If you live in or have visited Pismo Beach then you have been to Rosa’s Ristorante Italiano. This cornerstone of the city restaurant scene has been at the southern entrance of Pismo for 30 years. Chef Doug MacMillan’s parents opened the restaurant – a homage to his mother, Rosa, who was born in Bonito, Italy.…
As I type my mouth is already watering and it’s barely past breakfast! While Poke has been a staple of the local diet in Hawaii, it has slowly made its way across the Pacific and hit our shores hard – so much so that you can find it in the supermarket! But not all Poke…
Memorial weekend is coming, and with it some sweet, juicy strawberries! Arroyo Grande’s 36th annual strawberry festival is here again and the event schedule sounds as delicious and entertaining as ever! If you have never been to this event that happens every year in the quaint little village of Arroyo Grande you are in for…
In California the word “taqueria” can be loosely translated into English as a restaurant that serves tacos and burritos. However, when you dine at La Esquina Taqueria in San Luis Obispo, you know you are going to be able to get classic Mexican dishes. Their take on the classics make La Esquina unique and well worth a visit as my wife and I found out on a recent Sunday night. …
There is a sweet little spot, just blocks to the beach in Downtown Pismo Beach called Puffers of Pismo. From the moment you walk through the door, you are welcomed by friendly staff, warm tones in the décor and delicious aromas from the kitchen. Make sure to belly up to the bar and introduce yourself…
New to the restaurant lineup in Pismo Beach this year is La Bodega, specializing in shareable Tapas plates. An inviting environment of warm colors, luscious aromas, beautiful wines and delicious farm to table fresh food. Located in a lovely building that offers soaring ceilings and plenty of natural light. There is a small outdoor patio…
It was with much anticipation and delight that we celebrated Giuseppe’s original Pismo Beach Location’s re-opening this past Spring. When fire ravaged the popular downtown restaurant we all wondered if they would return. But we were encouraged by Chef Giuseppe DiFronzo’s promises that they would be back! http://giusepperustica.wixsite.com/pismogiuseppes In the meantime, he opened a new…
Looking for a fun place with an excellent view in Pismo Beach? Look no further than Pismo’s newest hotspot at Willow located at 2131 Price St. This building used to be the old Marie Calendars right in front of the Sea Crest Hotel. The new owners have done a complete remodel that is so inviting…
Memorial Day weekend is typically defined by when and where you are BBQing. However, if you live on the Central Coast there is another time-honored tradition – the Annual Strawberry Festival in the Village of Arroyo Grande. For 35 years we have dedicated this weekend to celebrate our favorite local fruit – the strawberry. Once…
Want to do something fun to celebrate Cinco De Mayo and do good for the community at the same time? Fin’s Seafood Restaurant in Grover Beach is the place to be! Fiesta at Fin’s is holding its “dinner for a cause” on May 1st from 5:00pm to 9:00pm. All proceeds will be going towards Five…
Poke is a sushi-grade seafood dish that has long been a favorite in Hawaii and is having a surge of popularity here on the mainland. Here on the Central Coast, where we have access to high-quality, fresh seafood, it’s a given that this trendy meal has finally arrived! Poke is a great appetizer, lunch or…
Pismo Beach has a new place to brag about that you don’t want to miss. The new Inn at the Pier is located at 601 Cypress Street, Pismo Beach. This gorgeous 104 guest room boutique hotel has an inviting entrance with friendly employees greeting you upon arrival. The lobby features tall ceiling which flood natural…
Locally grown juice and healthy foods business in Arroyo Grande.Be prepared! Virtjuice in Arroyo Grande is not your every-day, mass-produced Juicing experience. When you visit you may meet up with “Rico Suave” hanging out by the “Matcha Machine” talking about his “Indian Summer.” Just kidding! Those are really names of just three of the many…
Avila Beach Resorts has been offering an absolutely fun event for all ages with free admission to the public called Brunch on Wheels where you can indulge in small bites to full meals from an array of gourmet food trucks. These events are being thrown just about once per month. I have attended two…
Growing up on the Central Coast one of my favorite things to do was to go to the local farmers markets. Where else can you sample cuisine from multiple local restaurants, listen to a variety of local musicians, and get your grocery shopping done all in one place? Make it a family or friend’s…
It just so happens that right behind our Paso Robles office sits a gem of a restaurant – opened in 2009 by an inspired local organic farm owner, Thomas Hill Organics has become a staple of the North San Luis Obispo County restaurant scene. A restaurant with a passion for farm-to-table that was established long…
