Best Of 2019 - Editors' Picks

Best Reason To Embrace Your Inner Caveman

Beefy Boys Beef Jerky

Sold at Safeway, Max Fit, Star Market, (888) 669-2010, beefyboys.com

Kale chips and quinoa are for wimps. Sometimes snacking gets primal. You’ve got a protein hankering that can only be satisfied with sweet, sweet meat. Teriyaki? Grunt. Peppered? Grunt. HOT peppered? Grunt grunt. Family recipes dating back to 1963 featuring locally sourced ingredients right down to the Scheid Family wines in their Reserve Jerky make this an all-around win for your carnivorous inclinations.

Best Place To Feel Like You’re About To Be In The Opening Scene Of Saturday Night Fever

The Oven

720 Broadway Ave., Seaside, (831) 899-1762, theovenpizzeria.wixsite.com

It was a long time ago, certainly. But that first few minutes of everybody’s favorite disco film still resonates for one reason: the pizza. Who cares about John Travolta. The Bee Gees? Phttt! By 1980 they were has-beens. Saturday Night Fever introduced the rest of the nation to New York pizza, that frail, floppy pie that can be folded or rolled up as street food, yet somehow still retains a crispy veneer on the crust. The folks at The Oven have mastered this and turn out what is the closest thing to true New York-style pizzas in the entire county.

Best Reason To Wake Up Early On A Saturday

Michelle Rizzolo’s Donut Pop-up at Poppy Hall

589 Lighthouse Ave., Pacific Grove, (831) 204-9990, poppyhallpg.com

Saturday mornings used to be for marveling at Inspector Gadget’s gadgets or hoping that today would be the day that Gargamel fried up some Smurf fritters, but Michelle Rizzolo – founder of and former baker for the famed Big Sur Bakery – gives reason to rustle from the lazy comfort of home. Her small-batch, hand-crafted donuts come in rad flavors like banana cream pie, strawberry shortcake, maple-glazed old fashioned and cajeta-dipped churro. No Smurf, thankfully. You’ll want to set an alarm clock: Her occasional pop-ups (deservedly) draw crowds of local foodies, so get there early so you don’t get the “sold out” sign instead.

Best Way to Eat Like A Stereotypical French Person

Lafayette Bakery

3659 The Barnyard, Suite E22, Carmel, (831) 915-6286

Berets, striped shirts, an upturned nose – you could sketch the all-American stereotype of a French person without putting any thought into it. And the setting for this caricature? How about a bakery. Everyone in France lines up for baguettes early in the morning and then once more at night; Lafayette offers the bread in its most traditional form. The baguette traditionnelle here sticks to rules of how a baguette should taste and feel, thanks to the training of master bread baker and owner Jean-Bernard Vial. That means no 3-foot long mass of uncharismatic and undercooked dough. It’s baked with a crust that just about bites back, but then gives way to chewy, yeasty goodness. Just add butter. Real butter, not that margarine stuff.

Best Restaurant With A Cheesy Tex-Mex Name That Is Really Authentic Mexican

Villa Sombreros

Ocean between Mission and San Carlos, Carmel, (831) 574-8991, villasombreros.com

Yeah, Villa Sombreros. It sounds like it was conjured by a marketing firm looking to open a Tex-Mex chain across the northern Midwest. But have you ever seen frida sincronizada on an Americanized menu? Carnitas Jerezanas? How about an epazote huarache? Villa Sombreros may have an unfortunate name, but this is the flavor of Mexico – sauces produced from different regional ingredients and imported chilies, house-made tortillas, the works. It may be the most underestimated place on the Peninsula.

Best Food That Doubles As A Hug

Gusto’s Lasagna

Gusto Handcrafted Pasta & Pizza, 1901 Fremont Blvd., Seaside, (831) 899-5825, gustopizzeriapasta.com

Sometimes you need a big, warm, smothering Leo Buscaglia embrace. Or, better yet, its culinary version. Whether you just got dumped or just need comfort food on a rainy night, nothing says “It’ll be fine” like cheesy, saucy goodness. Gusto’s lasagna is like a warm hug. Light layers of locally made pasta are kissed with béchamel and tomato sauce, beef Bolognese and Parmesan. By some kind of magic, it’s both filling and light at the same time, wrapping your soul in a kind of food wizardry that only Italy can conjure.

