Frenchmans Creek, Half Moon Bay, CA

Frenchmans Creek is a planned tract on the north edge of Half Moon Bay, set inland of Highway 1 around a loop of streets named for French regions, cities and ports. It still reads as one piece. Houses in Frenchmans Creek are detached and mostly two stories, many with shake siding, from the same planning hand. Lots run larger than the city's typical size, and although interiors have been updated over the decades, the outlines and setbacks of the original houses have mostly stayed put. The creek that gives the neighborhood its name runs along the northern edge, with green space left open beside it. The beach is just past half a mile away, and Roosevelt Beach and Dunes Beach are the nearest sand. Along the bluff, the paved Coastside Trail goes about three miles. Farmland and open ground surround the tract, which keeps the area quieter than its address suggests. Dining here means driving a few minutes. Hangetsu Sushi at 2810 Cabrillo Highway North serves a multicourse Japanese meal, and Miramar Beach Restaurant on Mirada Road sits right on the sand with an oceanfront deck. Sam's Chowder House near Pillar Point Harbor is the place people mention for lobster rolls and clam chowder. Coffee means driving south to Granola's Coffee House. Daily life depends on a car. The highway is just west, and the junction with Highway 92 is not far to the northeast. Groceries are at Safeway on Cabrillo Highway North or New Leaf on San Mateo Road, a few miles south, and Pillar Point Harbor, with the Mavericks surf break offshore, is a few minutes north. Distance is the cost. The tract has no shops, and the closest restaurants and groceries are several minutes away by car. It remains one of the few places on this coast built as a single piece, and the curved loop of French street names shows it.