Highway 1 Chowhound stops between San Francisco and Monterey

[virtualguthrie]

I just did this drive today and I regularly commute between San Francisco and Santa Cruz. I was struck by how many amazing places I could think of just off the top of my head to stop for food along the way.

Here's some of my favorites...

Castroville, between Monterey and Santa Cruz comes through on several fronts.

-Central Texan Barbeque immediately drew my attention. I've only been once but I enjoyed it. It wasn't the best barbecue I've ever had but it was legitimate 'cue with a good amount of smoke and quality cuts of meat. I really enjoyed the pork ribs, the owner emphatically recomended them and seemed to take great pride in them... they did not disappoint. I believe they were spare ribs, very nice cut and good flavor. I'll throw in that the sides were fine and the sauce was just fine too, but barbecue is not about sauce and sides, it's about smoked meat.

-Tacos El Grullense #1 (taco truck parked on Merrit St. at Rico): Mouth-watering, authentic Mexican street tacos. Carnitas were perfect, crispy and flavorful, salty like they should be and no nasty big chunks of fat. Al Pastor taco, greasy like it should be and very good. The guy who took my order sorta shook his head in disbelief because I only ordered 2 tacos when I could have had the special, which is 6 tacos and a soda for only $5! I explained that I just didn't want that much food.

Corralitos Market: House made, apple-wood smoked sausages and bacon and beef jerky are the featured itemsl, hard to describe how great these really are. You can choose from an overwhelming variety of more than 30 varieties of sausage on any given day. They will also make a "sandwich" out of any sausage which basically involves it being sliced lengthwise and heated, served on a roll and you add your own condiments (very good, I recommend the cheesy andoullie). They also have a great selection of marinated meat and poultry items.

Santa Cruz is great for Mexican food. I'm partial to Taqueria Vallarta (depending on how I'm feeling that day) for Carnitas and Al Pastor tacos, but their are others too. Tacos Morenos is known for their Carnitas which are quite good, I like to get burritos here but they don't have rice which kind've blows. Also a contender is Taqueria Santa Cruz which, Carnitas tacos is all I would order here. I don't know what it is about this area, but Santa Cruz and the greater Monterey Peninsula seem to have a plethora of great Carnitas, which obviously I think is great.

Pescadero has Duarte's Tavern. I've heard of some people not having the best experience but I think if you order correctly it's great, it's an absolute classic. Their famous cream of artichoke soup is best mixed with their green chile soup, which is a common order they will gladly do. Then I like to have one of their fresh local seafood dishes which is basically their other specialty.

Alright, anyone else? I'm sure there's plenty more ground to cover... what are your favorites along this route?

[virtualguthrie]

Adding Links:

-----
Taqueria Santa Cruz
2215 Mission St, Santa Cruz, CA 95060

Duarte's Tavern
202 Stage Rd, Pescadero, CA 94060

Central Texan BBQ
10500 Merritt St, Castroville, CA 95012

Corralitos Market & Sausage Co
569 Corralitos Rd, Watsonville, CA

Tacos El Grullense
Castroville, CA, Castroville, CA

Taqueria Vallarta
608 Soquel Ave, Santa Cruz, CA 95062

Tacos Moreno
1053 Water St, Santa Cruz, CA 95062