Best Place Where The Menu Is As Impressive As The Meal

Stationæry

San Carlos between Fifth and Sixth, Carmel, thestationaery.com

Before Instagram mementos, we marked memorable meals by scuttling away a copy of the menu. But more than a souvenir, these simple pieces of paper are vital to the dining experience. A good menu is informative and readable – it tempts you to order more. At Stationæry, the menus by co-owner Alissa Carnazzo – a letterpress stationer by trade – are really something special. Simple, elegant and effortless, they set the stage for chef Amalia Scatena’s cuisine.

Best Place To Eat Like It’s 1989 – Price-Wise, That Is

Asian Market

3056 Del Monte Blvd., Marina, (831) 384-3000

When hunger strikes but the budget is slim, there’s no more healthy or satisfying option in the county than the Korean rolls at Asian Market in Marina. For just $1.50, customers can pick up a roll, made fresh every hour, right by the cash register. Even if one doesn’t have the time to cut it up and put it on a plate accompanied by soy sauce, there’s no better food to eat on the run, or even while driving that gas-saving Mazda 323.

Best WTF Unreal Menu Combo

Yeast of Eden

Carmel Plaza, Suite 112, Mission and Ocean, Carmel, (831) 293-8621, yoebeer.com

Yes, parent company Alvarado Street Brewery can do serious suds. Now, with the recent debut of their Carmel location, the pioneering mixed fermentation program blends beers in a range of cask conditions, elevating depth, complexity and flavor. That makes the YOE list of beers a hymnal to celebrate, from the Great American Beer Festival medal winner Skeptics & Believers to the oak barrel-aged Beachwood Blendery Chaos Is A Friend Of Mine. Geez, back in the ’80s we thought Coors and a gyro was livin’ the high life (sorry, Miller). But add in a yum food lineup – with treats like barbecue duck soup and Vietnamese meat pies – and the formula is wow + wow = WOW.

Best Restaurant That Brings The Outside In

Jacks Monterey

2 Portola Plaza, Portola Hotel, Monterey, (831) 649-7830, portolahotel.com

A spanning bar clad in rich turquoise and rusted metal patina sets the tone for Jacks Monterey. None of that Tom Cruise flipping bottles and high-energy pouring here. This is a space for refined but relaxed California cuisine, bringing the outdoors indoors – tables sprawl out into the hotel’s glass-ceiling atrium for a decidedly airy feel beneath the trees. The organic setting naturally spotlights Executive Chef Danny Abbruzzese’s menu of local and sustainable fare.

Best Taste Time Machine

Flying Fish Grill

Carmel Plaza, Mission between Ocean and Seventh, Carmel, (831) 625-1962, flyingfishgrill.com

Get ready to turn back time at Flying Fish Grill. Tucked away on the ground floor of Carmel Plaza, Kenny and Tina Fukumoto pioneered flavor fusions here in the ’80s with an Asian-inspired menu. They’ve retired, but the restaurant stayed in the family after a sale to longtime server Honza Prikryl. From the seafood specialties to the “Asian country” décor, he’s kept the Fukumotos’ original concept intact. As Asian fusion becomes the darling of foodies (again), this taste throwback is still worthy of attention.

Best Place To Watch Dolphins

Bar Sebastian / Vizcaino Waterfront Food + Drink

Monterey Tides Hotel, 2600 Sand Dunes Drive, Monterey, (831) 394-3321, montereytides.com

For years it lurked under the radar as a ghetto funky fabulous Best Western. Then a fancy overhaul and a Big Little Lies appearance upped its visibility and raised its cache. But still, among locals it remains an underappreciated spot with floor-to-ceiling windows right on the beach, a picture-perfect perspective to watch the sunset and easily the top spot for spotting dolphins. Fourth-floor Vizcaino adds altitude and kicks in solid dishes like Spanish-style cioppino.

