Article: 17356 of ba.food From: gnelson@megatest.com (Glenn Nelson) Subject: Santa Cruz "FAQ" Organization: Megatest Corporation Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 16:23:50 GMT Lines: 268 THINGS TO DO AROUND SANTA CRUZ The following article has been evolving for 2.0 years. It's a bit hacked up - some information in the wrong sections - but hopefully helpful to new visitors. GETTING THERE: First of all, you might plan a Coast Highway leg - down or back. I have a friend who has lived in Sunnyvale for 14 years and just saw the stretch from Hwy 84 to Santa Cruz for the first time! In my opinion this is the most beautiful stretch of California coast, esp. because it is accessible (as opposed to cliffs of Big Sur). Stop at Pescadero and walk on the rocks. Go down to San Gregorio or Pomponio Beach. Visit the lighthouse (Pigeon Point). So much to see! PESCADERO: 30 miles north of Santa Cruz. Supposedly a Greek diner is there. Also Duarte's is actually a very good restaurant, noted for its dessert pies. Butano State Park is just south of Pescadero. DAVENPORT: Cash Store is a pleasant tourist stop - a miniature Nepenthe. The old Spanish (mission?) style church is interesting. World famous (no exaggeration) Lundberg Glass Studio is down the hill from the church and a custom knife maker is there also. BETWEEN: A number of beaches that you can walk onto. Also Red-White-and-Blue Beach, a privately owned nude beach. Look for the RWB mailbox - this is four miles north of SC City limits, so it must be about 6 miles south of Davenport. SANTA CRUZ: drive along West Cliff Drive. Stop and walk a bit - watch out for bicyclists and skaters! The sidewalk IS legal for bikes. The lighthouse is a surfing museum and also a good place to watch surfers for a while. The museum is free and gratefully small. The Wharf - most restaurants OK, go for atmosphere and view; esp. Riva, Gilda's, Carniglia's and, the ultimate, the Sea Cloud. Boardwalk - maybe your parents wouldn't be interested, but they might just enjoy the scene of days gone by. On Monday and Tuesday eves all rides and hot dogs are only 50 cents and the crowd is much more local; parking is a bitch - you may have to fork over $5. Visiting downtown SC is a new experience - the rebuild has really transformed it, and a plethora of coffee shops and a few bars keep the place hopping on most Friday and Saturday eves - I mean BUSY! The Palomar hotel also houses a great Mexican restaurant called El Palomar (many seafood dishes). Coffee shops abound. Good shopping as well - wonderful bookstores, open late. The bar at El Palomar is a great place to hang out and there is also a late night taquiera there. Enter by going thru the Santa Coffee Roasting Company. Another popular bar is 99 Bottles - 1/2 block from Pacific on Walnut (south from Palomar, turn right) - this one seems to be for the 20-something crowd. Extremely hopping dance and music at the Red Room and Emi's at Locust and Cedar. The Crow's Nest, on the east side of the yacht harbor is also very popular for dancing. Every Friday night in July and August at the Boardwalk there are live performances by once well known has-been bands of the 50s and 60s. Shirelles, Del Shannon, uh memory fails me. Also every night of the last week before Labor Day weekend. RESTAURANTS: Some are mentioned elsewhere, so skim this whole article. I like the food, atmosphere and service, or I wouldn't be mentioning them. La Mission - Mexican on Mission near the west end of town; lots of seafood. Bocci's Cellar - Italian and Cajun - on Encinal St. next to the oil recycler; a fun place and you can sit outside by the bocci ball courts for drinks. El Palomar - mentioned elsewhere - mostly the thirty and up crowd; Seabright Brewery - good, cheap food and good beer - actually one of the most exceptional food deals in SC; located at Seabright and Murray, near the yacht harbor. Aldo's - mentioned elsewhere - the view says it all. Hollins House and Peachwoods - both are upscale but not too expensive with California cuisine; Peachwoods is at the Pasatiempo exit on 17 - last exit before getting into town; Hollins House is nearby on the golf course. Chaminade - the building and view say it all, but I'd skip the food and just go for a drink, or maybe quiet dancing with your sweetie. GREEK RESTAURANT! Really! Located on Mission just east of Bay St. When you see the McDonalds, find a place to park, probably in McD's lot. The restaurant is Vassili's, same side of Mission as