Cribs: Cambria - Day 1

"I've been itching to get out of the city..."

Ah three day weekends. Both a blessing and a curse. On one hand you have the additional 24 hours of relaxation, but on the other you have an extra day to get used to not working, so when you do go back to work on Tuesday, it's like worse than a Monday, man.

So why not turn the long weekend into a short vacation? Elizabeth and I did just that. President's day snuck up on us like a gypsy youth pilfering gelatos in a piazza, so there was no way we could afford a flight somewhere without selling a vital organ. A friend had told me Hearst Castle is cool place to visit, and it was only a little over three hours up the coast in Cambria. There's wine to drink, lots of food to eat, and vistas to behold; a feast for the senses to be sure. After 4 years of life in Los Angeles, I have to say the greatest thing about living in the city is getting out.

Last month was a trip up to Big Bear Lake for some action on the slopes. A quaint mountain town that upon arrival was as if we'd entered Switzerland and it was only 2 hours away! They even had schnitzel!!

Cambria was even more splendiferous. We tried to book a B&B, but they were all booked solid for the busy holiday weekend. We really lucked out scoring a room at the Creekside Inn, which was about a minute walk from the hustle and bustle of Main Street, heck it was even on Main Street. Arriving around lunch time we wanted to get oysters at this restaurant that overlooked the ocean, but it too was packed with visitors; wait time 50+ mins. We doubled back to this little cafe whose sign simply read, "cheese, wine & lunch". It had us a cheese. Plus, the soup du jour was lobster bisque. "Table for two please..." And it only got better, sweet potato fries, hot damn! I ordered the bisque, a turkey, brie, apple, & onion jam sandwich on focaccia, and a glass of savignon blanc. Elizabeth settled on the grilled eggplant & mozzarella sandwich on ciabatta with those irresistible sweet potato fries, and a glass of pinot noir (passing through Santa Barbara aka. 'Sideways' country must have inspired her). Compelling and rich.

After lunch, we perused the local shops, which offered everything from antiquities to satanic rubber duckies. First we ending up making a purchase at the local chocolateer. Next stop, a wine shop called, Fermentations, where we sampled wines for $5 each. They even threw in the glasses as souvenirs. We bought a few bottles for the homestead. Shopping + over indulgence = nap time.

After lunch comes, dinner. And dinner was an even greater spectacle in gluttony. Still determined to get some oysters, we picked a restaurant that offered a good variety of surf and turf as well as good word of mouth. At Old Stone Station, they were out of oysters for the day, but golly did they make up for it. For the appetizer, we shared two massive crab cakes, followed by salad. Then Elizabeth had swordfish grilled cajun style. And I went all in on the lobster tail. Both main courses were offered with sides of broccoli and a choice of rice or garlic mashed potatoes, being as how this was Cambria and not red China, we both went for the mashed taters; a heaping amount was received. Of course we had to wash it down with more than just tap water, a bottle cabernet savignon for good measure. After an entire day of basically just pigging out, a sensible person would probably have stopped there, but Elizabeth & I are nothing of the sort. When I hear coconut laced desert, I simply cannot refuse so, coconut cream pie was the piece de resistance for the evening. The Sandman cometh. To be concluded...