Schooners
Monterey Plaza Hotel, 400 Cannery Row, Monterey, (831) 372‑2628, schoonersmonterey.com
There’s no problem with emphasizing just the drink here, even if you end up seated with your back to the view. The signature cocktails are strong and fresh, and play up the oceanfront setting – the Eden of Edgewater features cucumber vodka, cucumber juice and elderflower, or the Purse Seiner has gin, lime and fresh ginger. But what’s extra special is that those drinks are served on a perch over the kelp beds off Cannery Row, providing an excellent vantage point to watch otters, seals and seabirds. Or look further out at the horizon. Or focus even more closely on the invertebrates, like sea stars visible on a clear day, and think about pioneering marine biologist Ed Ricketts, gathering specimens just a few doors down. From micro to macro, the view delivers.