space illuminated by bulbs covered by hipster light fixtures, as customers wearing coats and toques sip milky-orange craft beers is more than a little reminiscent of Humble Sea Brewing Co.’s initial foray into Felton.
That ended a few months back—as the company refocused its efforts on an expansion in Alameda.
“We’ve recently embarked on a delicious collaboration with Santa Cruz Bread Boy at the Tavern location,” Lee DeGraw, Humble Sea’s head of marketing, told the Press Banner by email. “We’ve been working together on a series of regular weekend pop-up events, combining our craft beer expertise with the amazing culinary wizardry of Santa Cruz Bread Boy and his team.”
In 2022, when the booze brand took over the historic Cremer House building, it lit a spark in downtown Felton, the upscale vibe and long lines reminiscent of a hopping urban boulevard.
For a time it helped breathe life into a community struggling with the legacy of pandemic doldrums and the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex fires.
At the time, General Manager Danielle Byers told foodie magazine Edible Monterey Bay it was aiming for a “refined rustic” establishment.
In shutting down, the company said it was struggling to run a full kitchen and put out a call to entrepreneurs who might want to get involved.
In August, Edible made note that Lance Ebert of Santa Cruz Bread Boy dropped a “Hmmm” emoji on that post.
Sure enough, a few months later and a partnership between the two was hatched.
“His offerings include smash burgers, cannolis, fries and a variety of other dishes that are updated regularly,” DeGraw told the Press Banner. “On the beverage front, our team is taking care of the bar.”
The idea, she explains, is to complement SC Bread Boy’s culinary creations with an assortment of fresh Humble Sea beers, handpicked wines and artisanal cocktails.
Currently, the location is open Friday-Sunday. On Friday, the bar opens at 2pm, with food service kicking-in at 3pm.
On Saturday and Sunday, the bar opens at 3pm, while food becomes available an hour later.
The restaurant stays open until they run out of product.
“We’re considering extending our operating days,” DeGraw said, “but we’re still in the decision-making process for that.”
On Jan. 12—opening night—multiple members of the Weeklys staff headed up to test out this hyped-up eatery. Both gave up after seeing just how long the line was, with this reporter waiting for more than half an hour to be put on the waitlist. However, people who did make it inside have since reported the food is amazing.
DeGraw says it’s been cool to see just how much enthusiasm there has been for the pop-up.
“We had some rain in Felton and despite that, people still showed up and waited 45 minutes in the drizzle just to come in and eat,” she said. “It was a really special feeling to know that people were willing to stand outside in the cold just to experience the food and be part of what we’re doing.”
