Papa Lennon's

515 West El Roblar Drive
Ojai
CA 93023

We rode up to Ojai and rewarded ourselves with lunch at Papa Lennons another of Mark's recommendations. The courtyard's dappled shade and ivy clad walls contributed to the laid back vibe.

We perused the menu before heading inside to order some dishes to share.

The won-ton chicken salad contained shredded romaine lettuce, cabbage, carrots, diced red onion, roma tomatoes, chicken, green onions, coriander and fried won-ton skins tossed with a Thai peanut dressing. The combination of fresh flavours and textures was great and the serving generous.

I'd never tried golden beetroot before, which was a feature of 'The Beetnik' along with spring mix, roasted red beets, candied walnuts, goat cheese rolled in fresh herbs and dried cranberries with a honey herb infused vinaigrette. The bright coloured 'roots lived up to their name and the flavours were similar to the traditional variant. The melange was also well balanced and tasty!

We also shared a Mediterranean Pizza mozzarella topped with cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted red peppers, zucchini and eggplant, artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, feta cheese and pesto. The base was thin and crisp and the generous portion of toppings packed with those southern European flavours.

We finished up with 'long blacks', which Mark orders by specifying the addition of  a little hot water to an espresso to get the right drink, including the crema.

Papa Lennon's was a great place to hang out and re-fuel mid ride, the service was friendly and relaxed. The bill came in at a fair $34.33 and we thought it was a great spot for a mid ride break!