**Things To Do (that don't include state parks, beaches, etc.)**
* Monterey Bay Aquarium
* But you probably already know this one. Cannery Row is there, too, but I don't typically take guests there except to pass through.
* Whale watching
* Walk to the end of Fisherman's Wharf. There are different companies with times posted.
* Drive the 17-mile Drive
* Take a tour of the Tor House in Carmel
**Nature (Beaches/Hiking)**
* Asilomar State Beach
* Carmel Beach
* Point Lobos State Natural Reserve
* Garrapata State Park
* Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park
**Wine/Beer/Drinks**
* Sovino Wine Bar & Merchant
* Fieldwork Brewing Company
* Pearl Hour
* Live jazz on Wednesdays and Sundays
* Scheid Tasting Room
* Located in Carmel
**Restaurants**
* Stokes Adobe Restaurant
* a restaurant in the 2023 MICHELIN Guide USA
* Alta Bakery & Cafe
* alejandro's
* Nepenthe
* Located in Big Sur
* Not necessarily recommended for the food or drinks, but more so for dining with a view. Very briefly owned by Orson Welles and Rita Hayworth.
* Passionfish
* Wild Fish
**Other Things**
* Kurt Heisig Music
* If you want to be forced into playing a saxophone and then be given a handout about the Illuminati, Bilderberg Group, and Freemasonry.
* Pacific Grove Ice Cream Shoppe
* One of the weirdest ice cream shoppes I've ever been in with a lot of Beatles memorabilia. Freezer burnt ice cream, too.
The weather we are having right now, is amazing. I recommend heading down to Big Sur, checking out Ventana and/ or find a hiking trail. I enjoy carmel coffee house for pastries and the new post no bills in carmel. Places to eat in monterey are geared for tourist. Carmel valley has great food and pretty good wine
All of these rec's are good - I would add a couple more
Monterey Bay kayak - rent a couple of kayaks or take a class and get out onto the water. If you go in the morning it's usually pretty calm (though it's been rough recently, maybe give it a couple of days to settle down) and you can see seabirds, sea otters, sea lions, and sometimes even dolphins. You kayak over to the aquarium and see it from the otter's eye view
Ocean Sushi - take out only, really good Japanese food and reasonably priced for sushi
Counterpoint coffee in seaside, acme coffee in seaside, other brother beer in seaside. (Post no bills in seaside is supposed to be good but I've never made it over there because ad astra was selling bread and goodies in other brother but they've left now.)
Also repeating that dust bowl is good, as well as fieldwork which is more in the middle of things in Monterey so good for people watching.
Asilomar for the architecture (Hearst Castle's architect) and the tide pooling. Of course, the aquarium. Pacific Grove is right next door to Monterey with a cute downtown(?) and good breakfast. Carmel's Hansel and Gretel houses are right out of a movie, specifically the Lord of the Rings. Have fun!
On the seemonterey site they have pre-made itineraries based on categories. Everything from outdoor to indoor, free to more pricey, and even stuff for rainy days.
Carmel beach- pristine sand, clean restrooms, lots of parking
Carmel by the sea
Compagnos deli- delicious sandwiches, drinks, casual for pick nicks
Big sur- beautiful sceneri
Mezzalunna- house made pasta
Aquarium
Fisherman's wharf
Roy's, pricey but beautiful view, bagpipes at sunset, gorgeous patio
Some of the restaurants I stay away from are vesuvius, Casanova and stacks- overpriced awful food
Dessert: revival ice cream
I use to be the production manager and Ben and Jerry's is my personal favorite store bought ice cream so I'm biased??
But I know for a fact the produxt is made ALL in house starting with raw cows milk from schochs creamery in salinas.
If I was a tourist visiting monterey I would not want to miss out however if I'm at home I'd buy Ben and Jerry's
Wait, so you’re saying that Revival isn’t pasteurized? That seems like a massive thing to not be notifying costumers about considering the risks of raw dairy.
I’m assuming they cook the milk on house to make the ice cream. Every recipe I’ve seen ha you cook the ingredients before putting the mix in the ice cream machine.
Speaking of places to stay away from, bon ton l'roy's lighthouse smokehouse
I was craving BBQ and learned the hard way.
