Cambria Weekend Getaway

A few weeks ago, we took a weekend trip down south to Cambria for a bit of relaxing "sister time" before the holiday festivities began. Cambria is a small beach town located midway between San Francisco and Los Angeles. When we decided to head south to Cambria for a quick girls-weekend, we chose to stay at the fun and trendy Cambria Beach Lodge. We teamed up with the Lodge to show all that Cambria has to offer! 

xxx Ivy & Eve

Here is a map the Cambria Beach Lodge provided for even more great suggestions!

Stay:

• Cambria Beach Lodge Situated right on Moonstone Beach, this newly renovated and trendy hotel is the perfect place to spend a relaxing weekend in Cambria. The lodge is centrally located, making it a quick drive to downtown Cambria or Hearst Castle. The rooms were trendy yet inviting with a great mini bar full of tasty treats and even a set of binoculars for all of your outdoor adventures. Outside each room is a small porch with bright turquoise chairs and there is a large glass surrounded deck on the top floor overlooking Moonstone Beach. We took full advantage of this amenity by toasting our trip with a bottle of bubbly before going off to the Christmas Market and dinner. Each morning, they serve a simple yet tasty continental breakfast which is a real perk for when you want to relax with a cup of coffee and pastry and watch the early morning surfers on Moonstone Beach! The Lodge also has beach cruiser bikes for guests to borrow. We loved cruising the boardwalk across the street! There are many quality beachfront lodges in Cambria, but none quite have the fun and hip vibe that the Cambria Beach Lodge has. We totally recommend it!

Perfect view of the sunset from the viewing deck!

Moonstone beach access right across the street!

Eat:

• Madeline's Restaurant Located on Main Street, this is the perfect place to go for a romantic dinner date or for just a great glass of wine! We went here per our awesome Uber driver's suggestion. The restaurant's cozy ambiance, great wine list, and delectable menu make this a must try restaurant for everyone!

• Indigo Moon Located also on Main Street, Indigo Moon is s a great place for lunch or outdoor dinning spot (weather permitting). They have three large outdoor dining areas and a great indoor/outdoor patio. Ivy had a delicious BLTA sandwich with a fresh green salad while Eve had delicious prawn fettuccine with a light white wine sauce and to die for cheesy garlic bread.

• Sea Chest Oyster Bar and Seafood Restaurant Located right next to the Cambria Beach Lodge, the Sea Chest is known to locals as the best place to eat fresh seafood. The menu serves up everything from Oysters Rockefeller to New England Clam Chowder. Since this place is so popular be sure to get there right when they open to put your name on the waitlist (no reservations). Luckily they have a Wine Bar sitting area that includes a fire pit with a great view of the ocean so you can wait for dinner with a glass of wine.

• Cambria Pines Lodge This hotel is where the Cambria Christmas Market is located. They have a sit down full service restaurant as well as their Fireside Lounge which is the perfect place for a drink while listening to live music. They have tasty local wine list and a creative cocktail menu.

Ivy's chicken dinner at Madeline's

Eve's sea bass dinner with rice and veggies

Ice cream and fresh berry crumble

Lunch at Indigo Moon.

Play/Shop:

• Moonstone Beach- The rugged pebbled beach is known for its moonstone pebbles. If you're lucky though you'll find a few pieces of jade as well! This beach and boardwalk is perfect for surfing, hiking/walking, biking, and beach combing.

• Elephant Seal Vista- A few miles north of Moonstone Beach, this place is perfect for spotting the giant Elephant Seals. They can weigh up to 8,800 pounds and over 20 feet long!

• Antique malls- These antique emporiums are dotted along Main Street. We especially loved Rich Man Poor Man Antiques. They have well thought out displays and very friendly and helpful staff. Eve left with a pair of beautiful Wedgwood candle sticks.

• Cambria Christmas Market (Only runs from November 25th-December 25th)- When we initially planned this trip we did not know that Cambria had a Christmas Market. This was the highlight of the trip! We have spent Christmas in Europe before and always loved the European Christmas markets with their little artisan stalls and mulled wine! This particular market is known for its Christmas light displays. They have over ONE MILLION lights on display. We really enjoyed walking through the gardens and vendors, googling at all the Christmas lights. We are already planning a trip back to visit next year!

• Hearst Castle- William Randolph Hearst's grand estate is a few miles north of Cambria. An architectural and Interior Design marvel, any tourist should visit this spectacular home. Make sure to take the tour that visits the pool room as it is our personal favorite.

• The Shops at the Garden Shed- We spent several hours perusing the shops in this secret garden shopping center. To visit all of the shops, first you must go though the Cambria Garden Shed shop. This shop is full of beautiful and thoughtful gardening related gifts and tools. Once you hit the back of the shop, it opens up to a small courtyard full of wonderful shops. A few of our favorites were Ocean Heir (great gifts, clothing, and books), Junk Girls (upcycled awesomeness), and GROW Nursery (succulent heaven).

View above Cambria from HWY 46

Ivy's favorite...succulent shopping at GROW!

Junk Girls

One of the many antique malls

Mulled wine to keep us warm at the Cambria Christmas Market!

