Local Bakeries in Monterey

Tucked into downtown Old Monterey on Alvarado Street, Ad Astra Bread Co. is worth planning your morning around. Chef Ron Mendoza, a James Beard nominee who cooked at The French Laundry, turns organic flour into naturally leavened sourdough over a slow two-day process, alongside flaky croissants and pain au chocolat made with French butter. Watch the bakers through the open kitchen, and arrive early, because the best loaves sell out. About a mile from the hotel.

Just down Munras Avenue from the hotel, Alta Bakery sits inside the historic Cooper Molera Adobe, a two-and-a-half-acre landmark with gardens, an orchard, and a museum. Chef Ben Spungin builds his menu around locally grown, seasonal ingredients: specialty coffee and house-made chai, pastries and tarts, fresh breads, and a cooked-to-order lineup of avocado toast, soups, salads, and paninis. Settle into the garden with a mimosa, or grab something to go. A short walk from The Inn at 1252.

A longtime Monterey institution, Parker-Lusseau brings classic French patisserie to the historic adobe district on Hartnell Street. Their almond croissants have a devoted following, joined by ham and cheese croissants, quiches, financiers, tarts, and some of the best chai lattes around. It is the kind of small, genuinely local spot regulars return to again and again. About a mile from the hotel.