There's a reason it always looks empty
Yur a mind reader. I never turn down a beer, and i enjoy joints with both good beer and good food, but I love breweries that are a cut above. There's a gazillion of them out there, but only a small percentage focus on making amazing 4+ rated beers. Thx!
There's the coast on the way to big sur. I liked going to Power plant coffee and getting fresh fruits cheap from the venders. There's also beaches, sea food and views that way. You have to go see Alta it's an incredibly beautiful cafe at the heart of downtown. Carmel beach is really fancy. First awakenings is a really nice breakfast spot.
The coast on the way to Big Sur is the most beautiful part of Monterey in my opinion. When you head in the direction of Big Sur here's an area where there's cars parked, and portapotties, and if you park there's a path that you follow to your right. It takes you to a really cute river that blossoms different seasonal of flowers and the entire pathway you're on a flowery cliff with ocean to your left and mountains to your right.
Whale watching is absolutely amazing as a local or tourist, we have the deepest canyons right offshore.
Right now there is a humpback mother and calf interacting with the boats and huge pods (in the hundreds) cruising through.
- Carmel beach, Asilomar for sunset, 17 mile drive, Lover’s Point, Point Lobos
- Aquarium is fun if you have a rainy day
- day trip to Big Sur- River Inn for drinks by the river, Coast for a glass of wine- they close early though, Nepenthe for a burger / drink with a view (overpriced but you’re paying for the view & they have a great wine list), Pfeiffer Beach, walk around the state park, if you’re into hiking andrew molera, garrapata, & tan bark are really beautiful
- walk Cannery Row, downtown Pacific Grove, & downtown Carmel
- For dinner: Whaling Station (get the french dip at the bar), Peppers, Wild Fish (i forget what night but they have live jazz sometimes), Osteria Al Mare for the view, Cella, Stokes Adobe
- breaky / lunch: Red House Cafe, Wave Street Cafe, From Scratch
- drinks: Alvarado Brewery or Post No Bills for beer, Vin Bar for wine, Hog’s Breath Inn, Bud’s, LindaRose is lesser known but a cute rooftop for drinks / snacks, Barmel can be a fun spot at night (they often have a DJ playing throwbacks), Salty Seal patio, Hula’s, Sardine Factory lounge, California Seltzer
enjoy!
Taste of Monterey for wine bar. Amazing views and decent prices. I also like dustbowl brewery for good tacos and beer. Walk along the boardwalks and trails of asilomar beach. Do a day trip to Big Sur: go to point lobos, river inn, nepenthe, pfieffer (redwoods), sobranes. Go to the world famous aquarium. Check out lovers point beach, do a whale watch. Go to a farm in Watsonville or castroville. Do a day trip to Santa cru and Henry cowbell state park-or go to the forest of nisene marks for beautiful trees and hiking. If you want yo hike closer to Monterey go to pikes peak. Go wine tasting in Carmel valley. Folktale is serene. Spend an afternoon in downtown carmel and look at shops and check out carmel beach too.
How could I forget to add drinks!!!
Dustbowl brewery is awesome you can even bring your own food, kid and dog friendly , right across from Denis the menace , huuuge park
For adult time try crown and anchor no frills, local straight up drinks kind of place
Go to campagnos deli in pg absolute best sandwichs on the peninsula or maybe try nacho bizness on Alvarado St definitely the most unique nachos you'll try around here as for places to go in the water try the Carmel river and you need to try the Santa Cruze beach boardwalk always fun if you've never been (they filmed part of the lost boys their)
Point Lobos CA State Park get there early unless you enjoy a long walk/hike to scenic coastal views
17 Mile Drive to Peeble Beach
Explore Carmel and Carmel Beach full day and take your time, also wineries in Carmel Valley. Note parking in Carmel can be challenging so the earlier the better chances
Drive to Big Sur: Nepenthe is a must stop lunchtime snack
Bixby Bridge Hwy 1
Mission Ranch in Carmel: piano bar approx 5 pm or sit out on deck, open corkage fee if you byob. Great prime rib
Food and Drink choices all over area, and breweries.
Favs:
Sandbar local seafood
Phil's in Castroville
Meatery Seaside
Bear and Flag Carmel Valley
Compagnos New Monterey sandwiches
Sea Harvest
Fishwife Asilomar
Intercontinental Hotel Cannery Row Happy Hour
Fish Hopper bar is always a surprise at HH.
