Watsonville
If someone told you that the best fish tacos in California were inside a gas station, you’d probably smile politely and then quietly make other plans for lunch. But the Whoa Nellie Deli in Lee Vining, California is the kind of place that exists specifically to make you feel bad about your assumptions, and it does that job extremely well.
Santa Cruz County has plenty of ways to satisfy a sweet tooth, and some of its most beloved local businesses have spent decades perfecting the art. Whether it’s an ice cream cone after a day at the beach, a freshly baked doughnut to start the morning, or a box of handcrafted chocolates for a special occasion, these local favorites bring sweetness to the everyday lives of residents and visitors alike. Across the county, generations-old favorites and inventive local makers offer everything from old-fashioned classics to imaginative confections that are almost too beautiful to eat. In this guide, we’re exploring nine of Santa Cruz County’s sweetest spots, highlighting the signature treats, unexpected creations, and local traditions that make each one worth seeking out.
One San Francisco pizzeria has been firing pies in its original wood-burning oven since 1935. That oven has outlasted generations of diners, and I love that it still does its job. The longevity streak doesn’t stop there. In California, you’ll find singing waiters serving pasta, a family market slicing deli...
I have a few beefs with In-N-Out Burger (bun intended), but I, like so many with ties to California, grew up eating here. Founded in Baldwin Park in 1948, the fast-food chain feels like it's woven into the fingerprint of the Golden State at this point. And with generations of my mom's side born and raised in Southern California, it should be no surprise that it was a family tradition to eat at In-N-Out when we were visiting our loved ones. With these meals marking our gatherings, reunions, and Disneyland trips with everybody, In-N-Out Burger has never just felt like some random fast-food joint to me. It feels personal.
In-N-Out is almost every California resident’s favorite fast food chain, and for good reason. The chain’s consistency in serving up juicy burgers combined with stellar customer service ensures that any In-N-Out will be at least semi-packed with people at all hours of the day. One thing In-N-Out has...
California gets plenty of hype for tacos and avocados, but its deli scene? Underrated. We’re talking pastrami piled sky-high, crispy rye, and Reubens that make portion control look like a bad joke. One legendary Los Angeles deli has been serving hot pastrami since 1947. The sandwich became a hit...
Pass the cranberry sauce as Thanksgiving dinner in Northern California is serving up something for every kind of table. The post Thanksgiving Dining in Northern California 2026 appeared first on Fabulous California .
When the first star appears in the sky on Christmas Eve, Polish people sit down to an elaborate 12-dish dinner that contains no meat dishes, but somehow manages to include several types of herring. The fish, the cabbage, wild mushrooms, pierogi and beet roots – these are the foods and flavors very dear to the hearts of Matt and Heather Zimny, owners of Gromada in Carmel Valley.
California tri-tip has a funny habit of vanishing early. At some of the best barbecue counters in the state, the smokers start before sunrise and the doors close by mid-afternoon, so a late lunch can turn into a missed lunch. This list covers six spots from the Central Coast to...
Nov. 10, 2026—Owner Dania Alvarez was blown away by the response to the opening of Con Azúcar Café (“with sugar” in Spanish) in Santa Cruz this past weekend. For weeks, people had been knocking on the door to ask when it would open. On soft-opening day, a line stretched down the block, including people who traveled from Watsonville.
A California wine brand is writing a new playbook on getting Gen Z’s attention. But the wine industry might not like what it says.
It opened to long lines and social media fanfare.
A pilot program launched by CalFresh offers matching dollars to low-income California families on purchases of fruits and vegetables.
Inspectors sent to check on California prison kitchens found rotten tomatoes, moldy peppers, spiderwebs and bug-covered fly traps at Corcoran, and moldy ceilings at Corcoran and California State Prison, Sacramento, along with equipment failures and missing utensils serious enough to raise security concerns. The findings come from an audit by the state's Office of the Inspector General, which examined food programs and services inside California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation facilities.
A family bakery in California still sells a strawberry whipped cream cake first developed in the 1970s. The bakery itself opened in 1938. I can’t get over that. Some birthday traditions are older than the parents ordering the cake. That shop has plenty of good company on this list.
Every November, a lot of Californians quietly accept that their turkey is negotiable but the pie is not. The trouble is that the best pies in the state often come from tiny towns, mountain hamlets, and roadside farm stands, and those places run out fast once Thanksgiving week arrives. This...
Every town has that one table where the same group shows up each morning, orders the usual, and settles the news of the day before most people are awake. In California, some of those tables have been claimed for so long that the regulars outlasted the menus, the paint jobs, and a few of the coffee machines.
At Beamz, find flavors such as olive oil and salted caramel and date cake and passion fruit toffee. Beamz, a new ice cream shop from LGS Studio’s Noel Hennessy, has landed in the Arts District at the Signal Shops. The design-forward scoop shop opened at the end of September with California-inspired ice cream and sorbet made in-house on an Italian Bravo Trittico, plus sodas and floats.
Leading Smoothie, Açai Bowl and Raw Juice Chain Steepens Growth Trajectory and Increases Nontraditional Store Count with Recent Openings in California and Arizona. , one of the nation’s leading açai bowl, handcrafted smoothie and raw juice chains for over 30 years, is thoughtfully investing in nontraditional growth opportunities. With a flexible footprint and streamlined operating model that accommodates a range of spaces, the brand is expanding access to its popular menu through travel centers, university campuses, convenience stores, military bases and other high-traffic venues. With many new locations under consideration and others already in development, including a planned location at one of the largest Air Force bases in California, Juice It Up! is leveraging a model designed for compact footprints, efficient preparation and a range of guest occasions.
Some of the best meals in California hide behind doors you would walk right past. You expect a quick plate of fried fish, and instead you find crispy snapper, warm hush puppies, and a family that treats you like a cousin who finally came home. When a beloved little kitchen...