- Today on "All Across Oregon," it's another trip to one of my happy places, the Oregon coast, Bandon.

Food, coffee, cider, a Filipino food truck.

We're gonna meet the people behind the scenes and see what they do to make this place a special place to visit anytime of the year.

Bandon, coast trip, here we come.

(upbeat music) This episode of "All Across Oregon" is made possible in part by John Warekois, CPA, tax professional and profit builder in Southern Oregon and Northern California, Pacific Rack, Southern Oregon's rack specialist since 2020, offering vehicle racks and travel gear, located in Talent, Oregon, and shipping nationwide, and Travel Southern Oregon.

Travel Southern Oregon supports a diverse, thriving, and sustainable visitor economy to create a better life for all our region's residents.

Visit Southern Oregon, do something great.

Bandon, Oregon, known for its beaches, hiking, golfing, biking, and birding.

It even has an old town, Old Town Bandon, full of shops, restaurants, and more, was founded in 1873.

Before that, it was home to the Coquille Indians who lived in this very area.

Now, it's a cute and quaint tourist town that is a must-visit.

This is the first guy we met when we arrived in Bandon.

This is John from Tony's Crab Shack.

What a character.

Yeah, it was a cooked crab.

And check out this chocolate and fudge and popcorn haven.

Oh, my goodness.

Now, you know I love the coast.

I love being near the water.

I love to eat and I really love coffee.

So, first things first, here we are at the Bandon Coffee Cafe.

(upbeat music) I look forward to coming to Bandon just to get the coffee here.

I already know what I'm gonna do as soon as I get here, and here we go.

Peppermint milk mocha with oat milk.

(upbeat music) Ooh, thank you very much, my friend.

My favorite.

(exclaims) Every time, every time, it's like solid.

So I want you to meet Tanya, the manager of the Bandon Coffee Cafe.

Now, usually this is all I get and I get some pastries.

- But today, you're getting Yonkers.

- A Yonkers.

- Yup.

- You know where I'm from?

- New York, you just told me.

- Westchester.

- We decided what you were eating before that.

- You did?

- Yes.

- You already knew?

- Yup.

- Let's check out the Yonkers.

Let's go.

You're already making the Yonkers.

Hold on, we gotta catch up with you, hold on.

Okay, poppy seed bagel.

- Everything bagel.

- Oh, everything bagel?

- Yes.

- Oh, this is not just poppy seed.

This is everything in it.

- Yup.

- Capers.

- Cream cheese, capers.

- All my favorites so far.

Oh, so that's how I'm eating it, open-faced.

I was wondering.

I was like, "That's big bites."

- We serve it with a fork and a knife just 'cause it gets a little messy.

- Yeah, I can see how that would happen.

Thank you so much.

Look at that baby.

Would you like some of this?

Would you like some of this?

Yes, you would.

(chuckles) Oh, that salmon's so good.

Thank you.

- Of course.

Thank you.

- Oh my gosh, that is, that smoke in that salmon is incredible.

(upbeat music) I just wanna tell you something, that bagel is awesome.

- It's amazing.

Better than New York bagels.

- It was good.

- He means yes.

- It was really, really, really good.

Okay, I can't betray my homeboys back home, so, but I thank you so much.

I know it's hard, you're short-staffed today and it's difficult when that happens, but you, the coffee here, the people here, and for new people, they're great.

- We have a great crew.

- A great crew.

- William.

- So this guy probably doubles as the bouncer, the barista and the bouncer.

- Absolutely, yeah.

- So, yeah.

- Well, we haven't got robbed yet.

- There you go.

Just keep you up front, son.

- Got you guys a couple chocolate chips cookies to go.

- Oh, favorite chocolate chip.

Favorite what?

Yeah.

Oh my.

Okay, I'll hold that.

I'll hold this as a treat.

This is a treat.

- And... - And what's that one right there?

- So, our Orange Cookie, that's another one that's very popular.

And our Apple Bars are also super popular.

- Oh my goodness, an Apple Bar.

- It's like an apple cake, a spice cake.

- Oh, yeah.

We'll take an Apple Bar.

- [Tanya] Oh yeah, you will.

- Oh, yeah.

- We are not gonna fall asleep on the way home tonight.

We're gonna do this just fine.

- And an Orange Cookie.

Thank you.

- That bagel, those cookies, and the coffee.

(chef's kiss smacking) (upbeat music) Just down the way is a family-run cider company.

This family has deep roots here in Bandon.

Cranberries were a staple for Native Americans who harvested these wild berries and used them for all kinds of things like remedies for illnesses, foods, and yes, drinks.

