Co-owned by former Seattle Chef Steven Peyer and Sebastopol native Lowell Sheldon,
the back-story goes like this: Two young guys working in a Pacific
Northwest restaurant start daydreaming about their own place–a place
where they can express their mad passion for “produce-based” (read vegetarian with some local seafood thrown in for flexitarians) with an Italian flair.
Fast-forward three years and the two have created an organic and sustainable café/pizzeria serving casual breakfast, lunch and dinner fare. Mission accomplished.
Tucked into a green-building community of live/work lofts, the
restaurant has a built-in audience of folks who get the whole green
vibe. Which is exactly the idea. Peyer and Sheldon envision the café as
something of a community kitchen where folks can stop by for
coffee (Ecco, of course) and a bagel, a pizza or salad for lunch and
fresh made risotto for dinner, along with a glass of biodynamic wine. (Sheldon’s father happens to be the architect of the community.)
Sound familiar? After the launch of West County Grill, Rosso and Ubuntu in
fairly short order (all of which owe much to Alice Waters’ decades-old
philosophies on food), the idea of gourmet pizzas, designer greens and
personal relationships with producers does have that déjà vu all-over-again feel.
But
Lowell and Peyer hope to differentiate themselves by, well, just being
themselves–falling somewhere between earthy-crunchy and high-concept
and focusing heavily on solid flavors. “Our slightly off-kilter
attitude towards business -one where people, animals and the
environment come before profits, where organic is a way of life and
where the highest quality cuisine is a top priority–is in keeping with
our community’s standards,” says their menu.
You can peruse their website at www.peterlowells.com
