Trailside Cafe & Beer Garden

Visiting area from out of town, stopped in for a light lunch. Soups made fresh and excellent grilled cheese.

Was a vendor at the Art and Wine festival.
I wanted to get something that wasn’t junk food and stumbled my way into here. I walked right inside and was greeted and helped right away. The menu has a variety of items and has lots of space for small or large groups.
My food was ordered to go, but I wish I could have stayed. Just had to get back to my booth.

They have a pretty cool selection of beers on tap, plus a great variety of bottled beers! A great place to refresh and replenish, I loved the grilled cheese and tomato soup! The onion rings, sliders and artichoke were great as well. Simple food, yet so delicious!

We love this place! The hidden gem of Carmel Valley…
The beer garden is warm in the evening, Great events every night of the week including breakfast for dinner!
The brunch is very good but what has us totally sold was the calamari steak sandwich and the local Ratel Cider that’s on draft! We also met the owner and you can tell he takes pride in his business because everything is very well thought out…

Always delicious fare, wonderful beer selection ! We have followed Sean out to Carmel Valley from Cannery Row. Loving the new location in beautiful Carmel Valley and always a sunny respite from
Peninsula fog.

Not really a destination place. prices are quite high in comparison to so many like places. Service is rather slow and place seems a little broken up. and even though they had a nice band play live music. place had like 10 people on a Saturday night. that doesnt seem too good …

Always stop here for lunch or snacks while grabbing a beer, the food is always good for us. Take out is a nice option as it can get a little «regulars» club inside, and service can be a little desolate, but overall good little joint.

We used to eat often at the trail side in Monterrey. This was my first visit to the Carmel Valley location. I had my go to. Fog lifter coffee, Santa Barbara Benedict and a basket of Beneits. The food was amazing at the old location but the traffic was high and it was inconsistent. This time it was AMAZING. The quality standard is the best I’ve ever had from trail side. This was (no kidding) the best Benedict I’ve ever had. Perfect poached egg and the hollandaise was creamy and delicious. I wish I could give 6 stars.

I always have breakfast at trailside café on a weekend morning and I’ve never had a bad dish. Just finished this morning’s special, tri-​tip Benedict and Elizabeth had the pancake with fresh fruits. We had a basket of fresh beignets to start with (yes it’s our weekend splurge on calories, diet is Monday to Friday). Truly excellent, dog friendly on the patio.
I highly recommend this as one of the great local places in the valley.

We needed a light lunch before heading to a wine tasting. We found a parking spot right in front of Trailside Café so decided to give it a try … although we had read no reviews.
My Cobb Salad was not served in the traditional way. Instead of all the ingredients being in «rows,» it was served already tossed. While that lacked the dramatic appeal, it actually was easier to eat.
DH enjoyed a bratwurst sandwich and fries.
Décor was nothing special. Service fine.
A-​OK (three stars) is probably the best way to describe Trailside. May or may not return. There are several other options in the village; I would just as soon pay a bit more and have more atmosphere and more inventive food such as we find at Corkscrew Café.

Carmel Valley is a fairly small area with limited breakfast options. As a small business, wouldn’t you try to knock your food out of the park to dominate the area? Unfortunately Trailside Café doesn’t deliver in that regard.
For breakfast I ordered off the ‘Lighter Fare’ menu and got the Yogurt with Fresh Fruit and Granola. The yogurt options were plain or strawberry, I went with the plain. The yogurt, granola, and fruit were just okay. Nothing memorable.
I also ordered the Café Mocha to get a little pep in my step. The Café Mocha with double espresso shots was delicious. Definitely recommend!
Ultimately I think this café has a lot of potential but should instead specialize in something specific to the area (healthy options, acai bowls, etc.). Overall, everything was just a-​okay.

Definitely would give this establishment a ⁴⁄₅ for their service and food. I went on a Monday for brunch and it was pretty empty, but I’m guessing because it’s an off season for the big sur/​Carmel valley area.
A little more in depth for those who want more:)
Service ⁵⁄₅ — waiter was super attentive and we didn’t wait long to order. He made sure our waters and coffee were always filled to the top.
Food ³⁄₅ — We ordered the Tofu Scramble (Vegan) and the Steinbeck Omelette, coffee and pure squeezed orange juice. Food was priced a little more on the higher end but probably since it’s a touristy town.
— Tofu Scramble: great presentation on the plate and came with fresh fruits and an English muffin. As far as taste, it was pretty good but seemed a little bland. It’s the only vegan/​vegetarian option on the menu
— Steinbeck Omelette: omelette was stuffed with the perfect proportions of mushrooms and spinach, topped with goat cheese and served with potatoes and bread. It was well portioned for breakfast and I LOVED how well the omelette was made as it melts in your mouth. The potatoes were alright, a little hard. DEFINITELY RECOMMEND THE STEINBECK OMELETTE.
Overall, if you’re in town for brunch, definitely stop by.

I’m a regular here, and every experience has been a good one. Familiar faces, always good food and new menu items, awesome beer selection, and great service. Love this place!

