Casago SoCal

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Local Favorites in Monterey / Carmel / Santa Cruz

Local Favorites in Monterey / Carmel / Santa Cruz: every guide in this category from Casago SoCal, newest first.

Local favorites

Farm stands of the Salinas and Pajaro valleys

Castroville grows artichokes, Watsonville grows strawberries, and the Salinas Valley is the nation's salad bowl. Roadside stands and u-pick fields, by season.

Local favorites

Moss Landing and the harbor counters

The middle of Monterey Bay is a working fishing harbor. Plain counters selling what came off the boats, plus Elkhorn Slough and its otters on the way in.

Local favorites

Pacific Avenue and the Santa Cruz Westside

Santa Cruz eats casually. Downtown taquerias and bakeries, plus breweries and roasters in the old industrial Westside. Later hours than anywhere on the bay.

Local favorites

The courtyards off Ocean Avenue, Carmel

Carmel keeps much of its dining in interior courtyards off Ocean Avenue and Dolores Street. Small rooms, early kitchens, and why reservations matter here.

Local favorites

Alvarado Street, downtown Monterey

Downtown Monterey holds the breweries, wine bars and taquerias the waterfront does not. Alvarado Street and its weekly farmers market, explained.

Local favorites

Cannery Row and the Monterey waterfront

Chowder, calamari and crab in season on the busiest stretch in the region. What the waterfront does well, what it charges for, and where it is quieter.

Local favorites

Where locals eat around Monterey Bay

Eating around Monterey Bay by district: what the coast and the farm valleys actually do well, where the everyday food is, and the seasons that catch you out.

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