Our Story
From a small town in the Sierras to a garden in Sussex.
Midpines was built around a feeling — the easy warmth of a Californian morning, the unhurried grace of a Sicilian afternoon. Here's how it began.
Meet Adam & Ross.
We're a couple who fell for California on a road trip and never quite came home the same. The town of Midpines, tucked at the edge of Yosemite, had a slow, generous rhythm we wanted to bring back with us.
A year after opening, we found a small stone house in Sicily. It's slowly becoming our retirement retreat — and quietly shaping how we cook, how we host, and how we think about time.
Midpines is the meeting place of those two loves.
The Journey
A few chapters in.
- 2019
A road trip through California
Adam and Ross drive north from Los Angeles into the Sierras. A quiet stop in a town called Midpines becomes the seed of an idea.
- 2022
Midpines Cafe opens
The doors open at Denmans Garden in Sussex — a relaxed garden café built around the California hospitality that inspired them.
- 2023
A home in Sicily
A quiet restoration project begins on a house in Sicily — a future retirement retreat and a growing influence on the menu.
- Today
California soul, Italian heart
The kitchen blends both worlds — fresh, seasonal, unfussy food served in one of Sussex's most beautiful gardens.
What Matters
Small things, done properly.
Fresh, seasonal food
Menus that follow the year — cooked from scratch, plated without fuss, and made to be lingered over.
Relaxed hospitality
Californian ease meets Italian warmth. No rush, no formality — just genuinely glad you're here.
A place in the garden
Set inside Denmans Garden, we're part of something older and greener than us. We try to honour it.
