I am flying into San Francisco next week and driving over to Pebble Beach. Any suggestions for a neat/interesting/unique place to stop for lunch on the drive over?

Nepenthe would be out of your way, but worth the extra miles of coast line and great burgers and view!

http://www.nepenthebigsur.com/

Nepenthe IS wonderful!

If you want to eat as you are leaving San Francisco, consider Cliff House. Food has varied during my visits, but the views are always spectacular!
www.cliffhouse.com

If you are driving 101 or 280 to 880/ Hwy 17, I'd suggest taking the Los Gatos (Hwy 9) exit. Many good options for lunch. From reasonable:
Los Gatos Cafe (sandwiches and salads)
Sweet Peas (Crepes, soup and salads)
Moderate:
Wine Cellar (Fondue, salads, entree's)
Steamers Grill (seafood, beef, salads)
Campo di Bocce (Italian, most unique on this list) http://www.losgatos.com/campodibocce/
--Karen

OK - I don't understand either of the above recommendations. As I read the post you are flying into SFO and driving from there down to Pebble Beach. is that right?

Someone flying into SFO wouldn't want to travel in to the Cliff House before heading south.

And Nepenthe - sure it is great - but it is on the other side of Pebble Beach.

Check out this site - Michael's in Soquel is on the way. http://www.michaelsonmain.net/

oops - my reference to the "above recommendations" was re isabellasu's and starrsville's posts.

Los Gatos or there abouts would be good too. Soquel is farther

I did state that Nepenthe would be out of the way, but worth it if extra time allowed.

If you want to drive down Highway 1, you could stop at Pescadero and have lunch at Duartes. It is certainly unique and driving along the coast is a wonderful experience, even in the fog!

I forget the name of the place, but we had a good lunch at Moss Landing north of Monterey along the bay.

-Bill

I second the recommendation for Duarte's in Pescadero. It is a family-owned place that serves a lot of fresh local food. The artichoke soup is great, as is the creamy green chile soup. And the ollalieberry pie is great.

There are a couple places in Moss Landing that fit your criteria as well. Moss Landing is about 15 minutes north of Monterey.

Phil's Fish Market has terrific clam chowder. They also have chiopino (sp?) fried artichoke hearts, pasta dishes, fish and chips, and so on. It is a really casual place where you order at the counter and the food is brought to your table.

The Whole Enchilada is the other place in Moss Landing. It is a really eclectic place with friendly people and pretty good Mexican food.

If you're going to Pebble Beach, your best lunch options might be there at the Lodge. Stillwater Bar & Grill overlooks the 18th green and Carmel Bay. And the Gallery Cafe overlooks the first tee....

We ate at the former a few years ago, and the view is stunning.

Ditto on the Whole Enchilada in Moss Landing. I finally tried it last month: very yummy. And a very good contrast (very casual), to the kind of dining you will encounter in Pebble Beach

As has been posted on several other topics--you cannot take Hwy 1 from San Francisco (closed at Devil's Slide until at least Sept). Take 280 south to 92 west. Or, stay on 280 and take 17 south to Santa Cruz and have a great lunch in Aptos or Capitola.

LOL - you're making me crazy. Nepenthe is nowhere near between SF and PB. It's on the south side of Big Sur...great views but the food sucks big time.

As mentioned above, Phil's Fish Market in Moss Landing: SFO to I-280 south, to route 17 through the Santa Cruz mountains, to route 1 south along the coast (in spots). The drive over is neat/interesting/unique as is the very informal restaurant. Stay out of the Palo Alto traffic.

http://www.philsfishmarket.com/

I second the Los Gatos suggestions (on 17) easy to get back on 101 if that is the preferred way to travel, by taking 85 south and catching 101 south again. Personally, I like the 17 route towards Santa Cruz because it is so much prettier on a nice day. Another unique restaurant in Los Gatos is 'A Matter of Taste' - a small french bistro on main street with absolutely wonderful food. It's usually only open for lunch. I also like the Wine Cellar, especially for sitting outdoors. Steamers is great but I think the lunch menu is a little overpriced. I do go there anyway, though.

I have to agree with a previous poster that Il Fornaio is mediocre and since it is a chain, albeit an upscale one, it does not qualify as unique.