Old Monterey District Blog

This Mother’s Day, show Mom how much she means to you with a delicious meal at Esteban Restaurant, 700 Munras Avenue in Downtown Old Monterey. Choose from either a delectable Brunch Menu served 10am-2pm or our Tapas & Dinner Menu served 4:30pm-8:30pm.

For brunch, share the love with Chef Mario's a la carte menu including grilled stone fruit salad, shaved asparagus (with duck egg and Jamon Serrano), vegetable tagine, or a French omelet (with caviar, crème fresh, chives, and Ad Astra seeded sourdough).

Or savor a crave-worthy all-night tapas and dinner menu with all of your favorites including Crispy Pulpo (grilled octopus, remoulade, Yukon potato, chorizo, and rosemary chili oil with grilled radicchio), Grilled Lamb Chops with spiced marinade, or Mother's Day Paella (with wild prawns, littleneck clams, green lipped mussels, free range Mary’s chicken, local Spanish style chorizo).

Reservations are highly recommended. We are offering both outdoor and limited indoor seating. Please call 831-375-0176 to reserve your table. Parking is free for Esteban’s guests. Children’s menu also available at both brunch and dinner.

Do you still have Pandemic Hair? Make an appointment at Sunshine Salon for a fresh cut and color! Salon owner and stylist Jay will help you find the look that's right for you and your lifestyle. You'll walk out feeling great.

Sunshine Salon is located at 147 Webster Street in Downtown Old Monterey. Please phone 831-915-0197 for an appointment. Jay is highly experienced in women's, men's, and children's haircuts.

East Village Cafe is pleased to carry Sparkling Botanicals by Rishi! Come get yours. All six flavors are made with fruits, spices, or herbs and sparkling water with no added sugars and nothing artificial. They're refreshing by themselves or you can mix them with other drinks to make great mocktails and cocktails.

Flavors are Black Lemon, Dandelion Ginger, Grapefruit Quince, Patagonia Maqui, Schisandra Berry, and Turmeric Saffron. Now available at East Village Cafe, 498 Washington Street in Downtown Old Monterey.

Can't come to Old Capitol Books at 482 Alvarado Street in Monterey? Let us come to you! Our curated book care packages are specially put together based on your unique reading preferences and shipped to you. Book care packages are now available for $15, $25, and $100. Visit our website to shop online!

$15 Book Care Package
Includes one book personally selected by our experienced booksellers based on your preferences plus a special, unique gift!

$25 Book Care Package
Includes two books personally selected by our experienced booksellers based on your preferences plus two special, unique gifts!

$100 Book Care Package
A big ol' package of books personally selected by our experienced booksellers based on your preferences and some special little gifts.

Monterey State Historic Park is proud to announce the reopening of the historic Custom House after over a year of being closed! The Custom House Museum is open Tuesday - Sunday, 10am-4pm. As always, admission is free. Masks must be worn inside the museum at all times.

Custom House is located at 1 Custom House Plaza in Downtown Old Monterey. The Monterey State Historic Park Association's delightful Custom House Gift Store remains closed for now, but we will update you as the situation develops.

Even in a community that loves its library, public funding alone has never been enough to provide all the important resources our residents seek.

In March 2020, Monterey Public Library’s doors closed because of the global pandemic. The pandemic’s impact on tourism and the local economy drastically reduced City revenue. As a result, the City of Monterey reduced the Library’s budget by over 65%, cut the staff by 80%, and eliminated the book budget entirely.

In response, the Monterey Public Library Friends & Foundation publicly launched the year-long Monterey Learns! fundraising campaign in February 2021.

What does this fundraising campaign aim to accomplish? Make sure kids and teens have the tools they need to become strong readers. Put more books in the hands of adults. Present meaningful programs for all ages — from toddlers to teens to seniors. Ensure that information from the library's unique historical archive is accessible so the community and to researchers worldwide. Ease the strain of distance-learning for our families and teachers by ensuring that a trusted librarian is just a phone call away, and that reliable, carefully curated online resources remain available.

Libraries are at the heart of community, culture, education, and democracy. Learn more about the campaign and find out how to donate here.

Great news, everyone! Old Capitol Books is reopening on Thursday, April 8. At our new home on the second floor of 482 Alvarado Street in Downtown Old Monterey, we're open Thursdays - Sundays, 12pm-6pm.

