Lady’s Things to Do in Pescadero, California

Today I want to share my guide to the best things to do in Pescadero, California. This coastal town in San Mateo County is a great place to go to the beach, enjoy good food, and soak up the state’s history.

Things to Do in Pescadero

Or what history there is, anyway. California isn’t known for its human-made history. It didn’t become a state until 1850, and not many people were around before the Gold Rush in 1849.

Compared to London, where there are actual Roman ruins in the city center, my home state looks pretty pathetic.

But there are a few places that have more history than most, and one of them is Pescadero, California. Which is why I want to share the best things to do in Pescadero with you.

Pescadero, California

The town is located in Northern California between Half Moon Bay and Santa Cruz. Founded in 1856, it’s ancient by west coast standards.

Just two miles inland from the stunning beaches along California’s famous Highway 1, it’s surrounded by fertile agricultural land and a well-known wetland area called Pescadero Marsh Natural Preserve.

The main street is called Stage Road because it was originally a route along which a stagecoach ran, and the town’s church was built in 1867. Not exactly Roman ruins, but pretty impressive for California.

My family has been going to Pescadero since I was a child. A quick hop over the Santa Cruz Mountains, it was an easy day trip from Silicon Valley.

While the historic buildings and rugged landscapes were only an hour’s drive from the dot-com world I grew up in, the atmosphere was a million miles away.

1. Eat at Duarte’s Tavern, Pescadero

But it wasn’t just the history that drew us to the California coast. It was also the food. Eating is one of the best things to do in Pescadero.

Duarte’s Tavern in Pescadero was founded in 1894 and is known across the country for its excellent artichokes, which grow like weeds in the region.

The restaurant originated as a bar when the great-grandfather of the current generation of owners bought a barrel of whiskey in nearby Santa Cruz.

It reinvented itself during Prohibition, when alcohol was banned in the United States. Today the original bar counter still stands in one room while rustic wooden tables fill several dining spaces.

On Monday my family decided to take a pilgrimage to Duarte’s Tavern, which won a James Beard Award for being an American Classic.

I was so excited to go back I restricted myself to seconds at breakfast to save room for the excellent food.

It was a Monday in late November, but Duarte’s was packed. The hostess, who wore a long denim skirt and a braid in her hair, looked like she came straight out of the 1890s.

She seated us at a large communal table in a room that also looked like it was from the 19th century. The food, however, looked anything but.

After perusing the menu, we ordered and ate our fill of Fanny Bay oysters, littleneck clams, cream of artichoke soup, Mexican coleslaw, linguine with artichoke hearts, and a huge slice of pumpkin pie.

The food was divine. We washed it down with a Navarro Sauvignon Blanc from nearby Mendocino County and a Ferrari-Carano Pinot Grigio from one of the best wineries in the Dry Creek Valley.

It made me immensely happy to enjoy local cuisine from my home state with my family in a restaurant with such a long story behind it.

2. Explore the Town of Pescadero

Outside of Duarte’s Tavern, we found a lot of other things to do in Pescadero. Stage Road was packed with antiques shops, wooden houses, and old churches.

On top of that, the Pescadero Country Store could have come straight out of Litte House on the Prairie. All this for a town with a population of 643.

At the end of the block the road opened up into great green fields that extended all the way out to the Pacific Ocean. It was the land of artichoke farms, John Steinbeck novels, and the way California used to be.

3. Go to Pescadero State Beach

Heading out to the ocean, we continued our trip with a visit to Pescadero State Beach. The strip of sand is one of Highway 1’s beauties, complete with sand cliffs, rugged rock formations, and tiny tide pools.

The natural history far outdated the history of human settlement in the region, and the stunning scenery had me in awe. Going to the beach was one of my favorite things to do in Pescadero.

Northern Californians know the best time to go to the beach is from September to November, when the fog that plagues the coast all summer lifts and sunshine graces shores up and down the state.

Monday was no exception to that rule. The weather was perfect for walking on the beach, and afterwards we couldn’t resist a drive along the Pacific Coast Highway before heading home.

Best Things to Do in Pescadero

As we drove away from Pescadero and towards Silicon Valley, I couldn’t help feeling like I was time traveling from the 19th century back into the 21st.

Gone were the old wooden houses, the general store, and the historic restaurant. In front of us was the world’s most famous technology hub, buzzing with the energy of the future.

While I appreciated the area I grew up in and the role it’s played in shaping the world, there’s something nostalgic about places like Pescadero, California.

They remind me of how far my state has come from the rustic days of the Gold Rush and the bygone era of living off the land.

Sure, the history isn’t full of Roman ruins and Shakespeare, but country stores and Steinbeck suit me just fine. All the great things to do in Pescadero prove it.

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