EdIbLe LoS aNgElEs Part 14. The Yard
Every so often, whilst meandering around the farmers market, I would come across this man who was SO tall. I always wondered, “Who is this tall man, and what is doing with all of this produce?” Well, it turned out, this tall man, CJ, is the chef at The Yard in Santa Monica!
CJ is a wonderful chef and he has taken what was an ordinary bar, and turned it into a wonderful gastro pub, creating unique and interesting interpretations of bar food favorites and more. The location is wonderful, just off Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica, CA. It’s a great spot to watch your favorite sports game or just to grab a really nice bite and enjoy a cocktail.
CJ prides himself on using local, organic ingredients and even specifies where his ingredients come from right on the menu.
Since this is a gastro pub the menu emphasizes meat, however CJ offers a variety of wonderful salads and healthier options as well.
I had a delicious heirloom tomato salad with a fantastic creamy goat cheese and finely chopped dill. It was a refreshing and unique twist on the caprese salad. The peach salad that he has is killer. It is full of gorgeous ripe peaches, basil, olive oil, sea salt and a little buratta cheese (which I ate around). Their fish tacos are insane, the tortillas are fried, making this dish a HFS treat, but the quality of the ingredients are so wonderful that I say live it up and have some delicious fish tacos! My favorite dish was actually the sautéed greens. CJ seasons his greens so nicely that they are practically candy. He sautés them with sherry, chili and honey, and they are AMAZING.
If you are in Santa Monica and are looking for a fantastic gastro pub experience you need to check out The Yard… and ask to say hello to the chef, he’s fabulous!