Turns out that cranberries were even used back in the fur-trading days in an energy-like bar called pemmican.

Today, the cranberry is still going strong, and man, it's ridiculously amazing in cider form.

Please meet the family behind Bandon Rain Cider.

This is Gary, Karen, Trevor, and Mary.

And tell me about Bandon Rain.

- My wife and I are third generation cranberry farmers.

I said, "Karen, I'm gonna do something with these.

I'm gonna make something.

I'm gonna make cranberry apple hard cider," and what I made was not very good.

It was, it had alcohol in it, and that was about it.

It was, it tasted really bad.

And Trevor and Mary picked up on the idea.

Mary worked on the formula, came up with a much, much better tasting cider, and that's the way it started from our farm.

And we started on our farm making the cider, and- - So wait, your farm, is this you here, right here?

- [Gary] Yeah, that's picture of our family.

- [Vinny] This one?

- [Gary] That's my brother.

And straight to the right is me on that picking machine.

- This here is a man-made lake then?

- That's how we pick.

We use water as a harvesting tool.

So we flood, we have dikes around and we flood.

These cranberries are chamber-buried and float, so we knock them off with that machine you were just looking at, and corral them in the water and you can move them all around and then elevate them out into a truck.

- What is this machine doing right here?

- That is like a big egg beater, okay?

And the vines are matted and very low.

And what it does, it rakes the vines, it knocks the berries off, they float to the surface.

- If we all come back in September or October, can I get in the water and do that with you?

- Yes, absolutely.

I'll put you on that machine.

I'll have you run it.

- I could run the machine?

- Yes.

- Well, you heard it.

I get to come back and run the machine.

I can't wait.

And so then, Mary, you came up with this thing, this concoction.

- We started fermenting apples and cranberries with different types of yeasts and different temperatures, and we did it about 11 times before we found the recipe that we thought we could sell to the public.

- [Vinny] Can we see how the operation works now?

I'll follow you.

I'll follow everybody.

Oh, look at this.

Wow, that's cold.

- We ferment in these tanks.

Each tank here is 1,000 gallons.

Once it's done fermenting, it takes anywhere between 14 to 30 days typically to ferment out.

We transfer it into these guys.

They settle for anywhere from two weeks to four weeks.

And then, we take it and we transfer again into some blending tanks back there.

So these two tanks are brite tanks.

This is where we cool down the product, we blend it together and we carbonate it.

Right now, it's full of our cranberry.

We will be kegging this up in a day or two, completely ready to go.

- Oh, look at this, right out of the... Is this the finished product?

- Yeah.

- So what goes here into the bottles and we're good?

- Yeah, it goes into kegs.

- I think that is the finest cider I've ever had.

- Thank you.

- That is incredible.

Sweet and balanced.

I mean, I'm not a cider professional, but that is beautiful.

- She did well, you know, from where we started until with that product.

- Let's see where this liquid gold is going.

Let's go.

Show me where it's at.

But it is good to help people realize, especially with mom and pop, places from the start of your family's farm, getting the cranberries.

- These two put in a lot of hours into making this.

I mean, I've come down here checking sprinklers, you know, for frost control at 4:00 in the morning, and Mary and Trevor will be here, you know, tending the cider, and I'm going, "Oh, my gosh."

(upbeat music) - [Vinny] So where did you get the knowledge to figure this out?

- Mary went to Cider School.

Trevor and Mary convinced me to go with Mary to Northern Washington, to a guy that came from England that taught about hard cider-making named Peter Mitchell.

We went there, we took the Cranberry Squall, he judged it, and you know, and he said, "This is absolutely great.

I would buy it, I would drink it, and so will everybody else," and he looked at us and said, "You need to launch it."

From that guy, from travel all over the world teaching hard cider-making, that's the way we really got enthused.

And Mary and I, at seven and a half hours to drive back to Bandon, and talked about what was gonna happen.

And I said, "What are you gonna- - It was eight years ago, I think?

- Yeah, and then I said, "Mary, what are you gonna do?"

She said, "I'm quitting my job.

I'm moving in with you and Karen," and I said, "Okay."

- Well, congratulations on such a beautiful family and a family business.

That's a lot of work that would involve there.

Look at all this.

- [Mary] It's Don't Burn Gorse.

- [Gary] Oh, that's another story.

- Oh, my gosh.

- So gorse is an invasive plant that grows all over Bandon.

It typically bloom, starts to bloom in February.

When I first moved here, I didn't know what it was.

And I Googled it and then it said it's from Ireland, and Ireland made wine out of it.