Best Way To Mimic Dining Aboard A Ship

Sandbar & Grill

Wharf 2, Monterey, (831) 373-2818, sandbarandgrillmonterey.com

Maybe you’re a local who needs to feel as though you’re on The Love Boat in a land far away – have Isaac shake up a cocktail, and stat. Perhaps you’re a land-locked visitor and you crave seafood dockside. However you approach this municipal wharf restaurant, you’ll feel as if you’re welcomed aboard the SS Sandbar, with the neighboring boats in the harbor and the full walls of galley windows. You’re not likely to feel the effects of motion sickness as you’re not actually on a boat, so go for the bloody mary.

Best International Bubbles Tour Without Leaving The Bay

the C restaurant + bar sparkling wine flights

750 Cannery Row, Monterey, (831) 375-4800, thecrestaurant-monterey.com

Let your taste buds travel all over the world while you stay firmly planted on the Monterey Bay. Belly up to the C bar and order one of three different flights of sparkling wines. No, not spritzers. Actual wines. The InterContinental Sparkling Flight takes you to Italy, Spain and France. The California Flight showcases the sun-dappled vineyards closer to home, while the Taittinger Flight travels to the namesake family’s vineyards in France and back to their California Domaine Carneros. Take a tour of sparkling wine all over the world – but stay right here.

Best Movie Theater Popcorn

Osio Theater

350 Alvarado St., Monterey, (831) 901-3119, osiotheater.org

You may not be an independent film kind of person, but there is another strong argument to visit the tiny cinema: if not for the movies, just for their popcorn. The scent is intoxicating – not in the nostalgic mega-theater artificial butter sort of way, but in the it-smells-like-real-popcorn-popped-on-a-stovetop kind of way. There is also real butter – go ahead, ask for a generous pump of it. This popcorn gets crazy good with the addition of some mega-umami toppings like furikake (seaweed and sesame) and nutritional yeast.

Most Anticipated Future Phoenix

Post-fire McDonald’s

1516 Canyon Del Rey Blvd., Seaside

The 5-year-old you ran around that fish tank taunting the guppies with your Filet-o-Fish (nobody eats those). The 35-year-old you sipped McCafe while your barefoot, nugget-fisted preschooler enjoyed the Play Place. One giant puff of McSmoke and your favorite icon disappeared after an early-morning car crash and a major fire. In your head you hear the opening sequence from The Six Million Dollar Man: We can rebuild it. We have the technology. We can make it better than it was. Better. Stronger. Faster.

Best Inhabitant Of A Retail Space That Was Empty For Too Long

Higher Level

440 Canyon Del Rey Blvd., Seaside, (831) 583-8300, higherlevelmmj.com

A pair of buildings sat empty for years. “What is going in there?” “When will they move in?” wondered people across the Monterey Peninsula of the two vacant storefronts that were built on Canyon Del Rey opposite the Embassy Suites. Then people stopped asking when, lo and behold, the green crosses indicating the soon-to-be cannabis dispensary went up. A few weeks later Higher Level, Seaside’s first of six adult-use dispensaries, opened their doors to a public eager to see the long-vacant buildings in use and eager for the now-legal recreational cannabis sold therein.

Best Example Of A City Hall Saga Playing Out Like A Country Western Song

Carmel

Sometimes it’s hard to be a council, giving all your love to just one man – or so the Carmel City Council majority seemed to be singing last year to the tune of the old Tammy Wynette standard, “Stand by Your Man.” Former mayor Steve Dallas, former councilmember Carolyn Hardy and current councilmembers Carrie Theis and Jan Reimers backed outgoing city attorney Glen Mozingo through good times and bad times, doing things we don’t understand. Their stubborn devotion cost the city thousands of dollars in a lost public documents court case, as well as in a cushy contract they approved for him last summer. It also led to the defeat of Dallas and Hardy at the polls in November. And just as Tammy crooned, “And if you love him oh be proud of him,” Reimers and Theis continue to sing Mozingo’s praises. Theis was near tears in her praise of him at a council meeting on Jan. 8, after he announced his resignation, showing the world she loves him and is giving him all the love she can.

