The Ledford House
www.ledfordhouse.com
This award-winning restaurant just two miles north on Highway 1 offers wonderful Mediterranean cuisine and a bluff-top view that’s unbeatable. Call in advance for reservations or sit at the bar and watch the sun go down while you linger over a bottle of Mendocino county wine paired with Lisa’s fabulous appetizers.

Heritage House Restaurant
www.heritagehouseinn.com/refresh_dining.html
The newly renovated Heritage House Restaurant serves food nightly.  The chef is obviously inspired to create dishes as beautiful as the views from their dining room.  Heritage House specialties include duck, lamb and osso bucco and they feature locally crafted Anderson Valley wines.  Four miles north on Highway 1.

Albion River Inn
http://www.albionriverinn.com/restaurant.php
The Albion River Inn is always a good choice, although always crowded.  Make reservations in advance.  Always on the menu are grilled prawns, filet mignon and pacific salmon. One mile north on Highway 1.

Rendezvous Restaurant
http://www.rendezvousinn.com/menu.htm
Chef Kim Badenhop’s reputation for outstand French cuisine is well-deserved.  This quaint house turned into a restaurant features an excellent selection of classic dishes plus unusual items such as sablefish, pheasant and venison.  Foie gras crepes served with porto is his specialty.  Twenty miles north on Highway 1.

Mendo Bistro
http://www.mendobistro.com/
More casual than the previously mentioned restaurants, Chef Nicholas Petti offers a relaxed environment, with a thoughtful approach:  you choose fish, fowl or meat, which is roasted, grilled, sautéed or braised and served with a choice of sauces.  Everything is made from scratch, using organic ingredients and always hormone and antibiotic-free.
Nineteen miles north on Highway 1.

Piaci Pub & Pizzeria
Fort Bragg’s most popular pizzeria and pub, offering a large selection of craft-brewed beer as well as some local wines.  Fabulous thin-crust pizza, hearty calzones and a few pasta dishes make this the local hot spot.  No website, but don’t let that deter you!
120 W Redwood Ave, Fort Bragg.  707 961-1133
Nineteen miles north just off of Highway 1.

Libby’s Restaurant
The best Mexican food for miles around, Libby’s is all home-made and authentic. Her carnitas are perfect. This is also the local hotspot for winemakers and their crews, as well as all the local, talented tasting room stars. Eighteen miles east on Highway 128 next to the Post Office in Philo. Pick up your dinner on the way out to the coast (Libby closes around 8 PM, after the last diner heads home).

Queenie’s Roadhouse Café
Some people come to the coast just for breakfast at Queenie’s! Fresh, organic and homemade, Queenie’s meals are designed to win you over. Lots of food, but very high quality and nice presentation. Open everyday for breakfast & lunch 8-3, except Tues & Wed. After brunch, walk off some of the calories at Greenwood State Beach, just across the road.

 

Local Attractions

Anderson Valley Wineries
www.avwines.com
On your way out to the coast stop at the wonderful wineries along scenic Highway 128 as it winds its way through the Anderson Valley. Don’t miss Goldeneye Winery for the world’s greatest pinot noir.  Just eighteen miles from Cheryl’s House to the start of the valley.

Hiking by Big River & Big River Beach
http://www.mcn.org/1/mendoparks/bigriver.htm
Just at the foot of the village of Mendocino, the entrance to this park is by the bridge just before the turn off for the historic village of Mendocino.  Start your hike at Big River Beach, and after you’ve combed the shores for sea shells, hike up to eight miles inland along the easy path that meanders along the river banks.  During the summer you might find some blackberries and huckleberries as a bonus, to bring home and bake a pie. 

Canoes & Kayaks at Big River
http://www.catchacanoe.com/innlight/adventure.html
If you’d prefer paddling or peddling to hiking, Catch a Canoe will be happy to rent you a canoe, kayak or bicycle for your excursion up Big River.

Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens
http://www.gardenbythesea.org/
A rate jewel; this is the only public garden in the continental US that fronts directly on the ocean.  It offers forty-seven acres of some of the most beautiful hiking trails, dahlia gardens and pine forests this side of paradise.

Other Friends of Mendocino Food & Wine Ventures

Mendocino Coast Chamber of Commerce, Fort Bragg, CA.
www.mendocinocoast.com
MFW Vacation Rentals is a proud member of the Mendocino Coast Chamber of Commerce.