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ACTUAL VIDEOS
from
Ciao!Bella!!

Girls Night In
(6.5 MB)

Gallery Z
(9.5 MB)

The ManDance
(4.7 MB)

Americana
(12 MB)

Dance-o-rama!
(8.6 MB)

Winter Blues 2005
(7.2 MB)

Part D
(7.2 MB)

Part C
(6.5 MB)

Part B
(7.1 MB)

Part A
(5.4 MB)

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...

Living the Dream
in Ben Lomond

Someone dropped a restaurant on the wicked witch of the East! If you don't believe me, there are her ruby slippers, still on her feet, under the porch at CIAO! BELLA!! ITALIAN RESTAURANT in Ben Lomond, (Santa Cruz County) California!! Bubbles cascade above you, plastic roses mix with real ones in the garden, a magical wazabus is parked next door, and isn't that Austin Powers waiting on a table?!

ELVIS and LOUIS PRIMA were on the box, strobe lights flickered, a disco ball and black lights were fighting it out for supremancy, the bar was packed!! Talk about kooky decor -- at Ciao!Bella!!, anything goes and apparently everything stays!

A cross between Rip Torn's bathroom and Fellini on acid in the Land of Oz, this is one place where it's better just to surrender to new experiences! Everyone is having way too much fun here, starting with the host and owner himself, TAD MORGAN, who turns out to be a vigorous gay guy in shiny black pants, 3-inch storm stompers and a chest full of chains... On a stage with brass poles under a strobe light, doing a high-kick dance routine to a Prince funk number accompanied by two waitresses trying their best to keep up.

Welcome to the overdrive facade of Tad Morgan, a man with bottomless panache and the perfect vehicle to pour it into. "Sure I'm living my dream... So sue me!!!!" says a saucy quote above his photo in the main dining room. "CIAO BELLA" (Bye Beautiful) was apparently one of the last things he said to a former relationship, so with no looking back he was suddenly married to his current project, one that takes up more than 14 hours each day (a trade that he still feels he got the better part of)! It would be easy to get lost in this retro-kitsch, if the food at Ciao!Bella!! wasn't as memorable as the decor -- but it is.

In just 9 years, this little spot underneath a magic circle of 100 foot tall Redwoods has been transformed, from a property taken in bankruptcy court to the county's most talked about rendezvous. People drive all the way from San Francisco just to take it in (reservations are a must)!

Try an order of garlic bread topped with fresh tomatoes, mounded melted mozzarella and parmesan, redolent with enough garlic to ward off both cancer and all your friends for a month. Sample a plate of fresh local steamers, opened to order, swimming in a butter-and-wine broth, or raved about the lightness and un-rubberlike texture of the Calamari all Romano, served lightly breaded on a bed of lettuce, in a fragrant stock accented by tomatoes, celery, onion and slivers of bell peppers.

Or savor a mouthful of delightfully light chicken broccoli cream soup with a crisp dinner Caesar salad, loaded with tomatoes, crumbled eggs, pine nuts, cheese and crisp Romaine then coated with a light but not overly vinegary vinaigrette. You'll be dazzled by the saltimbocca di Vitello, served piping hot: thin,pounded strips of veal layered between proscuito, fresh spinach,mozzarella and sage, all swimming in a red wine pomodoro sauce. YUMMMMMY!! Fluffy white rice and crispy, not soggy, broccoli florets set off this entree nicely. You'll beg shamelessly for a taste of the Cappellini al Crudo: Gulf prawns with fresh tomatoe, basil, garlic and white wine.

A walk in the garden at Ciao! Bella!! is a must. A patio known as the Redwood Ring is circled by 19 tightly spaced redwoods that tower skyward, creating a cathedral-like dining experience that people literally line up three-deep (and four-deep on weekends) to experience. The flower boxes are full, but the lights are low...

Over coffee and a few more hip-shakes from the Ciao!Bella!! Cabaret, enjoy the Zabiglione, a light cream custard and marsalla wine saute that was flamed in a huge skillet tableside, then poured into chocalate laced goblets with a handful of Nestle's Morsels waiting at the bottom (the custard sauce foams and spills over the goblet). The idea is to find the fudge at the bottom with each spoonful, a devilish good search. This place is UNBELIEVABLE. Good job, TAD!

Ciao!Bella!! Italian Restaurant
9217 Highway 9, Ben Lomond CA
Hours: Sunday-Thursday 5-9 pm,
'til 10pm Saturday and Sunday

Dare to live different - dine at Ciao!Bella!!
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