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There’s a reason Europeans flock to Morro Bay to experience the small central coast town, with its mom-and-pop businesses, bustling harbor, fresh fish markets and waterside eateries. It’s both the California of their imagination and an echo of their own villages and small towns along the coasts of Normandy and Brittany, Liguria and the Costa Brava, where fishing is woven into every part of daily life.
Morro Bay produces local oysters that you can buy seaside, fresh out of the water, as well as seasonal fish, from the kelp-dwelling rock fish to the grand migratory species of tuna and salmon. Bakeries, candy stores, fish markets and cafes dot the Embarcadero, lined with docks housing fishing boats and small pleasure craft.
All is dominated — some might say watched over — by El Morro, the massive plug of a long-extinct volcano, rising from the ocean. Once an island, now connected to land by a man-made spit, it was given its name by the explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo in 1542 when he sailed into the harbor. Eventually the land, like much of California, was claimed for Spain.
Dozens of motels dot the hillsides overlooking the bay, and a few, like the Anderson Inn, have rooms right over the water, outfitted with fireplaces for chilly nights and fogbound mornings. For the more hardy, Morro Bay State Park offers a campground tucked into rolling hills studded with eucalyptus groves, surrounding an inlet where a kayak rental stand and the rustic, down-home Bay Café are located.
Morro Bay identifies as a sustainable fishing community and one of the fish companies, Giovanni’s Fish Market operates a vertically integrated system. Fishing boats arrive at the company’s docks, and fish, thousands of pounds of them, are unloaded into bins which are then filled with ice from the company’s ice house and brought to the processing room. On the day of my visit, just before the end of the local salmon season, four bins of glistening salmon were waiting to be processed, each bin holding 900 pounds of fish. This was a light day for the company, I was told.
The fish is shipped nationwide, either as whole fish or fillets, and deliveries are made locally. Restaurants often take delivery of the whole fish and process it — including smoking it — in house.
Giovanni’s has a kitchen adjacent to the fish market and processing room. Queue up at the take-out window for fish and chips, fish on a stick, oysters, fish and shellfish burritos and tacos to enjoy at tables on the deck. The take-out line forms early and seems never to diminish.
Next to Giovanni’s dock, you’ll find Virg’s Morro Bay Sport Fishing, where groups of 25 to 35 people at a time flock onto one of Virg’s three boats to try their luck on the ocean, fishing for rock fish and ling cod or, depending on the season, salmon, tuna or shark. It’s a grand adventure. It’s easy to spot three generations enjoying the sport together, beaming as they hold up their catch for the cameras. Adding to the fun, the boat galleys sell drinks, and take orders for breakfast burritos and later, hamburgers, all made to order. I highly recommend them both.
A few hundred yards further on, you’ll find yet another fish market, this one owned by long-time commercial fisherman Mark Tognazzini, who also owns the sit-down Dockside Restaurant and the casual, take-out Dockside, Too. Both offer fresh caught fish and local oysters. At Dockside, Too you can choose the fish for your fish tacos right from the market, and listen to live music while the bay laps against the dock. Mark likes to say it’s “five-star fish and three-star dining.”
The bay houses two oyster companies, the Morro Bay Oyster Company and the Grassy Bar Oyster Company, both locally owned and operated. You can buy the oysters at the fish markets and sample them at most of the local restaurants. And, if you’re kayaking in the central part of the bay, you’ll spot long strings, anchored to hold bags of growing oysters, and processing barges. It doesn’t get any fresher than this.
In fact, everything about Morro Bay feels fresh and authentic, including three wine tasting rooms right on the Embarcadero –Chateau Margene, MCV Wines and Morro Bay Wine Seller — plus STAX, a wine bar and cafe with live music.
Morro Bay has it all.
If You Go
SLEEP:
There are motels and inns here by the score. Our fave: The boutique Anderson Inn, which offers rooms on the waterfront starting at $269 per night. 897 Embarcadero, Morro Bay; www.andersoninnmorrobay.com.
EAT:
STAX Wine Bar and Bistro: Owned by Giovanni DeGarimore, who also owns Giovanni’s Fish Market and Galley, this wine bar and cafe features small dishes, boards of local cheeses and meats, local seafood and live music. 1099 Embarcadero; www.staxwine.com
The Galley Seafood Bar and Grill: This lively bar and fine-dining restaurant at the Anderson Inn is as popular with locals as with visitors. Local seafood is the focus, with plenty of other options plus a good wine list. 899 Embarcadero; www.galleymorrobay.com
Tognazzini’s Dockside Too: This casual, outdoor café/fish market specializes in fresh-caught seafood and raw, grilled and fried oysters. 1235 Embarcadero; www.morrobaydockside.com
Frankie & Lola’s Front Street Cafe: With a ’60s vibe and a super fresh menu, this is the place for breakfast or lunch. Avocado toast is made with local avocados, and the salmon for the bagels is locally sourced and house smoked. 1154 Front St.; www.frankieandlolas.com
PLAY:
Virg’s Morro Bay Sport Fishing: Half-day sport fishing trips are $65 for adults and $33 for kids. Find out more at http://virgslanding.com/sportfishing.
Georgeanne Brennan is a freelance journalist and author who lives in Northern California.