Photograph by George Sakkestad
Brian Haythornewhite pours wine for Carolyn Oshinsky, who enjoys a dish of gimelli pasta at the new Campo di Bocce restaurant.
By Suzanne Cristallo
Lunching on a little duck polenta in the shade of a grape arbor while enjoying the camaraderie of a bocce game and a "cheap and cheerful" glass of the house red is classified as "a good hang," says Cameron Fraser of the new Campo di Bocce restaurant he manages in Los Gatos. The restaurant is part of the recently heralded bocce club sport facility. It is independently owned and open to the public.
The fragrance of basil, garlic and roasted red peppers wafts across bocce courts surrounded by tables positioned for diners' viewing advantage. A bar constructed of old wood salvaged from the structure originally on the site offers a wide selection of wines and beers to complement a variety of appetizers, sandwiches, salads, pastas and pizzas.
"This is my dream gig," says Fraser, 35, of his new job, which involves running the front of the house and overseeing up to 30 staff. The kitchen is the realm of chef Pete Dressen, a graduate of the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco and veteran of cooking tours in France and with various hotel chains.
A Canadian born in Toronto, Fraser started in the food business at 16, "sweeping parking lots at McDonald's," and worked his way through McMasters University and beyond waiting tables, bartending and cooking. But his main focus has been wines, which he has studied enthusiastically for the past 10 years, the last five in California.
"People here don't mind spending on good wine," the Los Gatos bachelor says, "so it's a great opportunity to introduce them to some they may not be familiar with."
The Campo di Bocce restaurant is owned and operated by partners Tommy Caso and Joe Antuzzi, who also own Il Postale restaurant in Sunnyvale. They lease the facility from bocce club owner Tom Albanese. Plans for the restaurant include catering parties, banquets and eventually weddings, making available the use of some bocce courts as part of the package.
"Hands down, this will be the nicest outdoor dining in Los Gatos," Fraser says. "It's very social here--for all ages. And where else can you do a little court playing between salad and entrée?"
Campo di Bocce Restaurant, 565 University Ave., Los Gatos. Open Sun.-Thurs., 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 11 a.m.-11 p.m. 395-7650.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, February 26, 1997.
©1997 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.