I’ve lived in Paso Robles or in the Paso Robles area for about ten years now and I’ve only been into wine for six to seven of those years.
So what can you do in Paso if you’re not into wine?
Surprisingly there is a lot going on in Paso Robles besides wine.
~Beer- Paso Robles is home to Firestone Walker Brewing, BarrelHouse Brewing, and Paso Robles Brewing/The Pour House. All great places but currently I’d say BarrelHouse is my favorite. There’s more beer in the county but I’m focusing on Paso specifically.
~Art- We’ve got Studios on the Park which is a great co-op art studio as well as several other little art studios right downtown. I may be wrong but from my perspective the founder of Studios on the Park, Anne Laddon, has really put art front and center in this community. I commend her for all the hard work.
~Food- A lot has changed in ten years, there are tons of places to eat in Paso Robles. We have high end restaurant, pubs, casual spots, and the tasty hole in the wall spots. Some of these restaurants include: Artisan, Villa Creek, Il Cortile, La Cosecha, Bistro Laurent, Buona Tavola, Los Robles Café, Pappy McGregor’s, Odyssey World Café, Berry Hill Bistro, Downtown Brew, Second Press, The Grill at Hunter Ranch Golf Course, and so on. I know I did not include all of them…but you get the idea.
~Golf- We’ve got Hunter Ranch Golf Course, the Paso Robles Golf Club, and The Links Golf Course. I’ve played at Hunter Ranch and at The Links but I’ve also heard great things about the Paso Robles Golf Club recently. Hunter Ranch and the Golf Club have a restaurant as well. I’m biased toward Hunter Ranch.
~We’ve got the Estrella Warbird Museum (which houses planes, cars, and more), the Pioneer Museum (history of Paso), the old library right in the downtown park, Lake Nacimiento, hiking trails, olive oil tasting, lavender events, the Children’s Museum, the Amphitheatre at Vina Robles Winery, hot air balloon tours, wild flower hunting during the right time of year, marathons, the Mission in San Miguel, Barney Schwartz Park (for a small city this park is amazing), Ravine Water Park, the Paso Robles Event Center which is home to the Mid State Fair along with a ton of other events ranging from a cigar event to equestrian events, and on and on and on.
So you don’t like wine? You don’t have to. I know I am missing a bunch of stuff so feel free to let me know if you’d like but my overall point here is that Paso Robles works for everyone. If you’re a dude that isn’t into wine but your wife wants to come to Paso for the weekend to wine taste no worries…there’s plenty of other stuff to do. If you are a couple with kids and you want to go wine tasting no worries…there’s plenty of kid stuff to do especially if you plan your trip around some of the awesome events we have downtown.
So maybe the tagline for Paso could be: Paso Robles, there is something for everyone.
I just discovered how much there was to do here in the past five years. There is so much to do here one has to choose among events. Studios on the Park alone could keep one busy. My favorite activity is walking among the vineyards and downtown and taking pictures to illustrate my writing. I am one of those who doesn’t like wine, but I love living among the vineyards.
That’s really cool, Barbara, I’m glad you commented. Almost everyone I know is in the wine industry and drinks wine so I seldom get to see the perspective from the non wine drinkers side. Cheers to you and keep enjoying this amazing area!