Best Repeat Failure

Soda Tax

State Sen. Bill Monning, D-Carmel, is well-practiced at losing. But when you pick David v. Goliath battles like taking on the soda industry to try to hold them accountable for ruining public health? Well, you’ve gotta get used to it. Monning has gotten used to it, but he keeps fighting the public health fight. He’s improved the quality of his outreach props – he unfurls a taped-together ribbon of 16 sugar packets from his palm, like a magic trick, to demonstrate to kids how much sugar there is in a 20-ounce bottle of soda. He’s lost twice at efforts to implement a soda tax and twice at requiring warning labels for soda. But he’s back, powered by water, with a sugary beverage warning label bill again this year.

Best Makeover Of A Public Building

Old County Courthouse, now the Monterey County East West Wing

168 W. Alisal St., Salinas, co.monterey.ca.us

Last August, Monterey County officials shared with the public the gleaming makeover of the Old County Courthouse, a gorgeous example of the Art Deco style from the period when the building was constructed in 1937. The three-story building now called the East West Wing was designed by renowned local artist Joseph “Jo” Jacinto Mora. It includes beautiful statues, bas reliefs, a fountain (now a planter), bronze artwork and interior design pieces that are worthy of a visit. Amazingly, some wanted to tear down the aging building around two decades ago, but thankfully wiser heads prevailed. It took 15 years and $40 million to restore the building. Based on the artistic and historic significance of Mora’s creations, it was worth the wait – and the expense – to save what is now a crown jewel for the county.

Best Example Of Not Knowing When To Leave A Party

Former Carmel mayor Steve Dallas

Former Carmel mayor Steve Dallas lost in a landslide – 60 percent to 28 percent – to new Mayor Dave Potter last November, but instead of taking a cue from voters to take a bow and exit City Hall quietly, Dallas has already announced plans to run in 2020. (Potter countered with his own announcement that he’s running again, too.) Dallas also wants to lob a stink bomb into the city with an odiferous street vendor cart selling hot dogs. Carmelites hate anything that makes the village seem more like a tacky tourist boardwalk, and the aroma of hot dogs steeping in oily water wafting down Ocean Avenue will surely not be welcome. If Dallas follows through and runs, he’ll have to explain a bunch of controversial things – including the hot dog cart.

Best Non-Golf Use Of A Golf Course

Fourth of July Fireworks Celebration at Bayonet & Black Horse Golf Course

1 McClure Way, Seaside, (831) 899-7271, bayonetblackhorse.com

Car Week events at Pebble Beach Golf Links or Del Monte Golf Course are impressive eye candy. But for its exuberance, accessibility and fellowship, Seaside’s resurrection of a big community fireworks show last year, above the beautiful Bayonet & Black Horse, with Monterey Bay twinkling in the background, was unforgettable. Kids playing in sand traps. Picnics on blankets. Families roaming past rolling fairways and shapely trees. The carnival, the music, the lights. And the fireworks? Awe-inspiring. Apparently there weren’t enough port-a-potties to comfortably meet capacity, but that is testament to the demand for such an event. It deserves to become a tradition.

Best Living Room In Monterey County

Phoebe Hearst Social Hall, Asilomar Conference Grounds

800 Asilomar Ave., Pacific Grove, (831) 372-8016, visitasilomar.com

One of the nicest things in life is curling up on a comfy couch near a roaring fire with a good hot cup of cocoa or a glass of wine. Our favorite place to relax and luxuriate is the Phoebe Hearst Social Hall on the Asilomar Conference Grounds, or as we like to call it, the Public’s Living Room. (Parking is free – or on the street if there are a lot of conferences happening – and there’s no entrance fee.) Designed by architect Julia Morgan and built in 1913, it’s a beautiful Arts and Crafts style building and decorated in the same style of the period, including great examples of Mission-style furniture and rugs. The focal point is the large granite stone fireplace. There are pool tables, board games, puzzles, a piano and books. We like to pick up a beverage in Phoebe’s Cafe, then relax by the fire, or on a nice day sit out on the deck facing the dunes and the ocean beyond.

