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for three generations, and the James Beard Foundation named their little linoleum-floored restaurant an American Classic. The menu lists chops, steaks, deep-fried seafood, good sandwiches and the usual burgers, but it’s the fresh-fish dishes (such as fried sand dabs and cioppino), homemade berry pies with flaky crusts, and rich meaty pan gravies that really win our vote. If you didn’t make reservations and aren’t up for the wait, you can score authentic tacos and hibiscus sodas at Taqueria y Mercado de Amigos ( 650-879-0232; 1999 Pescadero Creek Rd; snacks $2-9; lunch & dinner), an unassuming gas station minimart. Plan to poke around after lunch and discover antique stores, curiosity shops, a handmade-furniture studio, a blacksmith’s shop and an old church. Half a day here away from the city, and you’ll no doubt feel like you’ve hit the reset button. If you’re compelled to stay, we love the one-room Pescadero Creekside Barn ( 650-879-0868; www.pescaderolodging.com; 248 Stage Rd; r $150, 2-night minimum weekends; ), a turn-of-the-century, 2nd-floor hay loft that’s been converted into a cozy, romantic hideaway for two, with a clawfoot soaking tub in the corner and big barn doors opening to the street below.

To reach Pescadero, take Pescadero Creek Rd from Hwy 1, south of San Gregorio State Beach.

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South of Año Nuevo on the inland side, look for Swanton Berry Farm ( 831-469-8804; www.swantonberryfarm.com; Hwy 1; strawberry-picking 8am-6pm, farmstand 8am-6pm spring, to 8pm summer), 2 miles north of Davenport, where in spring and summer you can pick the Bay Area’s best organic strawberries or pop into an old-fashioned un-manned farmstand for flats of berries, berry pie, strawberry lemonade and hot chocolate – leave your money in the little box. Families gather at the picnic tables on the grassy lawns. This is old-school Northern California at its very best.

The San Mateo Coast is lined with side-by-side state beaches too numerous to detail here. For a complete rundown, check out the San Mateo Coast pages of www.71miles.com.

Sleeping

Costanoa ( 650-879-1100, 877-262-7848; www.costanoa.com; 2001 Rossi Rd; tents & RVs $40-65, tent cabins without bathroom $115-175, cabins without bathroom $185-195, lodge r with bathroom $210-270; ) Four miles south of Pigeon Point, Costanoa is part ecolodge, part campground, tucked between three state parks. Great for outdoor enthusiasts, it feels like summer camp for former hippies turned moms and dads, with hiking on gorgeous, wide-open hillsides and weekend activities like yoga and horseback-riding. Accommodations range from comfy lodge rooms to our favorite retreat-like modern duplex cabins, to tiny tent cabins with heated mattresses (turn off your light when you have sex, lest you put on a shadow-puppet show). Every room comes with extras, such as robes and aromatherapy soap; shared bathhouses also have saunas. No TVs.

Pigeon Point Lighthouse ( 650-879-0633; www.norcalhostels.org/pigeon; 210 Pigeon Point Rd; dm $23-25, s $53-68, d $61-76, tr $84-104; ) Let the sound of the ocean lull you to sleep at this former lighthouse-keeper’s house. There’s also a blufftop ocean-view hot tub.

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SANTA CRUZ

Santa Cruz is counterculture central, a touchy-feely city famous for leftie-liberal politics and live-and-let-live ideology – except when it comes to dogs (not allowed off leash or downtown), parking (meters run seven days a week) and Republicans (shot on sight). Santa Cruz has a vibrant downtown. On the waterfront is the famous beach boardwalk, and in the hills, the University of California at Santa Cruz (UCSC). Plan to spend a day, but to fully appreciate the aesthetic of jangly skirts and waist-length dreadlocks, stay longer.

Orientation & Information

Hwys 1 and 17 are the main arteries into town; the former becomes Mission St, the latter Ocean St. To reach Main Beach and the boardwalk, head south on Front St (parallel to Ocean St) and turn left on Beach St. Pacific Ave is the town’s main commercial strip. Carry quarters for parking meters: blue