Doing Duarte's: An American Classic

Duarte's Tavern (pronounced Du-art because of the silent e) has long been a presence on Stage Road, despite decades of changes which took the tiny hamlet from a booming resort to a near ghost town. While Coastside day trippers and weekenders rediscover the gems south of Half Moon Bay, locals have long known the pleasures their local tavern brings.

Duarte's, according to fourth-generation co-owner Tim Duarte, got its start when his Portuguese great grandfather Frank Duarte opened the bar for business in 1894 after immigrating from the Azores islands in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Frank Duarte ran a successful watering hole for several decades until Prohibition all but killed his business.

The Duarte's second generation stepped in around 1934 as Tim Duarte's grandparents Frank and Emma Duarte took up the business, eventually expanding the tavern to include a soda fountain and barber shop. The loving couple lived above the bar, raising Tim Duarte's father Ron Duarte who, like the generations before him, joined in the running of the family business in the 1950s.

It was during Ron Duarte's turn at the helm that the Duarte's of today began to take shape.

"It was Dad who started to make it into more of a restaurant," said Tim Duarte. "He added more to the menu."

As Ron Duarte's parents continued to help out where they could (i.e. Grandma Duarte in and out of the tavern six days a week, baking pies in the morning and then being a waitress until closing), he came up with an idea to drum up business at a time when visitors to Pescadero were rare. He started an every other Saturday night fresh crab cioppino feast during the crustacean's local mid-November through February season.

The feast, though not held any more, was an immediate hit. People came from far and wide to indulge, eventually requiring the Duartes to make it an invitation only event. It was through the cioppino, and the use of other local foods like artichokes and olallieberries, that Duarte's found its way toward becoming a rising culinary star.

The operation today is overseen by four Duartes (the fourth generation officially joined in during the mid-80s): Tim manages the kitchen staff, sister Kathy takes care of bookkeeping and the tavern's retail products, Ron as the father figure and ambassador of good will and mother Lynn handling just about everything else.

The building that Duarte's is housed in seats 117 people (not including the bar) across four dining areas. The interior blends simplicity in design with a warm feeling that begs you to sit down for a bite. The bar area, darker then the rest of the establishment, has a wood-paneled floor and is dominated by an L-shaped bar. From any of these seats (including the bar, which all regulars know is the place to eat when the rest of the house is packed) you can order a bite.

If one were to enjoy the specialties of the house as their complete meal, the lineup might go something like this. The soup/salad lead off would be the cream of artichoke soup. The secret of its success, Tim Duarte said, is getting the best artichokes and cleaning them right down to the hearts. The cream meanwhile consists of a tasty mix of chicken broth, salt, pepper, garlic, butter and, yes, whole cream.

After finding your way through the soup, a bib and towel arrives at your table. These herald the entrance of the main star - the crab cioppino. A mix of different sea-dwelling delicacies, lots of fresh crab is teamed with prawns and clams in a big bowl which also holds a light tomato-based sauce blessed with onion, garlic and cumin. At the side also comes some fresh bread for use in sauce dipping.

Assuming you saved room for dessert, fresh olallieberry pie (or you could opt for strawberry rhubarb, apple, peach, or whatever other tasty flavors were baked that morning) would find its way in front of you. As you gleefully gobbled down this made-from-scratch treat, you would join hordes of others in understanding why, in 2003, Duarte's was awarded a special "American Classic" award by the culinary focused James Beard Foundation. The award was given for emphasis on local ingredients and standing history as part of the San Mateo coast's lore.