McD's, on the side street. Order one dinner and one appetizer for 2 people. And yet another (12/93), in Capitola Village, 2nd floor at north end of the parking lot next to the Capitola Theatre. This one claims to be the only full service Greek restaurant in the county. At the site of the former Antoine's Cajun (a trend that has now passed). We have many more restaurants that are worthwhile. I'll be expanding this list and reposting from time to time. I'll also add a section on places to NOT visit. WINERIES: Bonny Doon Winery on Bonny Doon Road (off of Hwy 1, just south of Davenport). Hallcrest Winery, on Felton-Empire Grade, about 1/2 mile from central Felton. Bargetto Winery on Main St. in Soquel (this place is esp. easy to get to and very congenial); depending on your plans you might drive back to Silicon Valley along Old San Jose Road, which starts in Soquel. MUSIC, BARS: The Catalyst, downtown, south end of Pacific Ave. Some very good music, cheap. Some very bad music, cheap. Extremely entertaining for people watching. Food OK. Blues and jazz at Friday Happy Hour. Three local bands, $1 every Thursday. The Palomar, middle of Pacific Ave. (7 story hotel), mentioned under food. The Red Room and Emi's, Cedar St. at Locust; two bars, one building; extremely hopping on Friday; dancing and young crowds. The Crow's Nest, mentioned elsewhere; popular for dancing. CORRALITOS: You need a map to get here, but there are two places of interest - the Corralitos Market which makes sausages that are famous thoughout the SF Bay Area, and Roses of Yesteryear (Brown Valley Rd?), who specialize in old style roses (pre-1920); they have a wonderful rose garden, naturally, a nice catalog, and can ship small plants within the US for approx. $10 each. SAILING: For $35 each you can go out on the Chardonnay, a 70' sailboat. Price includes wine and some food. They sail Wednesday eves during the weekly sailboat race (spectacular! Approx. 70 boats, all flying their colorful spinnaker sails) and Friday eves. I don't have a Chardonnay ad here, but they sometimes advertise in the Living section of the Merc, and I'm sure that the SC Chamber of Commerce could get you the number. This also reminds me that Aldo's restaurant is open for lunch at the yacht harbor. Aldo's is on the west side of the harbor - cheap, good food and outdoor deck with view. Across the harbor is the Crow's Nest - more expensive and pretentious, but still enjoyable. Your visitors would probably enjoy just strolling along the docks at the yacht harbor. Directions: take Seabright Ave. nearly to the ocean, turn left, drive to boats and park. FURTHER SOUTH: Opened in summer '93 is the Seascape Resort in the same town. An immense and ritzy resort, with room rates around $150. Looks like a place to visit. Always happy to see tourists having a good time here - and how can you miss?! Hope their stay is fun. BTW, a weekend in SF without the host is nice for parents - I've done it and know many others who do the same. Gives you a short respite, too. Glenn Nelson Megatest, San Jose gnelson@megatest.com ************************ ADDITIONS FROM OTHERS ************************** =============================================================== >From joanne@hpcc01.corp.hp.com Thu Jun 24 14:41:12 1993 Return-Path: Date: Thu, 24 Jun 93 14:17:22 -0700 From: Joanne Petersen Subject: Re: Santa Cruz - Things to Do You might consider adding a visit to Coastside Ranch (I think that's the name of the farm!) on highway 1 between Davenport & San Gregorio.... they have pick-your-own fruits at reasonable prices. Also, Bonny Doon's wine that has some claim to fame (besides the ubiquitous Le Cigare Volant :-) is the Muscat Canelli, an incredibly sweet dessert wine. Wonderful stuff :-) (GDN NOTE: They are now producing a Malvasia Bianca under the label Ca' del Sol. This unique wine is produced by only one other winery in Calif., to my knowledge, and there has been nearly a 10 year absence of ANY production since Novitiate of Los Gatos was sold in 1984). I've always wanted to know if the Bonny Doon stained glass studio (the one that made all those luscious stained glass windows for the McFly bars) does tours. Have you heard anything about that? (GDN NOTE: Lundberg's is a small place, see above for more info). I live in La Honda (with a husband, 2 kids, 1 cat, 4 birds, 6 rabbits :-) so I'm constantly looking for things to do locally. Thanks for your list! =============================================================== FRISBEE