NOTE: we practically
always share our meals, typically ordering one starter, one main and one
dessert for the two of us. That makes a big difference in the cost of our meals
and the expansion of our waistlines. We don’t have the kitchen split the meals
because ALE doesn’t eat as much as DM. We just ask for an extra plate and ALE
takes what she thinks she should eat.
ALE and DM discussed adding ratings to our restaurant reviews and
compromised on the following ratings:
HR: Highly recommended
R: Recommended
NR: Not recommended
A: Awful
Okay, now the
reviews:
1. Dinner
1.1.
R: Il
Vecchio, 110 Central Ave., Pacific Grove, CA 93950, tel. 831-324-4282,
www.ilvecchiorestaurant.com. Charlie was our server and we liked him. We
ordered a Capestrano Montepulciano d’ Abruzzo, a wine we always liked when we
were living in Italy ($28). We had the Monday Night Adventure Dinners ($23
each) which were 5 courses. The first course was a bruschetta with goat cheese
and small, diced sweet pepper on top. Then we had a roasted carrot soup that
was very good. The third course was a very good salad. The fourth course was a
baked polenta topped with parmesan cheese and vegetable. The polenta was
perfectly cooked and the combination was very good. For the fifth course there
was a choice between a beef stew and a cioppino. We ordered one of each and the
cioppino was the much better of the two. For an extra cost of $6 we had one
cannoli for dessert. It was crunchy and we liked it. The meal was fun and we
enjoyed it. We spent $86.60 plus tip.
1.2.
R: Persian
Grill, 675 Lighthouse Ave., Monterey, CA 93940, tel. 831-372-3720,
www.persiangril.com (owned by Masoud Homami, e-mail: persiangrill@sbcglobal.net). We had
a wonderful meal and recommend this restaurant. Masoud Homami is the owner, the
chef and the server. He does a terrific job. We started with one soup, the Aush
e’ Reshteh, Persian style noodles with variety of chopped greens, sautéed
garlic, onion and mint served with kashk (dried whey) for $6.75. Dimitri loved
it and it reminded him of Melokhia, an Egyptian soup. We next ordered one
Panir-O-Sabzi, fresh cut garden basil, mint, watercress, radishes and coriander
served with feta cheese for $5.99. We expected more of a salad but it was not.
One is supposed to take some lavash and make a little appetizer with all of the
ingredients. The herbs were so good and fresh we enjoyed the dish. We wanted to
have “Tahdeeg” ($3.99) the famous Persian crispy rice but it wasn’t available
and takes an hour to make. Our next dish wa Khoresht e’Fesenjoon, the walnut
stew that Audre makes. It is crushed walnuts, caramelized onion and pomegranate
juice with tender chicken breast, served with basmati rice ($13.99). It was delicious
but maybe a little too sweet for us. For dessert Dimitri really enjoyed the
Makhloot, a combination of Persian ice cream and faloode (which was what
Dimitri really wanted). It was a great success as was the entire dinner. We
spent $55.59 plus tip.
1.3.
R: Bistro
Moulin, 67 Wave Street, Monterey, CA 93940, tel. 831-333-1200, E-mail:
bistromoulin@gmail.com, web: http://www.bistromoulin.com/ .We had a very nice
meal even though neither Didier Dutertre nor Colleen Manni were there. Our
server was friendly, professional and good. All the other servers helped too.
The room is “bistro-y” but the tables are not close together. Audre had one
(appetizer-sized) spinach gnocchi ($12.75). The gnocchi were light but they
were floating in a cream sauce which made the dish a little too rich for Audre.
Dimitri had the Osso Buco which he liked very much. It was in a tasty tomato
sauce and had some snap peas in it too. With our meal we had a small bottle of
Chateau Le Bonnat Grave Bordeaux ($28). There was no dessert on the menu that
appealed so that was all we had. We spent $73.64 plus tip.
1.4.
R: Passionfish,
701 Lighthouse Ave., Pacific Grove, CA 93950, tel. 831-655-3311, www.passionfish.net. Our server, Mara,
was good. We brought a coupon for a free appetizer of our choice. The room was
crowded and noisy. While we made jokes of it with our neighboring tables, we
were so close we were practically sitting with them. The bread was good and was
called Pane Franchese from a bakery in
Santa Cruz (The Buttery, perhaps.) We started with the Spicy Seafood Stew ($9
on the menu, $10 on our bill (?)). There was plenty of seafood and it was in a delicious
tomato-cilantro broth that was just the correct amount of spicy. We shared that
and a ½ bottole of Alfaro Family Vinyard (Corralitos, CA) Pinot Noir ($21). The
next dish we shared was the Grilled Lemongrass Catfish in red curry with jicama
slaw ($10) which we asked to be our free appetizer. It was delicious and had a
nice taste of lemongrass. For our main course we had the Sturgeon with warm
preserved lemon-white bean salad and spicy herb relish ($23). Audre liked the
sturgeon but thought it was bland. Dimitri was lukewarm about it. There was
plenty of food to share. For dessert we had the bread pudding with honey/ginger
ice cream ($7) with a Peruvian decaf ($2). We spent $68.36 (even with the free
appetizer) plus tip and were happy.
