Hi all,

DH and I are heading to Carmel next week and I would like some restaurant advice -- the most non kid friendly places! I jest as we are leaving them are home and I want to take advantage of our 3 days. We are staying at the Highlands, will do Pacific's edge one night -- any other ideas? Also, I want to spa one day -- would you do casa palermo or bernardus? Any other ideas -- stuff to do, pass it on, much thanks
Laura

clint's mission inn or mission ranch has a great outside porch for eating

We had a GREAT meal at Fresh Creme in Monterey.

Roy's in Pebble Beach is very nice for dinner. We also celebrated two anniversaries at the Highland's & the Pacific's Edge. You will love it!

Go to Pacific Grove & try The White House. Very romantic and great food. Have a nice trip! ***kim*** If you want to drive to the Big Sur area, Cielo at the Ventana Inn & Spa is also wonderful with gorgeous views of the ocean.

Casanovas in Carmel is a great romantic restaurant (ask to be seated on their upstairs patio).

If you drive south to Big Sur, I'd go for the restaurant at The Post Ranch Inn, over the one at Ventana. The food is wonderful. You'll love the ocean views and they have star gazing on the deck, complete with an expert and high teck equipment, so you can check out the stars between courses. Very romantic!

For spa treatments, it just depends on what you want. You're sure to get excellent services at either Bernardus Lodge's spa or The Spa at Pebble Beach(Casa Palmero is a small hotel with Jacuzzi spas on the patios of some of the rooms, but it doesn't actually give spa treatments)--you need to go next door to the Spa at Pebble Beach for that.

Bernardus is in a country setting, feels more "rustic", "homey", think: terra cotta, whereas the Spa at PB has a little more formal feel: think marble. Carmel Valley can be up to 20 degrees warmer than Pebble Beach, depending on the weather, so that might influence you. Both have excellent reputations and great restaurants nearby: Bernardus has Marinus and Wickets bistro and the Lodge at PB (near the spa) has Club XIX and Stillwater Bar & Grill. You can't go wrong with any of these. But my favorite restaurant suggestion is babette's: dinner at Sierra Mar at Post Ranch Inn. But whatever you choose, reserve quickly, these places book up fast. You're in for a wonderful time--enjoy!!

I ditto Babette's suggestion of Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur. It's a beautiful coastal drive down there. If you don't want to go for dinner, then drive there for lunch or just drinks on the deck. Check out their website and you'll be sold! www.postranchinn.com We also loved Casanova's...wonderful!

For spa treatments, it just depends on what you want. You're sure to get excellent services at either Bernardus Lodge's spa or The Spa at Pebble Beach(Casa Palmero is a small hotel with Jacuzzi spas on the patios of some of the rooms, but it doesn't actually give spa treatments)--you need to go next door to the Spa at Pebble Beach for that.


Hmmm...absolutely untrue! Casa Palmero is not just a hotel with jacuzzis, they hae a huge spa and do all of their treatments there, not in the Lodge. Casa Palmero is head and shoulders above the rest.

As for restaurants, as you mentioned you are already planning to dine at Pacific's Edge. This restaurant is one of the best on the peninsula. Avoid Mission Ranch, Casanova and The White House unless you enjoy mediocre. Cielo was mentioned and its fabulous ocean views were mentioned. The food there is good but not fabulous. The views are OK in the dining room but not fabulous. You can't dine on the patio for dinner. Go for brunch and dine on the patio for fabulous views.

I suggest you also try Fresh Cream in Monterey and Christopher's in Carmel. That would take care of three nights quite nicely!

Actually, Casa Palmero and the Spa at Pebble Beach are two separate buildings, although they are very close to each other. I never said the spa services were at the Lodge, I said they were at the spa, which is next to Casa Palmero.

If the poster were a guest at Casa Palmero, it would be just a short walk from Casa Palmero to the spa. But this poster is a guest at the Highlands Inn and is driving in only for spa treatments. So, she would park in the parking garage designated for the Spa at Pebble Beach, rather than going to Casa Palmero. It's not really a big deal, I'm just trying to make it easier for her.

is a small hotel with Jacuzzi spas on the patios of some of the rooms, but it doesn't actually give spa treatments)--you need to go next door to the Spa at Pebble Beach for that.



Actually, it's part of Casa Palmero. The poster wanted to know which of two places to spend the day. I would think spending the day at an absolutely world-class resort along the ocean at Pebble Beach would be a dream.

Sierra Mar at The Post Ranch Inn is my most favorite for view and fine dining!