GOLF: There are two courses at DeLaveaga golf course and two on the UCSC campus. I don't have more info about the campus folf and I have been asked to delete specifics about DeLaveaga, since it apparently has gotten totally out of control. Sounds like the mountain biking situation at many formerly pastoral parks. =============================================================== From: jimj@contractor.EBay.Sun.COM (Jim Jones) Newsgroups: ba.general Subject: Re: A Santa Cruz "FAQ" Date: 25 Aug 1993 18:18:51 GMT Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mt. View, Ca. Lines: 50 In article gnelson@megatest.com (Glenn Nelson) writes: > >THINGS TO DO AROUND SANTA CRUZ > >PESCADERO: 30 miles north of Santa Cruz. Supposedly a Greek diner is there. >Also Duarte's is actually a very good restaurant, noted for it's dessert pies. >Butano State Park is just south of Pescadero. Duarte's is great. The soup (artichoke or green chile) is as much an attraction to us as the pie. Farther down the main street in Pescadero is a grocery store/bakery that makes big round loaves of wonderful, garlicky french bread. About a mile past Pescadero (on the same road that leads you to Pescadero from Highway 1) is Phipps Ranch, a classic old-style roadside attraction. They sell organic produce, many varieties of beans that they grow themselves, flowers, etc. There's a zoo with many varieties of birds, goats, and other barnyard animals, old farm equipment, and U-pick berries. It's a great place to chill-out a backseat full of bored children. >BETWEEN: A number of beaches that you can walk onto. Also Red-White-and-Blue >Beach, a privately owned nude beach. Look for the RWB mailbox - this is >four miles north of SC City limits, so it must be about 6 miles south of >Davenport. Some of these beaches are visible from the road, but others are not visible and not marked from the road (or at least not marked clearly). If you see a bunch of cars parked by the side of the road for no obvious reason, that means that there's access right there to a coastside beach. If you're interested, park your cars with the others and look for the nearest well-traveled path to the ocean. It should lead you right to where the other parkees are. It seems to be legal to use these paths to get to the ocean, even though they do pass through private farmland. Just don't go wandering off through the farmers' fields. >RESTAURANTS: Some are mentioned elsewhere, so skim this whole article. Just to note: If you're in Santa Cruz and are _really_ low on cash, one of the better deals in town in Taqueria Vallarta on Soquel at Branciforte. A substantial burrito -- a full meal for most people -- can be had for about $3.50 (vegetarian, $3.00). A "plato" of meat, rice, beans, guacamole, salad and tortillas is $5.50. GDN NOTE: He's right, this place is great, but we also have many other wonderful taquerias. I should add that the famed local market "Shopper's Corner" is a few doors down. For locals this is the place to shop and socialize -- see how things were in your grandparents' day. -- "I have the terrible feeling that, because I have a white beard and am sitting in the back of the theater, you expect me to tell you the truth about something. These are the cheap seats, not Mount Sinai." Orson Welles, "Someone to Love." ========================================================================= From: dk@crl.com (David A. Kaye) Newsgroups: ba.general Subject: Santa Cruz FAQ addition Date: 15 Feb 1994 12:44:18 -0800 Lines: 12 And how could you forget the Mystery Spot! On Branciforte Drive off Soquel Avenue (or is it Soquel Drive?), the Mystery Spot is one of the old-fashioned tourist traps which used to dot the highways in the old days before interstates and Dennys. The Mystery Spot is a place where the law of gravity is supposedly defied and balls roll uphill. (Take a level and measure it to be sure. They have a level and invite people to measure to be sure.) Then there are the two cement slabs where people can stand and look taller or shorter than each other, depending on where they stand. And the trees -- look up and they're going straight, but look WAY up and they're crooked toward the top as if the whole ground shifted. Article: 17358 of ba.food From: gnelson@megatest.com (Glenn Nelson) Subject: Re: Santa Cruz "Service" also Pubs Organization: Megatest Corporation Date: Tue, 26 Apr 1994 16:54:22 GMT Lines: 109 Don mentions some pretty fine establishments in Santa Cruz. I started out to correct