1.5.
R: Petra Restaurant, 477
Lighthouse Ave, Pacific Grove, CA tel. 831-649-2530. We were happy with our
meal and with the service at Petra. The room is decorated in an old-fashioned
way—nice. There is a flat screen TV over the gas fireplace (on) which scrolls through
a slideshow of scenes of Petra. (A good use of a TV, in our opinion). The place
was busy and there was a even a table of 3 women who Dimitri said could have
been his Greek aunts. We had 2 entrées: one was the special mousaka. It was
served with sautéed vegetables and rice. The other entrée was the couscous stew
made with chicken. It had a nice cinnamon spice taste and Dimitri liked it
(although the chicken should have been less cooked for his taste). The stew
also came with a side of vegetables We liked the pita bread served at Petra.
For dessert we had one baklava and it was good and crunchy. With that we had
one decaf coffee. Nice. We spent $56.24 plus tip.
1.6.
R: We
had a nice meal at Fishwife at Asilomar
(1996 1/2 Sunset Dr., Pacific Grove, CA 93950, tel. 831-375-7107). It was
crowded but we didn’t have to wait long and we got the table that Dimitri asked
for. We had a coupon for a free fried clam appetizer. We never would have
ordered a fried dish but we ate this one! Dimitri had the catfish entrée
($17.50) and liked it. Audre had the Calamari Provençal and was impressed ($17.50). The calamari was fork-tender. We
have never had calamari so tender. We each had a glass of wine—Audre had a
glass of Firestone Sauvignon Blanc ($7) and Dimitri had a glass of Seaglass
Riesling ($7). We spent $52.08 plus tip and were happy.
1.7.
R: Epsilon
Restaurant, 422 Tyler St., Monterey, CA, tel. 831-655-8108, web: http://www.epsilonrestaurant.com/ We had a very nice meal. Christopher was our
server. He was efficient and unobtrusive. We had one lamb shanks ($19.75) which
came with a Greek salad with lentils to start. The meal was served with rice
and vegetables. It was very good and huge--more than enough for the 2 of us. We
had a glass of Greek red (Nema) for $8 and a glass of Retsina ($7). We had a
great time talking to the men at the table next to us (long time Monterey
residents). We also had a rice pudding which
Dimitri liked ($5.95). We spent $43.72 plus tip.
1.8.
R: La Bicyclette, 7th & Dorlores, 29 Dolores St, Carmel,
CA 93923, Carmel, CA tel. (831) 622-9899, web: http://www.labicycletterestaurant.com/. We
had a very nice meal. Our server, Arturo, was good and had a good personality.
We were sitting next to a man (who lives in Carmel) and woman (who was
visiting). They were fun to talk to and very informative about the area. We had
one of the soup of the day (carrot) and it was very good ($8). It was served in
a big copper pot and it was plenty for two. We had one entrée of duck ($23)
that was served with black rice. The dish was very good too (although we
probably should have had the day’s special dish: wild boar cannelloni). We had
3 glasses of Malbec ($9 each) but no dessert. We spent $62.94 plus tip.
1.9.
NR: La Balena,
Junipero between 5th and 6th, Carme-by-the-Sea, CA, tel. 831-250-6295, www.labalenacarmel.com. We were
unhappy with the taste of the food and the preparation. We were so disappointed
because La Balena had been highly recommended. It was our first self-described
“farm to table” restaurant and we were excited. Our server, Iracema, was quite
nice and good (serving the entire restaurant, as far as we could tell). The
restaurant was accommodating to our request to get out of the breezy area where
we were first seated. We were given the table next to the kitchen and it was
quite warm but fine for us. We decided to order 2 starters and one pasta and
share everything. Our starters were the Osseo Puttanesca (bone marrow, braised
tomato, capers, olives, anchovy and taleggio) for $15. The bone marrow was
overwhelmed by the salty taste of capers and there was too much tomato sauce
and taleggio (a cheese that we ordinarily love). We left most of it (and the
restaurant did not charge us for the dish). Our second starter was Polpo Fritto
(crispy octopus that was actually grilled, not fried, Calabrian chili and
lemon) for $21. The sauce was good, very garlicky, but Dimitri didn’t like the
way the octopus was grilled. He said that it should be grilled over charcoal
and it should be almost burnt (but not overcooked) and result in a crispiness
on the outside and tender on the inside. One should see it blackened and taste
the charcoaling. So after the first two dishes, we were bummed out. For our
pasta, we chose the Tagliatele Nero (described as Monterey Bay king salmon,
grappa, crème fraîche and roe) $21. It was good and the pasta
(homemade) was very good but, as Audre recalls, the dish didn’t have salmon it
had clams—oh well). With our meal we the half bottle of Joyce Cabernet
Sauvignon 2011 (San Banito, Pedregal Vineyards, Salines) for $18. We were happy
with that choice. We spent $65.10 (without the Osseo Puttanesca) plus tip.
