RAY’S FAVES…Last week’s Best Of issue, the largest issue in the history of the Weekly, gets me to thinking about all of the great stuff around here. There were something like 136 poll winners and close to 50 editors’ picks, but there is even more to celebrate.

There’s the restaurant formerly known as Loutas, now called L’Escargot. There’s nothing wrong with the name Loutas. It’s the last name of chef/owner Kerry Loutas. It’s just…it’s that big wooden snail hanging outside this elegantly comfortable French eatery on Carmel’s Mission Avenue that Chef Loutas has been masterfully commandeering for the past five years. Perfectly executed traditional French dishes balanced by delicious original creations, gracious, friendly service, a good wine list and a welcoming, warm spirited environment. It’s easy to understand how Kerry Loutas has thrived. And there’s a fabulous dish nobody gets to eat (except occasionally): the Veal Julia at Alberto’s Ristorante. Alberto Bonatelli, fiendishly gifted, unflinchingly individual, creatively mad chef/owner of Alberto’s, at the top of Forest Avenue in PG, is like a bubbling fountain of Italian cooking. Perhaps his most passionate rant is about this amazing dish, of tender white veal in an avocado-based sauce that, when combined, is like eating the food equivalent of fine silk. It is one of the most mouth-watering, sensory satisfying indulgences of flavor there is.

We should not forget our most colorful prominent local: Gary Pisoni. California Pinot Noir drinkers have long coveted wines that bear the moniker “Pisoni Vineyard” on the label—some 15 or so different producers buy his fruit. Gary’s own label, the cult-like Pisoni “Pisoni,” has quickly become legendary. This is a man who careens about his hilly vineyards in a vintage 1940s topless jeep, and jumps naked into an old claw-footed bathtub situated under a gigantic tree in the middle of a vineyard (with running water he found on dry land through the help of engineers, diviners and an old medicine man). He is a combination of Johnny Appleseed, Jerry Garcia, Jesse Ventura and Baron Phillipe Rothschild…now that’s colorful.

I must pay tribute to Andrew Lengacher and Chris Sprecher, each an heir apparent to James Brown as hardest working man in show business. Long hours, difficult working conditions, constant standing, stress, sweat, blood and a lot of tears: Restaurant owners, already overburdened, take advantage of any moment of respite to rest—but not these two. They can be found rushing around from catering project to catering project, and whenever they have a bit of time in between running two restaurants (they actually work in them), you’ll see one or both at Laguna Seca Raceway, Poppy Hills during the AT&T, The Monterey Beer Festival, as well as other events on and off the Peninsula.

Then there is Laverne Hall, of Mom’s Home Cookin’, baker of the best sweet potato pie around. One visit to this humbly magnificent soul food emporium on Fremont Boulevard in Seaside will convert you to Madame Hall’s sensational Southern specialties. After a great, truly home-cooked meal, the topper is that unreasonably delightful sweet potato pie. It’s perfect crust—flaky yet holds together and made with love. If you’re looking for low calories, go somewhere else. If you’re looking for the best sweet potato pie, no holds barred…eat Mom’s pie today, exercise tomorrow.

And then there’s Pagrovia, where soulful artifacts provide awesome ambiance. Multi-talented chef/co-owner Vincenzo D’Amico applies his ample artistic talent as both chef and, well, artist. Stop by this ever-evolving restaurant on Lighthouse Avenue in downtown Pacific Grove to experience fresh, interesting dishes based upon his background; half Sicilian, half Russian. Coincidentally, his business partner, Velentina Rapisarda, is from St. Petersburg, Russia. Vincenzo’s unique combinations of ingredients work well on the plate and his artistically-inspired sculptures, sketches and paintings work well on the walls, the counters, everywhere.

And finally, a place where locals get to tour Jalisco without leaving their seats: Puerto Mexico Restaurant. Like Cognac or Champagne, Tequila is known first as a great beverage and then, remotely, as a place. Andes “Andy” Nuño, owner of Puerto Mexico Restaurant on Monterey’s Fisherman’s Wharf, is a Tequila connoisseur. Just look at all the beautiful shapes, colors and sizes of vessels carrying Jalisco’s magic potion wrung from the circulatory system of the majestic Blue Agave cactus. Place yourself in Andy’s capable hands and let him take you on a sensory tour of Mexico’s paradise region. If there was a Tequila drinkers’ equivalent of Wine Spectator magazine, Puerto Mexico would get the Grand Award.