Paso Robles Area Trip

IIRC there was a decent thread about this subejct on the GaryVee forum.

I grew up in the region (San Luis Obispo, 20 minutes south). I can't write a guide, but if you need a local opinion feel free to ask.

I go to school in San Luis Obispo, (full disclosure, a college student).

Not sure how much I can help, but Pasolivo is supposed to make some spectacular olive oils, and has a tasting room. Could be an interesting change of pace.

Blue, in San Luis is supposed to have a fairly extensive, and award (of what caliber, I can't say) winning wine list. It at least bills itself as wine country dining, or something like that. Nice for beer and martinis as well. Never had the food, so I can't comment on that.

The gf and I frequent Paso Robles, so hopefully I can offer some suggestions.

We've stayed at a couple of hotels there, but IMO, the Courtyard Marriott is a good bang for the buck. The Bellaserra is also nice, but I wouldn't say it's necessarily worth 2x the price as the Courtyard.

As far as dining options, there aren't that many in Paso, but check out either Bistro Laurent or Artisan. Both are solid choices and offer tasting menus/wine pairings. Bistro is a bit more traditional, while Artisan is a bit more modern. The restaurant at Justin winery is also very good (great place for lunch).

As for wineries, Turley and Linne Calado are very good. We are members of Eagle Castle (kind of a fun winery - not the best wines, but low priced and very decent for the money; also, the winery is shaped like a castle, which I find to be cool), Tobin James (pretty good, fruit-bomb style wines; their zinfandels are very Paso-esque), and Justin (probably some of the best wine in Paso overall; their Isosceles and Savant are amazing; and as mentioned above, their restaurant serves good food as well).

Also, PasOlivo makes amazing olive oils - be sure to pick up a bottle of Olio Nuevo if you get a chance.

Been many times, but never stayed in a hotel or eaten anywhere notable (other than the Madonna Inn, which is a trip).

Well, winewise there are more acres under vines but fewer good wineries. Sea Smoke is not exactly close, but it's drivable.

Morro Bay is a neat little beach town with a landmark rock marking the entrance to the harbor. Lots of cheesy shops seeling bleached shark jaws and the like. Two good restaurants, a fish place whose name I forget and the one at the Inn at Morro Bay, which is a very nice hotel.

Santa Maria is a colorless town BUT the local barbecue style -- tri-tip (the speciality) and chicken -- are incredibly delicious and inimitable anywhere else.

Hearst Castle is also reasonably close and it is spectacular. Then there is SLO, a lovely little town, and Avila Beach, where I was once almost killed by a 1,200 pound California Sea Lion.

The Madonna Inn really has to be seen, even if you don't stay there. I sort of recommend staying there. It is memorable.

Every couple years I go to Avila Beach/Morro Bay for a weekend but it's basically for a fishing/golf trip. Avila has a decent restaurant called Chart House and in Morro Bay I usually end up getting fish and chips at a place called Giovannis Fish Market after getting off the boat. As far as Paso Robles, I've only driven through it on my way to Monterey. It didn't look like a place I'd care to stay but I do remember seeing a nice golf course from the road.

Only was there for one day but the standouts are;

Wine tasting - Tablas Creek (Rhone Style Wines), Turley (Duh)

Food - Ian Mcphees Grill (really surprisingly awesome. Go hungry.)

If your going to Lampoc for Sea Smoke you may as well go to Arcadian (http://arcadianwinery.com/) who's single vineyard bottlings are fantastic and often more thought provoking then Sea Smoke.

I've lived in San Luis Obispo (about 30 miles south) for the last eight years, and work in Paso Robles one day a week.

I've found the dining in San Luis Obispo to be much better than Paso Robles. There are a number of good places to eat that aren't terribly expensive. Tsurugi's (although I think it might be called Goshi now) is a good sushi place. I'm a big fan of their sushimi. If the weather is nice I would suggest going to Novo. They have a really awesome patio on the creek downtown.

As far as Paso goes, Artisan is the best place I've eaten at there.

I'll second Manton's recommendation for the Madonna Inn. It's a crazy, weird place. I'll also second his recommendation for Tri Tip. Not sure I'd go to Santa Maria just for that though.

If you're around on a Thursday, SLO has a pretty good farmers market Thursday night.

If you are in Morro Bay I would recommend Windows on the Water. Great view, and good food, although the service can be kinda hit and miss.

Hearst Castle is really amazing to see. I recommend that to everyone when they visit the area if they've never been. As a plus there is a cool beach in San Simeon that is home to a bunch of elephant seals. I'm not sure if they are there year round, but they have been there everytime I've been there.

I've never been much of a wine person, so I can't really recommend any wineries.

I'll try to add some more recommendations when I can think of them.

Also, having grown up in Sonoma County, about 20 minutes south of Healdsburg, I much prefer the central coast area. But it's been my impression that the wine in the Sonoma County area is better.

yeah, what he said... i like slo a lot more than pr. access to better wines, too, as far as i'm concerned. paso is hot, hot, hot. wines tend to be really ripe and really alcoholic (my views on that should be clear by now). slow, you've got access to the pr wines if you want (it's about 45 minutes, something like that), but also edna valley and surrounding areas which are cooler. you can even make a nice day trip down to the santa ynez area.
slo thursday is terrific ... i really like the farmers market, though it has turned into more of an outdoor dine-a-thon than a true fm. great tri-tip, though.
also like Big Sky cafe ... eclectic but they do everything pretty well. also, the old port inn in avila beach is a good place to visit ... you can eat seafood and look down at the waves through your table (seriously ... they have plexiglass windows in them).