Well, can't we make a cider out of it?

So we did a small batch and we had served it locally at this little festival and people loved it.

And over time, we've made it.

But one of the issues is harvesting gorse, it's very difficult 'cause gores is like a cactus-type plant.

It's very pokey and thorny.

And you have to pick the, we only take the blossom, we pick the tiny little blossom.

- Oh yeah, it taste like an invasive specie.

(everybody laughs) You're right.

No, it's super mellow though, man.

It's super good.

It's had its own unique flavor.

- [Mary] Yeah.

- Never tasted anything like it.

- A lot of people, locals, will think it's gonna have a sharp flavor- - Not at all.

- ... because of gores is such a mean plant, but it's very light.

We call it Don't Burn Gorse 'cause the town burnt down in 1936 when a gorse fire got out of control.

- I can't wait to share you with everybody else.

That is really fun.

Now, right outside the Bandon Rain Cider Company is a husband and wife that run a Filipino food truck.

And let me tell you something, I would drive three and a half hours just to get their food.

This is Weng and Wally Duke, owners of this crazy, tasty food truck.

We'd like to welcome everybody to the Wally and Weng Show.

This is Wally, featuring Wally, and Weng.

So he's the money man and she's the cook, right?

- Yes.

She's the one that keeps this trailer going.

- Oh, I love it.

What a nice husband you have.

I'm really excited to see what you do.

- My bestseller is Shrimp Pancit Canton - Shrimp Pancit Canton.

- Stir-fried noodles.

- Okay.

- Very good.

(Vinny exclaims) - I'm gonna watch you.

I'm gonna see how the master works.

Oh, so you're gonna start with the noodles dry?

- Yup.

- Okay.

- That's my secret.

- That is...

Okay, we won't tell anybody.

(gentle music) So how long have you two been doing this together?

- We've been doing this since May 4th of this year.

- May?

- Yeah.

- This is a brand new trailer then.

- Yeah, we bought it last September.

We did the Mill Casino Cook-off, Truck Cook-off over there at Mill Casino in North Bend.

This year, we have three months in our business and we took third in global cuisine.

Weng, how many hours a day do you work in here?

- We are open 10:00 to 4:00 - 10 to 4, which means you're starting at 6:00 in the morning prepping?

- Yes.

- Okay.

(gentle music) Can you tell me where in the Philippines that you're from?

- I'm from Samar, Leyte.

- [Vinny] Okay, and is that north, south, middle?

- [Weng] Western.

- [Vinny] Western.

- [Weng] The land of beauty.

- [Vinny] Is it really called the land of beauty where you're from?

- [Weng] Yes.

- You get the two deli plates, I'll keep stirring the wok, okay?

Okay.

- She wouldn't even let me do that.

- She feels my cook energy.

She's like, "Go ahead.

Go ahead."

Oh man, these are so different.

These aromas are something that I am not familiar with at all, and they are incredible.

- [Wally] And it's all about taste.

- It's all about taste, I like that.

(gentle music) How far are you traveling?

- We travel up to 50 miles one way, you know, so far this year.

- [Vinny] Wow.

- We put on almost 9,000 miles on our trailer so far.

- Since May?

- Since May 4th.

- This is such a beautiful thing to see a couple do this.

We love it.

- It was her dream, you know, to get a food trailer and I said, "Let's go for it."

- [Vinny] It is so beautiful, Weng.

It is so beautiful.

- You're gonna tell what spices, you know, you put in there, babe?

- Ohh.

- Secret.

- Thank you very much.

- I don't even know what these flavors are.

Like, I don't even know how to describe it.

It just explodes.

It's...

I don't know how to explain it.

(Wally laughs) Sweet, it's spicy.

There's a follow through with the flavor.

It doesn't just go away, it just keeps on giving.

And the shrimp is perfect in there.

(exclaims) So if you're coming through Bandon, you make a left on whatever that road is behind Bandon Rain, and you check out this Filipino truck.

I don't think people know what you do before you get to work, do they?

Most people that get in that line, they have no idea how hard you work.

- But sometimes I told.

- You tell them?

- Yeah.

- Chill out for a minute.

Give me a minute, this takes a lot of work.

- How much time it takes to prep everything, you know, stuff, you know, and rolling up the wrappers and egg rolls and all that.

- Uh-huh, tedious stuff.

- You know, it's just, yeah, it's a lot of work.

- But thank you so much.

I appreciate it, thank you.

- Thank you very much for coming.

- Thank you, Weng.

Thank you.

This was a special treat.

- Thank you.

- Thank you, Wally.

- Thank you very much.

