Walnut Avenue Cafe
If you want to start your morning in downtown Santa Cruz, this is the place for hearty breakfasts such as French toast with fresh berries or grilled bananas and walnuts ($8.95) or fat, crisp Belgian waffles with seasonal fruit ($8.95). Other favorites include shrimp and tomato Benedict ($10.50).
106 Walnut Ave. (near Pacific Avenue), Santa Cruz; (831) 457-2307. wal nutavenuecafe.com. Breakfast and lunch daily. Beer and wine. No reservations. Credit cards accepted.
For a waterside repast, check out the Crow’s Nest, which opened in 1969 and still has some of the best views of the Santa Cruz harbor. It’s a good place for a hearty breakfast including corned beef hash topped with poached eggs and hollandaise sauce ($12.45), or smoked salmon hash ($11.95). There’s also a selection of omelets and scrambles filled with vegetables, meat or seafood.
2218 E. Cliff Drive (near Fifth Avenue), Santa Cruz; (831) 476-4560. crowsnest -santacruz.com. Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. Full bar. Reservations and credit cards accepted.
Main Street Garden Cafe
Yes, you may want to eat in the garden here, or at least on the rear patio that overlooks a beautiful garden. At dinner, look for a half dozen pastas ($15-$17), wood-fired pizza ($15-$18) and main courses such as swordfish with olive vinaigrette and spinach ($25).
3101 N. Main St. (near Soquel Drive), Soquel; (831) 477-9265. main street gardencafe.com. Dinner Wednesday-Sunday; lunch weekends. Beer and wine. Reservations and credit cards accepted.
Au Midi
Chef Muriel Loubiere runs a very personal restaurant with an intimate dining room. For appetizers, hope that the crab and celery remoulade is on the menu. Or, go for the sweetbreads ($14) with salsify and a fresh herb sauce. For main courses, try the cassoulet ($27.50) or chicken fricassee ($22.50).
7960 Soquel Drive, Suite E (in Aptos Village Square), Aptos; (831) 685-2600. aumidi.com. Lunch Wednesday-Saturday; dinner Wednesday-Sunday. Beer and wine. Reservations and credit cards accepted. Manuel’s
Here’s the place for old-fashioned Mexican food, a restaurant that’s been run by the Sanchez family for 47 years. Combination plates ($10.75$13.95) are heaped with very good rice and beans, and you can have your choice of such things as shredded pork tamales, tacos made with shredded beef, and cheese enchiladas in a mildly spicy sauce with a nice dose of oregano.
261 Center St. (near State Park Drive), Aptos; (831) 688-4848. manuels restaurant.com. Open continuously for lunch and dinner until midnight Monday-Saturday, until 11 p.m. Sunday. Full bar. Reservations and credit cards accepted.
Gayle’s Bakery and Rosticceria
Gayle’s has been a must-eat spot for more than 30 years. What started as a small bakery has grown into a food hall, with lines out the door at peak hours. You can eat on the premises or pick up picnic foods. The baked goods are outstanding, including croissants, walnut brownies, old-fashioned peanut butter cookies, pecan tassies or any of the pies or cakes.
504 Bay Ave. (near Capitola Avenue), Capitola; (831) 462-1200. gayles bakery.com. 6:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m. daily. Beer and wine. No reservations. Credit cards accepted.