Day-by-day eating plans for Carmel-by-the-Sea. weekend classics, family routes, vegan plans, on-a-budget editions.

Day-by-day plans

Carmel weekend: stars, scones and tasting rooms ★ 4.6

First-time visitor, two days2 days

A weekend built on the village's odd arithmetic: two Michelin stars, a dozen-plus tasting rooms and a 1927 fairy-tale tearoom, all within one walkable square mile.

  1. Day 1: Saturday: Benedicts, wine rooms, then Chez Noir

    Morning
    Katy's Place on Mission Street at 08:30. Pick one of the twenty-plus eggs Benedicts, then walk Ocean Avenue down to Carmel Beach to earn lunch.
    Afternoon
    Lunch on Village Corner's patio at Dolores and 6th. Then two tasting rooms: bubbles at Caraccioli Cellars on Dolores, and De Tierra at Mission and 5th from 13:00.
    Evening
    Chez Noir on 5th Avenue at 17:00. The seafood-led prix fixe from the Michelin-starred husband-and-wife team; book on OpenTable the month before.

  2. Day 2: Sunday: courtyard brunch, beach picnic, fountain-court dinner

    Morning
    Brunch at The Stationaery in its San Carlos courtyard, booked ahead on Tock. Seasonal plates and a glass of natural wine before noon is allowed here.
    Afternoon
    Build a beach picnic at Bruno's Market & Deli at 6th and Junipero, eat it above Carmel Beach, then walk it off with fudge from Cottage of Sweets on Ocean Avenue.
    Evening
    Dinner at Anton & Michel facing the Court of the Fountains, one of the village's last old-school white-tablecloth rooms, open daily until 21:00.

Thursday in Carmel: market day done properly ★ 4.4

Food-focused day-tripper1 day

Thursday is the village's food day: the farmers market lands at Mission and 6th, the tasting rooms are quiet, and dinner ends on a rooftop above Junipero Street.

  1. Day 1: Thursday: farmers market, tasting rooms, rooftop nightcap

    Morning
    The Carmel-by-the-Sea Farmers Market at Mission and 6th, 10:00 to 14:00. Organic produce, bread and market snacks; on third Thursdays it grows into a park party.
    Afternoon
    Lunch at Rise + Roam in Carmel Plaza, pizza after the morning pastry rush. Then taste through Silvestri Vineyards on 7th and Windy Oaks on Lincoln, both pouring from noon.
    Evening
    Dinner at Grasing's at 6th and Mission with a bottle from the Grand Award cellar, then a nightcap at the first-come rooftop Star Bar above Vesuvio.
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