Beach boardwalk above Moonstone beach

Watching surfers at Moonstone Beach

Pebbles on moonstone beach

San Francisco: Union Square and Japantown

San Francisco is the closest large city to our hometown, making it our go-to destination for culture, major shopping, and of course a glass of bubbly (or two). We were recently in the city for a quick overnight trip. We arrived just in time to meet up with a friend for happy hour and dinner. The next day we made a few necessary shopping stops and then we headed to Japantown for a day of culture, shopping, and tasty (and some funky) treats. Here is what we were up to!

xxx Ivy & Eve

Stay: We typically stay around Union Square which is the shopping hub of the city. It is easily accessible from the highway, and from here you just grab a taxi to anywhere in the city.

• Clift Hotel-  The Clift has a modern glamorous vibe. The lobby is larger than life with whimsical and eclectic furnishings and two hotel bars that go from quiet and casual in the day, to lively and trendy at night. We booked through Expedia and since the Clift is an Expedia VIP+ hotel, we enjoyes a free upgrade to a deluxe city view room, late check out, and two free drinks at the bar! The room was well appointed with comfortable and slightly glamorous furnishings and a nice city view even though our bathroom was a bit tight. This is typical of San Francisco Hotels though- as the buildings tend to be pretty old. Overall a great place to crash after a night out! This was our first time staying at the Clift and we will definitely be staying here again. 

Plenty of cool chairs to pose in!

Eat/Drink: These are the places we stopped by on this trip. This is by no means our only recommendations! 

• Farallon- This is our favorite place to eat and drink in San Francisco, hands down. Located just a block off of Union Square, Farallon is buzzing with locals and tourists alike for their ridiculously fresh coastal cuisine and an incredible happy hour. Our go-to picks are a few plates of 1/2 dozen oysters, charcuterie board, truffled parmesan fries, and a few glasses of sparkling rosé: each $7. We dare you to find a better deal!
• Brazen Head- We just discovered this hidden gem in the Cow Hollow/Marina district. This restaurant and bar has an old school vibe with dark wood paneling and stained glass windows. The food has a French flair and the drinks are stiff. This is a cozy spot to catch up with friends or hide away from the tourist crowd. 
• Rambler- Recently opened this spot is part of Hotel Zeppelin near Union Square. We had a wonderful early brunch here. Ivy ordered the cinnamon currant french toast with poached pears and ricotta while Eve noshed on the smoked salmon and fromage blanc toast. We shared a gigantic pot of french press coffee and mimosas. YUM.
• Nespresso (90 Grant Ave.)- This is technically a store but the Grant Avenue location has a small coffee lounge on the first floor which serves specialty coffee drinks, fresh baked pastries, and you guessed it...bubbly. We head downstairs first to test out the newest coffee blends (free tastings!), buy pods for our machines back home, and then once we has sufficiently caffeinated head upstairs for a pastry and a glass of bubbly. What more could you ask for!

Happy Hour at Farallon...cheers!

Brunch at Rambler.

Coffee tasting at Nespresso

Japantown: After brunch, we headed to Japantown, the oldest and largest of the three "official" Japantowns in the U.S. and is full of quirky shops, tasty treats, and a unique community. The entire district encompasses just 6 blocks which makes it easily manageable to visit in a day. We love going here because everyone always seems SO happy...how could you not be happy when you are full of sushi and mochi!

• Japan Center Mall and Peace Pagoda- Japantown is centered round a five tiered concrete pagoda gifted to San Francisco by their sister city, Osaka in 1968. On either side of the Peace Pagoda is the Japan Center Mall (East and West). Inside you will find shops, restaurants, and specialty stores. It is a perfect place to spend a rainy day. 
• Nippon-Ya- Japan Center West. This specialty shop sells a variety of mochi, cookies, tea and gifts. The packaging itself make you want to buy everything in sight. We always buy a few boxes to bring home and share with our family. Bonus: they usually have a box of two at the counter to sample!
• Chocolate Chair- Located inside the Japan Center West, this shop sells boba tea, made to order nitrogen ice cream, and the infamous Dragons Breath! Dragons Breath is essentially large balls of cereal (tastes a lot like Trix) which they dip in liquid nitrogen. This instantly freezes the cereal and makes them "smoke". When you eat them, the smoke comes out of your mouth and nose making you look like a dragon! While it wasn't the tastiest thing we have had in Japantown, it was super fun to eat. 
• Kui Shin Bo- Japan Center East. This tiny restaurant is located in Japan Center East. It has a cozy laid back feel and delicious food for a great price. Eve ordered the Takoyaki (savory pancake balls filled with bits of octopus) and shabu shabu (traditional Japanese hot pot with veggies and thin sliced beef). Ivy ordered a Red Dragon Roll and miso soup. We both had a glass of the house wine which was very drinkable and only $4! 
• Daiso- Japan Center East. Here, you can find everything from sake sets to impossibly cute stationary to false eyelashes. We can spend hours in this shop and the best part is almost everything is $1.50!

Japantown Peace Pagoda

Mochi dreamland!

Billions of adorable bento boxes.

DRAGONS BREATH at Chocolate Chair!

Tasty traditional Japanese lunch spot!

We love how the Peace Pagoda lights up at night!