Owners Ted and Cindy Walter
t's hard to believe, but Monterey Bay's most celebrated seafood restaurant almost went belly up.
Ted and Cindy Walter started their famous Pacific Grove restaurant in 1997 as Crocodile Grill."It
was difficult," says Ted. "We didn't think we'd make it past year two."
The turnaround began with a change of name—and ethos. Passionfish had a conscience, and the Walters lived
by a new motto: "Food from the heart."A fisherman's daughter, Cindy led the charge to protect oceans by serv-
ing only sustainable seafood. "From there the message has gotten stronger and stronger," says Ted.
Add a near-retail-priced, wildly eclectic wine program, a well-trained team that buys into the message (they
volunteer for beach cleanup duty) and tantalizingly different menu items (striped bass crudo with pomegranate-
ginger granite and seaweed ponzu; basil-stuffed rainbow trout with braised vegetables), and Passionfish has
become the local leader in both flavor and integrity. Even as Monterey County's first certified green restaurant,
Passionfish does not preach. It leads by example, and diners find it easy—and delicious—to follow along.
—Larry Harland
I
Photos:
Kelli
Uldall
156 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • S P R I N G / S U M M E R 2 0 1 5
good
taste
Passionfish
701 Lighthouse Ave.
Pacific Grove • 831/655-3311
www.passionfish.net
Dungeness Crab
& Avocado Salad
With spicy ginger vinaigrette
