By Teri Bayus ~
Food should nourish the soul, as well as the body. When a culinary master creates an establishment with the goal of providing the best nutrition and taste, we are blessed in flavors.
Fig Good Food is such a haven. Run by Chris Dillow, part of the gastronomic royalty of our area.
Fig offers the best of a Mediterranean style diet with roasted meats, house made pasta, chutneys, salads and sandwiches that are large in flavor while served in a tiny efficient galley.
On our first visit there, the “king of pastries” led the charge and he started with hummingbird cake, a combination of Caribbean flavors so good, you knew this is what carrot cake aspired to be.
Pineapple, banana, and coconut with a butter cream frosting on a triple-layered cake. He is also partial to the bread pudding, which gets him off the Traffic Way exit to Fig every time he visits North County. The bread pudding has Windrose Farms’ white peaches, honey, Havarti, and blackberry compote that tasted like angels singing.
Fig is small with only 14 seats, so take out is their specialty. Each dish is prepared with love and attention for the nutrient value of the food. I started with the Fig Secret Special (tell them Teri sent you) that was a combination of four amazing servings. The Chef’s medley offered the rotisserie chicken wings and drumsticks first, couscous with grilled artichokes and feta cheese, spicy roasted vegetables and ratatouille, Windrose Farms tomatoes and a white bean mash. This heaping dish of authentic and delectable food always impresses.
Fig roasts all their meats. Today, the rotisserie hosted Mary’s chicken, basted with an orange sauce. The roaster (a.k.a. Chef John) also prepares herb-rubbed lamb served with fig chutney and garlic-rubbed pork loin. No deli meats are served here, it is all roasted and pulled to the diner’s pleasure.
The Mediterranean diet comes into play in each creation, harboring good olive oil and wine with the roasted meat and local vegetables. Fig offers superior dishes prepared with painstaking love, local ingredients and panache. Chef John bakes fresh bread every day, as well as preparing all the miraculous plates.
Soups are amazing and change with the seasons. On our visit we sampled the almond gazpacho soup with croutons and the lemony chicken with ginger and cilantro. Both were outstanding.
This restaurant cares more about the nutritional value of its food more than any I have ever seen.
Chris and her crew painstakingly prepare the ingredients for each dish in the healthiest way that our bodies can absorb it, and it all tastes delicious.
My favorite is the fig chutney, prepared raw with a European flair. I had it with the local roasted potatoes that also came with chimichurri aioli. My other favorite is the sundried tomatoes with Happy Acres Goat Cheese with olive tapenade on a bruschetta slice of grilled bread.
The flat bread sandwich was served with a variety of greens tossed with buttermilk dressing (created by Chris’s mother), and it was charming. Inside, the sandwich has white bean mash, local Toro Creek avocado, jicama and a little vinaigrette all served on a house made flat bread puff.
Fig serves up big flavors with homemade pasta, rotisserie chicken, whole-grain and mixed-green salads, soups, and some of the most flavorful sandwiches around. They use local and organic vegetables as often as possible.
They are located at 5945 Traffic Way, Atascadero. Call them at (805) 460-9900. Open Monday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesdays-Thursdays from 11-8, Fridays 11-8:30, and Saturdays 11-3. Closed Sundays.