Great Place to watch football, basketball and sports in general. We visit this area several times a year. This pet friendly place is our favorite when touring the Carmel Valley wine country. It’s well worth the lovely 10 or so mile drive up the Carmel Valley through the ranches and vineyards. Rustic interior and nice cozy ambiance in the evening. There’s a cool giant tree slab bar at the rear with about a dozen craft beers and a nice selection of local and California wines. They have a sunny patio out front and a beer garden with entertainment in the rear of the restaurant. The back wall of the restaurant has a huge very cool topographical map of the Carmel Valley and a large flat screen for sporting events (see pictures). Their snacks and happy hour menu are great after tasting some local wines. There’s also a tasting room next door. Very convenient!
We’ve had breakfast, lunch, and dinner at this place so here are our favorites: breakfast favorite is their eggs benedict (they make it several ways including vegan) but our favorite is classic style. The hollandaise is the best. Lunch favorites are the Cobb Salad and Smoked Turkey sandwich. Dinner favorites are the Fish Tacos, very fresh fish with a nice slaw dressing. Our absolute favorite is Steak Frites. Perfectly med-​rare hanger steak and thin French bistro style fries with a wonderful béarnaise dipping sauce. You don’t get it any better in Paris! We’ve always found the service to be prompt and courteous. Besides great food, the portions are good and the prices are a great value compared to the other places in Carmel and Carmel Valley.
We’ve recommended Trailside to several friends and always gotten positive feedback!

Ordered our meal and asked about beers on draft. Waitress said she would be right back with a list. Waited and waited. Finally had to get up and ask for it. She had completely forgotten it. When it came the draft beer was warm and so was the salad. The tuna melt was very good. Wait staff inattentive and forgetful. We asked for extra sauce for tacos and waited and waited. Finally she asked if we still wanted sauce after noticing it was still uneaten.
This place has potential but it will take attention to customer service for it to survive. Can’t believe an owner would turn over a restaurant to such poorly trained staff. It wasn’t even very crowded and service was poor. Can’t imagine they could handle a crowd.
I’ve never written such a critical review. I hope the owner reads this and corrects the problems. I’d like to see this place make it as they have a nice location and menu.

I so wanted to love this place! Their menu looked fantastic, it’s close to some great wine tasting rooms and the ambiance is relaxed for a weekend brunch. I was really disappointed with the food and the service. We were seated immediately and took our time to order (their brunch menu is expansive and it’s easy to get distracted from what you were originally thinking of). Our group of four ordered the crab benedict, french toast, huevos ranchero and I initially wanted pancakes with a side of sausage but saw their trailside combo which was a better option for me. I should have just stuck with the pancakes.
People, their pancakes are AMAZING! This is the only reason that this place is getting any stars at all!
The crab benedict didn’t taste fresh, the huevos were slathered in cheese, the french toast was too sweet, the eggs were overdone and the pork sausages were rubbery. Nearly all of us had an issue with our meal (two of the four had to be returned). We got some attitude from the waitstaff and unfortunately, this just wasn’t the best experience. If I had to go back, I would definitely order the pancakes and bacon; and leave it at that. However, with so many other great brunch spots in the area — I will probably try something else.

I dreaded coming back here but my kids wanted to take their dad to lunch for Father’s Day.
Again, ridiculously and painfully slow service and long wait for food to arrive. Food arrives and something as simple as a request for salad dressing on the side comes out wrong and must be sent back. I asked for Dijon on my sandwich and, Lo and behold, there it was. A good thing. But they also brought a ramekin of Dijon and charged me 50 cents for it. The «turkey breast» was that slimy processed garbage they probably bought at the gas station across the street.
The owners really need to pay attention to what is going on in their restaurant. It is a pleasant space, and I’m sure a big investment. But by understaffing the kitchen and not staying on top of employee performance, food quality, temperature and flavor it is all just a waste of space.

Trailside Café is the perfect spot for an afternoon snack or refreshment!
I was dying to try this spot after seeing pictures of their tater tot nachos, and it was definitely worth the wait! What could be better than a bed of tater tots smothered in melted cheese, sour cream, jalepenos, along with a healthy dose of black beans, Pico and avocado? Is this Waffle House west? No, this is better.
We were also happy with the Tri tip sliders and Nani’s choose-​your-​own-​adventure Mac n’ cheese, with options of four types of cheese, jalepeno, spinach and bacon or portobello and carmelized onions.
Whatever you’re in the mood for, if you’re in Carmel Valley Village you can’t go wrong with Trailside Café!

I had my first lunch with my older kid here and it was a good experience.
I liked their tots nachos, also their daily soup was great.
My son tied their burgers and he said it was delicious.
I like the place design and I took some photos I hope that it will give you some idea about the place.
The outdoor area was also nice.
I think this place is a great addition to Carmel Vally village and it worth a visit.

Mother’s Day, arrived at noon. Lots of available tables inside. Long story short: the high tables are TOO high for dining. The WAIT for food was LONG — 45 minutes for two (really tasty) eggs benedicts (fresh crab and smoked salmon with spinach) and some pancakes with a side of (thrown into the fryer charred Safeway breakfast sausages). Friendly and apologetic server, but why such a long wait?
Probably need more cooks in the kitchen.

A beautiful Friday afternoon led to a most disappointing dining experience.
The service was so poor at one point I had to go in search of the waitress to get a glass of wine.
Then half way through my very mediocre salad I bit down on a rather large piece of gravel. I pointed this out to our server expecting that the manager would be out to apologize and comp. my lunch. Instead I was told that since I had eaten half the salad the manager would discount the price of the salad by half. I was shocked and asked if I had the gravel in bite one would I have not been charged for the salad at all? He didn’t seem to care. It’s not the $ 6 that bothered me as much as the complete lack of concern for the customer or embarrassment of having served food laced with gravel.
Needless to say I will not be back. Truth be told the first half of the salad was so forgettable I would not have returned anyway.