Bluegrass comes to town, the scourge of homelessness presents health problems, BHS rated one of the top football high schools in America and a vegan eatery proves to be a big hit

Monday, January 14, 2019

 Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this such a special to live. Send your tips to rsbeene@yahoo.com.

 * ... FOODIE SHORTS: The Hens Roost, a relatively new vegan restaurant downtown near the

Post Office, is enjoying a business boom that seems to know no end. I dropped by the Roost on Saturday, eager to sit down to the Impossible burger after a long workout, and the place was wall to wall with customers. The whole plant based diet is not for everyone, but it is good to see there is enough of a base in town to support this kind of healthier eating. Meanwhile, we have also learned that Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers will open on February 12 over off Downing Avenue.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "Do what you love” is shitty career advice because mostly what I love is spending time alone and eating breakfast food."

 * ... THE GREAT 48: If you happened to stop by the Marriott downtown this weekend, chances are you happened into some bluegrass. For the third consecutive year, the California Bluegrass Association brought its annual convention, called The Great 48 to signify 48 hours of picking and grinning, to the Marriott. (The event has been in Bakersfield for at least a decade but at other venues) Why Bakersfield? Organizers said we are ideally situated to attract bluegrass enthusiasts from both Northern and Southern California. The lobby was full of musicians jamming, and the ninth floor of the hotel was a virtual sea of fiddles, banjos, guitars, stand up basses and dobros.

 * ... BHS DRILLERS: The website StadiumTalk released its list of the top 20 high schools in America that produce the most professional football players. And yes, Bakersfield High made the list, ranking as the 14th best high school in the country. Said StadiumTalk:  "California is well represented on this list with 13 schools, but Bakersfield High is the only one of those that is not in Greater Los Angeles. That has not hurt the school’s success on the field as it has more wins than any other high school football team in the state. The crown jewel of its football program was Frank Gifford, who later won an NFL MVP and was inducted into the Hall of Fame. Just as Gifford eventually made his way into cinema, so would his alma mater. The feud between Bakersfield High and rival Taft High served as the backdrop for the 1986 comedy 'The Best of Times' starring Robin Williams and Kurt Russell."

 * ... CAFE MED: Cafe Med, one of our town's longest running successful restaurants, has opened a second located at Rio Bravo Country Club. It's a unique marriage: Rio Bravo is trying to rebrand itself and gets Meir Brown and his culinary expertise to help jump start the kitchen, and Brown gets a new outlet for his Mediterranean cuisine. The restaurant is open to the public.

 * ... HOMELESS: If you don't think our homeless problem is a public health issue, think again. Or just look at this picture of feces and urine found at the Assistance League offices on Q Street downtown. The problem is getting worse, friends.

 * ... MEMORIES: Who remembers the haunted house on Dracena Street? Photo courtesy of the Kern County of Old Facebook page.

The campaign to unseat Assemblyman Rudy Salas will top $1 million, new businesses grow out of the local farmer's markets and Imbibe Wine and Spirits offers Spanish cava at a bargain price

Friday, October 19, 2018

 Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this such a special to live. Send your news tips to rsbeene@yahoo.com.

 * ... MENDES VERSUS SALAS: If you want to know how important the Democratic and

Republicans parties view the race for Assembly district 32, follow the money. Challenger Justin Mendes, a Republican who spent just $40,000 in the primary, expects to spend north of $1 million in his race to unseat Rep. Rudy Salas. Mendes says he expects Salas to spend twice that much.

  * ... SMALL BUSINESS: Did you know that our local farmer's markets also serve as business incubators? That's right, a number of local brick and mortar businesses started off as vendors at the Brimhall and Haggin Oaks farmers market, according to Jaclyn Allen, who runs the markets. Allen knows this all too well because she too started off selling nut products in the local markets, and now has branched out and is the owner of Hens Roost, the popular vegan and vegetarian restaurant on G Street. Allen said two nearby businesses, Rig City Coffee and Better Bowls, also started off at the farmer's markets before deciding to sign and lease and take it indoors.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "Life is like a box of chocolates; an emotional chick can destroy one in under five minutes."

