

A few years later, it premiered a magnificent wood-frame Victorian hotel Hotel Capitola. Camp Capitola, as it was known, welcomed its first guests in 1874 making it the first beach resort in California. I know this isn’t a big complaint (and I’m not like some people on Yelp that give only one star for such a minor issue) but it is important to me where I sit when visiting a historic restaurant. The quaint seaside village of Capitola began as a humble tent camp along the shore of the Monterey Bay. So they sat us in the Garden Room, which was very nice (it was an add-on off the original dining room with mostly windows, like a greenhouse, with a large tree trunk that they built the room around) but not as desirable to me as the old dining room. It was a great experience and I highly recommend it. Get the inside scoop on jobs, salaries, top office locations. After a half-hour or so the hostess called us and told us she didn’t have a table in the original dining room because the tables in that room are for parties of six. Find out what works well at SHADOWBROOK RESTAURANT from the people who know best. I told her that we are in no rush so we didn’t mind waiting for a table in the historic room. She replied that they were really busy but she would try.

Well, when we arrived an hour early so we could enjoy the bar for a while I asked the hostess of we could dine in the “original dining room”. I know that, like myself, most of my readers seek out restaurants that are historic so they can have the time travel experience of dining in a historic dining room, not in a newly remodeled room or a new addition. At the Mai-Kai you can reserve a table in any room you wish. I must admit I found that policy not very accommodating for the restaurant business. I called to reserve a table on a Saturday a couple of weeks in advance and tried to request the original dining room but was told “we don’t accept room preferences on reservations, but you will enjoy any of our tables”. Shadowbrook is very popular so it can be crowded, especially on weekend nights. Another plus: the restaurant makes all its baked goods from scratch.

I would recommend sticking with a steak or perhaps some seafood since the calamari was so good. It was a sliced loin of lamb and was a little chewy and not very tender. I was in the mood for lamb, so I ordered that. He replied the lamb and the filet mignon. We asked the waiter what he recommended, which is usually a good ‘plan B’ if you aren’t sure what to order. As Le Continental has suggested in restaurant tips, always try the house specialties, so I was disappointed when the waiter announced they were out of prime rib. Lightly seasoned & battered and served with two delicious sauces. We started with the calamari in the bar and it was probably the best calamari I’ve ever had.
SHADOWBROOK SANTA CRUZ PLUS
The menu changes daily, but usually there are several steak and meat dishes (prime rib is a specialty), plus many fish entrees. The menu at Shadowbrook is probably best described as Californian or New American cuisine. Rock Room – image from Shadowbrook’s website
