All-vegan Stanford Inn by the Sea | Whole Life Times — Los Angeles Holistic Health Magazine

Deep relaxation at a back-to-the-land resort

By Abigail Lewis

The road to Mendocino from San Francisco simply will not allow you to obsess about urban woes. Tortuously winding through redwood groves and verdant hills, it insists that you focus on nothing but the scenery and potentially errant oenophiles who’ve had one taste too many at the wineries dotting Highway 128.

But once you arrive at Stanford Inn by the Sea, throw open the French doors and step out on your patio to a glorious view of lush gardens, contentedly grazing horses, donkeys and llamas, and a near-360 of sunset over the Pacific, instant amnesia sets in, allowing you to forget not just the drive, but any lingering concerns from your workaday world.

Perched on a hillside facing the ocean, with the crystalline Big River running along one side of the nine-acre property, the Stanford Inn is that perfect balance of graciousness and homey ambience. Several two-story buildings comprise 41 rooms and suites, all with wood-burning fireplaces needing nothing more than a match to get the homefire burning. Rooms are comfortable and inviting, and the chocolate chip cookies that await you—vegan, of course, as is all food served on site—are delicious.

We must have dawdled too long on that winding road because we arrived too late for dinner in the Inn’s Ravens Restaurant, but a two-minute drive took us to Café Beaujolais, an authentic and delicious French restaurant in town. After a lovely meal we slept deeply that night, the windows of our Big River one-bedroom suite open to the salt air, wisps of flower fragrance drifting up from the gardens.

We were tempted next morning to linger on our private patio, but there’s so much to do at the Stanford Inn that it’s been described as summer camp for adults. We started our day with a quick Jacuzzi and swim in the greenhoused salt-water pool, bougainvillea blossoms strewn gently on the water’s surface; then took bikes (complimentary for inn guests) for a glorious ride along Big River.

After gluten-free waffles and a gorgeous fruit salad at the Ravens (complimentary for hotel guests), we explored the town. Gift shops and art galleries proliferate, and the restored Mendocino Hotel, built in the 1890s, offers a historic respite. We missed the Pomo Indian artifacts at Grace Hudson Museum, but it was fun to explore Ford House Museum, built 1854, now a visitor center for Mendocino Headlands State Park.

We hurried back to Stanford for half-price happy hour and enjoyed a fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice cocktail in the sprawling main house before heading out on a tour of the grounds and gardens with knowledgeable proprietor Jeff Stanford. Jeff and his wife Joan have been pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in eco-hosting for decades, and he is a delightful conversationalist, generous with his abundant wisdom (and colorful history) on a wide range of subjects. He introduced us to chief gardener Matt Drewno, a gardening wizard who oversees a kind of experiment in optimizing soil and seeds. Fully an eighth of the organic produce used in the restaurant kitchen is grown onsite.

The vegan menu at Ravens is legendary, and oh are you in for a treat, even if you’re a carnivore. Resident nutritionist Sid Garza-Hillman, an LA escapee, supervises a menu that is not only totally vegan and 99 percent organic, it’s largely gluten free—even fluffy muffins and bread—with such savory breakfast temptations as Portobello Benedict, Chiliquiles and Citrus Polenta. Chef Sadhana Berkow ensures it is all delicious.

You’ll be amazed at the variety and complexity of flavors in the dinner menu, with nary a ho hum stir-fry in sight. A must-try is their signature Sea Palm Strudel—a truly unique adventure, not for the faint of palate. Also on the menu are small plates, including Dos Tacos Biológicos and gluten-free pizzetta; as well as more complex choices, such as rich butternut squash-filled Winter Ravioli with beurre blanc sauce, and Wild Mushroom Roulade. No worries about sulfites—you can accompany your meal with a glass of organic wine (Ravens is a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence winner) or craft beer. The dining room is spacious and relaxed, but we took the liberty of bringing our Fair Trade tea and chocolate tart over by the fireplace in the dog friendly dining area. Yes, your beloved companion is welcome not only in your room (sweet potato dog treats provided), but also at dinner. In fact, Stanford Inn is a Fido’s Favorite award winner for 2014.

After another sound sleep and hearty breakfast, we were ready for more fun. A shoulder injuryprevented our renting one of the nine hand-carved outriggers available at Catch a Canoe—also a Stanford venture—to explore Big River by water. But we were fortunate to snag a ride from skipper Rick Hemmings and first mate Mitchell Ritter on the eco-solar cruise—a vessel fitted with solar panels, an electric motor and a sail. The river is nearly tropical in color and transports you into a whole other world. My daughter spotted a harbor seal, and sea otters also frequent the brackish water that swirls into—and back out of—the sea. And while Rick knows well how to maneuver the wind and tides, outriggers are heavy and it was lovely to have a quiet, odor-free electric motor to power us back to the dock.

It’s the ultimate unwind to stay in a place that is gentle on the land and recycles radically. For me, little things like not having to agonize about empty plastic water bottles at checkout (If I leave them in the room, will they be recycled?) or what’s in my food (Is this GMO corn?) are a relief. Two days and two nights were a deeply relaxing getaway, but not quite enough time for everything. We’d have loved to try one of Joan Stanford’s art-play workshops, taken a yoga or cooking class or had a massage among the trees. We missed complimentary teatime and had no time for a hike on one of the many nearby wilderness trails. And an afternoon just wandering among the flowers or reading on our patio would have been sublime.

On the plus side, we know we’ll have plenty of new things to experience on our next visit.

—44850 Comptche Ukiah Rd, Mendocino, CA 95460, 707.937.5615. www.stanfordinn.com