Best Symbol Of Love And Hate In Monterey County

Bixby Bridge

Highway 1, Big Sur

The increasing number of tourists seeking out “bucket list” places to visit – and then share with their followers on social media – is making life a little more challenging in some spots along the coastline, especially for Big Sur’s denizens. Between Christmas and New Year’s, around 25 residents gathered at Bixby Bridge to educate – not protest, they insisted – tourists about what the thousands of them stopping to take selfies at Bixby and other locations is doing to negatively impact the region. Some of the residents decry the use of the iconic bridge in films, TV shows and nearly every kind of advertisement you can think of, especially car commercials. And yet, as much as some might hate the use of the symbol, we also can’t help ourselves in sharing the image with the world. It’s prominently featured on the Monterey County government website, as well as other local websites, social media and in brick-and-mortar stores. We love it, and everyone else does too.

Best Long-Overdue Volunteer Recognition

Lynn Mason, Susan Pierszalowski, Lila Seldin

Pacific Grove Rec Trail

The three Pacific Grove residents have been picking up litter along the town’s coastline and other spots nearly every single day – for 30 years. They did so without fanfare or accolades until last year, when they showed up to a Pacific Grove City Council meeting with 25,000 cigarette butts they had collected over several months to educate the town about the dangers of butts and other litter to wildlife and the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Later in the year the city gave the women awards for their service, and in February they were featured in the Weekly. They have no plans to stop picking up litter any time soon. Give them all the volunteer awards from here on out.

Best Feline-Related Nonprofit

Golden Oldies Cat Rescue

(831) 200-9700, gocatrescue.org

What happens when a cat owner dies or can no longer care for a pet? There are shelters, of course, where kittens are quickly adopted but older cats sit until the shelter must do what it must do. That’s what makes Golden Oldies Cat Rescue such a remarkable (and necessary) organization. It’s an all-volunteer nonprofit that finds foster homes for older cats and then works hard to find a new forever home, however short that forever might be. The funds they raise go toward veterinary care, food and litter during the foster period. Old people don’t want to go to shelters – OK, they don’t call them human shelters. Old cats don’t either.

Best Reason To Dust Off The Old Seersucker Suit And Spats

Concours d’Elegance

Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach, pebblebeachconcours.net

We’re used to going to events. This is an affair, a do, a place to do some good old fashioned gawking. And as such, the centerpiece of Car Week deserves some sartorial respect. When you are standing on the fabled 18th fairway in awe of a gleaming Duesenberg or Packard from days gone by, shorts and a T-shirt seems rather inappropriate. OK – not everyone brings out vintage regalia. But there is an elegance to the Concours. And with the world’s finest collector cars on display, it remains a bucket list affair.

Best Inter-Generational Festival

Monterey Jazz Festival

2004 Fairgrounds Road, Monterey, (888) 248-6499, montereyjazzfestival.org

In its past iterations, the Monterey Jazz Festival has brought in greats like Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie (nearly through every year in the ’70s), Odetta, Sarah Vaughn – hell, even Jefferson Airplane. But in its more recent festivals, MJF has proven it changes with the times, bringing fresh acts like Common, Norah Jones and Esperanza Spalding. With a dedication to honor both the past and the present of jazz in their lineups, the festival goes one further. It helps lay out blueprints for the future with their Next Generation orchestra and an artist-in-residence program. And the beat goes on.

Best Combination Of Aerial Performance And Fashion

Awaken

West End Festival, Sand City, westendcelebration.com

You’ve seen the galleries lined with plein air paintings, heard the live bands and dined on street food favorites. While arts and culture routinely make their appearance at Monterey County events like the annual West End Festival, this was something of a coming-out party for fashion – and aerial art. During the August event, Erin Carey spun on sky-high silks, designer Domini Anne created a line inspired by the dark book-turned-miniseries The Handmaid’s Tale, and the community turned out dressed to the nines. It was a creative convergence unprecedented in recent memory, and the good news is that this creative team (with the addition of musical talent) has already resurfaced with another show, entitled Dusk. Sounds more like a dawn to us.