Drop-in customers are always welcome when there's enough space. But, because the number of simultaneous customers is limited by Covid regulations, you can make an appointment online for opening weekend that will ensure you up to one hour of shelf-browsing pleasure.

Accessing Our Store
If you enter through the front doors of 482 Alvarado Street, you can either use the elevator or the stairs to get to the second floor. Accessible parking is located behind the building at 499 Calle Principal. From that lot, you can enter through the back door of the building directly onto the second floor.

Though the store is a work in progress, the entrance to the shop and the open aisles are 34-36 inches across. Bookstore staff are always happy to help you access hard-to-reach high shelves.

Doran, a licensed esthetician and the owner of the Haute Beauty Guide retail store, is really excited about the new soaps she's designed and created, each inspired by her favorite spots on the Monterey Peninsula.

After almost a year of research and trials, Doran's soaps are now available online and at Haute Beauty Guide at 71 Pearl Street in Downtown Old Monterey. (Expect more great scents to come this summer!)

Haute Beauty Guide's signature soaps include:

Pebble Beach
A calm, tranquil scent with herbal notes of earl grey tea leaves, bergamot, and vanilla.

Carmel
A fresh, sophisticated scent with notes of white tea, ginger, lemon, pepper, and earl grey.

Monterey
The beautiful clean aroma of natural sea salt brings freshness to your day.

Cambria
A light, refreshing aromatic blend of cucumber and green tea.

Parker-Lusseau Pastries and Cafe happily presents the latest addition to our selection of cakes: apricot creme brulee. This is chocolate mousse layered with lavender crème brulee, apricot, and genoise cake (Italian sponge cake). It's now available daily as an individual cake, or you can give us a call and order an 8” cake that serves 10.

Parker-Lusseau Pastries and Cafe is located at 539 Hartnell Street in Downtown Old Monterey. Our phone number is 831-641-9188.

We all know that Crepes of Brittany serves crepes, but have you tried their breakfast sandwich? With bacon or ham, eggs, and cheese on a lightly toasted bun, this sandwich will have you and your taste buds ready to enjoy the day.

Crepes of Brittany is now open for outdoor dining, limited indoor dining, and take-out orders at 211 Alvarado Street in Downtown Old Monterey.

Alta Bakery and Cafe is happy to announce our April drink of the month, a chamomile honey latte with cinnamon and bee pollen. Come and try it - we're located at 502 Munras Avenue in Downtown Old Monterey.

On April 10, 10am-4pm, Monterey Public Library will host the 2nd Annual Local History Slam online. This free, all-day immersion in the richly layered history of the Monterey Peninsula features 10-15 minute talks about topics such as: the porthole in Robinson Jeffers’ Hawk Tower; Joseph Campbell’s connection to Monterey and Star Wars; Ed Ricketts and the ecology of Monterey Bay; Flora Woods, the legendary Cannery Row Madame; the Chinese village at Point Alones; local Japanese American flower growers; and much more!

A schedule of the day's presentations will be posted on the library's website. Please register in advance online at least one hour prior to the event. For questions, please contact Monterey Public Library at 831-646-3933.

This event is co-sponsored by the Western Flyer Foundation, the Cannery Row Company, the Cannery Row Foundation, and Monterey Museums and Cultural Arts.

Monterey-Salinas Transit (MST) has announced that it will provide a free Day Pass to those who receive the Covid-19 vaccine. MST recognizes the importance of everyone getting vaccinated in the recovery of our community. To further encourage Monterey County residents, MST is providing a free Day Pass to anyone just for getting their shot!

Individuals must simply present their Covid-19 vaccination card to an MST Customer Service Representative at any of its customer service window locations. (This includes the Monterey Bus Stop Shop at 201 Pearl Street in Downtown Old Monterey.) You will then receive a free Day Pass to use at any time. Passes are available for each dose received.

For more information please call MST at 1-888-MST-BUS1 (1-888-678-2871).

It's spring! Why not order a delicious organic ice cream cake from Revival and enjoy a cool, refreshing dessert to celebrate the season? You can have a custom cake made with your favorite Revival flavors and your choice of gluten free chocolate or yellow sponge cake. ⁠
⁠
Order your cake on Revival Ice Cream's website and either pick it up at the shop at 463 Alvarado Street in Downtown Old Monterey or have it shipped to you or your loved one anywhere in the U.S. For more information, please call us at 831-747-2113. Please note that custom cake orders must be placed 72 hours in advance.