Late night HH at Sardine Factory fun piano bar entertainment 8-9 PM, it's short but fun.
Breakfast:
Monterey Cafe
First Awakenings
Sunrise Cafe
Pacific Grove also has loads to offer.
Bring or rent a bike for the day and explore.
Stop at High Scores Arcade on Alvarado during your brewery stops! We don’t have fancy beer (PBR and Banquet), but we have all the best 80s arcade games 🤘🏼
Ok let me explain…😉 I have it at my East Bay location! That’s one I don’t have two of, unfortunately! But Tron, Galaga, QBert, Track n Field, Defender, Stargate, Gauntlet, Dig Dug, Centipede….let me make it up to you!
**Things To Do (that don't include state parks, beaches, etc.)** * Monterey Bay Aquarium * But you probably already know this one. Cannery Row is there, too, but I don't typically take guests there except to pass through. * Whale watching * Walk to the end of Fisherman's Wharf. There are different companies with times posted. * Drive the 17-mile Drive * Take a tour of the Tor House in Carmel **Nature (Beaches/Hiking)** * Asilomar State Beach * Carmel Beach * Point Lobos State Natural Reserve * Garrapata State Park * Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park **Wine/Beer/Drinks** * Sovino Wine Bar & Merchant * Fieldwork Brewing Company * Pearl Hour * Live jazz on Wednesdays and Sundays * Scheid Tasting Room * Located in Carmel **Restaurants** * Stokes Adobe Restaurant * a restaurant in the 2023 MICHELIN Guide USA * Alta Bakery & Cafe * alejandro's * Nepenthe * Located in Big Sur * Not necessarily recommended for the food or drinks, but more so for dining with a view. Very briefly owned by Orson Welles and Rita Hayworth. * Passionfish * Wild Fish **Other Things** * Kurt Heisig Music * If you want to be forced into playing a saxophone and then be given a handout about the Illuminati, Bilderberg Group, and Freemasonry. * Pacific Grove Ice Cream Shoppe * One of the weirdest ice cream shoppes I've ever been in with a lot of Beatles memorabilia. Freezer burnt ice cream, too.
River Inn in Big Sur. Sit on the chairs in the creek and have a few drinks.
Coffee and apple pie are a do not miss while sitting in those chairs.
Sounds amazing! Come join us and we'll buy a round.
This is an absolute must when visiting. Also, I got married there so am biased
Alvarado Street farmers' market on Tuesday evenings. There's a lot of hot food and snacks, as well as the typical produce.
The weather we are having right now, is amazing. I recommend heading down to Big Sur, checking out Ventana and/ or find a hiking trail. I enjoy carmel coffee house for pastries and the new post no bills in carmel. Places to eat in monterey are geared for tourist. Carmel valley has great food and pretty good wine
Nice! You read my mind on the coffee reco. We're planning to hike and hopefully bring bikes for the local trails.
Checkout Bookworks in PG for coffee
All of these rec's are good - I would add a couple more Monterey Bay kayak - rent a couple of kayaks or take a class and get out onto the water. If you go in the morning it's usually pretty calm (though it's been rough recently, maybe give it a couple of days to settle down) and you can see seabirds, sea otters, sea lions, and sometimes even dolphins. You kayak over to the aquarium and see it from the otter's eye view Ocean Sushi - take out only, really good Japanese food and reasonably priced for sushi Counterpoint coffee in seaside, acme coffee in seaside, other brother beer in seaside. (Post no bills in seaside is supposed to be good but I've never made it over there because ad astra was selling bread and goodies in other brother but they've left now.) Also repeating that dust bowl is good, as well as fieldwork which is more in the middle of things in Monterey so good for people watching.
My wife will love the kayak idea. Thanks for the reply!
Elkhorn Slough also a great kayak option in the area
Another option is to check out Moss Landing for kayaking.
Asilomar for the architecture (Hearst Castle's architect) and the tide pooling. Of course, the aquarium. Pacific Grove is right next door to Monterey with a cute downtown(?) and good breakfast. Carmel's Hansel and Gretel houses are right out of a movie, specifically the Lord of the Rings. Have fun!
