Beer, breakfast and behavioral health
“This is significant,” said mall co-owner Drew Hild. “Here are three entrepreneurs investing their own capitol to start something from scratch. I haven’t seen anyone do this in a long time. It’s a really good indication that things are starting to pick up.”
Starting south and moving north, the first stop is the Delicious Kitchen. The American and Mexican diner is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and serves only fresh food. Open for just a week, some patrons have been coming back day after day.
Owners and chefs Eracleo “Rocky” Martinez and Eugino Ramos told The Sheet they serve nothing but the freshest ingredients, no cans in the kitchen or frozen French fries. Some selections include huevos rancheros, chocolate chip or banana pancakes, sandwiches and BBQ ribs off an on-site smoker. The place is clean, fresh, affordable, and the food is, well, delicious.
Next down the line is the Food Cache Café specializing in organic, vegan, vegetarian and healthy eats and drinks. Owners Erick Codoner and Karl Dawson planned on having their first restaurant open by press time and the holiday weekend. Open for breakfast and lunch, the Cache was keeping its menu under wraps until the final unveiling, but along with morning and afternoon munchies it is serving smoothies, juices, organic coffee and acai bowls. Codoner and Dawson have nearly a quarter century of combined restaurant and cooking experience.
The two are long-time locals, “And we hope to be here a while.”
Black Doubt Brewery wins this article’s contest for best name, and beer names: Yeti Charmer, Sasquatch Tears, Insatiable Saison, Dark Mountain and Pleasin’ Weizen. The goal is to have at least eight original brews for tasting or chugging, depending on your style. The brewery doesn’t have plans of going macro but make just a few kegs at a time and will be served exclusively at Black Doubt. The tentative opening date has been sloshing around for weeks, but the hopes are to start pulling the draft handle for customers by December.
Owners and brew masters, Drew and Kerissa Wallace were busy mashing grain for the Dark Mountain brew on Tuesday, filling the brewery with the smells of barley and coffee.
Eastside Edge is not a newbie, but still a newlywed to the center. Owner, operator and ski tuner Kent Frates said this is his second year at the mall and his third in business offering hand-crafted ski tuning. Hand tuning is becoming a lost art with fancy machines and technology that are making the job an assembly line. “It’s becoming a lost art. There aren’t too many Ed Cereda’s around anymore,” Frates said referring to the legendary Eastside tuner.
Frates isn’t the place to go for overnight tuning service but that’s fine with him, he said. He is building a loyal local clientele that appreciate the handcrafted work. Sure, hand tuning is hard and meticulous, but for Frates, “It’s a labor of love.”
County offices and services at the mall include the District Attorney’s Office, County Administrator, Film Commissioner and Tourism, County Assessors, Board of Supervisors conference room, Child Supportive Services, Social Services, Behavioral Health, County Probation and the Career Services Center. The Mono County Council of the Arts and the Mammoth Lakes Repertoire Theater stashes its costumes and props at the mall as well.
