Bringing People Together
Baldovino’s in Mt. Shasta Brings Big Flavor to Small-Town Dining…
Twenty years is a long time to wait for anything. But for Sue Baldo, the timing to opening Baldovino’s in Mount Shasta turned out to be perfect. “Opening this restaurant has been something I’ve wanted to do for 20 years. We lived in Sacramento for several years but always had a second home in Mount Shasta, and when we decided to make Mount Shasta our full-time home in 2020, we just felt like something was missing when it came to the food scene. Then, we happened upon a space that we thought would be perfect, and I was fortunate enough to get hooked up with a chef that shared my vision. Everything just fell into place, and I realized it hadn’t happened before because it was meant to happen here,” explains Baldo.
Her passion is palpable. “I have loved to cook my entire life. Food is not only nourishment, but so many things in life happen over a meal. We celebrate things; we solve things; we start new relationships. My favorite thing to do in the whole world is have people in my home and feed them. So when I found Chef Clint Mero, who is phenomenally talented, and learned he shared my vision, that’s when I felt like, OK, this concept is ready.”
Capitalizing on long-held connections with the food and wine industry in Northern California, the menu is always offering something new. “We do menu changes every three months from top to bottom so our menu is always fresh and new and representative of the best that we can get to serve our community,” says Baldo.
She has also worked hard to transform the space into a place where anyone feels at home. “In creating the restaurant, our goal was to be relaxed, dark and sexy. We wanted to create a space where the community can get together, but where a single woman could also come sit at the bar and feel comfortable. We wanted to bring just a touch of city to the space, but then you walk out the door, and you’re still in our charming town of Mount Shasta. And, the reason we went with the space we are in is because it has an outside deck that looks at Mt. Shasta. Spring and summer when that deck is open is just fabulous.”
Baldo also shares the restaurant with her husband, Jeff. “My husband does all of the wine, and he’s going above and beyond trying to bring wine from everywhere. We have California wines, we have French and Italian wines, and we have Spanish wines. We also just started wine on tap which is kind of fun. We don’t treat our value wines any differently than we treat our expensive wines because It’s important to us to have something for everybody, and everything we serve we want it to be a quality product that we feel proud to be serving.”
For first timers to Baldovino’s, Baldo shares her suggestion for an optimal experience. “I would say the best eating experience would be to start with a shareable or two, and do family-style. Part of our menu is designed with nibbles in mind. I would also recommend everybody order something different on the menu for an entrée. We’ve got four entrées, so if you’ve got four people, everyone gets a taste. Our vision of the food is that it’s meant to be shared.” Baldo also says they’ve had great success with some unique events and have more planned for the future. “Keep an eye out for fun things like wine dinners, or events like the seven-course prix fixe meal we did for Valentine’s Day. That was a sell-out. But without a doubt, I promise, we’re always going to be striving for new ways to bring people together to share great food and wine.” •
418 N. Mt. Shasta Blvd., Mt Shasta
(530) 918-8930
baldovinos.toast.site
