Indulge in a Bit of Ojai

The namesake of Ojai's Emerald Iguana Inn

We truly love the small Southern California town of Ojai, a good 1 ½-hour drive from our home in L.A. For almost two decades, we’ve gone there for day trips to enjoy the scenic valleys, the small-town feel of the main drag and the best farmer’s market in Ventura County.

But now we’ve finally spent the whole weekend, only to learn that all this time, Ojai has been a lovely, peaceful place to wake up in the morning…and stuff our faces all day and night.

Just recently, we were guests of the Emerald Iguana Inn, a couples-oriented  boutique lodging set in a quiet, residential neighborhood a few blocks off Ojai’s Main Street. The Art Nouveau-style buildings here, set amongst lush, frondy grounds, are a mix of Gaudí, historic California tile and the creative efforts of many local artists; the inn itself, as well as the nearby (and more child- and pet-friendly) Blue Iguana Inn, was designed by local architect Marc Whitman, who specializes in flights of fantasy.

The Emerald’s Acorn Room was ours for two cozy nights during a late-February weekend when it not only rained, but actually snowed. (Sure, it only stuck to the grass and not the street, but still…snow’s a pretty freakish occurrence ’round these parts.) Sadly, we didn’t have much occasion to use our enclosed garden patio, but on warmer days? This would be a beautiful place to relax with a book and a little music.

Rooms here are large with few straight edges, and feature wood-style gas stoves and full kitchens; our bed was as dreamy-soft as the water pressure was strong. The one drawback to a room with shared walls: we were, um, privy to just how much our neighbors were enjoying their weekend. For those of you with keen hearing, know that the inn offers several stand-alone rooms and even a separate vacation bungalow, just 10 minutes outside of town.

Emerald Iguana Inn: our bed in the Acorn Room and the artsy, frondy grounds

The complimentary cold-buffet breakfast served beside the inn’s inviting, palm-fringed pool is certainly serviceable, but you might also want to venture out for provisions. On Sunday mornings, 9am to 1pm, you can eat your way around the Ojai Certified Farmers’ Market, where the entire town seems to gather to visit and buy everything from meats to eggs to gluten-free breads, as well as stunning produce, flowers and handmade crafts.

Or, glory in the splendid bakery case at the nearby Ojai Café Emporium, a mere block from the sexy wares of the Knead Baking Company; while Knead has a lock on presentation, for tasty breakfast treats I veer toward the Emporium in terms of both price and oh-wow-that’s-good factor.

Because of its Main Street proximity, its bright and cozy interior and the parade of local dogs and owners outside, we wanted to love the cappuccino at the Ojai Coffee Roasting Co., but because it was heavy on the milk and very light on espresso…we didn’t.

Treats at Knead Bakery, menu at Ojai Coffee Roasting Co. and bakery case at Ojai Cafe Emporium

My vote for best coffee in town will take you to the nearby community of Meiners Oaks, for a dark, spicy, elegant Mayan Mocha at the Coffee Connection, a beloved local watering hole with a tiny little patio out back.

Nearby, you’ll find the main drag in Meiners Oaks, once the largest oak grove in California and area-famous for being the home of the Krishnamurti Foundation and its idyllic Pepper Tree Retreat. Here, you’ll find a handful of local businesses, a canopy of fine old oaks and pepper trees, and an organic vegan/vegetarian Mexican eatery called The Farmer and the Cook. Run by a husband-wife team of a farmer and a…cook, the menu and scene here is enormously popular with Ojai’s crunchier residents. The front patio has a ring-side seat to all kinds of overalls, bandanna and hackeysack action, and the bakery case has offerings for the gluten-and cane sugar-challenged.

The funky vibe in Meiners Oaks includes organic foods and gorgeous coffee

Nearby, you’ll find another delicious meal at The Ranch House. Opened as a one-room operation in the ’30s and discovered by Hollywood celebrities back in the early ’60s, this quiet, meandering sprawl of patios set beside a fruit and herb garden has made few leaps in cuisine since then; instead, they focus on big, pretty and hearty meals served beside a bamboo-rimmed koi pond and trickling waterfall. At Sunday brunch, we were impressed by the fresh-juice mimosas and friendly service, and especially loved the sausage-and-peppers and the whole-grain “atomic” muffins. Their tasty breads are made in-house, and you can pick up loaves to go at a tiny little bakery door out front.

The Ranch House

For the most elegant, romantic dinners in town, head to the seasonally-focused Suzanne’s Cuisine. Set a little back from Main Street in a fairy-lit Craftsman bungalow since 1992, the food here has been lovingly designed to marry the produce and Asian influences of California with the French and Italian recipes gathered in Europe by chef Suzanne Roll. The menu is huge, you’ll hear Ella Fitzgerald and Tony Bennett on the stereo, and even with a crowd, the dining rooms are quiet enough for conversation. For chillier nights, there are heat lamps on the patio and a fireplace by the garden, a snapshot of California planting.

The cocktail list is big and exciting and the wine list is a trip around most of the neighboring valleys; pair a little of both with the nightly specials, which could be a rich, earthy soup with nine varieties of mushrooms or a light, soft butterfish with pale green tobiko caviar. Roll now shares her restaurant with her daughter and divides her time between Ojai and Culver City, but her focus clearly remains in her kitchen.

Everything at Suzanne's Cuisine is delicious, from cocktails to dessert

For local wine and a sense of the various microclimates in the Ojai area, head to Montgomery Street and visit The Ojai Vineyard‘s tasting room; the winery purchases their grapes by the acre, so each wine reflects an extremely specific and local character. We purchased two bottles of the un-oaked ’07 Solomon Hills Chardonnay, which allowed us to waive the $15 (!) tasting fee.

The Ojai Vineyard's downtown tasting room

If the wine doesn’t entirely remove the big-city stress from your muscles and bones, hand yourself over to the staff at The Day Spa of Ojai. Set in an old stone house off the northern end of Main Street, this funky, trippy haven of relaxation features a little Nordic sauna shaped like a barrel and a series of meditative sitting areas in a big backyard; you can request a couples’ massage out here in a covered cabaña. The digs here aren’t as fancy as the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa‘s on the southern end of town, but you’ll leave smiling, feeling cared-for and rejuvenated…with a bit more money left in your pocket.

The Day Spa of Ojai

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See also
Picturing Ojai
The Ojai Valley