just the statement about the Sea Cloud. I guess I'm in a slightly pissy mood, but I also felt compelled to correct spelling. Oh, if you bear with my spelling lessons you'll get directions to some of these places. Glenn Nelson, Megatest, San Jose gnelson@megatest.com Phone: 408-441-3014 >From article <2p6rp3$pn@nic.scruz.net>, by steiny@steiny.com (Don Steiny): > Bob.Shoring@f201.n914.z8.rbbs-net.ORG (Bob Shoring) writes: > > Restorante Avanti on Mission Street is excellent. > > The desserts at the Bittersweet Cafe are great. > > The Wharf does not have the best places to eat, but the Riva Fish > House has a few things I really like a lot, and the view is wonderful. Long wait, great place. The french fries are so-so, but you came here to eat fish, right? > If you want to take some from out of town to the wharf, it is the best > there (the Sea Cloud is good too, but it is not out over the water the > way that Riva is -- it is more expensive). Sea Cloud is on the second floor and has MORE, not less view than most any other restaurant. It is probably the only restaurant where you can get a really good view of the boardwalk. There are a number of tables in the middle that have almost no view, but even Riva has those. It also has the lighthouse view. > > The Palamar in Santa Cruz has Western Mexican food. Mexico is a That's Palomar, like the observatory. > big country with different peoples, and on the West coast you often eat > fresh fish, fruit, and vegatables instead of the heavier type found by > Texas. The Palamar has some of the West Coast kind of food. The truely > great place is Plapas, down by Seacliff Beach. It has an incredible view That's Palapas, and it's in Seascape. I've never eaten there, but it has a great reputation. Take Larkin Valley Rd. exit to Seascape Rd. (Blvd?). > and reminds me of a restaurant we ate at in Zihautano on the West Coast of > Mexico. I love to eat at either one. > > Cafe Brazil, Susans, and the cafe at the Sash Mill are great places > for breakfast, but Chamanade is the best for Sunday Brunch. The Peach That's Chaminade. Also incredible view, wonderful patio for drinks on a warm day. Soquel Drive exit north, first left after passing over 1. > Tree at the Pasatempio is also good for Sunday Brunch, and cheaper. That's Peachwood's. I don't know if it's cheaper (around $15), but it does look awesome. Another fave for brunch is the Cocoanut Grove sunroom at the Boardwalk -- you probably need reservations; bring your sunglasses. > > The Royal Taj in Soquel has a great garden and is not too expensive > for lunch. I like all the Indian restaurants, but none of the seems > much different than any other Indian restaurant I have been to. You can > eat out in the garden in the one in Soquel if the weather is nice and it > is special because of that. > > The Thai restaurants are all good, though I prefer Spices downtown. > > I like Omai on Mission, China Szchwan downtown (Cathcart St.), and O'mei and China Szechwan > I like that Chinese restaurant on Ocean St. I don't remember it's name, but > it has the most variety of duck. Not the new one, the "Mei Garden", I Probably King Chwan, the mainland Chinese students at UCSC used to say it is one of their favorites. > haven't tried it yet, but the other one. > > My favorite Susi bar is Masiyuki's on Bay Ave in Capitola. > > The number one culinary attraction of Santa Cruz county is > without a doubt Gayles Bakery in Soquel. It has a delicatessen and > incredible bread and other baked goods. After the earthquake, I was > listening to the emergency broadcast station. They would read lots of > announcements, telling where power was on and so on. The anouncer said: > "I have very good news! Gayles is open!" Everyone agreed we were going > to be OK. We often get stuff take out from there. Their chicken is > out-of-this world, everything is. People visit me from all over the > world and when they taste Gayles wholewheat sourdough bread the often > ask how to get there so they can take some home. My mother drives up > from Carmel Valley to get stuff there. Hummph. I think Alfaro's bread is superior and the pastries at the Buttery and Beckmann's (also makes great bread) are superior in my mind -- more sugar! Still, I can't fault success. > > -don > -- > Don Steiny - steiny@steiny.com > Don Steiny Software - 214 Calvin Place - Santa Cruz, CA 95060 > (408) 425-0382 > "success is 99% failure" - Honda Glenn Nelson, Megatest, San Jose gnelson@megatest.com Phone: 408-441-3014