Originally written January 19, 2020 (Pre-Shelter In Place)
How many times have you said, “I never win anything”? I say that all the time. It doesn’t stop me from entering all the Instagram contests, but I honestly never think I will win. Well, this time when the Central Coast’s newest hotel and restaurant opened, and they posted a contest on Instagram that my husband entered and added me in the comments. I reluctantly entered and, lo and behold, my husband won! (Yep, I still haven’t won anything). He won a $100 gift certificate for the restaurant attached to the new Hotel SLO, Piadina in San Luis Obispo.
We decided to use the gift certificate on Sunday. It had been an unusually stressful week, so instead of our normal Sunday routine of laying around and watching golf, getting rested up for Monday, we drove up the coast to San Luis Obispo to Brunch at Piadina. Piadina is located on the corner of Palm and Morro, just down the street from the iconic Palm Theater and connected to San Luis Obispo’s newest travel destination, HotelSLO.
Blogging about a new restaurant is one of the best activities I get to do. I look for the little details that will set this place apart from the many other restaurants vying for my business. When we walked up to Piadina, I loved the theme, industrial/rustic. I’m not sure if this is the official name of the architecture, but with the stone entrance, wrought iron railings and rusted metal siding, it seemed like the perfect name.
As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by a friendly and accommodating hostess. She sat us in Ian’s section. Ian is from Great Britain. Ian is still learning about the area’s award-winning wines from our region, so when I asked him for a recommendation on the wine, he sheepishly offered me a taste of anything I was interested in. No problem, I love honesty. I opted for a Processco, not my usual choice. I typically find them too sweet, but this one was light and mostly dry, with a little sweetness in the finish, yet not too sweet. It was very balanced. As I was waiting for my sparkling wine, I happened to notice that the underside of the table was covered in a soft, carpet-like material. I was blown away. This was a detail that not many would have even notices, but the designers went to a lot of expense, to do something so amazing. Have you ever seen such detail before? I had not, and it impressed the pants off me.
We had skipped breakfast this Sunday, so I was thrilled to see the menu for Brunch. There are enough items on the Brunch menu to satisfy any desires. The items go from sweet, French Toast, to savory, Double Smash Kobe Burger. I was impressed with the simplicity and range of the menu. Sometimes, brunch menus are too limiting or too overwhelming. This was the baby bear; it was just perfect. I brought along my husband, Danny. Truth be told, he was the one holding the gift certificate, so I am glad he brought ME along. Danny is a meat and potatoes man from Montana, so when he sees a “double-patty Kobe burger”, he doesn’t need to go any further on the menu. The burger was in the top three that he has ever ordered, he said. It was cooked perfectly. Without having to make you feel guilty for ordering fries instead of a salad with your burger, they automatically served the burger with truffle fries, which were double-fried, crisp, and light. They had a good selection of beer on tap, which he usually always orders, but he surprised me and ordered the Pinot Grigio. Whenever we go out to eat, Danny always has to keep me focused on the task at hand, selecting what I want to eat. It is very easy for me to look around the restaurant, talk to the staff, peruse the wine list long after I’ve made my selection, and it drives him crazy. When Ian came around to take our order, I hurriedly ordered the chopped salad. I can never go wrong with a chopped salad, but Piadina’s was awesome. The chopped chicken was perfectly cooked and the dressing was light and creamy. It was topped with a sunny-side-up quail egg. It was fantastic!
One last tip. Let’s face it, parking is a pain in San Luis Obispo, but PiadinaSLO is perfectly situated across the street from the Palm Street parking structure. Remember that parking is not free on Sunday, like it used to be, so don’t make your lunch, brunch, or dinner more expensive than it needs to be, by getting yourself a parking ticket. Oh, and after Brunch, you could amble on down the street and watch Little Women at the Palm Theater. It is AMAZING.
Visit Piadina SLO’s website for updates on when reopening after COVID-19 closure.
