Los Laureles Lodge — Hotel in Monterey

This is an old local place, where old locals go to drink. The food is ok, the decor is dark, and stale and dated, and the ‘restaurant’ service is TERRIBLE...to the point of outright rudeness.

Apparently they still do ok for specific, planned destination events, like weddings, but this is NOT the place to go for a meal. The staff treat guests like a resented interruption. We went with a couple of local friends recently. We all run businesses in the area, and all have booked this venue for professional and private events (like staff retreats or small meetings) in the past. We were first left standing for over twenty minutes in the COMPLETELY empty restaurant arguing with what seemed to be the only staff person there, because he couldn’t find our reservation—and refused to believe that we had made a reservation, or even to accept the confirmation we’d received by email from the owner. When he finally, reluctantly and rudely agreed that we could have dinner, we were told, each time we tried to sit down, all the (completely empty) places we COULDN’T sit—including the place we’d specifically reserved. We finally ended up on the entrance patio by the front door. The ENTIRE EVENING, only one elderly couple came in for dinner, and one harried-looking dad came by, with two or three tired kids in tow, to pick up some take-out. There was, however, a constant stream of older locals coming and going (staggering in and out) from the (somewhat noisy) bar—some of whom had obviously started drinking early, and some of whom had clearly done some front/loading before they arrived.

I was extremely disappointed and put off by the entire experience. And felt badly for the friend who we were celebrating.

I live very close by, and drive past here twice a day, but none of us—or our businesses, or our friends and colleagues—are likely to ever come back. Luckily there are other, more welcoming restaurants in the Village that we’ll continue to frequent.

It’s too bad, though—you can still see that this location would have the potential to be a great, ‘authentic California’ spot (again). But at this point that would take an extensive update (the rooms are REALLY old and ucky), new staff, and new management. And, most importantly, a...

Dear Les, Since our amazing wedding weekend that flew by, way too fast, we have wanted to tell you how wonderful of a time we had and how everything was just perfect. It was amazing to watch you work and I swear on our wedding day that you must have had a couple clones running around. I constantly saw you in so many different places all at once and you were always accessible for any questions, even though we only had a couple as your execution was flawless. You truly made our perfect day go off without a single issue and everyone still remarks about how this may have been the best wedding they've ever been to. As a matter of fact, I'm still bummed that I didn't get back up for more food, it turned out so damn good, that might have been part of why I was crying so much during my speech. Our parents remarked time after time about how wonderful you were and what an amazing service you provide that is far above most venues. My one complaint is that we didn't get a picture with you that night as you will always be a huge part of our special, life-changing day.

I don't know if any of my clients have come to visit or ended up booking anything with you, but I see it as a favor to THEM to attempt to explain how special a place Los Laureles is and how the world-class personal touch puts it over the top. I have worked in several hotels over the years and I've always thought it would be fun to run a truly special property like yours. During the year of planning of our wedding, I kept thinking, wow, they have a perfect venue for so many different reasons, I'd love to duplicate that. It wasn't until after our wedding that I realized, Los Laureles Lodge is on top of it's class not only because of it's physical offerings, but most importantly because of the love and tireless effort you and your staff provide in your service. I doubt it could ever be duplicated. I am so proud we found the perfect venue for our most special weekend and wedding. We will be back soon and I promise I won't shut up about what an amazing...

Super nice staff welcomed us to a clean, warm, wood paneled room overlooking a courtyard. Dated, but very functional room furniture was a sturdy backdrop for excursions to nearby village of Carmel valley village. Dinner at the on site restaurant was tasty and entertaining. The menu and other patrons reflected the hunting lodge vibe with animal heads on the walls and plastic 40 yr old blondes hunting aged game at the bar. Breakfast was served a little late (8 am) for my timing, but consisted of fresh cut fruit, breakfast cake, egg and very good coffee. The highlight of the site was the flora and fauna. Flowers blossomed everywhere. Deer played in the meadow and raptors circled above. Vinnie, the supposed barn cat meowed at the door and I’ve heard that he will keep willing patrons company in their room at night. Great...