Central Coast - Coastal California - page 613

Downtown boutique hotel brings the great outdoors inside, with nature prints on the walls,
textured wood panels and earth-toned furnishings. Relax in a cabana by the pool or next to
an outdoor fire pit. Weekday rates can be reasonable, but summer weekends are ridicu-
lously high-priced. Parking is $10.

Eating

Downtown is chockablock with casual cafes. If you're looking for seafood, wander the
wharf's takeout counter joints. Mission St, near UCSC, and 41st Ave offer cheaper eats.

Penny Ice Creamery ICE CREAM
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; www.thepennyicecreamery.com ; 913 Cedar St; snacks $2-4; noon-11pm;

)
With a cult following, this artisan ice-cream shop crafts zany flavors like bourbon candied
ginger, lemon verbena blueberry and ricotta apricot all from scratch using local, organic
and wild-harvested ingredients. Even plain old vanilla is special: it's made using Thomas
Jefferson's original recipe. Also at a downtown kiosk ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; 1520 Pacific
Ave; noon-6pm Sun-Thu, to 9pm Fri & Sat; ) and near Pleasure Point ( MAP

GOOGLE MAP ; 820 41st Ave;

noon-9pm Sun-Thu, to 11pm Fri & Sat; ) .

Picnic Basket DELI
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; http://thepicnicbasketsc.com ; 125 Beach St; dishes $3-10; 7am-4pm Mon-

Thu, to 9pm Fri-Sun; )
Across the street from the beach boardwalk, this locavarian kitchen puts together creative
sandwiches such as beet with lemony couscous or 'fancy pants' grilled cheese with fruit
chutney, plus homemade soups, breakfast burritos and baked goods. Staff can be sour, but
ice-cream treats are sweet.

Walnut Ave Cafe BREAKFAST
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; www.walnutavecafe.com ; 106 Walnut Ave; mains $7-11; 7am-3pm Mon-Fri,

8am-4pm Sat & Sun; )