Halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles, the city of San Luis Obispo offers a delightful blend of small town charm and sophisticated stores.
Downtown San Luis Obispo features an extensive array of restaurants, from Italian to Chinese to American. A popular eatery is the Art Café and Bakery, made famous when Oprah loved the establishment's curry chicken sandwich so much that she invested in the restaurant. To whet your appetite before you eat, browse through the many stores in the downtown area, featuring clothes, books, art, jewelry, and more. The historic Mission San Luis Obispo (http://www.missionsanluisobispo.org/) is also located in the downtown area.
Fond of the great outdoors? Hike the mountains that surround the city, or walk one of the many trails.
Even though it doesn't qualify as a "traditional" outdoor activity, the Thursday night downtown Farmers Market offers the opportunity to combine two popular forms of entertainment: walking and eating! Every Thursday night, the downtown area is filled with the good smells, sights, and sounds of barbecue, local crops, flowers, and musicians.
California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo offers its own attractions. If you're visiting in the spring, make time for the annual open house. Both children and adults will enjoy the demonstrations and exhibits from departments such as architecture, food processing (be sure to taste the award-winning ice cream!), and agriculture.
Also deserving of space on your itinerary: the bright pink Madonna Inn, with its cascading waterfalls in the bathroom, the rooms decorated in themes such as Safari, and the tempting bakery and restaurant (http://www.madonnainn.com/). Worth the caloric indulgence: a hot fudge sundae!
Lindsey Miller, Director of Marketing & Leadership for the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce, has lived in the town for nine years. She feels that "the best thing about SLO is the great outdoors- you really can do just about any outdoor activity is this area. We have some of the best hiking and biking trails right here in the City limits as well as some really great trails in the surrounding areas. Residents of LA and SF can come to SLO to enjoy these great outdoor activities and our clean air!," In addition, Lindsey has noted that visitors "love the quaint feel and look of downtown and the shops that are a good mix of chains and independents. Another great asset is our wine country that begins in downtown with a tasting room and continues out into the vineyards that are only 5 minutes away from downtown."
Activities and events in the town are featured at the online calendar at www.visitslo.com. Among them are:
- Each fall, the Plein Air Festival invites artists from around the world to visit San Luis Obispo for a week to paint landscapes of the area. The San Luis Obispo Art Center serves as the festival headquarters (http://www.sloartcenter.org/events.htm).
- The San Luis Obispo Vintners has an annual harvest festival and also offers a year-round directory to local wineries on their Web site: http://www.slowine.com
- Each winter, the Mozart Festival's winter session attracts Mozart-lovers from around the world. Their summer festival offers a full menu of music, with an ongoing concert series (http://www.mozartfestival.com/).
- San Luis Obispo has become a well-known station and host city for the winter AMGEN Tour of California bike race. Spectators line the streets to watch the Olympic-quality racers compete (http://www.amgentourofcalifornia.com/Route/cities/san-luis-obispo.html).
- Concerts in the Plaza every summer attracts both residents and visitors to the Mission Plaza, where different musical groups play on Friday nights. The style ranges from swing to salsa to jazz to pop. Beer and wine are sold, and many attendants buy dinner to go at one of the restaurants nearby and dine while they enjoy the music and occasional impromptu dancing.
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Comments: 2
SF is in Ca. No? SOunds hard to MapQuest. :)
I drive through there a couple times a year. Grab a bite, a cup of joe at the daily grind. Doesn't Incendio play there quite a bit? One of my favorite instrumental groups.