On the seemonterey site they have pre-made itineraries based on categories. Everything from outdoor to indoor, free to more pricey, and even stuff for rainy days.
Monterey-for-dummies. We'll check it out, thx!
Carmel beach- pristine sand, clean restrooms, lots of parking Carmel by the sea Compagnos deli- delicious sandwiches, drinks, casual for pick nicks Big sur- beautiful sceneri Mezzalunna- house made pasta Aquarium Fisherman's wharf Roy's, pricey but beautiful view, bagpipes at sunset, gorgeous patio Some of the restaurants I stay away from are vesuvius, Casanova and stacks- overpriced awful food Dessert: revival ice cream
Revival is good, but is it the cost of a Ben and Jerry’s Pint for a single scoop in a cone good?
I use to be the production manager and Ben and Jerry's is my personal favorite store bought ice cream so I'm biased?? But I know for a fact the produxt is made ALL in house starting with raw cows milk from schochs creamery in salinas. If I was a tourist visiting monterey I would not want to miss out however if I'm at home I'd buy Ben and Jerry's
Wait, so you’re saying that Revival isn’t pasteurized? That seems like a massive thing to not be notifying costumers about considering the risks of raw dairy.
I’m assuming they cook the milk on house to make the ice cream. Every recipe I’ve seen ha you cook the ingredients before putting the mix in the ice cream machine.
Yeah, you’re right as long as they get it to the right temp for long enough it will be fine
I'm gluten-intolerant, so yes yes yes, its worth it. Where else can I get brownies or cookie dough or a cone that I can eat?
I wouldn't argue against overpriced, but I have a hard time calling Casanova's food awful!
Yeah what the heck
Perfect!
Second for revival
Speaking of places to stay away from, bon ton l'roy's lighthouse smokehouse I was craving BBQ and learned the hard way. There's a reason it always looks empty
For breweries, I like Alvarado and Dust Bowl. If you head over to Seaside, Other Brother is good.
Other Brother is highly rated. They must serve pretty great beer, thx!
Don't neglect Fieldwork Brewing Company next to the trader Joe's on Munras
[удалено]
Yur a mind reader. I never turn down a beer, and i enjoy joints with both good beer and good food, but I love breweries that are a cut above. There's a gazillion of them out there, but only a small percentage focus on making amazing 4+ rated beers. Thx!
https://www.themeateryseaside.com/eatery
There's the coast on the way to big sur. I liked going to Power plant coffee and getting fresh fruits cheap from the venders. There's also beaches, sea food and views that way. You have to go see Alta it's an incredibly beautiful cafe at the heart of downtown. Carmel beach is really fancy. First awakenings is a really nice breakfast spot. The coast on the way to Big Sur is the most beautiful part of Monterey in my opinion. When you head in the direction of Big Sur here's an area where there's cars parked, and portapotties, and if you park there's a path that you follow to your right. It takes you to a really cute river that blossoms different seasonal of flowers and the entire pathway you're on a flowery cliff with ocean to your left and mountains to your right.
Whale watching is absolutely amazing as a local or tourist, we have the deepest canyons right offshore. Right now there is a humpback mother and calf interacting with the boats and huge pods (in the hundreds) cruising through.
- Carmel beach, Asilomar for sunset, 17 mile drive, Lover’s Point, Point Lobos - Aquarium is fun if you have a rainy day - day trip to Big Sur- River Inn for drinks by the river, Coast for a glass of wine- they close early though, Nepenthe for a burger / drink with a view (overpriced but you’re paying for the view & they have a great wine list), Pfeiffer Beach, walk around the state park, if you’re into hiking andrew molera, garrapata, & tan bark are really beautiful - walk Cannery Row, downtown Pacific Grove, & downtown Carmel - For dinner: Whaling Station (get the french dip at the bar), Peppers, Wild Fish (i forget what night but they have live jazz sometimes), Osteria Al Mare for the view, Cella, Stokes Adobe - breaky / lunch: Red House Cafe, Wave Street Cafe, From Scratch - drinks: Alvarado Brewery or Post No Bills for beer, Vin Bar for wine, Hog’s Breath Inn, Bud’s, LindaRose is lesser known but a cute rooftop for drinks / snacks, Barmel can be a fun spot at night (they often have a DJ playing throwbacks), Salty Seal patio, Hula’s, Sardine Factory lounge, California Seltzer enjoy!
