With Carpinteria being the quintessential beach town, you’re naturally inclined to face the ocean when choosing your outdoor seat at Little Dom’s Seafood, the restaurant that opened last summer in the former Sly’s location on Linden Avenue. You’d be wrong, though, as the mountain vistas to the north and west are far more stunning, especially on days when the sunlight-splashed clouds cast even more dramatic depth across those imposing peaks.
Or maybe my vision was skewed by heavenly bites of that afternoon’s fettunta, lavished with creamy cuts of bluefin, their richness cut by a tangy, just barely spicy salsa verde and fennel pollen-flecked yogurt. Translating to “oily bread,” fettunta is Tuscan toast that’s rubbed with garlic and then grilled — basic bruschetta can qualify — but Little Dom’s version managed to alter my entire experience, triggering my taste buds into more acute attention and, somehow, making mountains more beautiful.
I’d started with a half-dozen Kumiai and Kumamoto oysters, the suggestion of general manager and wine buyer Liz Hammond to pair with the crisp melon de Bourgogne that I picked from her exciting wine list, a mix of intriguing Old World selections, hip labels like Broc, and Central Coast stars like Holus Bolus and Caraccioli. “I realize you can get them other places, but you ordered the melon, so…,” she explained. “My personal favorite is putting the mignonette and cocktail sauce together.” I’d concur, though the oysters were so fresh they didn’t need a thing.