When people find spare money tough to come by, entrepreneurs quickly become creative at finding ways to make you decide you can spare a little change. And indeed that’s what chef Maegen Loring and her partner and husband Jeff Loring have done at the Park Restaurant. They’re offering an excellent reason for going out for a great time. If you’ve already received President Obama’s stimulus tax cut you’ll find these outstanding events worth spending a few dollars on for some good wines and good eats.

Hamburger Wednesday at the Park

Hamburgers at the park, mind you, has nothing to do with eating fast food on a blanket in a park surrounded by trees and buzzing insects. This is a special offering at the outstanding Park Restaurant where you’ll feast on the best hamburger you’ve ever sunk your teeth into. Chef Maegen Loring appreciates good food, be it foie gras or ground beef patties. When tough times hit she decided to offer a gourmet treat at a discount price. And since she never cuts corners when it comes to quality, the hamburger was a natural addition to her menu. You can only get it, however, on Wednesdays.

The chef prefers Hearst Ranch beef when it comes to the straight-up hamburger, and from experience I agree their ground beef ranks among the finest. But she also makes this casual dish fun with her creative burgers, like the Vietnamese pork burger or Thai fish-burger. There’s also a vegan burger made from a mix of veggies with garbanzo beans and/or potatoes. But it’s not just the patty that’s special here. Everything from the mayo and ketchup to the fresh buns baked just before they open are made by Loring and her team.



They offer four burger choices with beef and turkey patties featured each week, and two other choices blended by this uber-talented chef. These excellent burgers are priced between $12 and $15 each with choice of fries, fried in duck fat (yummy) or olive oil, or that night’s special salad. My husband Dan and I both add Hearst Ranch beef with different “add-on” and loved them. Big as they are we ate the whole thing, and the fries and that night’s salad of romaine and Roquefort salad. For dessert the panna cotta with fresh strawberries and kumquats was a satisfying conclusion.

“It’s become a who’s who of wine industry people on Wednesday nights,” chef Maegen admitted. “There’s a great buzz going on in here and it feels great.” We saw several people we know and enjoyed dinner with winemaker Stillman Brown of Red Zeppelin, his siren Alexis Louise Fontenot, and his son Jake Brown. The 2008 Pink Zeppelin was delicious with the burgers, as was the 2006 McPrice Meyers Grenache.

The usual menu is also available on Hamburger Wednesday, as are her full selection of wonderful house-made desserts. The Park has limited seating so reservations are strongly advised. Whenever Dan and I are celebrating a special moment, the Park is always among our first choices for dining in San Luis Obispo County.

The Park Restaurant
1819 Osos Street
San Luis Obispo, CA
Call: 805-545-0000
www.theparkrestaurant.net

For the rest of this week’s Cuisine column, please visit New Times’ website at www.newtimesslo.com. I’m celebrating 13 years of covering the wine and food scene for New Times in June 2009.