Hitting the Spot: Pacifica restaurant The Surf Spot offers up diverse fare

Local food blogger Theodore Ordon-Yaussi lived in Pacifica for many years, and has always sung the town's praises, but acknowledges that its dining options have been sparse.

"It's pretty meager after 9 p.m. And before that, it's limited too. The Italian restaurants are pretty meh ... I noticed there was a cheesesteak shop, and then it closed. Nick's is like the place for old school dining, and it's pretty good, but for younger foodies on a budget? They normally don't like traditional white tablecloth, prime rib and lobster," Ordon-Yaussi said.

Budget conscious foodies won't find tablecloths at The Surf Spot, and Burns says one of his chief goals was to make his restaurant "affordable and accessible to the community."

Affordability, of course, is a relative thing. Entrees from the regular menu range in price from $9 for a pulled pork sandwich to $27 for a grilled, marinated hanger steak. In addition to the regular menu, the restaurant also offers a "market menu" that changes daily.

"This is the part of our menu that's more foodie-driven," Burns said. "Maybe one day it's French influenced, and the next day Moroccan, South American or pan-Asian. In that way, we provide both 'safe' foods like burgers, pizzas and clam chowder, or more adventurous and exotic fare . ... If dad wants steak, the kids want pizza and mom wants a nice piece of fish or some small plates (such as ahi poke, crusted calamari or sweet, chili-glazed chicken wings), the whole family can be satisfied in one restaurant."

Burns never went to culinary school, instead learning his craft by apprenticing himself to skilled chefs, starting when he was a teen. His long resume includes former and current Bay Area eateries such as Masa's, Square One, the Campton Place hotel's restaurant, Vertigo, 231 Ellsworth, Chef Elka Gilmore's Elka restaurant in Japantown and the restaurant at Manka's Inverness Lodge. In addition to running The Surf Spot, he works as a private chef for a prominent family who he declines to name.

Burns has lived in Pacifica for 13 years.

"Pacifica is a very diverse community. There are plenty of people who grew up here and are still here. It has a wonderful blue-collar history, with police and firefighters who settled here over the years, yet we also have lots of biotech workers and lots of Silicon Valley people," he said. "I'd always felt a restaurant with a seasonal menu would be a welcome option for those times when you don't want to drive into San Francisco for some really special food."

Burns' partners in this venture are Sea Bowl owner and car racing enthusiast David Szeto and Tait Cowan, a third generation Pacifican and a surfboard shop entrepreneur. Chef de Cuisine Keith Bailey, who recently spent three years running the Fairmont Hotel's famous Tonga Room, handles day-to-day operations.

When asked whether he feels like they took a scary risk opening a restaurant in these uncertain economic times, Burns again references the thriving local tech industry.

"The economy in the Bay Area is different from most of the country's," he said.

More than the economic climate, though, Burns values the local food landscape.

"We source our food from local farms and ranchers whenever possible," he said. "We're fortunate in Northern California in that everything we need can be grown within 50 to 100 miles of us for most of the year. The Bay Area is also home to some of the best berries and cheese makers; there's no shortage of artisan producers."

In addition to fine cuisine, Burns said The Surf Spot hosts live musicians who routinely play at San Francisco venues such as Yoshi's and The Brick and Mortar Music Hall. The Surf Spot also hosts fundraising events for local schools, and the second Sunday of every month is the official day for car club meets.

If you go

The Surf Spot

4627 Coast Highway

Pacifica, CA 94044

(650) 355-SURF

http://surfspoteats.com