Roosterlady, I'll be another to add to the list of those who were less than impressed with In and Out. I'll second the recommendation of Johnny Rocket's. It has a 1950's diner theme as well as great burgers and fast service. I have been to one in SJ as well as Columbus, Ohio. I must admit I was impressed with the quality and service at both locations.

Johnny Rocket's
150 S. First St.
San Jose, CA 95113
(408)977-1414

Count me as another who doesn't love In & Out. Oddly, it's for the opposite reason as Giorgi. I've generally found the burgers to be lacking in flavor, and often dry. To me the fries taste like cardboard, an absence of flavor more than anything else.

However, sometimes it's hard to get teens to eat anything other than burgers & fries and I can't tell how much of a hurry you will be in once you leave Oakland. And In& Out does have something of a cult following.

Since it you said you mostly just want to get to Monterey as soon as possible, and you are looking forward to a scenic drive I'd suggest getting a frozen yoghurt snack at Oakland airport and either driving to Half Moon Bay to have lunch there, or to Santa Cruz and having a late lunch there. Driving to Half Moon Bay and going down the coast will give you the most scenic ride. Crossing the bay and going down highway 280 is second best.

Hope that helps.

Wow, I guess I'm not the only one that does not care for In and Out.

One suggestion about your route to Monterey. I'd advise against taking any of the bridges acroos the bay and instead take 880 to 17 to 1. There is increased security along the bridges now so it will mostly be slow going trying to get across. If your aim is to get to Monterey ASAP, taking route 1 from Half Moon Bay down to Monterey will take at least an hour longer than simply connecting with route 1 from Highway 17. Also, the vistas along the portion of route 1 are not nearly as scenic as the stretch of 1 from Santa Cruz south to Big Sur. Highway 17 is quite scenic as you drive through the Santa Cruz Mountains.

kam,

where is the increased security on the bridges slowing traffic down? I had zero trouble with slowdowns on both the Bay Bridge and the San Mateo over the weekend.

Bay Area, On the news on Monday hey were mentioning that the San Mateo Bridge was on a list of Al Qaeda targets, and that security would be increased as a result.

That's a pity. Now that they have that extra lane added in, that bridge is finally usable again.

Well, hopefully the slowdowns won't be too bad.

The 880-to 17 corridor is just such an ugly route...

Bay Area,

Yes, it is a shame. Although traffic on 880/17 can be ugly on the weekdays, it should not be much of a problem for roosterlady on a Saturday

Just curious, what is the speed limit in California for Hwy 880 and 17? Oh, and I'm definitely not going to the In n Out burger place now. Is there anything in Los Gatos? Heck, any quick fast food chain will be do just to get us by until our main destination.

roosterlady, The speed limit on 880 and 17 is 65 MPH.

Below is a link to restaurants in Los Gatos. There really aren't alot of fast food places in Los Gatos being that it is an upscale suburb. You will find most of the restaurants in downtown Los Gatos a little ways off the freeway on Santa Cruz Avenue. Another more convenient option would be to take the Stevens Creek Boulevard exit off of 880 in San Jose. There are plenty of fast food and casual restaurants right off the freeway. The Valley Fair and Santana Row Shopping Centers are right there and also have lots of places to choose from for a quite bite to eat.



http://www.metroactive.com/dining/silval/los-gatos.html

http://siliconvalley.citysearch.com/

Roosterlady... please take the kids to Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk and let them have some fun! There is a deli nearby (sorry, I can't remember the name) They'll need to move around after all that time in the car. Do the carosel and the roller coaster! Welcome to California!

If the kids can hold out that long for food, Los Gatos is an excellent stopping off place. Take the Los Gatos/Highway 9 exit from 17, then turn left at N. Santa Cruz Ave. (2nd Light). Go just past Main Street (maybe 6 blocks or so?) and on your left you will see Willow Street Pizza. It is directly across the street from a small park. It serves individual pizzas, maybe gourmet or unusual combinations, I love the gouda with barbequed chicken - they also have good pastas and salads. There are many other restaurants in Los Gatos but I thought that the kids would especially like this one and you will, too. If you need a real quick bite, there is Pizza My Heart which sells excellent pizza by the slice. It is also on N. Santa Cruz, just before Main St on your left. The Los Gatos Brewing Company is also good with a wide variety of food as well as their house made beer and root beer. It is on N. Santa Cruz on your right, maybe 3-4 blocks after Highway 9. There are many other restaurants in that vicinity as well.

Roosterlady,

You definitely don't want to wait until getting to Santa Cruz to eat lunch. You and your kids will be famished. Stopping either in San Jose or Los Gatos would make alot more sense. It will probably take about and 1-1.5 hrs. to get to San Jose and another 25-30 minutes from there to go to Los Gatos. It will probably be more convenient to stop off in San Jose. Highway 9 and other backroads off of highway 17 can be a bit confusing.

Actually, the speed limit on 17 once you get on the hill is 50mph.

Ok, back to your questions, Roosterlady. I just realized that my advice to you yesterday on Los Gatos was backwards: Willow St Pizza and Pizza My Heart will be on your right as you drive down N. Santa Cruz Ave and the Los Gatos Brewing Co. on your left. This part of Los Gatos is quite easy to find and close to the freeway. N. Santa Cruz can get conjested with lots of shoppers out and about on the weekend, but you can generally find parking around the Willow St Pizza and their are parking lots behind N. Santa Cruz on either side. This part of Los Gatos has a number of cute shops as well, with some cute streets to browse around on. Have fun!

I see that many of you posters have recommended taking 17 to I as the preferred method of getting to Monterey Peninsula--this is a route that is usually recommended to me by my South Bay friends. However, I usually take 101 to 156 to 1 because the few times I have taken 17 it quite frankly scared the living you know what out of me. Specifically, the speed at which many drive on this very winding road. I have seen many people post about driving 1 through Big Sur as being scarey, but I find it a piece of cake compared to 17. Are my experiences rare?

Hwy 17 can be intimidating if you aren't used to curvey roads or you try to take it too fast, but it's really not a bad road. Just stay in the right lane except to pass trucks and take your time. I think the mistake a lot of people make is trying to keep up with the speeders. The speed limit is 50 mph on that road for a reason.

The benefits of taking 17 instead of 101 to 156 is that you get over to the coast more quickly and out of the heat of the valley if you are travelling in the summertime. Hwy 17 and 1 are also more scenic than 101 and 156. And if stopping in Santa Cruz or Capitola are on the itinerary then going over 17 makes the most sense.

If time isn't an issue and you want a really scenic route, I recommend taking Hwy 9 from Saratoga over to Santa Cruz. It's a slow road, but really beautiful. Not recommended if your kids get car sick though - lots of curves.

Of course another reason I take 101/156/1 is so I can stop at the outlets in Gilroy. My apologies, roosterlady didn't mean to hijack your thread. Have a lovely time on the Monterey Peninsula--you can't really go wrong no matter what you choose to do there.

For the record: In-N-Out Burger uses the freshest ingredients out of ANY fast food establishment. They cut their french fries from real potatoes at the restaurants, not frozen in some bag, and they use colesterol-free vegetable oil, not LARD (like McDonalds). To even compare In-N-Out Burger to McDonalds is laughable. Way to go DavidDJ (kam), you crack me up!