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If you spend any time near the coast, you know Jack O’Neill as the surf icon who brought worldwide attention to Santa Cruz and whose company, O’Neill, Inc., introduced the cold-defying neoprene wetsuit to surfers near and far. Now he’s a restaurant, too. And the O’Neill company’s tagline, “It’s Always Summer On The Inside,” is just as fitting for the new beachy Jack O’Neill Restaurant & Lounge that opened on Feb. 20 inside Santa Cruz’ Dream Inn. Here’s a first peek inside.
THE VIBE: The theme here is sun, sand and surf, from the stylized portraits, O’Neill artifacts and ocean-blue glass to the breezy, floor-to-ceiling windows with unmatched views of the Santa Cruz Wharf, the beach and boardwalk.
THE FOOD: The menu reflects an as-expected seafood emphasis, so it’s good to know that the restaurant is part of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Program and its sustainability standards. The restaurant showcases local products, from Verve coffee and Venus Spirits to Marianne’s ice cream. The menu devotes an entire legal-sized page to the nearby farms that provide produce, and the beer and wine list is almost entirely Californian.
You’ll find nods to Jack O’Neill throughout the dishes, as well. Jack’s Favorites on the brunch/lunch menu include a Healthy Breakfast Salad ($13) with spinach, sliced fruits, granola and a poppy seed yogurt dressing, and a Crab Benedict ($20) with a generous portion of Dungeness poised atop fluffy English muffins and a crispy cylinder-shaped cake of home-fried potatoes.
The dinner menu, split into Land, Sea and Earth categories, includes a Very Big Burger ($26), with with a fried egg and a potato cake sandwiched inside, and a Corralitos Sausage Sampler ($24). The latter arrives on a large wooden board with three different sausages from the famous local butcher, three different accompaniments and three kinds of mustard.
The Lost Boys Bouillabaisse ($33) is actually a carry-over item from the days when this restaurant was called Aquarius. (The Lost Boys name is a nod to the 1980s cult-classic vampire movie filmed in Santa Cruz.) East Coasters at the next table proclaimed the bouillabaisse “the best we’ve ever had.”
DON’T MISS: That quintessential Dungeness Crab Benedict. Wash it down with a Jack’s Martini ($14), accompanied by his favorite garnish, a blue-cheese stuffed olive.
GOOD TO KNOW: This is boardwalk central, so expect hectic traffic and parking challenges. If you park in the lot across the (one-way) street from the hotel, you can bring your parking ticket in for the restaurant to validate. If you are not familiar with the hotel, finding the actual restaurant door is a bit of a treasure hunt. Follow the path to the left of the Dream Inn entrance. It will take you downstairs, through Jack’s Lounge and to the restaurant’s hostess stand.
PERFECT FOR: Lazy lunches on a weekend getaway or happy hour-into-dinner occasions. (And if your kids are old enough to hit the boardwalk solo, drop them off and grab a drink up here to enjoy the best view in town.)
DETAILS: Open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, until 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The lounge serves a bar menu all day. 175 W. Cliff Drive, Santa Cruz; www.jackoneillrestaurant.com