Of my many favorite spots to stop for a family get together in Carmel, one of them has to be – or at least used to be – Village Corner. Just a great place to go for a good Bloody Mary and a great breakfast.
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Always (Used to Be) Satisfactory
On our most recent trip to Carmel, Village Corner was something of a shadow of its former self.
Through the years, Lauren and I have been there numerous times – by ourselves, with friends, with my sister and with my mom. Although I don’t believe I ever reviewed it, even though everything about every visit was always satisfactory – at the least! This time was vastly different.
Luck Took an About Face
We had started by heading to the Barnyard Shopping Village where I had planned to buy breakfast for Lauren and my sister. Unfortunately, our intended venue – From Scratch Restaurant – was actually closed on Wednesdays. Really? Yep! So we headed back to town and Village Corner for an expected great breakfast and great conversation.
We were in luck and scored a perfect parking place (unusual!) less than a block away from the restaurant. The place was – as usual – very busy. But we got lucky again and were seated on the outdoor patio almost immediately. And that’s when our “luck” took an about face.
Bad Decisions
The always uncovered patio had acquired a canvas top that supposedly could be rolled up or back, to cover the tables, depending on the weather. Why they did that, I will never know. In all the years I had breakfast there a cover was not needed. But one was now in place. Bad decision #1.
The tables had been smashed together so tightly there was hardly any room at all to even be seated, let alone have much room to move or have a conversation of any consequence. It was way too loud. Bad decision #2.
We had ordered the Monterey Bay Calamari Friti as an appetizer, expecting it to be awesome, and calamari in Carmel is – or at least should be – awesome. After all, they get it fresh. This batch was a bit overdone on the outside and underdone on the inside, as well as being a bit on the oily side. Bad decision (by the chef) number three. And it was way too busy to try to send it back to the kitchen and get another order in less time than it takes to build another restaurant.
Unruly and Barking Dogs
The final straw and a major distraction was an unruly pair of dogs ensconced at the neighboring table. Barking was incessant for our entire breakfast. Normal conversation was almost impossible. Now I realize that dogs in Carmel are like bears in the woods: they have every right to be there, and they always have been. Dogs in Carmel are like welcome guests at a birthday party or champagne at a wedding. They have never been a nuisance in Carmel.
Today those two dogs at the Village Corner in Carmel were exactly that : a nuisance. And none of the folks at that table did a thing to quiet those dogs. Or themselves. They were loud, rude and foul-mouthed as a group of rowdy sailors.
Sorry Village Corner. I have my doubts that you will be on my list of places to stop on my next visit to Carmel-by-the-Sea. You have just disappointed three guests and earned 2 ½ Zins for yourselves today. And that is why I say Village Corner used to be a favorite spot.
The Village Corner is located at Dolores Street & 6th Avenue in Carmel-by-the-Sea.
