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price. I heard amazing stories about how
Chef Tara and her volunteers are able to
make efficient use of the donated food,
even though it is not known from day
to day what items will be donated, and
in what quantity they will be available.
For example, one day the crew received
a case of artichokes, which Chef Tara
turned into a savory Creamy Artichoke
soup. On another day, a large quantity
of bananas became a scrumptious
banana pudding dessert! Chef Tara and
her teams of volunteers prove their
resourcefulness on a daily basis.
The Pinole Senior Center has been
serving lunches for many years. When
the previous cook left late last year, Chef
Tara was hired and began her work at
the Charles Avenue Café in January.
Chef Tara has been in the culinary arts
field for her entire professional career
and has attended several culinary schools
in the United States as well as abroad.
Since coming to the center, Tara has
introduced some new and exciting menu
items to the delight of the patrons. Every
month, there is a pre-determined menu
detailing which lunch entrees will be
available each day. This gives patrons
the opportunity to plan ahead to dine
at the Charles Avenue Café on the days
that their favorite entrees are served.
The most popular meals bringing in the
highest lunch attendance include pork
chops, BBQ spare ribs, turkey with all
the trimmings, and meat loaf. When
these meals are served, it’s important to
arrive early, as it is not unusual for the
lunch line to extend out the door!
On my first visit to the Charles
Avenue Café, my guest and I arrived
just before noon. I was totally surprised
to see that the entire parking lot of the
Senior Center was full, as was the street
parking! Overflow parking is available in
a lot up the street from the center, and
even that lot was over half full. I had no
idea that the venue I was about to visit
was so popular and well attended. We
entered the center and passed through
the lobby into the “dining room”—a
large, open multi-purpose room with
plenty of windows to provide natural
light. Many round tables each with
BLAJT
Guest Chef Jennifer
eight chairs were set up on the left side
of the room. On the right side of the
room, a long line of hungry customers
holding blue trays formed a line to pick
up their meals at the cafeteria-style
opening of the kitchen. In the center of
the room towards the front, a baker’s
rack held small plates with green salads
to accompany the main meal. Coffee,
tea and drinks were available on a table
set up against the right wall so that
diners could get their drinks before
picking up their meals. Lunch service
was in full motion with a line of smiling
volunteers standing behind the counter,
each serving up their contribution to the
meals.
My guest and I had limited time to
visit that day, so we had come prepared
to purchase our meals “to go.” I had
been informed ahead of time that the
meal of the day was available to take
out for only fifty cents more--$6.00.
This allowed us to use our limited time
to visit with the chef, volunteers, and
guests to learn more about the café. On
that day, Chef Tara was featuring a new
lunch entrée--Country Fried Steak,
served with mashed potatoes and gravy,
and fresh vegetables. The entrée was so
popular that they almost ran out before
we got our meals. But we lucked out,
and our meals were prepared in to-go
containers, complete with rolls, cups of
Hours for Charles Ave Café: Mon. – Thurs. 12:00 – 1:00 PM | Fri. 11:30 – 12:30 PM | Closed Weekends