Princeton by the Sea Memories

I gave 3 different memorials at my home for Burt Blumert after his recent death. At two of them, I went way overboard and bought a small cheese cake from Elegant Cheese Cakes in Princeton, It’s a big splurge, but I loved Burt and thought he loved me, too. I wanted to serve his admirers the very best.  

One of the cakes looked like the image  above, and, I cannot find the words to describe the most heavenly slice of cake I have ever had in my life. After performing the very difficult tasks of Hospice for Burt, I wasn’t eating at all. Food was the last thing on my mind. Burt was the first and only thing on my mind.

This cheese cake tasted so good to me. I thought, after having lost so much weight, that any chocolate or cake would be too “rich” for me to digest. Not so with this cheese cake!

 If you have some extra bucks for a special event, I can highly recommend the cheese cake at Elegant Cheese Cakes.

Sam’s Chowder House on Highway One is very “hot,” by  which I mean if you are a people-watcher, this is your kind of place. I knew the owner, Paul, from other restaurants he was involved with in Half Moon Bay. Everything Paul touches turns into a success. He’s got the formula down.

Sam’s was the location of Ida’s  Seafood Restaurant, unforgettable for its merry band of characters, and Ida’s had moved her popular place several times from locations around Princeon, ending up where Sam’s is today. But Paul has done such a remarkable remodeling job that Ida’s image has been buried and Sam’s Chowder House has made its mark. The views are bigger than life, the scene youtful and upbeat. Often, you can’t even get in, but you could walk on the beautiful beach below and wait for a reservation to open up.

Here’s what I’m getting around to:  Sam’s has opened a gift shop and my book,Princeton by the Sea, published by Arcadia, is available for sale. Wow. Thank ou. I’m a local author and it’s great to know that my work is in Sam’s Gift Shop. Thank you again; I practically live across the street. Go—you’ll love it.

At the new indoor mall at Princeton-by-the-Sea there’s  a bookstore owned by artist and bookstore lover, Carol Bremmen. (Carol, I hope I spelled your last name correctly. Please let me know if I did not.) I love this bookstore. She has books, obviously, including my Princeton book, of course, but she also displays local art, including her own. I loved buying a couple of her pieces and talked to Linda Montalto Patterson about acquiring her work, which was also on display. Linda also does “wedding vows” at her beautiful home overlooking the sea in Miramar.

At Carol’s bookstore, there are unique cards made by local artists ,and it’s fun walking around the harbor area, where fishing boats and fancy yachts stand shoulder-to-shoulder.

Yes, it’s not the old Princeton we were used to. It’s changed with the times. That’s what is happening now. Crab Landing Restaurant is a delightful place to introduce friends to, What some of my more critical friends have objected to is the look of the restaurant from the outside, but once inside they appreciate  the detail work put into Crab Landing.

Me, a lover of good architecture, has to admit that all of it, is much better than what we all feared. Locals, please take a close look and realize that somebody put their money into this project. It’s quite impressive.

Crab Landing, followed by coffee and homemade gelato at Mezza Luna Cafe and a walk through the mall, which isn’t filled yet, but it has such a desireable look that it will b soone. The mall opens onto the Oceano Hotel, which has a cozy bar and other interesting details.

And you can aways toward Mavericks and discover more of what’s happening in Princeton which will be a big success.

Personally, the weather around her become too sunny for my tastes: I do long for the fog that used to be hallmark. It’s sunny almost the time ow.

Story from John Vonderlin
Email John ([email protected])

Hi June,
I’ve gathered more then twenty stories about the public clamor to slaughter the sea lions and seals as the fisheries declined at the end of the 19th Century. You see it wasn’t the dynamiting, gill netting, spearing, or the out of season, under-sized and over limit fishing, or the fouling of waterways with uncontrolled pollution, and the choking of spawning beds with sediment from rapacious logging that was causing the problem. It was those damn, “coyotes of the sea,” that were causing the declines. Check out some the headlines of the stories of this sad chapter in our stewardship of our coast. The related stories of why and how the slaughter was callously carried out, make for fascinating, if disturbing reading. Greed encourages people to do heartless things, as we all know, but the complicity of officials and experts in this effort amazed me. I guess as they say, “Money doesn’t talk, it swears.” Enjoy. John

Got a little scrunched up, too. I’m not the greatest cropper–but the fishy fish is a lot of fun to see in the middle of an El Granada neighborhood.

Email Diane K. Jones ([email protected])

Diane K. Jones, Desktop Support Specialist

For more info, go to my halfmoonbaymemories.com site.

Lots of new Spring paintings…………Below an Ellen Joseph original and I’d like to comment now that I have often wished that instead of a golf ball atop Pillar Point, I would love to see a castle! A real castle!

For info, click here

From the San Mateo Leader

The Coastside Advocate believes that the extreme headland of  Pilot Point, the northern part of the crescent that gives to Halfmoon Bay its name, is the only location that should be considered for the purpose of the new life-saving station. This was the site of the old whaling station that flourished years ago, and it provides an excellent lookout. In fact, a view of the sea north and south from this promontory is best obtainable for a distance of thirty miles.”