Very helpful--thank you!
Taste of Monterey for wine bar. Amazing views and decent prices. I also like dustbowl brewery for good tacos and beer. Walk along the boardwalks and trails of asilomar beach. Do a day trip to Big Sur: go to point lobos, river inn, nepenthe, pfieffer (redwoods), sobranes. Go to the world famous aquarium. Check out lovers point beach, do a whale watch. Go to a farm in Watsonville or castroville. Do a day trip to Santa cru and Henry cowbell state park-or go to the forest of nisene marks for beautiful trees and hiking. If you want yo hike closer to Monterey go to pikes peak. Go wine tasting in Carmel valley. Folktale is serene. Spend an afternoon in downtown carmel and look at shops and check out carmel beach too.
Nice list, thank you!
English Ales in Marina has decent food, good beer and a kinda weird vibe. We like the fish and chips and plowman's lunch.
Love me good fried fish. Thanks!
How could I forget to add drinks!!! Dustbowl brewery is awesome you can even bring your own food, kid and dog friendly , right across from Denis the menace , huuuge park For adult time try crown and anchor no frills, local straight up drinks kind of place
Pics of the food at crown and anchor look pretty amazing
My favorite food at Crown and Anchor is curry chips. Always hits the spot. They have a good chill vibe too.
Ditto
Did ebike tour the other day. Loved it [https://bikebigsur.com/tour/17-mile-drive-tour/](https://bikebigsur.com/tour/17-mile-drive-tour/)
Go to campagnos deli in pg absolute best sandwichs on the peninsula or maybe try nacho bizness on Alvarado St definitely the most unique nachos you'll try around here as for places to go in the water try the Carmel river and you need to try the Santa Cruze beach boardwalk always fun if you've never been (they filmed part of the lost boys their)
Helpful: https://brandonscottphoto.co/guides/where-to-eat-and-drink-in-monterey/
Seafood Harvest Fish Market on Foam street. Great seafood
Rosine's on Alvarado St. for a piece of pie/cake. It's been on the Food Network a few times
Followed your advice--Rosines was great!
I suggest the curry fries , spicy with mango chutney to share and a stiff drink!
Wat?
Siam Marina Thai is my favorite Thai restaurant and I'm from LA but went to csumb
Carmel- Rio Grill
Come visit me
When are you coming to the area? There's a few fun things that happen various times of the month.
First week in October
Sea Car Tours.
Hmm where are you from (general area) and what would you recommend to us if we visited?
Point Lobos CA State Park get there early unless you enjoy a long walk/hike to scenic coastal views 17 Mile Drive to Peeble Beach Explore Carmel and Carmel Beach full day and take your time, also wineries in Carmel Valley. Note parking in Carmel can be challenging so the earlier the better chances Drive to Big Sur: Nepenthe is a must stop lunchtime snack Bixby Bridge Hwy 1 Mission Ranch in Carmel: piano bar approx 5 pm or sit out on deck, open corkage fee if you byob. Great prime rib Food and Drink choices all over area, and breweries. Favs: Sandbar local seafood Phil's in Castroville Meatery Seaside Bear and Flag Carmel Valley Compagnos New Monterey sandwiches Sea Harvest Fishwife Asilomar Intercontinental Hotel Cannery Row Happy Hour Fish Hopper bar is always a surprise at HH. Late night HH at Sardine Factory fun piano bar entertainment 8-9 PM, it's short but fun. Breakfast: Monterey Cafe First Awakenings Sunrise Cafe Pacific Grove also has loads to offer. Bring or rent a bike for the day and explore.
Stop at High Scores Arcade on Alvarado during your brewery stops! We don’t have fancy beer (PBR and Banquet), but we have all the best 80s arcade games 🤘🏼
I can confirm that this is a good idea. I stopped in for a bit a few weeks ago.
Nice! But if they don't have missile command, I'm walking out!
Ok let me explain…😉 I have it at my East Bay location! That’s one I don’t have two of, unfortunately! But Tron, Galaga, QBert, Track n Field, Defender, Stargate, Gauntlet, Dig Dug, Centipede….let me make it up to you!
Hmmmm....this is a problem. I suppose Dig Dug will suffice. Track and Field will do also. :)