Eat in San Carlos and Mission, Carmel-by-the-Sea

Casanova

• ★ 4.5
• French-Italian bistro
• $$$

Casanova serves French-Italian cooking in a candlelit Carmel cottage whose dining room keeps the table Van Gogh ate at daily at the Auberge Ravoux.

Grasing's

• ★ 4.5
• Californian
• $$$$

Order Wagyu from the grill and a bottle pulled from the Grand Award cellar.

Grasing's pairs Kurt Grasing's coastal steakhouse cooking with a 3,400-bottle Carmel cellar that has held Wine Spectator's Grand Award since 2024.

Akaoni

• ★ 4.6
• Japanese sushi
• $$$

Order Sushi from the day's fish list, called out at the counter.

Akaoni serves traditional Japanese cooking and sushi at Mission and 6th in Carmel, a small room listed in the Michelin Guide and booked by phone.

Nora's

• ★ 4.2
• New American
• $$

Order Cioppino with scallops, or the lamb chili named for grandmother Nora.

Nora's brings the Nimri family's comfort cooking to San Carlos Street in Carmel, ladling cioppino, lamb chili and fried chicken since summer 2025.

Chez Noir

• ★ 4.8
• 1 MICHELIN star
• Californian
• $$$$

Order The $165 prix fixe; bar seats are the walk-in route when the room is booked.

Chez Noir keeps its Michelin star on 5th Avenue in Carmel, where Jonny and Monique Black cook a seafood-led prix fixe from Monterey Peninsula boats.

Anton & Michel

• ★ 4.4
• Modern European
• $$$$

Order A window table over the fountain court matters as much as the menu.

Anton & Michel faces the Court of the Fountains in Carmel with white-tablecloth European dining, open daily for both lunch and dinner services.

Hog's Breath Inn

• ★ 4.2
• American
• $$$

Order Grilled Castroville artichokes, then the Plains Drifter prime rib French dip.

Hog's Breath Inn, the Carmel courtyard restaurant Clint Eastwood founded in 1970, reopened in August 2025 restored with steaks and clam chowder.

Tree House Cafe

• ★ 3.9
• Mediterranean
• $$

Order A terrace table under the oaks; order mezze to share.

Tree House Cafe sets a second-storey terrace among the oaks on San Carlos Street in Carmel, serving Mediterranean plates from late morning nightly.

Katy's Place

• ★ 4.4
• American diner
• $$

Order Any of the twenty-plus eggs Benedicts; the classic sets the baseline.

Katy's Place has cooked breakfast on Mission Street in Carmel since 1982 and calls itself the Capital of Eggs Benedict, listing over 20 versions.

Patisserie Boissiere

• ★ 4.2
• French bistro
• $$

Order A pastry from the case; the savoury menu waits if you sit.

Patisserie Boissiere pairs a French pastry case with a chateau-styled Carmel dining room, moving from morning patisserie to full dinner service.

Brophy's Tavern

• ★ 4.0
• American
• $$

Order Monterey Bay calamari, then the Brophy's burger.

Brophy's Tavern runs Carmel's Irish pub and sports bar at 4th and San Carlos, plating Monterey Bay calamari and fish and chips under seven screens.

Carmel Belle

• ★ 4.2
• Cafe
• $$

Order Fresh juices and smoothies beside the espresso bar

Carmel Belle cooks a locally sourced all-day menu in Carmel's Dowd Building courtyard, with raw vegan cheesecakes beside the coffee and juices.

The Stationaery

• ★ 4.5
• Californian
• $$$

Order Natural wine by the glass with brunch

The Stationaery cooks seasonal California brunch daily in a Carmel courtyard off San Carlos Street, adding natural wine dinners Thursday to Sunday.

De Tierra Vineyards Tasting Room

• ★ 4.3
• $$

De Tierra Vineyards runs a dog-friendly tasting room at Mission and 5th in Carmel, pouring Monterey County wines with acoustic sets on Sundays.

Silvestri Vineyards Tasting Room

• ★ 4.2
• $$

Silvestri Vineyards pours estate-grown Carmel Valley wines at its 7th Avenue tasting room in Carmel, open daily from noon for walk-in flights.

Scheid Vineyards Carmel Tasting Room

• ★ 4.1
• $$

Scheid Vineyards keeps a corner tasting room at San Carlos and 7th in Carmel, pouring estate bottlings from across Monterey County until evening.

Dawn's Dream Winery Tasting Room

• ★ 4.0
• $$

Dawn's Dream Winery pours hand-crafted small-lot wines at 7th and San Carlos in Carmel, a boutique room with a giving-focused house mission.

Barmel

• ★ 4.1
• Cocktail bar
• $$

Drink Craft cocktails built to the room's bohemian-saloon brief

Barmel keeps Carmel's late shift at San Carlos and 7th, a craft cocktail bar styled after old Carmel bohemians that runs DJs into the small hours.

Carmel-by-the-Sea Farmers Market

• ★ 4.0
• Street food
• $

Try Market pizza, bread and hummus from the specialty stalls

The Carmel-by-the-Sea Farmers Market fills 6th Avenue between Junipero and Mission each Thursday, selling organic produce, pizza, bread and hummus.

Nielsen Brothers Market

• ★ 4.0
• Market
• $$

Nielsen Brothers Market pairs a village grocery with a serious wine and spirits shop at 7th and San Carlos in Carmel, with its own parking garage.

Belle Kitchen Macaron Classes

• ★ 4.2

Belle Kitchen teaches hands-on macaron classes in Carmel-by-the-Sea most weekends, sending each baker home with a dozen shells and the recipe.

5th Avenue Deli

• ★ 4.2
• Sandwich
• $

Try Harris Ranch tri-tip sandwich or a picnic box

5th Avenue Deli has built Carmel beach picnics since 1991, boxing sandwiches from Harris Ranch tri-tip to falafel a short walk from the sand.