Monterey

Monterey

Welcome to Monterey

Monterey Peninsula Online Guide

Touristy stuff: The Monterey Bay Aquarium is a must see, if only to see the couple hundred pound yellow fin tuna! Really, the Aquarium is absolutely amazing, well worth the price of admission. They have a HUGE tank you can view, and there are other cool things like 'petting' areas.

As long as you're at the Aquarium, a quick stroll up and down Cannery Row is worthwhile - not that it's much to see, but it's fun to look at all the chain restaurants and tourist trinket shops and try to imagine what the place must have looked like in Steinbeck's day.

There's the Farmer's Market on Tuesdays right in downtown Monterey (they close the streets) that's full of crafts and FOOD. Many of the local restaurants have little kiosks where you can stop to try cheaper versions of some of their best food. India's Clay Oven is one of the best -- try it for a good Chicken Naan.

Bring your walking shoes because there's so much great walking around Monterey, and Dennis the Menace Park is pretty cool for kids.

There are a few nice golf courses in the Monterey area with one out past Asilomar Beach that's very nice and along the ocean. Bayonet Golf Course at the old Fort Ord military base is a nice public course.

Around and about: A drive around the area on Highway 1 is awesome, and the whole area is so nice. A road trip along 17-Mile Drive around Pebble Beach is a must. Make sure to stop and check out the sea otters in the surf.

There's a nice running path out to Lover's Point along the coast. You can rent bikes and bike around the Monterey Peninsula and 17-Mile Drive which is awesome! You end up at Carmel Beach, there is a hill to climb on the way back, and from there ... it's all downhill. You could go farther than Carmel and hit Point Lobos and beyond.

Big Sur is a very nice area, and there is A LOT of awesome camping and hiking there. Near Monterey is Gilroy where you can take a very garlicky tour. Gilroy is the self-professed Garlic Capital of the World! Just driving through town, you'll know it ... the smell is pervasive. Castroville is a nice spot to stop for lunch. Check out the Texas-style barbecue in town -- serious meals and sawdust on the floor! It's also the Artichoke Capital of the World. The Mystery Spot is around Santa Cruz, and Santa Cruz is a nice place to stop.

If you like car racing, there's always Laguna Seca once a year.

You can rent kayaks in Monterey Bay, too -- no seasickness there because it's generally flat. The kayaks are seaworthy (big), and paddling around the bay with the seals, sea lions, and maybe an otter or two for company is always a nice adventure. There's a good place to do this on the path to Lover's Point just as you're coming into the Cannery Row area. Another kayaking option is through California Kayak up the Elkhorn Slough. It's an inlet with wonderful sea lion, otter and bird watching opportunities and very gentle water, an easier option if you've never kayaked before.

Where to stay: The Best Western Beach Resort is right on the beach and can be reasonable for a family of four. Lower-end prices for accommodations will be around the Monterey Travelodge. There are a couple of smaller independents around that are near the same price, but most places are pretty spendy. The Comfort Inn on Munras is usually cheaper.

Restaurants, pubs, and bars: There are a couple of good places to eat on the wharf, but the best seafood (pricey, too) is Monterey's Fish House. India's Clay Oven has good food, too, and is downtown. Hit them for the lunch buffet as it's the same food but cheaper. If you can find the corner of Prescott and Taylor, there is a small corner shop that sells the best (and biggest) sandwiches in the area. As for bars, the Mucky Duck (downtown) is all right and a popular hook-up joint. There's the Bulldog British Pub (on Lighthouse) which is pretty cool. Characters (inside the Marriott) is a good sports bar. The Britannia Arms is all right (off Alvarado).

Comments:

17-Mile Drive spits you out at Carmel-by-the-Sea, and Pebble Beach is right at the end, too. The stop at China Beach has a lot of little rock-hogs, too, (groundhog/squirrel?) that you can feed. They like fruit, and if you put a piece on your shoulder, they'll climb right up your arm and grab it. VERY COOL! The Best Western is a very cool spot. You could actually do some very nice walks into Monterey from there along the beach - a bit of a walk, but worth it if you ask me.

Check out Pacific Grove. Supposedly there's some good eats to be found around there.

The Fish House is good. I had the steak and lobster plate. It cost me 55 bucks, but it was worth it. Hehehe ... it was also worth watching the faces people had when they realized I had eaten it all.

The Monterey Fish House has a lot of locally caught fish. It's VERY, VERY good, a little pricey but very worth it. Last time I ate there, I saw this magnificent plate come out (HUGE PLATE) with a steak and a whole lobster on it, vegetables on the side with some rice ... I ordered that. No one thought I could eat it all, but I did. The waiters actually clapped. There's plenty of great places to eat, though. There's a place on the wharf; there Mike's (if I remember correctly), and they make a mean shrimp linguine. At the end of the wharf there's another restaurant, and down along Cannery Row there are several. Also, downtown along Alvarado Street there are a few nice restaurants.

Trip Report - Monterey, November 2003

The weather varied from freezing (IMHO) to perfect sunshine. Stayed at the Best Western Beach Resort - quite nice. Saw the aquarium, otters, seals/sea lions, butterflies, etc. I especially liked the yellow fin tuna in the aquarium - damn, those were some big 'uns! It was quite a nice weekend.

Ate at the Fish House - that place is amazing. We had possibly some of the best seafood I've ever had. Unbelievably good. We ordered the Bananas Foster for dessert (not on the menu). Nothing like having 6' flames on your table to finish off your meal. The Fish House was indeed great. We went crazy, and it cost us $180 for four, including tip. I hate to say it, but it was worth every penny. Yeah, we were quite a spectacle, what with the Bananas Foster and all the laughing and whatnot. I swear, that place had the best-sounding daily specials. All of 'em sounded mouth watering.

We had lunch at a funky deli. It was quite an interesting place with all the military stuff. My Reuben sammich was okay. The sandwiches were huge but not cheap - two halves, a bag of chips, and one soda for $17. They had some interesting G.I. Joe stuff there ... I never knew that R. Lee Ermey had his own action doll complete with snippets from "Full Metal Jacket." They sell it there. I was happy to discover the R. Lee Ermey action figure. I mentioned it to my buddies ... we have a friend that it would be perfect for. He's a gun nut who knows every, and I mean every, line from the first half of FMJ. I only know most of 'em. Check it out at R. Lee Ermey.

We went to a pretty good micro brewery by the Doubletree Hotel in the downtown area. Both the beer and food were quite acceptable.
Monterey was a nice place to visit. Quite a chill place. Fun to just hang out on the rocks watching the surf.

The only thing negative about the weekend was having to fly to Los Angeles and drive a rental car to San Diego to get home. I was flying standby, and all the flights to SD were booked.