Solvang eatery adding to tasty offerings
A new business, peasants DELI & MARKET, will offer classic and not-so-classic deli sandwiches filled with artisanal-cured and smoked meats served on specially commissioned sesame French rolls.
Michael Cherney and his wife, Sarah Cherney, owners of peasants FEAST in Solvang, have expansion plans in place for the growing hospitality group with the opening of peasants DELI & MARKET, also in downtown Solvang. The new space is located at 473 Atterdag Road, across the lane from the duo’s first restaurant, peasants FEAST.
“Most of my memories of my dad revolve around food, and some of the best of those were from the times he’d take me to hole-in-the-wall delis all over Los Angeles,” Chef Cherney told the News-Press. “We’d sit out on the curb to eat whatever that day’s haul might have been; peasants DELI and MARKET is my re-creation of those memories, right down to the scant sidewalk seating in front of the shop.”
The new business will offer classic and not-so-classic deli sandwiches filled with artisanal-cured and smoked meats served on specially commissioned sesame French rolls from a Santa Ynez Valley bakery, Bob’s Well Bread.
“We’re not sure if Thursday, our target date for the grand opening, will stick,” said Chef Cherney. “The bakeries from which we will source bread, both in the Santa Ynez Valley, are having problems with staff shortages, due to COVID, and there are supply chain and other issues. This is obviously a huge and common problem in the restaurant industry at the moment.”
A focal point of peasants DELI will be a sizable leg of 5J Jamón Ibérico Bellota Cinco Jotas, a rarely found Spanish import, considered the finest cured ham in the world.
Chef Cherney’s renowned and Instagram-famous pastrami smoked salmon will be on the menu, as well as house-roasted Kobe roast beef sandwiches; an Italian sandwich version, “The Godfather,” with Alle-Pia coppa, Barolo and Sopressa salami, and La Quercia prosciutto; house-roasted turkey breast; veggie options; and, eventually, Cherney’s house-made porchetta sandwich, all finished with house dressings and condiments.
Chef Cherney is also considering the menu addition of his house-cured and smoked, thick-cut, maple-glazed bacon.
In addition to the sandwich menu and the Jamón Ibérico, peasants DELI & MARKET will hand slice other assorted meats, which will be available à la carte.
Shelving will line one wall of peasants DELI & MARKET, displaying rows of provisions available for purchase. They include olive oil and fig balsamic vinegar, made for peasants DELI by local crafter Global Gardens; jars of peasants PICKLES; handmade, fresh pasta; and various dressings and condiments used at the deli, including its proprietary Italian dressing and Sunrise Organic Farms Bulgarian carrot pepper hot sauce.
Also available in the market section of the deli will be Conservas Ortiz tuna belly, boquerones like those found on peasants FEAST’s Copenhagen Caesar salad, and Spanish mussels in escabeche from La Brújula, with rotating pâté eventually joining the line-up (e.g., rabbit, duck, etc.).
Over the past couple of months, the peasants FEAST crew has been running “pop-ups” in the peasants DELI & MARKET space, announced via social media. Future plans for the new deli space, once the beer and wine license is in place, are weekly social hours, from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday. New peasants DELI & MARKET initiatives and updates will be announced on the team’s social media accounts: @peasantsDELI and @peasantsFEAST.
The Cherneys’ debut restaurant, peasants FEAST, originally opened for business just two weeks after the start of the March 2020 pandemic shutdowns.
“With years of planning, hopes, dreams and sacrifice leading up to opening our first restaurant, yet facing complete uncertainty, Sarah and I pushed forward with the peasants FEAST opening, modifying and adapting our initial business model to meet the changing community needs,” said Chef Cherney.
The restaurant began by providing the newly homebound Santa Ynez Valley with farm-fresh menu items prepared for take-away to be enjoyed at home or on the road. One of the restaurant opening’s pandemic-forced tweaks was the elimination of a Jamón Ibérico station, which was meant to be an interior dining room centerpiece.
“It’s funny how things play out. Not only did we survive the past nearly two years, now we’re actually expanding our family business, complete with that ham as a foodie focus,” said Chef Cherney.
The couple brought more than three decades of restaurant experience to peasants FEAST, with time spent in Michelin-starred Ortolan in Los Angeles and L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon in Las Vegas, and with Sides Hardware and Shoes and Firestone Walker Brewing Company in Santa Ynez Valley.
The Cherneys’ initial intent for peasants FEAST was for the restaurant to serve as a gathering place for friends and families, but the pandemic’s different plans made the couple master their to-go game, only recently allowing them to seat guests in the indoor dining area.
“We really wanted to entertain a bit more, but the organic growth and pace of peasants FEAST’s business didn’t give us a chance to do so,” said Ms. Cherney. “The DELI is an opportunity to slow our pace and to welcome guests in a more intimate setting,”
email: mmcmahon@newspress.com
FYI
Located at 487 Atterdag Road in Solvang, peasants FEAST is open for take-away service and indoor or outdoor patio dining from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. For information, call 805-686-4555.
Initial opening hours for the deli counter at peasants DELI & MARKET, 473 Atterdag Road, will be 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. (or until sold out) Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, with market hours to extend a bit later. For information, call 805-691-9649.or visit
