• Food,  Local Events,  Travel

    Ventana: Birthday Celebration in Beautiful Big Sur

    July 13, 2018 /
    This is the third in my series of iconic Big Sur restaurant reviews; see links for Nepenthe and Big Sur River Inn.
    A thick veil of fog hovers over the water and blankets the hills as we head south on Highway 1. The road twists and turns, hugging the coastline. As we near Garrapata, torpedo-like rock formations of sandstone appear otherworldly. The ocean rumbles and waves gallop like horses toward the shore, creating milky froth as they crash into and over jagged rocks. There are four squid boats anchored off Rocky Point, their eerie green and yellow lights penetrating the mist.
    We are headed for my birthday celebration at Ventana, a resort complex in the most heavenly location ever.  Ventana means “window” in Spanish. Secluded between the Santa Lucia mountains and the Pacific Ocean, Ventana’s weathered cedar structures perch on a hillside 1200 feet above the coast. Picturesque Post Creek meanders through the 160-acre property, which contains landscaped pathways, canyons, groves of redwoods, Japanese hot baths and two pools. There are 59 guest rooms, suites, and villas and 15 safari-style canvas “glamping” tents, as well as tent only camping sites.
    History
    Ventana is located on land first homesteaded by the Post family in 1890. The Post home, which housed several generations of the family, still stands at the entrance. Ventana first opened in 1975, the creation of Lawrence Spector. Spector co-produced the 1969 anti-establishment hit “Easy Rider” which was written by Peter Fonda, Terry Southern, and Dennis Hopper. Ventana still retains vestiges of its ‘70s hippie beginnings, from its original weathered cedar siding to its clothing-optional policy in the hot baths and the Mountain Pool and nude sunbathing in prescribed areas. From the beginning, Ventana has drawn celebrities, including Dennis Hopper, Ali McGraw, Steve McQueen, Chevy Chase, Goldie Hawn, Barbara Streisand, Julia Roberts, Robert DeNiro, Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston, Oprah Winfrey, and Lupita Nyong’o, among many others.
     
    Glamping
    The glamping area, one of the newest renovations, is nestled in a 20-acre ancient redwood forest a half mile hike beneath the main resort. Each tent includes beds with luxury hotel linens, hot and cold water, and propane- and wood-burning fire pits. All glamping furniture is built from “reclaimed” redwood from the property. Ascot wine-and-cheese picnic backpacks,  custom curated picnic baskets, natural timber walking sticks, and daily housekeeping service are also provided. But wait, there’s more! The glamping tents also include electrical and USB plug-ins, teak-enclosed showers with heated floors, a sheet turndown service every night, hot cocoa, and hot-water bottles to warm your sheets.  Apparently, these are often sold out.  Actress Mandy Moore recently celebrated her birthday during a girls’ glamping weekend at Ventana.
    Classes
    This IS Big Sur and not surprisingly, Ventana also offers some pretty far-out classes, including meditation, yoga, tai chi, Pilates, beekeeping, charcoal sketching, mandala coloring for couples, string art & mindfulness, candle making and aromatherapy, bird-watching, photography hikes, mushroom foraging, daily hour-long guided walks, and drum circles. Taylor Swift recently took a falconry class at Ventana during her stay this year.
    Glass House

    The Glass House Gallery sells paintings, sculptures, jewelry, clothing, ceramics and local photography. You can have your picture taken on the see-through overlook outside the gallery and fool your friends into thinking you are standing on the edge of a precipice!
    Weddings
    Ventana hosts many weddings. Their website states “Imagine saying your vows overlooking the canyons and forest or surrounded by redwoods. Enjoying a sunset reception or dinner under a canopied arbor. And dancing under the stars to celebrate your new adventure together.” Apparently, both Natalie Portman and Ann Hathaway could imagine this. Both had their wedding receptions here.
    The Restaurant
    The Sur House restaurant features delicious concoctions by Executive Chef Paul Corsentino. Meals feature coastal cuisine, including local seafood, free-range meats, and fresh produce from Ventana’s gardens. There is also a 10,000-bottle wine cellar featuring central coast wines selected by local vintners and Ventana’s sommelier. Craft cocktails and beer are also offered. Sur House decor is both elegant and rustic, featuring natural wood and leather furnishings.
    We arrived at our 6:30 pm reservation time and had planned to dine on the terrace. Instead, we were told that we could not be seated outdoors for our meal because “the temperature drops too quickly” and it would be too cold for us. The temperature was a balmy 75 degrees, nonetheless, we were ushered to an indoor table by a window where, like a fish in a glass aquarium, I could envy, in the distance, a couple having drinks at a table overlooking the ocean. After ordering our food, I dashed outside to get some photos of the terrace.
    Ventana offers a prix fixe meal; you are offered four courses for a set price. However, they do allow you to order items a la carte. My friend and I shared our first and second courses, the tuna tartare and soft shell crab with tropical fruit, melon salsa, and Napa cabbage. For the third course, my friend ordered the Alaskan Halibut and I the Ora King Salmon. These were both superb. For my birthday, they brought a platter with samplings of ice cream, mousse, fruit, and cake. I felt like I had just finished Thanksgiving dinner when we were through. It was decadent and thoroughly satisfying.
    Following our meal, I watched through the window as hummingbirds levitated up and down through the air. Then three black crows landed on the terrace, the black of their feathers contrasting with the deep oranges and reds of the landscaping and furniture. It was a wonderful birthday. Good food, fresh air, and a beautiful vista of the ocean. And that’s what Big Sur is all about.
    • For more information see Ventana.  
    • Address: 48123 Highway 1, Big Sur, CA 93920.  Directions on how to get here.
    • Phone: 800-427-7623.
    • Sample Menus
    • Check road conditions before you go, it is easy to do. Go to  Caltrans  and enter 1 (the highway number) then search. 

