Open and shut: Pedals & Pints Brewing cycles onto Thousand Oaks’ craft-beer scene – VC Star

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Head brewer David Chaney, left, and co-owner Brad Cristea pose behind the counter at Pedals & Pints Brewing Co. in Thousand Oaks. The bicycling-themed craft brewery will mark its grand opening on March 17.(Photo: LISA MCKINNON/THE STAR)

Theteam behind Pedals & Pints Brewing Co.in Thousand Oaksdidn't pick St. Patrick's Day as an official opening date. It picked them.

"I started brewing almost the second we got our occupancy permit," said head brewer David Chaney, laughing at the memory. "Then we counted out the days to when those first beers would be ready."

As of this writing, the brewery is scheduled to mark its official grand opening at 11 a.m.March 17.(Check the Pedals & Pintswebsite andFacebook and Instagram accounts forchanges due to evolving public-healthguidelines in the age of coronavirus.)

It will feature four brewed-on-the-premises beers on tap, along with a menu of salads and pizzas created by co-ownerBrad Cristea. Aveteran of more than 30 years in the hospitality industry, Cristea is planning a corned beef and cabbagepizza for the occasion. (Other, more permanent pizza options include The Mack, made with mac 'n' cheese sauce, and the East Coast-inspired Bacon Clam with roasted garlic cream.)

MORE: Ventura County restaurants address dining in the time of coronavirus

Pedals & Pints Brewing Co. is located at a former Red Lobster restaurant at 156 W. Hillcrest Drive in Thousand Oaks.(Photo: LISA MCKINNON/THE STAR)

Green light bathes the rows of fermenters and bright tanksjust beyond the taproom counter, continuing the St. Patrick's Day theme. The color can be changed, Cristea said. But the team which includesco-owner Mark Clemens, a Thousand Oaks High School graduate, and director of brewery operations Josiah Blomquist, a Newbury Park native like how the hue echoes the bright green under lighting of the 10-barrel brewhouse at the back of the roughly 6,000-square-foot building.

Pedals & Pints is located at what served as ashort-livedRed Lobsterbetween Olive Garden and Bank of Americanear The Oaks shopping center.It features a taproom decorated with patio lights andmountain bikes andan outdoor areafurnished with wine-barrel plantersand a pass-through window counter with its own row of Park Tool-logo barstools. Theseating capacity is 240.

The kitchen is abouthalfthe size it was during Red Lobster's run from 2011to 2016. But it still has the chain's former dishwashing machine, which Cristea said is one of the nicest he's seen in a career that has included working with chef Joachim Splichal at the original Patina onMelrose Avenue.

The idea for thebrewery started fermenting about six years ago, inspired by Cristea's and Clemens' shared love of bicycling.

A mountain bike is part of the decor at Pedals & Pints Brewing Co. in Thousand Oaks. The city's second craft brewery is scheduled to celebrate its grand opening on March 17.(Photo: LISA MCKINNON/THE STAR)

"Biking and beers kind of go together. You get together with friends, go for a ride, then hit someplace after for something to eat," said Cristea. "When I get done with a ride, I have a replenishing drink. I'd rather have a beer than anything else."

After finding the location and securing the final building permits, construction of the brewery, taproom and kitchen took a comparatively short six months.

But therewere hiccups along the way. Plans for a see-through bar top embedded with bicycle parts, tools and gears engraved with the names of Kickstarter donors fell through when a mistake was made during the pouring of the epoxy. A new counter was made from wood, with chains and engraved gears visible through a much thinner layer of protective resin.

Cherrywood-topped tables are used throughout the taproom, where seating options includea play pen-style area that can be reserved for large groups.

Beers on tap for the opening will include a pale ale, an India pale ale, a stout and a lager, Chaney said. The selection will build to 12 beers, with seasonal variations.

David Chaney, head brewer at Pedals & Pints Brewing Co. in Thousand Oaks, poses with an American pale ale he made for the brewery's grand opening.(Photo: LISA MCKINNON/THE STAR)

Chaney started home brewing in 2012. He became involved with MacLeod Ale Brewing Co. in Van Nuysabout two years later, working his way up from cellar master to assistant brewer under Blomquist, then the head brewer. When Blomquist moved on in 2017, Chaney took over ashead brewer. While at MacLeod, he won silver and gold awards at the World BeerCup and San Diego International Beer Competition, respectively.

The brewing capacity at Pedals & Pints could eventually handle an off-site taproom or two, Cristea said.

For now, it is the second breweryto open in Thousand Oaks, following the debut last summer of Tarantula Hill Brewing Co.

"In terms of numbers, we're way behind compared to San Diego and compared to Ventura, even," he said. "I don't think beer is a fad or a phase. It's a part of life."

After the grand opening, hours at the brewery will be from 11 a.m. to 10p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays(156 W. Hillcrest Drive,https://www.pedalsandpintsbrewing.com).