Best Place To Watch Baby (Big) Birds

Moon Glow Dairy

357 Dolan Road, Moss Landing, creagrus.home.montereybay.com/moonglow.html

So it smells like a dairy and it’s teeming with flies – kinda like the setting of The River. Bear with us: This is, first and foremost, a working dairy. But it’s also a haven for birds, abutting the biodiverse Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve. Arrive at this Elkhorn Slough Foundation-owned stand of eucalyptus trees via Moon Glow’s dirt roads. In spring and summer, the megafauna of the bird world – herons, egrets, cormorants – make their nests in these trees, and with decent binoculars, you can watch these giants swoop around, gather nesting materials and food, and come back to feed and tend to their babies. If you are in need of a dose of awe, you’re guaranteed to find it.

Best Re-Enactment Of A Zombie Apocalypse

Cypress Knolls

Imjin Parkway, California Avenue, Patton Parkway and Highway 1 in Marina, ci.marina.ca.us

It’s 190 acres of fenced-in, abandoned, former military duplexes. The website of the city of Marina states it is “currently working on concepts” for its future use. The Veterans Transition Center has designs on part of it. But for now, Cypress Knolls is like a spooky, deserted setting for a zombie apocalypse movie: “Global warming has left American towns in ruins, inhabited by sullen hordes of zombies… ” Graffiti murals of Jason from Friday the 13th, the desolate quiet, the shadows, and the occasional structure fire only enhances the atmosphere of dread and mayhem.

Best Place To Get Away From It All Without Going Far

Toro County Park

501 Monterey-Salinas Highway, Salinas, (831) 755-4895, co.monterey.ca.us

Just southeast of the intersection of Highway 68 and River Road, more than 4,700 acres of wilderness invite exploration. By hiking just three or four miles into the park’s impressive network of trails, solitude isn’t just attainable – it’s probable. On the same hike, one can enjoy both creeks and peaks, oak groves and vistas of rolling hills, the Monterey Bay, and in winters like 2019, even snow-dusted mountains.

Best Way To Catch The Start And Finish Of An Auto Race And Still Get The Shopping Done

California 8 Hours

WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, 1021 Highway 68, Salinas, (831) 242-8200, weathertechraceway.com

You want to see some GT cars screaming around the legendary track, but you’re out of cat food. And you promised a lunch date. No problem – the California 8 Hours is just what it says, an endurance race that lasts eight full hours. So let the drivers worry about keeping their focus on those challenging corners lap after lap. You’ve got things to do. After catching an hour or two of racing, head out. Get the chores done. Drop by a restaurant. You still have plenty of time to get back and see the last hours and the checkered flag wave.

Best Self-Mutilation Device

Huckleberry Hill Nature Preserve Staircase

Veteran’s Memorial Park, 1120 Veterans Drive, Monterey, (831) 646-4866, monterey.org

It sits tucked next to the Defense Language Institute fence, at the end of a semi-hidden trail that starts at the top of Veteran’s Park. Past the zenith of the stairs the plunder includes 200-degree views of the Peninsula, sweet trails through the pines and luscious berries for which the park is named (when in season). But for those who live to punish their quads and calves, the real destination is the telescoping flight of stairs that number 183. That makes it much harder than one of those Jane Fonda workout tapes.

Best Workout With A View

Kelp Krawlers

Sundays at 11:15am and Fridays at 5:45pm at Lovers Point; Tuesdays at 6pm at Wharf 2, facebook.com/pg/kelpkrawlers

Maybe you think of a jog along a coastal trail, or a machine facing a gym window. But instead of looking up or out, consider looking down – into the ocean, that is. This open-water swimming group shoves off into the deep from Lovers Point on Sundays and Fridays, from Wharf 2 on Tuesdays. And though conditions vary, including clarity, it’s a way to see Monterey Bay’s kelp forest, and it’s an underwater jungle out there. There are colors down there that rival any ’80s neon, and that’s just in the shallows; if the deep water freaks you out, stay close to shore where sea stars, numerous fish species and sea grass are plentiful.