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Here, at one of the biggest of ranches in the USA at 83,000 acres, there is a stunning range of places to set a table, from the ocean side to the mountain top. Steve’s close friends Jim and Debi Saunders of Hearst Ranch Winery will share their award-winning vintages. We are honored that the Hearst family reached out and invited us to this historic property. It’s a gorgeous place, and we’re thrilled to return, this time with guest chefs Jeff and Janet Olsson of Industrial Eats. This will be their second appearance this tour, after having worked their magic in the field kitchen at Gainey Vineyard in July. Lucky for us, this husband-and-wife chef team keeps returning to cook for us. They’re masters of the wood-burning oven and good friends with a slew of sustainable farms, foragers and fisherpeople across the Central Coast which they’ll source from for the menu.

One of our most beautiful table sites. Last year was our first visit to the Hearst Ranch. Two consecutive nights brought extraordinary weather and views — warm, windless skies and a historic castle in the golden hour. As we have often experienced in Big Sur and elsewhere, the higher coastal elevation presents both a view of the Pacific and fog that arrives in the evening, pooling below the table as we float on a cloud. Needless to say, it’s quite the place to dine. And guest chef Julien Asseo will cook up quite the meal to match the scenery. Julien grew up on a vineyard in France and has worked in a number of impressive kitchens in Paris, L.A. and Las Vegas, including Michelin-starred Restaurant Guy Savoy where he climbed the ladder to Executive Chef. In 2019, he and his wife Courtney opened Les Petites Canailles, their celebrated farm-to-table French bistro in downtown Paso Robles. His Fall feast is bound to feature some French flavors and technique, plus plenty of pastured beef from Hearst Ranch.

Olive green. You see it everywhere here, including the farm-fashionable clothing of host farmer Thom. So much love and care goes into this farm. It’s really one of the most well cared for properties you will ever see. You may feel lightheaded with intoxication from all the beauty as we dine in dappled sunlight under arching branches. If it happens you have some of your own farm-fabulous olive green somewhere in your closet it’s time to bring it out and join Thom. Guest chef Anthony Wells of Juniper & Ivy will don his green in the field kitchen. Anthony’s worked at Juniper & Ivy since it opened back in 2014, forging deep relationships with local farms and fisherpeople and helping the restaurant earn its stripes as one of San Diego’s very best. He was named a 2022 James Beard Semifinalist for Best Chef: California. Grab a seat in the grove to learn why.

The table in the grove at Temecula is among our most beautiful. It seems like every tree has been shaped to provide the most beautiful possible dining site. There is actually some truth to that. Ten years ago, when we set our first table here in the grove, many small branches needed a trim so guests could dine comfortably. The trees have now grown and there is quite a bit more room. Maybe OITF and the Temecula olive grove are growing in concert. Chef Brian Redzikowski has grown alongside the trees also; this is his eighth time as an Outstanding guest chef.

Make a turn off Highway 1 and head uphill. Soon you’ll find yourself in a world that feels miles away from famous beaches and seaside mansions. This is the Thornes’ place, a 25-acre farm where three generations have worked the land since Larry’s parents purchased the property in 1938. Local restaurant chefs rely on the lovingly tended produce grown here, from dry-farmed tomatoes that really taste like tomatoes, to all manner of vegetables and the juicy berries – strawberries, ollaliberries, blueberries – that Thorne Family Farm is famous for. Guest chef Joshua Gill will make great use of Larry Thorne’s lovingly grown produce in the field kitchen. His Beverly Hills restaurant Mírame is known for its creative, ever-changing menu of Mexican flavors and seasonal ingredients from area farms, ranches, and fisheries. Before opening Mírame in 2020, Joshua made his mark as Chef de Cuisine at Joe’s Restaurant in Venice, helping it earn its first Michelin star back in 2008. Then he opened Tacos Punta Cabras, a shining star of L.A. ‘s Alta California cuisine, before traveling the world for many years as a restaurant consultant and chef. Expect a creative feast of contemporary Mexican fare — like salmon skin chicharron, parsnip al pastor tacos, and pressed pig face tostadas. Yum.

Guest chef Clark Staub loves cooking in the field kitchen. He’s always up for anything – ask him about ferrying all his ingredients out to a sand spit in Morro Bay for dinner a few years back – and we love any excuse to bring him along with us. This will be Chef Clark’s tenth dinner with us (we’ll also see him earlier this season in Big Sur), and that doesn’t count his appearances at Coachella. He’s definitely an OITF favorite. We’ll be returning to set the table with our friends at Ampelos Cellars again this year. Host vintners Rebecca and Peter are always a welcoming site to a crew that has traveled the country for five months. The Santa Rita hills have the climate and soil that leads to very good wine — there will be no shortage of that as we dine together beside the vines.