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| Coastside Clubs Get Lively to Welcome 2009 By Stacy Trevenon [ stacy@hmbreview.com ] Published/Last Modified on Tuesday, December 30, 2008 10:38 AM PST Coastside clubs, pubs and bars are traditionally lively places on New Year’s Eve. While some do not plan celebrations, or others feature the regular menu and may close early in the day, others plan full-blown festivities with party favors, live music, dancing and champagne toasts at midnight. The birth of 2009 will be no exception. Alice’s Restaurant, highways 35 and 84, 851-0303, will offer food from its menu and close at 8 p.m. Apple Jack’s, 8970 La Honda Road, La Honda, 747-0331, will rock out on New Year’s Eve with the Dave Abbott Band from 9:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. Hailing from Mountain View, this rock and blues revue is Cindy Murphy on bass and vocals, veteran drummer Jackie Enx and Abbott, whose licks on the Fender Strat got him compared to Eric Clapton, Eddie Van Halen and Stevie Ray Vaughn. Fascinated by the electric guitar since boyhood, Abbott made his first guitar in a woodshop class, formed an original band in the 1908s, and played in cover bands until leaving music for family life in 1993, but came back with the Abbott trio in 2004. Cameron’s Restaurant and Inn, 1410 S. Cabrillo Highway, Half Moon Bay, 726-5705, is one place where young ones can welcome the new year. The restaurant will offer dinner specials with specialty drinks, party hats and favors in what owner Cameron Palmer calls an “Early Bird celebration for the kids” with a countdown at 9 p.m. — when the ball drops in Times Square, New York. After that, grown-ups can dance to a deejay and enjoy complimentary hors d’oeuvres and a champagne toast. Cetrella Restaurant and Café, 845 Main St., Half Moon Bay, 726-4090, blends jazz and elegance by offering a gala dinner with seatings at 5:30 and 8 p.m. From 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., dance to jazz by Joe Sheldon, Scott Kirkpatrick, Dan Tierney and Michael O’Neill. Party hats, favors and midnight revelry are also planned. Café Gibraltar, 425 Avenue Alhambra, El Granada, 560-9039, will present a five-course Mediterranean dinner to welcome the new year, with a family special from 5 to 6 p.m. From 8 p.m. to midnight, a jazz trio will play, and 2009 will be welcomed with party hats, favors and a midnight toast. Caffe Lucca, 8455 Cabrillo Highway, Montara, 728-5229, will close its doors at 3 p.m. Gazos Grill, 5720 Cabrillo Highway, 879-0874, despite relative isolation, still makes New Year’s Eve lively with a special dinner menu, party hats and favors, a champagne toast at midnight and the live music of Jerry Garone beginning at 7 p.m. Playing solo on keyboard, Garone, of Loma Mar, is funky and eclectic. Half Moon Bay Brewing Company, 390 Capistrano Road, Princeton, 728-2739, is another good family spot, with dinner specials and celebration from 5 to 9 p.m. There will be dancing to the sultry rock, blues, funk, originals and high-energy rock belted out by the Robin Campbell Band: the lead singer with her trademark wild red mane, bassist Jeremy Foster of Montara and El Granada residents Pete Amour on drums and Chris Cotruvo on guitar and vocals. Expect anything from Janis Joplin to Led Zeppelin and Cold Blood. Half Moon Bay Joe’s, 2380 S. Cabrillo Highway, Half Moon Bay, 560-9260, has no parties nor entertainment planned, but will offer the regular menu until 5 p.m. MCoffee, 522 Main St., Half Moon Bay, 726-6241, will offer the regular menu until mid-afternoon. Miramar Beach Restaurant, Miramar Beach, Miramar, 728-9056, will serve dinner from its regular menu from 5 to 9 p.m. with specials to be decided that night. From 5 to 10 p.m., pianist Steve Arntson will play jazz and classic tunes until closing at 10 p.m. Old Princeton Landing, 460 Capistrano Road, Princeton, 728-9103, keeps up its reputation as a lively spot for celebrations with the Stan Erhart Band, at 8 p.m. Hailing from a Kansas farm where he was exposed to hard work, John Deere tractors and country music, Stan Erhart moved into Kansas City garage bands and late-night esoteric jams. In time he formed his own band in San Francisco, which plays a mix of soulful blues, R&B, high-energy rock and jazz. Sam’s Chowder House, 4210 N. Cabrillo Highway, El Granada, 712-0245, will offer its regular menu with something musically different: roots Americana by the Jenny Kerr Band. A multi-instrumentalist as well as a passionate songwriter, Kerr, sometimes compared to Janis Joplin or Delbert McClinton, a master of fingerstyle guitar, clawhammer banjo, harmonica, piano and dobro, ventures with her band into swamp rock, soul, honky tonk and old-time blues. San Benito House, 356 Main St., Half Moon Bay, 726-3425, will offer a five-course dinner special beginning at 6 p.m., and spice up the evening with live music. San Gregorio Store, Stage Road and Highway 84, San Gregorio, 726-0565, plans no special New Year’s Eve events or entertainment. |