Stroll the streets of San Luis Obispo and you’ll have so many options it is almost hard to choose! Enjoy historic architecture, shop in the wide variety of boutiques, visit the art galleries or the Mission and just in downtown you can easily fill a day of activities! And when you’ve built up an appetite…
Having lived here my entire life, I can tell you that driving down Grand Avenue with one of my long-time friends can be a walk down memory lane. And sometimes old memories die hard. That place was such-in-such and that was an empty lot, etc. etc. We tend to refer to businesses by names they…
This restaurant has been featured before – but has changed so much in five years it deserves a second look. This is our favorite family weekend spot. The place where we kick off the weekend with a yum-o fresh meal to get us ready for a paddle, a bike ride or a day at the…
For the past several months I had heard whispers here and there about a new restaurant coming to Pismo Beach. It was to fill the void next to Orchard Supply, left there when a spa retailer moved on to another location. Now I’ll admit that a strip mall restaurant isn’t usually something to get super…
In our family there is and has always been a quest to find what qualifies as “good Mexican food” for my mother. She can eat Mexican food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. She will try hole-in-the-wall Tacquerias and taco bars in the rear of grocery stores. She has even been known to purchase and eat…
Downtown Pismo’s newest restaurant is a “must-visit”! Upstairs from Wooly’s at 101 Pomeroy, this upscale venue overlooks the Pismo Pier and sweeping coastline views from Vandenberg to Avila. The setting and ambiance of the Oyster Loft is beautiful with low lighting and gorgeous décor. We have visited twice since opening and were wowed each time.…
Pismo Beach holds their annual Taste of Pismo on Saturday April 23rd, 2016 from 12pm to 4pm. This Premier Wine & Culinary Event, celebrates Central Coast wines, artisan brews, and regional cuisine Perched on the cliffs overlooking the majestic Pacific Ocean at Dinosaur Caves Park, guests will enjoy premium beverages from local wineries and micro breweries as well as the sumptuous samplings…
Have you ever noticed that when you meet someone who has lived in an area for most of their life, they tend to refer to businesses, areas, restaurants and so forth by how they used to be known. Sometimes those names stick — as in Dinosaur Caves Park — I am not sure if there…
Live Pismo Beach is dedicated to helping you understand what living in Pismo Beach and the surrounding communities has to offer. This is why we have decided to create the “Local Area Spotlight”, a series that will guide you through the diverse neighborhoods in our area and the details which will help you decide to make…
Updated April 15th, 2015 – When Gather was forced to close due to failed landlord negotiations the Village lost a favorite. What we got in return was a better, bolder, bigger version with many new features. Armed with many researched ideas owner/chef Kari Ziegler wanted a bistro with a gourmet market and wine bar as…
I hesitate to write this post because once I do, our secret getaway … my happy place … will be revealed. However, I want it to remain successful and keep providing us with our getaway so it is with that in mind that I share the Big Sur River Inn. Just a couple hours up…
With over thirty years in the food business, Kathy Marcks Hardesty provides great information about our local Food & Wine businesses here on the Central Coast. She loves writing about great food and wine, entertaining your senses and placing you on the edge of your seat as you look forward to trying the next great new restaurant…
It’s been said that humans are creatures of habit and I am afraid this describes me rather well. I go to the same places for the same things and I tend not to expand my horizons as often as I should. When Harry and David first moved into the Pismo Beach Premium Outlets I thought…
How often is it that you can walk out of your office door in Pismo Beach and say “I feel like having the best burger on Maui” and not twenty minutes later be taking a huge yummy bite? Well it can be as often as every day if you are in San Luis Obispo and…
It’s next to impossible to be a co-inhabitant of our planet today and not recognize that humans are having an impact on our climate, our resources and the realization that we need to do something — however small — to make it better for future generations. Ever since our son was born we made the…
First you have to love the name … doesn’t it sound official?! Great for that lunchtime “business” meeting. You can just tell your boss you’ll be in “The Board Room.” Before he figures out that you don’t have one you’ll be gone! This great little brew pub and eatery is right in the heart of…
When you’ve lived in one place pretty much your entire life you know the history of all things and how they’ve evolved — both good and bad. The nice thing about the quaint Village of Arroyo Grande is that while things have changed, they’ve mostly stayed the same. And that is true of one of…
