Morning Lookout: Pajaro return, Namaste culinary tour, weekend recs & Lookout's news quiz

Lookout PM is sponsored by UC Santa Cruz

Why, hello there, everyone. It is Friday, March 24, and — I’ll admit I did a bit of a double take on this one — the forecast calls for sunny skies around Santa Cruz County, with temps headed into the 50s. That’s the outlook through the weekend, so do take advantage.

It was a muddy, messy scene for many Pajaro residents Thursday as they returned home after Monterey County lifted the evacuation order that followed the March 11 levee breach that flooding the agricultural community. Hillary Ojeda and Kevin Painchaud were on hand.

Lily Belli might be on maternity leave — welcome, Cecilia Wrenn! — but Lookout still has the Santa Cruz County food and drink scene covered. Perhaps don’t make dinner plans until after you read about Laura Sutherland’s journey through the menu at Namaste Indian Cuisine on Mission Street.

A new Friday staple is Lookout’s weekly news quiz (did I not tell you there would be a quiz?), and I know you, avid reader of this newsletter, have been keeping a close eye on things. Read on to see if Wallace Baine can stump you.

And I wouldn’t dare send you into the weekend without Lookout’s trusty guide to all things arts and entertainment, so be sure to check Wallace’s Weekender as you peruse the Friday headlines, comin’ atcha.

Rey Osorio gets to work cleaning up the mud that coated his Pajaro home

Muddy, damaged homes greeted those returning Thursday to Pajaro after Monterey County officials lifted an evacuation order in place since the March 11 levee breach flooded the agricultural community. It’s not clear when the water will be safe to drink again, and a long cleanup process lies ahead. Read more here from Hillary Ojeda, with photos by Kevin Painchaud.

➤ MORE: How to help those affected by the Pajaro flooding

Economic Development PROMOTED CONTENT ROADBLOCK (Get down at Downtown Fridays)

Sampling Namaste’s Indian cuisine with a Bengali connoisseur

Nandini Bhattacharya spooning up a serving at Namaste

Laura Sutherland takes a culinary tour through Indian cuisine with the help of her friend Nandini Bhattacharya as the two explore the menu at Santa Cruz’s Namaste. Click here to tag along on their tasty journey.

➤ MORE FROM THE FOOD & DRINK SCENE: Farmers markets’ spring plans, Alfaro family tree, Bread Boy’s ramen & Utica greens

Bay Federal PROMOTED CONTENT ROADBLOCK (How to spot a 'sextortion' or romance scam)

How’d you do on the quiz? I don’t doubt you all aced it, but fear not, I know how you can boost that score if it was a little lower than you’d care to admit: Sign up here for Lookout’s other newsletters and breaking news email and text alerts, and you’ll be in the know all week long. (That includes our specially curated Sunday Reads, because we’re cool like that.) All our content is on social media, too, so follow Lookout on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for good measure.

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Enjoy the sunshine this Friday and into the weekend, and here’s to a safe, relaxing one.

Will McCahill
Lookout Santa Cruz