I would have liked a room, but lunch will do at Big Sur's Post Ranch Inn

My Italian side has a saying, "L’ospite è come il pesce; dopo tre giorni puzza.” Translation for all you non-Italian speaking babies, "Guests are like fish, after three days they stink." 

When visiting her in-laws, Mom makes extra sure we don't start to stink and/or go crazy. That usually means pairing visits with a nuclear family getaway. Plus with family in the Bay Areas, there is tons to see within a 150 mile radius of San Francisco.

This year the destination is Carmel, CA - 122 miles due south - to the Lobos Lodge on Mount Verde Street. Central location, modern, clean, affordable ($130/night in off-season) and spacious rooms that included the very luxurious breakfast in bed. 

Hey wait. I do that every day. 

Well, for Mom it was a treat. 

Carmel is a strategically-positioned jumping point off which to visit an array of diverse destinations - Pebble Beach Golf Course (not the most ideal destination for new parents on vacation with baby for the first time, but they do have a spa), Big Sur, Monterrey, etc.

During the day we took to hiking and site seeing, and at night, we explored the town of Carmel-by-the-Sea. I missed out on all post-sundown exploration because before they went out, they dressed me in my pajamas, fed me lots of food and rocked me to sleep, wrapping me tightly in the Moby and taking me out to eat. 

So while technically I was there, I can't personally comment on the gastronomy, but I did overhear positive reviews about the following places. 

The gastronomic highlight of the trip and perhaps of 2013 was definitely lunch at Post Ranch Inn. 

The key to enjoying Big Sur's luxurious and eco-friendly Post Ranch Inn is not selling your soul to the gun lobby in Washington or making your millions in credit default swaps. 
It is possible for a middle income family to delight in the views and tastes of Post Ranch Inn. Just go for lunch.

The menu speaks for itself.- www.postranchinn.com/download/Sierra-Mar_lunch-menu.pdf. I will just confirm that yes, it is delicious. 

See how this restaurant stacks up in the BABY GASTRONOMIST RANKINGS.

Learn ABOUT ME and check out some of my BEST PRACTICES for eating out.

Mission Rock Resort & Laurel Court at the Fairmont - San Francisco, CA

My first time in an airplane and in the Pacific. Those were the two of the many highlights of my trip to San Francisco in December 2012.

Given my age and my size, eating out was fairly easy. And since no one wanted to spend time in the kitchen when s/he could be playing with moi, it was actually the preferred mode of consumption. 

Once the Virgin America wheels first touched down at SFO airport, Grandpa picked up us where we headed straight to Mission Rock Resort  at 817 Terry Francois Blvd, San Francisco, for oysters, fish tacos and clam chowder. The outdoor patio was warmed by the late morning sun and noisy enough in case I let out a post-six-hour-plane-ride screech. However, like I do every three hours, I continued my East Coast routine of sleep, eat, diaper, a few bats of the eyelashes and repeat. Only to say, I was both predictable and portable. 

At Mission Rock I not only saw my great-grandfather for the first time but also my first DeLorean-turned power boat. 

After a trolley up from downtown to the San Francisco Fairmont, I also had lunch at the Laurel Court Restaurant. One of my fancier endeavors, yet the lunch time crowd was light, and they had upholstered benches where I spent most of the lunch under a nursing shawl. Mom had timed both meals so I was ready to eat when she was which meant one arm to hold me, one hand to eat and zero distractions. The only trick was ordering food that didn't require any cutting. 

Laurel Court Restaurant, San Francisco Fairmont.