Photograph by Kathy De La Torre
Michael and Lindsey Ryan are co-owners and chefs at Lindsey's at the Summit.
Cuisine, view are both tops at Lindsey's at the Summit
By Suzanne Cristallo
Once you get in, you'll love it. That's the consensus among regulars of Lindsey's at the Summit, the California cuisine restaurant with a spectacular view of the forest and ocean from the mountains above Los Gatos. The impression that the location is a truck stop persists among those who pass by during their harried commutes along Highway 17--a misconception enforced by the expansive parking lot in front.
Truckers do stop there, but not to eat. "They stop to rest," notes Lindsey Ryan, owner--with husband Mike--of the business she started three years ago. There are also those who carry the rest-stop assumption a step further. "Some people get downright rude when we tell them that only our guests may use our restrooms," she says, pointing out that bathroom entry tokens were made necessary by the constant flow of travelers who traipsed through with an attitude of propriety. An attempt to provide an alternative proved impractical when the port-a-potties she brought in as a gesture of good will were constantly trashed.
"It's a hard location," Ryan sighs. But mountain residents, many of them coming for dinner two and three times a week, delight in having a first-class restaurant close by and protest loudly at the thought of losing it. They are attracted by the steaks and fresh salmon, crab cakes, lamb shanks, pork loin and squash ravioli. On Sundays, chef Jeff Heicksen roasts prime rib.
"We even succumbed to burgers," chuckles Ryan, "but they're great burgers. I was blown away by how many people want burgers!"
Lindsey's has become a destination for folks from San Jose and Santa Cruz, particularly on weekends for brunch. Many order a mimosa to accompany their huevos rancheros, breakfast burritos, smoked salmon benedict, biscuits and gravy or build-your-own omelets.
Sunsets are another attraction. During the winter months, the early evening invasion of orange light framed by weeping willows near a pond of large goldfish and waterfalls is a lure for mountain residents whose homes in the trees preclude any view of a rising or setting sun. "It's spectacular," Ryan says.
Permission to use the outdoor patio facing the ocean finally was granted after a lengthy review by Santa Cruz County, but there was a trade-off. "We had to remove our sign," she says of the familiar tall structure topped by a blinking light. The property lies within a scenic corridor. A new painted sign will be allowed in their window, as long as it is under seven feet in height.
The Ryans are also new parents. Their 13-week-old daughter Hannah is named after Lindsey's great-great-grandmother, who with her husband and Lindsey's grandfather, Charles B. Martin, founded the Glenwood area located just below the restaurant. Lindsey grew up in the Santa Cruz mountains and Mike, formerly the building contractor Lindsey met when he came to remodel the restaurant, is from Los Gatos.
After studying food service at Cabrillo College, where she met chef Jeff Heicksen, Lindsey worked as a guard manager chef at the Chaminade restaurant in Santa Cruz. Later she became one of three partners who started Cafe Trio in Los Gatos, before branching into her own business.
"We started this business thinking we could draw more commuters as customers, but they are so hurried," she says. "If they knew how good our food is and how spectacular the view is, they'd stop."
That's an invitation.
Lindsey's at the Summit, 23123 Santa Cruz Hwy. (Highway 17), Los Gatos. Open for dinner Tues.-Thurs. 5-9 p.m., Fri. and Sat. 5-9:30 p.m., Sun. 4:30-8:30 p.m. Brunch weekends 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m. 408.353.5679.
Saratoga, California Since 1955