    Thank you for visiting my blog.  Wishing you peace, love, happiness, & beautiful vistas!

     
  • Food,  Local Events,  Travel

    Nepenthe’s Phoenix: Bohemian Bliss in Big Sur

    July 6, 2018 /
    Nepenthe is an ancient Greek word meaning an elixir for sorrow, literally, a “drug of forgetfulness”.  And sorrow you will indeed forget when you see the jaw-dropping panoramic view of the Big Sur coastline at this iconic restaurant. Nepenthe started out as a very simple cabin in 1925, located downhill from the log house where writer Henry Miller lived. Orson Welles bought the cabin as a gift for his new bride, the movie star and World War II pinup girl Rita Hayworth. Unfortunately, the relationship failed, and the Big Sur cabin was abandoned. After Welles and Hayworth divorced, Bill and Madelaine “Lolly” Fassett, with five children in tow, purchased the cabin and 12 acres for $12,000. They employed Rowan Maiden, an apprentice of Frank Lloyd Wright, to create Nepenthe. Redwoods hewn from area canyons and hand-made adobe bricks were used. Nepenthe opened in 1949 with an open terrace design so that people could enjoy drinking, eating, reading poetry and dancing under the open sky.
    Nepenthe became a place for creative expression and bohemian culture for people who enjoyed living freely and had disdain for traditional societal propriety.  According to “Nepenthe Big Sur Stories and Folktales” (see Nepenthe Stories),  visitors arrived from all over the world; “vagabonds, poets, artists, lovers… when there were fewer people on the coast, when nights were longer and days lonelier, Nepenthe was a place to gather”.  Famous visitors included Henry Miller, Anais Nin, Man Ray, Ernest Hemingway, Joan Baez, Kim Novak, Steve McQueen, Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. The latter two performed scenes for the 1965 film, “The Sandpiper”, at Nepenthe. Even today, Nepenthe continues to invoke the spirit of the previous beatnik and hippie cultures.
     The Phoenix Shop opened in the 1960s, featuring gifts and local artwork, pottery, books, candles, clothing, hand-knitted hats, and jewelry. Café Kevah opened in 1992 above the gift shop and offers a great place to grab brunch.
     When you first enter the Nepenthe terrace, you see a five-foot-tall rising phoenix with bronze feet, the symbol for Nepenthe. This was created from a huge live oak originally growing here. When it died, sculptor Edmund Kara transformed the tree’s trunk into this amazing sculpture.
     If you visit Big Sur and want to check out Nepenthe, one caveat is that they are crazy busy on the weekends. It is not unusual to find the parking lot full and cars parked for a half mile down Hwy 1! If you are able to get seating, I recommend the outdoor counter overlooking the beautiful view (except on foggy days such as in this photo!)
    .
    Hours are as follows:
    Nepenthe – open daily 11:30am -10:00pm
    Café Kevah – open daily 9:00 am-4: 00 pm (weather permitting)
    Phoenix Shop – open Daily from 10:30am-7:00pm
    Note that they do not take reservations unless it is for a large group.
     
    Nepenthe is located on Hwy 1, about 30 miles south of Carmel, near the Ventana Inn and Post Ranch Inn. You will see the Nepenthe sign on the west side of the highway. Make sure to check road conditions before you go, it is easy to do. Go to the CalTrans website here caltrans.ca.gov  and enter 1 (the highway number) then search. Or you may phone 800-427-7623. Wishing you beautiful vistas, peace, love & happiness!