Bacalhau

Eastside Road, March 11, 2011—

LUNCH ON THE ROAD today, the road home after a quick run up to Ashland for a couple of plays. And lunch at one of my favorite spots, one of the Hundred Restaurants.

But I have sad news: City Gates is no longer serving dinner. If it were, I might have jumped ship at lunch, stayed for the night, and caught the Greyhound home tomorrow. Hard times have fallen, temporarily I hope, and the doors now close at two o'clock.

But the good news is this: the items from the dinner menu have mostly been moved to lunchtime. You can get the delicious pork, mussel, and clam stew; the calde verde; even — from the breakfast menu — the red-wine-and-garlic marinated beefsteak with two fried eggs. Or you can do what we did, and order the bacalhau.

As served here, it's a simple but unctuous dish. The salt cod, soaked tender, is cooked with sliced onions, a little garlic, and sliced potatoes, in a great deal of mild but redolent olive oil, then served in its terra-cotta baking dishes, garnished with slices of perfectly hard-boiled egg. Before it, I had a cup of calde verde, kale and potato soup, with a chicken-stock base, some garlic, and slices of chorizo. Here's a recipe; I haen't tried it, but will soon I think; it's probably much like what I had today.

City Gates is a warm, friendly place devoted to Portuguese cooking bonne femme, as the French say; good housewife's cooking. Mom's in the kitchen; everything's first-rate.

Vinho verde, 2009 (delicious, fresh, a tiny bit sweet, with a nice sparkle

• City Gates Cafe, 1165 Hoff Way, Orland, CA; (530) 865-5552