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Old 18 Jul 15, 03:36 PM  
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4th, 26th and 60th - A California Road Trip - Day 6/2

4th, 26th and 60th - A California Road Trip - Day 6/2

Day 6/2 – 8th July 2015 – There be whales here OR
Sacre Blue, L’eau etait bon! - Part Two


We have been given a little VIP card for a restaurant on the wharf called Café Fina.



Seafood again I’m afraid. We are seated at the back of the restaurant against a window so have a perfect view across the water to the US Army Presidio of Monterey. In the water are two sea otters. One is dozing and the other is doing some grooming. Darrin has two appetizers – clams done in a chilli and tomato jus and lobster mac n’ cheese:





I have a cup of clam chowder – so delicious and then follow that with Monterey Bay sand dabs again. I love these little sole tasting things.





After lunch we head for Cannery Row. Years ago sardines would be processed here, canned and sent all over the world. Today most of the buildings are either hotels, souvenir shops or cafes and restaurants.



Right at the end of the street is the famous Monterey Bay Aquarium.



We have visited twice in the past so give it a miss today. We do some shopping and one place has a really good selection of wine. We want a Californian red for Darrin’s brother. He likes his red wine. We choose a Hearst Castle Cabernet Sauvignon. Let’s say it wasn’t cheap! As we pay for it the shop-keeper places it in a brown paper bag squeezing the top around the neck of the bottle. Outside we look like a couple of winos walking along with a bottle in a bag. I make a purchase of T shirts at the Harley Davidson shop and am happy to pay for a carrier if only to put the offending brown paper bag and wine bottle into it.
It’s time to be heading back to Carmel but before we do so we head into the Ghirardelli shop which has an ice cream parlour. In a chocolate dipped wafer cone I have a blob of Ghirardelli chocolate flavoured ice cream together with a blob of cherry vanilla. Darrin has butter pecan with cookies n’ cream.



We stroll back to the car. By the time we reach it both of us are covered in dripping ice cream and chocolate. There is no way we are sitting in the car to eat them. The parking meters here are fed with quarters. 25 cents gets you 15 minute segments. We have three minutes left on ours. We need to wash and also I need a bathroom (toilet). We are on Wave Street and here’s a tip for any visitors to Monterey’s Cannery Row area. Wave Street is two blocks back and it has FREE public facilities – a rare find in the USA. Make a note of this now!

Once we are cleaned up we are on our way. We have decided to take the “17 mile” scenic route along the coastline of Pebble Beach. Two miles into this drive you are presented with a kiosk. At first, I’m thinking this must be a National Park area as they want $10. No. It’s privately owned and the only way you get to drive it for free is if you use the golf courses along its stretch. Crafty, eh? Still, for the scenery you see it is well worth $10 and if that money helps preserve the area – so be it.






We come off at Carmel Gate which takes us right back into town and we are at our Inn in minutes. Time for an Earl Grey tea before the cheese and wine hour.

We haven’t decided where we want to eat tonight but we are in no rush. We having a dining guide book and we decide to get away from seafood if we can. Darrin’s spots a French restaurant called Andre’s Bouchee. It’s on Ocean and 6th. So off we go in our finery. When we arrive the place is about one third full. We don’t have a reservation but as they aren’t overflowing it shouldn’t be a problem. Whilst I didn’t think about it at the time, we are shown to a table behind a dividing wall. A server comes along and we get glasses of water. I ask to order a pre dinner drink to be told we only do wine of beer – no spirits. Quite odd methinks. So we say Ok, let us look at the menu and then we’ll decide on drinks. The Maitre D’ is clucking like a mother hen over a table of eight and the server that came to us is sorting out a flight of wines for two guys on a table away from us. Fifteen minutes passes by. I give a knowing look to Darrin. We decide what we are going to have and what wine we want with it. Another ten minutes go by. Nobody has been back to take our order. As I pointed out above they aren’t exactly busting at the seams. I look at Darrin again and he says: “Shall we leave?”. I nod in the affirmative and we get up from our table and walk towards the exit. As we do so, the server suddenly comes to life with a “Gentlemen?” We ignore him and head for the door. They happen to have a comments book on a table by the said door so I write in large letters “Dreadful service” and add three exclamation marks. They’d have to tear the page out of the book if they don’t want others seeing that comment but I will be adding the same on Zagat and Trip advisor. I don’t care if it has been the Waldorf Astoria there is no way I’m being ignored for 25 minutes on a quiet mid - week night.

We cross over Ocean Avenue as I recall seeing other eateries on that side of the road. Sure enough we find “Le St. Tropez”.




We are greeted seated and have drinks on the table in under five minutes. As we peruse the menu I enjoy a JD and Sprite and Darrin has a Kir Royal. The guy chats to us with “Where are you guys from?”, what the specials are etc. etc. Dear Goodness, we are getting attention in a restaurant. Isn’t that what such a business should be about?

I have half a dozen Escargots (snails – and they “sans” shells) and they are piping hot. Sorry the picture of the dish is empty. They were just so delicious.



Next up I choose Navarin of lamb. This comes with mash and vegetables. I ask for “towards medium” and it is perfectly cooked as requested.



Darrin has mussels to begin followed by Veal sweetbreads:





We are full and so coffee and dessert are missed. The boss here chats to us about “England” and his time there,. I ask about how the restaurant became French – the chef and owner is French and we talk about parking, Governments and genuinely put the world to rights. An extremely pleasant evening. When I do Trip Advisor, guess who will be getting the praise.
We come back to the Inn, make two coffees and sit by the fire pits. It’s a chilly night. By morning we will have had some rain.


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Edited at 03:42 PM.
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Old 18 Jul 15, 04:15 PM  
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Those ice creams look delicious and that lamb looks incredible! How annoying about the poor service in the first place! Their loss!
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Old 18 Jul 15, 04:19 PM  
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Mmmmm! Ghirardelli...

How rude the first restaurant was... but at least you found a much friendlier one to eat at.

Thanks for sharing.
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Old 18 Jul 15, 06:05 PM  
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Geoff. I assume the Hearst wine is from a winery on the Hearst Castle estate? I went there in 1981 for the Castle but cannot remember a wine connection? Can't be doing red it kills me!
What dreadful service in that first Restaurant so glad you walked out. They don't deserve your custom with that attitude but it ended well with the second place.
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Old 18 Jul 15, 08:14 PM  
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Shame about the restaurant, otherwise a lovely day. 17 mile drive is so worth it! Your food looks lovely too as do the ice creams!Pussycat
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Old 19 Jul 15, 04:46 AM  
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Graham - the winery for Hearst is down off the main Route 1 - hearstranchwinery/
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Old 19 Jul 15, 07:57 AM  
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Thanks Geoff. I know you are at the Airport so hope you both have a good flight home
Lots of typing then when you are back!
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Old 19 Jul 15, 08:41 PM  
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Well apart from the terrible service in the first restaurant it was generally a very pleasant afternoon/evening! The second place certainly had a much better attitude
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Old 19 Jul 15, 10:16 PM  
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What an overall amazing day with some wonderful memories to take home.
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Old 19 Jul 15, 11:35 PM  
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I think you should get Gordon Ramsay to go to that first restaurant and sort them out.

Another brilliant day and food.

Melvin and Lesley
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