1.10.
NR: Sea Harvest, Foam St., Monterey, CA
93940, tel. (831-646-0547. It looked like it would be good but it wasn’t (and
it had been recommended). We had lunch there but we would not recommend it for
any meal. Audre ordered the oyster appetizer: 6 oysters ($10.95). We didn’t
ask; we just assumed that they would be local. They were not. They were Blue
Points from VA. Unfortunately they were tasteless. Even the juice was tasteless.
Dimitri had the lunch special: skate fish grilled and served with rice, cole
slaw and sautéed vegetables ($12.99). He was disappointed. Audre was still
hungry so she ordered a side of cole slaw. We spent $29 plus tip.
2. Lunch
2.1.
R: Vineyard
Bistro, 6 Pilot Rd., Carmel Valley, CA 93924, tel. 831-659-5020, web: www.vineyard-bistro.net. Our server,
John, was good. He reminded Audre of Matthew Broderick for some reason. He was
good and gave us advice on other restaurants in the Monterey area to try. We
had one special of the day: sand dabs served grill and sitting on a salad with
mango salsa and apples and oranges ($15) which we shared. The restaurant served
bread. Dimitri had a Line Sauvignon Blanc ($8) and thought it was good. We
spent $24.96 and enjoyed sitting in the garden. We spent $24.96 plus tip.
2.2.
R:
Paprika Cafe, 309 Lighthouse Ave., Monterey, CA 93940, tel. 831-375-7452. This
is a tiny, cute place and a throw-back from earlier times. The owner does
absolutely everything without anyone else there to help. It was almost full. We
had a very good lunch, after waiting our turn for it to be made. Dimitri had a
foul (Egyptian fava bean stew) that came with pita. Audre had a salad. We had a
piece of homemade baklava and a Turkish coffee. The owner was Lebanese but grew
up in France. He has been in Monterey for over 20 years working very hard. It
shows; the café is very good. We spent $14.05 plus tip.
2.3.
R: The Lodge
at Pebble Beach Resort, The Bench, Pebble Beach, CA. The spot is lovely and our
server, Vincent was good. We shared one order of mussels ($24) from Prince
Edward Island, Canada in a very good broth, one baked Alaska (also very good)
for $10 and one coffee ($3.75). A very nice lunch even though it was full of
noisy groups. We spent $40.58 plus tip.
2.4.
R: From
Scratch Restaurant, 3626 The Barnyard Shopping Village, Carmel, CA 93923, tel.
831-625-2448, e-mail: fromscratchrestaurant@gmail.com. We sat out on the patio
under a pergola and it was pleasant. We had one quiche of the day that came
with a cup of cream of broccoli soup ($9.95). Audre didn’t think that the
crust-less quiche with chorizo was as tasty as it should have been. She liked
the soup although it was too creamy and should have had more broccoli taste.
Dimitri had the Chinese chicken salad ($11.50) that had chicken pieces which
were moist and tasty. The salad was made with romaine lettuce which he likes
and had some vegetables in it. It wasn’t particularly Chinese, however. Dimitri
liked the toasted baguette that came with the meals. Our server, Kristofer, was
fairly invisible but we had everything we needed. Audre thought that it was an
over-hyped sort of place. We spent $23.06 plus tip.
3.
Breakfast
3.1.
R: Lou Lou's
Griddle in the Middle, Wharf #2, Figueroa and Del Monte, Monterey, CA. We had a
very good breakfast. We tried to get a table over the weekend but it was packed
and the wait would have taken 1 ½ hours on Sunday (Mother’s Day). We came back
on Thursday and it was calm and a very warm day—too warm in fact to sit outside
in the sun. We moved in to the counter and watched the cook do his magic.
Dimitri ordered 2 eggs over easy, bacon, potatoes and sourdough bread. He liked
his breakfast with coffee. Audre had one pancake with strawberries. The one
pancake was so huge it hung over the sides of the plate. They serve it with
butter and syrup but not real maple syrup. It was fluffy and good. Of course it
was way too big for Audre and even with Dimitri’s help we only ate half. Our
breakfast cost $20 plus tip and we would recommend it.
3.2.
R: First
Awakenings, 125 Ocean View Blvd #105, Pacific Grove, CA 93950, tel. (831)
372-1125, http://www.firstawakenings.net/.
We thought our breakfasts were very good and our server, Brittney, was
excellent. We had a complicated order. Audre thought she wanted a wheat berry
pancake until she learned that the wheat berry pancake had wheat germ in it
which she doesn’t like. Brittany was very patient and suggested that Audre
order one blueberry pancake with strawberries on top. That sounded good to
Audre so that’s what she ordered and it was great; too big by half but very
good. Dimitri wanted one pancake with mango in it, scrambled eggs and one strip
of bacon. That’s what he got and he was very happy. Dimitri also ordered coffee
and it came quickly. We learned that First Awakenings has real maple syrup for
an extra charge. We ordered that. Our bill was $19.61 plus tip and were very
happy.
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