In CAMARILLO,Lalo's Family Restaurant opened March 6 at the Paseodel Sol space left vacant by the serial departures of Sushi Hiro, Yamato and Tony Roma's. The new restaurant offers sit-down service from a 14-page menu that is identical to the one in use at its sister location in Oxnard. (The family-owned restaurant chainalso operates two order-at-the-counter Lalo's Fast Food locations in Ventura.)

Breakfast dishes such as eggs Benedict ($9.95), huevos con machaca ($13.95) and waffle platters($14.95, including two eggs and a choice of three sides) are available until 2 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, until noon Saturdays and until 11 a.m. Sundays.

"Nuevos platillos" include "coco loco" featuring shrimp served in a coconut ($13.95), a"light" molcajete ($17.95) and fajitas de Juanita ($17.95).

Wine, beer and cocktails are available. Hours are from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays(1901 E. Daily Drive, 805-586-4031, http://www.lalosfamilyrestaurant.com).

Nabor Wines LLCis moving its winemaking operations from Westlake Village to a Flynn Road business park in Camarillo.

The new facility will not be open to the public and it won't have a tasting room "even though our permit will allow it. We simply do not produce enough wine, nor does the wine we do produce hang around long enough, to service a tasting room,"co-owner and winemaker Dusty Nabor wrote in an email to The Star.

The winery's allocation mailing list and online sales are the only way to obtain its wines made from grapes grown in Paso Robles and Santa Barbara County. It also participates in tasting events that benefit local charities.

Naborproduces wines under the labels Bolt To Wines, NSO by Dusty Nabor and Dusty Nabor Wines, the latter described as the premier brand.

The move is happening in part because the winery's previous facility was repurposed, Nabor said. Other factors: Camarillo is cheaper, slightly cooler and closer to source vineyards (http://dustynaborwines.com).

In NEWBURY PARK, the combination coffee and wine bar BeanoVinowill close March 16. That's nearly two months after the original "end of January" closure date announced late last year, when theDos Vientos-neighborhood business went on the market.

A farewell post on the business' Facebook page thanked patrons for the "support, love and friendship that you have extended to us for the past six years and seven months.

"To all the kids that hang out at BeanoVino, thank you for making us a part of your growing up years. ... Looking forward to seeing you all healthy, grown up and accomplished in your own ways" (360 Via las Brisas, Suite 160, 805-375-2326).

In OXNARD, the seafood-restaurant project that started its build-out last summer as Boiling Crabhas been renamed.It will do business as Niu Seafood when it opens perhaps as soon as early next week at 2530 Saviers Road in the IslandPlaza shopping center.

At Salt Waterside Bistroat 4308 Tradewinds Drivein the Whitesails Villagecenter, the "closed until further notice"sign reported in the Feb. 29 edition of this column has been replaced by a longer, more explanatory note.

"Salt will reopen in the spring," it reads. "We are aiming for the first of April. Due to sudden staff changes and technical issues, we were forced to stop service with no notice.

"Look forward to a new Spring and Summer menu, lighter fare, locally sourced seafood and produce."

Salt's website has been updated to note the temporary closure. The restaurant'sphone number rings unanswered, and its Facebook and Instagram pages were last updated in December.

In VENTURA, the combination bowling alley, restaurant, bar and live-music venue Discovery Ventura isclosed until March 18 due to public-health precautions, according to an March 12 email signed by the "Disco Team."

The time period affects just one event: aMarch 14 tribute to Prince. A phone number listed in the email for calls about obtaining ticket refunds belongs to a landscape architecture firm that is not connectedto Discovery Ventura. (The correct number is given below.)

Tickets for the event were still being sold on the venue's website as of Friday afternoon.

Discovery Ventura recently shortened its operations to Friday and Saturday nights. According to a LoopNet listing, the building it occupies is on the market for $4.2 million (1888 E. Thompson Blvd., 805-856-2695,https://www.discoveryventura.com).

In downtown Ventura, the lifestyle store Iron and Resin is temporarily closed at 324 E. Main St.fora remodeling project that includes earthquake retrofitting and the creation of a backyard hangout spot with a cafe built out of three, 40-foot shipping containers. According to notices posted on the store's windows and website, it will reopen on or around May 1 (https://ironandresin.com).

A few blocks away, the extensive renovation of a building that once housed a photo studio, a shabby-chic store and an antiques shop will result in at least one new restaurant:Model Citizen.

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Prospect Coffee Roasters goes to bat in Ventura (2017)

The future business will feature a full bar, according to the yellow "public notice of application to sell alcoholic beverages" noticetaped to the window at 70 S. Oak St. Applicants named on the pending licenseare brothersDerek Ulrich and Blake Ulrich,who opened Prospect Coffee Roastersnearly three years ago in downtown Ventura.

Lisa McKinnon is a staff writer for The Star. To contact her, send email to lisa.mckinnon@vcstar.com.

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Open and shut: Pedals & Pints Brewing cycles onto Thousand Oaks' craft-beer scene - VC Star