- Thank you.

If you haven't tried Filipino food before, this is a must-go.

(upbeat music) Okay, so yes, I got my fish and chips, had to get it while I was there.

This is my favorite place.

I have literally driven here just to get the fish and chips.

This is Bandon Fish Market.

Okay, just so you guys know, this is my box.

This one... Oh, he's ignoring me.

This one is my box.

This is mine.

Crab with a side of salmon, or a salmon, side of salmon chowder right there.

- [Brian] A crab sandwich with a smoked salmon chowder.

- Yeah, that's right, that's right.

I love this place.

(upbeat music) - These are your halibut pieces right here.

- Oh, look at that.

Nice.

And I noticed one thing about you, you're going by color.

(chuckles) You don't have a timer.

- [Brian] No, no, yeah.

- [Vinny] You're going by color.

- [Brian] I'm putting in 20 jumbo prawns for two orders.

We get 10 a piece on those.

We got three different types of dry batter and three different kinds of wet batter.

(upbeat music) - This is for Joe?

- Yeah.

- Let's go bring this to Joe, okay.

Joseph.

Hold on, I gotta call it out.

We got a cod and prawns.

There you go.

- Thank you.

- You enjoy the best.

I drive four hours for these.

- No.

- Okay, I did today.

I got mine going right now.

I'm gonna go call my own.

All right, I'll be back.

Okay, thank you so much, my friend.

- I appreciate it.

- All right, we're going.

They were packed.

They're busy, but we gotta go eat this outside.

We gotta get out of their way, let's go.

(upbeat music) Okay now, if you're gonna have dinner while in Bandon, this next restaurant is a real treat, and the owner/operator of the restaurant is just as cool and interesting as the restaurant he opened over 30 years ago.

Meet my new friend, Richard, owner and operator of Lord Bennett's.

What a beautiful restaurant.

- Well, thank you very much.

I appreciate that.

- And it's just the tip of the iceberg, 'cause we get to walk up the stairs now.

Wow and wow and wow.

Look at this.

- Well, the sun came out for us today.

- [Vinny] Do you ever get tired of coming to work?

- After 30-some years, it's like looking in your backyard.

- I know.

I'm sure.

- I mean, you just look out and you can see if the waves are high, or whether a storm's coming, you go, "Oh, it looks like rain today."

- Well, hey, do you need any part-time cooks?

I know a little bit around the kitchen.

I mean, this is... - Yeah, we could probably put you to work chopping vegetables.

- Okay.

(both laughs) Well, if that's what you wanna give me, that's what I'll take, I guess.

You built it over 30 years ago.

- [Rich] Yep, '89.

I started in '89.

- How are you doing, chef?

- And this is Kyle.

- Kyle.

- He's been working for me for about five years.

We have our baking oven.

This is our baking area.

We bake all of our own breads, all of our own desserts.

And lady, it's been with me, she's been with me over 15 years.

And so, she bakes about every other day.

And we have a dessert menu you can look at.

- Okay, okay.

This is Harry Allen, a local fisherman.

He's the captain and owner of Shenanegan Fishing Boat, which is where Lord Bennett's gets their fresh shrimp and seafood daily.

He said that Richard has such a passion for what he does and that he is the real deal.

- Hey, Kyle, the spots almost there?

- [Kyle] Yes.

- These spotted prawns, these are the ones that I talked to your fishermen about.

- Yeah, this is, he catches these.

Now, these spotted prawns, they're indigenous to the West Coast.

And Harry is, from the Shenanigan, is the only one, I believe, that fishes for them full-time.

But Harry's been doing this for, I think, 15, 20 years.

- [Vinny] Wow, look at that.

- So anyway, these spotted prawns, when they're born, they're all, I believe, males.

And at three years, they transform into females.

And so, these, of course, are females because of the eggs on them.

But the eggs are probably one of the best things I've ever eaten in my life.

- Really?

- Yeah.

- Really?

- The raw eggs off of them are just spectacular.

- Okay, so, you know, I've never tried this.

- And there's our nut-crusted halibut that we've been known for for years.

- [Vinny] I'm not eating this sampling by myself.

Where's your fork?

Let's all three of us eat it, how about that?

- [Rich] Here, let me show you what...

This is, I found this is the best way to- - [Vinny] Show me.

- ... to do this, is to take and pinch the tail and then just take this.

Usually, it comes completely out.

People say they taste just like lobster.

- Mm-hmm.

I would think I'm eating lobster right there, and those are spotted shrimp.

- [Rich] Spotted prawns.

- Spotted prawns, sorry.

- [Rich] Whatever.