Those of us that have the awesome gift of living where most other people only get to visit on vacation know that we frequently take it for granted. Months can go by without a visit to the beach or stopping to really enjoy a sunset. But when we want to be a tourist in our…
The theme this Summer has been “Stay-cation” for our little Central Coast Family. Since we are lucky enough to live where many people vacation we are playing backyard tourists and enjoying all that the Central Coast has to offer within 20 minutes of our doorstep. One of our absolute favorite day-off activities is to pack…
We found ourselves playing tourist in our own backyard a few weekends ago and decided to try a few new things. While we waited for our standup paddling reservation at Central Coast Standup Paddling we found ourselves with time to kill on the boardwalk in Morro Bay. So we did as we do and looked up restaurants we…
Being locals, it can be hard to surprise us. On the other hand we also find ourselves falling victim to routine, returning to the same ol’ haunts over and over again. So it was through an effort to help our son learn to navigate traffic on his bicycle better that we were pleased to discover…
There are a few icons that define the Central Coast of California and this past Friday all of them were on display at a great event I had the opportunity to attend for the first time. This past Friday evening was the Barrel to Barrel night during the annual four day Wine, Waves & Beyond…
I have to admit that while I scrolled through some of the reviews for Rooster Creek, I found myself nodding my head in agreement… some were spot-on. I will say that the service left much to be desired in the beginning, however they seemed to have listened to the feedback and have made adjustments —…
My memory may be fading (I am turning 40 this year after all) but of the many Taste of Pismo events my hubby and I have attended I think this year was unequivocally the best. Maybe it was the great “Farm Fest” Farm to Fork event that ushered in the Taste the Friday night before.…
There aren’t many restaurants that take a break during the holidays and go on holiday themselves… and there aren’t many restaurants that when they do take a break make my grown husband cry. It was so bad I even drove by during their break once to make sure they hadn’t returned early. This is what…
Being the Past President of the Rotary Club of Pismo Beach/Five Cities that has met for a decade in the beautiful banquet room downstairs at the now Ventana Grill, our little group of 60+ members had the unusual opportunity to watch the current management go through an extensive remodel of what had become a slightly…
Well I have never written a review of the Lido at Dolphin Bay because it had all of the makings of a fantastic restaurant … without the food, in my opinion. Partly because it was trying to be a little too “metropolitan” for the area, and partly because it ignored what is going on all…
Woodstone Marketplace has become our regular pit-stop as we chase our speed-demon four year old son down the Bob Jones Trail — either on foot, bicycles or scooter. It is like an oasis when we come up from under the bridge that gives us safe passage to the other side of San Luis Bay Drive…
Mo’s is one of those “hang-out” type places, decorated with old photos and rusting signs, and of course an amazing variety of pigs out of various materials, in various sizes. It is a no-nonsense rib joint, with a few other notable items on the menu. My husband loves the Philthy Phil’s Ribs and the Sampler…
Growing up on the Central Coast, we’ve had our share of Pizza Places come and go … but in the past few years there hadn’t really been one that stood out from the crowd. Then one night when Gather Wine Bar was just getting started — maybe even during her “Soft Opening” — Kari ordered…
I have to admit that I am a fan … just like the four stars says. Right on the beach, this is a fantastic little boutique hotel that we often use for “Staycations” to celebrate Valentine’s Day, Birthdays and Anniversaries. From the moment you pull into the covered parking, you feel appreciated and well taken…
I’m a Central Coast Native and small business owner… so there are very few restaurants in our area that I haven’t visited. However the owners at Golden Moon and their fantastic Chinese offerings are what keep me returning! Jack and his wife remember us by our phone number — even if it’s been months since…
If you don’t know what “show us your stacked” means, then you obviously haven’t sampled the scrumptious handcrafted sandwiches at this South County gem. I heard the rumors a few years ago that the “best” sandwiches were at Stacked. When I finally made it in, I fell in love! I have a tendency to always…
Nestled in the heart of Shell Beach, right on Shell Beach Road, you might drive by any day of the week and see a line on the sidewalk for this popular cafe. Originally just open for breakfast and lunch, they now serve dinner … which is always a great place to find yourself on a…
