The Real Down Low on YOLO

You may only live once, which is what the acronym for Santa Cruz's newest restaurant YOLO stands for, but there's a good chance if you try it, you'll want to go back.

YOLO, at 503 Water St, serves what they call comfort food with a twist. The pesto pasta was not pasta, but was made from spaghetti squash. The blackened cod tacos were bathed in saffron aioli. Some of the fries were butternut mixed with smoked gouda. The pulled pork roll was wrapped tight in a tortilla and accompanied with buttermilk coleslaw, homemade potato chips and sweet and spicy dipping sauce.

The burgers come with fried pickles, not a usual California staple. Like they say, everything has a twist.

Our meals were exceptional, particularly for the prices. I had the pesto spaghetti made from squash and it was spot on, a healthy alternative to traditional pasta and at $11, a great deal. For $4 more, I added shrimp which were barbecued perfectly. It was half what others would charge. There was garlic bread and fruit on the side, and the overall feel was what they described: comfort food with a twist. Don't expect to be blasted with spice (except where noted), but this ain't your mom's pot roast either.

The pulled pork roll was family style, meaning it would please kids who don't want the red-hot version. The buttermilk coleslaw blanded in (yes, blanded), and the Hawaiian-style Yolo side sauce gave some needed flavor to the mix. Again, at $11 for a full plate of four rolls, it was one of the best deals in town. It was comfort food, but with panache.

The desserts were delish: a carmel apple coated in coconut for $5; ice cream sandwiches of mint and vanilla, $7. Either could have served two and were flavorful and sweet but not overwhelmingly so.  

Owner Richard Perez, a Morgan Hill native has worked in the food business for most of his 44 years, notably at caterers Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme and Feasts for a King. He also worked at San Jose's Peppermill. 

He took on the challenge of YOLO when the Old Focaccia went under. It was his neighborhood dining spot.

The name -- You Only Live Once-- came from the fact that he was making his biggest gamble opening his dream restaurant. A foodie, his favorites in town include Kianti's ("great tasting food and a well-oiled machine"), Hoola's (great ambiance, great people and food) and Louie's Cajun ( a great change from Clouds, doing tremendously well"). 
His chef, Yoby Throop, is a Cabrillo culinary school graduate who was highly recommended around town.

Within two weeks of opening, Perez ended up in a controversy, as he got all these fantastic reviews on Yelp from people with out-of-town addresses. Crowd Source Control went crazy. 

How could someone from Connecticut or Florida write about this restaurant, people wondered. Why did reviewers think it was on the water? The owner needs to do a better job paying for fake reviews, one said.

Uh Oh. Sometimes you get shown the light in the strangest places if you look at it right, the Grateful Dead once sang. And that's what happened to YOLO.

The reviewers were here for Apple's Genius conference in San Jose and they stopped off at YOLO's and wrote the reviews when they got back home. Of course, if you've traveled thousands of miles from Connecticut, Water Street is by the beach. 

Perez hasn't had time to deal with the situation. "I just keep moving forward," he says, greeting each newcomer to the restaurant and tossing in treats, such as potato or ham croquettes. He says what's more important at a restaurant than the food is knowing his clients and building the restaurant for them.

YOLO holds 35 people inside and 12 outside and is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m.-9:45 p.m. He plans to have a friends and neighbors night on Mondays where $5 gets you a meal, a beer and dessert.