- Spotted prawn.

Oh, we forgot to put a little lemon on it too.

- [Rich] Yeah.

- [Vinny] So you're having one with me, right?

- [Rich] Oh, sure.

- [Vinny] Please.

- They live in the canyons out in the ocean.

They live on the ledges, and then he fishes for them like they do crab.

He has pots and puts bait in there.

- Tell me about this dish right here.

This is so fancy and amazing-looking.

- This is Oregon lamb.

- Oh, my goodness.

- And the crust has got hazelnuts and honey, thyme, breadcrumbs, fresh breadcrumbs, little olive oil.

It's a reduction of balsamic vinegar and huckleberries.

(Vinny exclaims) - This is off the chart.

Guys, wait till you try this.

There's so many flavors happening with this lamb.

All right, we got one left one here.

This is a cod?

No, this is halibut.

- Our nut-crusted halibut.

- [Vinny] Your passion behind this meal is so obvious and what you do.

Well, 33 years you're still doing it, you got passion.

Something's driving you, so.

Oh.

(exclaims) That is fantastic.

- I'm glad you enjoyed it.

(Vinny exclaims) - [Vinny] What else is in, what am I tasting here?

- Its main butter's got a little bit of clam base, lemon, white wine.

- Oh, that just changes the whole dish.

(exclaims) - What's nice about this dish is it keeps the halibut moist.

The halibut doesn't dry out.

- Yeah.

- Which is really nice.

- No.

- It's kind of a foolproof way to cook it.

- Chef, this is incredible.

We could see why you've been here so long.

- Well, I got good help.

(upbeat music) - Who needs to sit down and have a glass of wine, huh?

- Oh yeah, what do you want?

- No, I said who needs a glass of wine when you got this?

Don't be shy though, okay?

If I have to do it, you have to do it.

- Okay.

- If I eat it, you have to eat it, okay?

Tell me what I'm eating, though.

- This is a gluten-free chocolate torte.

The crust is made from almonds, and when you eat it, you can't tell.

- Not even one bit.

Could not tell that's gluten-free.

I won't ask for your secret.

- No, this is a chocolate Kahlua cheesecake.

(upbeat music) - Oh, my goodness.

- And then here, we have chocolate mousse.

This is Swedish cream.

It's just basically sour cream with cream in it, a little gelatin, and then there's raspberry puree on the top.

- Oh, that is delicious.

Oh, that's so refreshing.

I'd almost wanna put that drizzle right on top of there.

- Yeah, oh yeah.

- Oh yeah, oh yeah.

Matter of fact, matter of fact... - A little raspberry on that won't hurt it.

- Oh my.

All right, so when you serve it like this, it's a la Vinny, okay?

Cappuccino mousse a la Vinny, Kahlua mousse.

(Rich laughs) I am so glad that you called me back.

I'm so glad- - Well, I'm glad you called me.

- I know you've put a lot of hard years into this and sometimes when you think of getting even busier or even more work, that's a reality of it is sometimes mentally, it's exhausting.

You know, I get it.

I mean, I look forward to a busy night every night myself, but sometimes... - Yeah, well, you just keep on going.

- You just keep on going.

Just try to make everybody happy.

That's it.

- Yeah, that's the best thing that you can do, because there's nothing better than being around friends and eating dinner.

- 100%, I'm with you on that.

- Yeah.

- Nothing like breaking bread together, for sure.

- Yeah.

- Well, what a beautiful finish to a beautiful day, and you really, you made it happen.

- Thank you very much.

- Thank you so much.

- I appreciate it.

- I appreciate it.

Thank you.

I really enjoyed my time with Richard.

What a great guy, so much experience, so much kindness.

I can't wait to get back to see him again.

Gotta give this guy respect.

(upbeat music) What a fun day.

It was such a great experience.

Bandon is so beautiful and the people there were great.

Thanks for taking another road trip with us to the coast today.

From our coffee, fish and chip, cider, Filipino food truck, and the spotted prawns, what a great day.

So much fun, so tasty, so Bandon.

We'll see you next time as we go all across Oregon.

This episode of "All Across Oregon" is made possible in part by John Warekois, CPA, tax professional and profit builder in Southern Oregon and Northern California, Pacific Rack, Southern Oregon's rack specialist since 2020, offering vehicle racks and travel gear, located in Talent, Oregon, and shipping nationwide, and Travel Southern Oregon.

Travel Southern Oregon supports a diverse, thriving, and sustainable visitor economy to create a better life for all our region's residents.

Visit Southern Oregon, do something great.

(gentle music) (keyboard typing)