North Fremont, Monterey, CA

North Fremont is where Monterey's arrivals and departures happen. The Monterey Regional Airport sits just beside it, along Olmstead Road north of Highway 68, and the Fremont Street corridor is lined mostly with restaurants, produce suppliers and service businesses. Only a handful of homes fall inside the boundary, so this page reads more like a commercial district than a residential neighborhood. Dining here is practical and varied. Sushi by the Bay on Fremont Street is a counter-seat sushi spot run by its chef-owner, and Woody's at the Airport, just outside the boundary on the second floor of the terminal, serves locally sourced American food such as sand dabs and prime rib. It has won a national readers' award for airport restaurants. Monterey Donuts, just across the line, sells buttermilk bars and maple bacon bars, and Tarpy's Roadhouse in nearby Del Rey Oaks does ribs, steak and game. The terminal also has a free deck where anyone can stand and watch planes work the runway, a favorite with plane spotters. Most of the buildings along the corridor are low and commercial, set back behind parking lots. Alaska, American, United and other carriers fly out of here, so a trip somewhere starts close to home and a quick bite before boarding is never far. Public green space inside the corridor itself is thin, and Laguna Grande Park, just over the Seaside line, is the nearest place with hiking trails. Groceries mean the Safeway in neighboring Del Rey Oaks. The area is built for driving, with Highway 68 and Fremont Street as the main routes, and Monterey-Salinas Transit serves the airport. Expect to hear aircraft, since the runway sits close enough that takeoffs and landings are noticeable at times. The payoff in North Fremont is an unusually quick route to a flight and a good lunch before one.