 * ... INDIAN CUISINE: Are you ready for a new entry into the Indian restaurant scene? It's about to happen with the opening of Viceroy, a new eatery on Stockdale Highway devoted to Indian cuisine.

 * ... SPANISH CAVA: My tip for the upcoming holidays: if you are looking for a good Spanish cava to entertain guests, consider the Campo Viejo cava available at Imbibe Wine and Spirits for just $10 a bottle when you buy six bottles of wine or champagne. Cheaper than its French counterparts but a solid bubbly.

* ... MEMORIES: You know you are a Bakersfield old timer if you remember when College Center opened in August o 1960 off Columbus. Photo courtesy of the Kern County of Old Facebook page.

Local restaurants take to social media to promote specials, Dee Whitley gets a school named in her honor and more memories of old steak houses about town

 * ... DEE: Congratulations to retired educator Dolores "Dee" Whitley who will have an elementary school named after her in the Panama-Buena Vista School District. Whitley was principal of Christa

McAuliffe Elementary when my two daughters attended there in the 1990s, and her kindness and steady hand did not go unnoticed by the school staff and parents. The new school will be located at the corner of Wible and McKee roads and will open in 2018.

* ... FOODIE: In food news, the downtown Padre Hotel is about to roll out new menus for both the Brimstone bar and the more upscale Belvedere lounge. One of the new items that caught my attention was a toasted "avocado torta." Meanwhile, savvy locally owned restaurants are doing a good job in using Facebook and other social media platforms to announce their specials. Make sure to follow Cafe Med and Uricchio's Trattoria on Facebook to see what they are up to. And finally, a new grab and go eatery getting a lot of buzz for its healthy local offerings is the Hens Roost downtown on G Street. Make sure you check the hours for the Hens Roost before stopping by.

 * ... OVERHEARD: A 91-year-old woman is at a local restaurant celebrating her son's birthday when the conversation turns to local politics. "Kyle Carter is running for mayor?" she asks. "I thought all those signs were for sale signs."

* ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: 'My friend isn’t promiscuous, per se. She just prefers to think of her sexuality as festival seating.'

* ... ARNOLD PALMER: Two days after Arnold Palmer died the requests for the tea and lemonade drink named after him skyrocketed over at Muertos Kitchen downtown. Owner Shawna Haddad Byers said lunch orders for Arnold Palmers were up 50 percent.

* ... MEMORIES: Dave Krecklow wrote to recall some of the late and great old steak houses about town, including a place called "Happy Steak" at the northwest corner of 34th and Union. "Next and north to it was the Coachlight Inn. It always had the patio, and later they did add the bar at the back. Further up Union Matia's built a new building and opened a Basque restaurant, now a church.
I don't recall the Stockdale Inn ever being Coachlight II but I do remember the Coachlight being on California near Mervyn's. Stockdale Inn, Tam O'Shanter and Ewing's on the Kern were all from the Ewings originally. Stockdale Inn was eventually moved and reconfigured with some railroad cars at northeast corner of California and Oak and became Milt's... My wife and I were at KC Steakhouse last week and lamenting they are all gone except KC. Toss Maison Jassaud's and House of Don in there. Sure there are lots of good places but we miss the steakhouses. Two thumbs up for KC, still dark, red leather and great food."

 * ... MORE MEMORIES: And lastly, Navy veteran Gene M. Bonas added this memory:
"You've done it again, Richard. The Coachlight Inn comments brought back so many excellent memories of when I first was separated from the Navy. Friday and Saturday nights were always reserved for dinner at the Inn with many a lovely acquaintance. My date and I thoroughly enjoyed picking out our own steaks, and then sipping a choice cabernet while waiting for our salads. Mr. Wright had a very good wine list, and we always saw many friends enjoying themselves. Then, after dinner it was off to the Jasmine Tree for dancing. I'm confident many of your readers remember the Jasmine Tree which brings to mind other fond memories."