Battle for the Best Restaurant Block in Monterey County, Part IV: Downtown Monterey.

In a battle built around quantity and quality, it helps when you can bring to bear twice the quantity of any other competitor.

And that is what happens with the last finalist in this 2015 Battle for the Best Restaurant Block in Monterey County, downtown Monterey's Alvarado Street between Franklin and Pearl, aka the 400 block.

But the stretch is not without prodigious quality, with arguably the best brewery-restaurant in three counties, the top frozen yogurt hangout, the most popular family restaurant and a range of ethnic and cafe options.

Better yet, all but one or two of the 14 spots are locally owned, and several enjoy new sidewalk patios, something that can't be said of the other contestants.

Now that all the finalists have been assembled—including stretches of Mission Street in Carmel, Main Street in Oldtown Salinas and Lighthouse Avenue in New Monterey—all that's left is to pick a winner. 

That happens next week. 

In the meantime, here's a look at Monterey's second entrant in the final four. 

Alvarado Street • between Franklin Street and Pearl Street

1. Caffe Trieste (241-6064) • A great lunch stop with an outdoor patio. They serve up crafted Italian food like melanzane panini, risotto con funghi along with broccoli and red pepper pizza, and coffee to rival anybody on the block.

2. Koko's Cafe (375-3777) • A casual European cafe-style setting among vibrant pastel colors satisfies those searching for sweet and savory delights. They offer Italian gelato, falafel and tritip shawerma.

3. Alvarado Street Brewery (655-2337) • The brewhouse-grill enjoys hard-core craft appeal with house drafts like the Bixby Belgian Blonde and light chocolate-oats Doc Brown to go with pork belly sliders, duck ham flatbread and braised lamb shank. The setting, meanwhile, is sharp, with soaring ceilings, retro microtiles and big windows looking into the brewery.

4. Full Moon Mandarin Cuisine (333-1288) • This restaurant has been offering Mandarin style cuisine for nearly a decade. Dishes include three delight sizzling rice soup, ginger and scallion squid and heavenly chicken in a sweet rice wine sauce.

5. Petra Cafe (646-2080) • A Mediterranean lunch and dinner spot with a simple, quaint vibe serving up lamb shawarma gyros, grilled shrimp kabob, baba ghanouj and gelatos.

6. Rosine's (375-1400) • American comfort food and a wide assortment of desserts makes this restaurant suitable for any meal. They offer dishes such as homemade lasagna, Sicilian breaded meat and six layer German chocolate cake to finish.

7. Boardwalk Atlantic City Sub (TBA) • The latest addition opens in the coming weeks, with a beautifully redone space and some devoutly authentic choices: Philly cheese steaks, Atlantic City submarine sandwiches, barrel wines on tap, draft beer and duck fat fries.

8. Britannia Arms (656-9543) • This British pub has been around for more than 15 years, consistently voted as the best karaoke bar in Monterey County. They also serve pub style food like grilled strip loin in Murphy's stout sauce, shepherd's pie and bangers and mash.

9. Bagel Bakery (372-5242) • The bagel shop turns out standard bagels and spreads as well as sandwiches. Their deli sandwiches include California nosh, New Yorker and the vegetarian.

10. Papa Chano's (646-9587) • A taqueria that brings Americanized and affordable Mexican food to the people. Think jumbo burritos, quesadillas and tacos with a choice of juicy and tender meats.

11. Lallapalooza (645-9036) • This airy restaurant/martini bar in downtown Monterey overflows most evenings with young professional types. Highlights from their menu include lobster mac and cheese, bacon wrapped meatloaf and cedar plank salmon. Superior happy hour too.

12. Bull and Bear Whiskey Bar and Taphouse (655-3031) • Recently refurbished and rebranded whiskey-taphouse (formerly the Mucky Duck) serves up a wide list of local and imported beers along with several notable whiskeys. Definitely more of a bar, but the underrated menus include steamed mussels, roasted free range half chicken in lemon and herb-and-potato croquettes.

13. Old Monterey Cafe (646-1021) • The downtown staple has earned readers votes for best breakfast in the county many years over, though not so much of late, for fluffy Belgium waffles, eggs Benedict and sandwiches (come lunch time) like their rodeo roast beef.

14. MYO Pure Frozen Yogurt (649-3769) • It's not a restaurant, but it offers scores of fresh fruit, crumbled candy and exotic toppings to go with their probiotic froyo. With flavors that include gluten-free, no sugar added, and even some dairy free options within tart and rich yogurt styles, it helps anyone enjoy a great close to a great dinner elsewhere.

Thomas Gray contributed to this report.