California’s food scene is shaped by fresh coastal seafood, fertile farmland, and diverse local influences. Paired with dramatic landscapes, iconic coastlines, and countless ways to explore outdoors, it’s a place that’s just as rewarding to discover as it is to savor.
A sausage made from rattlesnake and rabbit sits on a real menu in California, and I can’t stop…
A big mountain lake got its name by borrowing letters from three sisters: Alice, Martha, and Elinore. Put…
One California steakhouse carves its prime rib at your table from shiny steel carts nicknamed Zeppelins. Another still…
Old newspapers reportedly documented about one confrontation a week in this mountain mining town. Some miners even stacked…
Green plantain mashed with garlic kombu miso and sofrito garlic butter. That one sentence had me hooked before…
Somewhere in California, you can try on vintage clothes inside dressing rooms designed to look like pastel 1950s…
A soft tamal hides at the bottom of a bowl, buried under fresh toppings and a jammy egg….
Not one straight line. That’s the rule this brand-new museum building follows, from its curving white skin to…
A Michelin star now hangs over a seafood counter where you order, grab a number, and find your…
Georgian khinkali come with a built-in handle. You hold the twisted knot of dough, sip the broth inside,…
A 1903 citrus packing plant in Southern California now holds four floors and 57,000 square feet of antiques….
A neon pink sign glows on the wall with four words in Spanish: No Me Quiero Ir de…
A broken irrigation canal accidentally created this lake more than a century ago. The Colorado River poured through…
More than 100 small-boat fishermen work out of one harbor on this stretch of coast. Some of their…
Six times in eight years, one public campus has topped the national list for lifting students into better…
One tray of shrimp here is built to feed two to four people. It arrives loaded with sliced…
A man in a blue peacoat is said to still make his rounds at an old adobe church,…
Some of the rockfish on this menu comes straight off the owners’ own boats. That alone made me…
Chicken hearts. Okra. Eel. Bacon wrapped around enoki mushrooms. Some of the best bites I know of arrive…
A nursing home with a therapeutic garden caught my eye first. Then I spotted a five-star boutique facility…
One San Francisco pizzeria runs pies out of several kinds of ovens, including coal-fired and wood-fired. I still…
A hilltop senior home near one of the priciest coastlines in America, built for low-income residents? That sounds…
A donut shop that never locks its doors sounds like a sweet rumor. Yet a few counters on…
Students at this school once hijacked a Rose Bowl card stunt so a stadium crowd saw the word…
A Georgian bread shaped like a boat, filled with molten cheese, sits on a menu in San Diego….
One golf hole in the desert has an island green nicknamed Alcatraz. I love that a golf hole…
A jockey who rode Seabiscuit may still be keeping an eye on the dinner crowd. His portrait hangs…
Breakfast is one of those meals people take surprisingly seriously. Everyone has a favorite spot, a go-to order,…
Pumpkin patches are usually pretty cheerful places. You pick out a pumpkin, grab a seasonal treat, and enjoy…
Some meats need a little patience before they reveal just how delicious they can be. Goat is a…
Walking into a bookstore for just one title sounds like a perfectly reasonable plan. But when the shelves…
Ordering a big, juicy steak at a restaurant usually comes with one uncomfortable moment: checking the price. And…
Ever walked into a craft store needing one small thing and left with enough ideas to keep you…
A good breakfast does not have to involve a sit-down meal, a long wait, or a bill that…
Some forests are so enormous that a quick afternoon visit barely scratches the surface. You can spend hours…
A restaurant in a small town might seem like an unlikely contender for international dining fame. You would…
Choosing what to order at a Mexican restaurant can be surprisingly difficult. You want tacos, but that other…
Some places have a way of making you forget what time it is. A quiet stretch of water,…
Breakfast with a side of ghost stories? That sounds like a pretty entertaining way to start the morning,…
Designer handbags, beautiful jackets, and shoes with price tags that usually make you reconsider your entire shopping budget….
Most steakhouses bring your dinner out on a plate. At one legendary dining room, the main event arrives…
Fall brings cooler mornings, changing leaves, and a noticeable shift in wildlife activity. For deer, though, the season…
Pumpkin pancakes in October? That makes perfect sense. Pumpkin pancakes in the middle of summer? Now that is…
Most people heading toward San Francisco have their eyes on the big city. That means they can drive…
Some people buy their meat wherever they happen to be shopping. Others have a butcher they trust so…
Who decided pancakes had to be sweet? A fluffy stack with maple syrup is wonderful, but plenty of…
You know those shops where you walk in planning to browse for five minutes and emerge half an…
Some bakery recipes come and go with the latest food trends. Others stick around for a century because…
Mountain towns are supposed to be about fresh air, scenic views, and getting away from the crowds. Nobody…
Fabric stores have changed plenty over the decades, but serious sewers still know the thrill of standing in…
Buffets are supposed to solve the problem of choosing one thing for dinner. A really big one creates…
A century is a long time for a college campus to collect traditions, stories, and generations of graduates….
Fall drives have a sneaky way of making people hungry. A few hours of winding roads, cool air,…
Fast-growing cities usually have something working in their favor. Jobs, housing, schools, location, or quality of life can…
Vintage diners have a way of making breakfast feel better before the food even arrives. Maybe it is…
Fresh apple cider already tastes like fall, but making it yourself adds a little more satisfaction to every…
Some dishes announce themselves before you even get a chance to pick up a fork. A bubbling clay…
Model trains have a funny way of turning grown adults into fascinated kids again. One tiny locomotive starts…
Fabric shoppers understand the danger of finding a store that still feels delightfully undiscovered. Tell too many people,…
Thirty years is a long time for diners to get attached to a restaurant name. Change the sign…
Grand mansions usually come with stories about wealth, parties, and carefully preserved rooms. This one took a far…
Vegetables tend to get treated like supporting characters on restaurant menus. Stuff them properly, though, and they can…
Some towns preserve history behind museum glass. In one tiny mountain community, the past still feels like part…
There is something about walking past a bakery early in the morning that makes even a perfectly good…
A swimming pool full of ducks sounds like the beginning of a very strange neighborhood complaint. But at…
Some dessert shops need an entire display case of elaborate creations to get people through the door. Others…
Courthouses are supposed to be serious places. You expect security checkpoints and people looking slightly nervous about whatever…
Pizza usually arrives at the table ready to eat. Maybe it needs a little extra Parmesan or a…
A top-ranked university sounds impressive on its own. Add the possibility of graduating with less student debt than…
A faded sign, a parking lot full of errands, and a restaurant squeezed between a nail salon and…
Most movie stars get their big break in front of a camera. Some of Hollywood’s hardest-working performers, however,…
Some restaurants spend years chasing the latest food trends. Others figure out what people love, keep serving it,…
A good bakery can make choosing breakfast difficult enough. Add pastries and sweets from several European countries, and…
Some road trips are all about reaching the destination. Others get much more interesting when the towns along…
Fried chicken is already pretty hard to improve upon. Get the coating crispy, keep the meat juicy, and…