"Perched on the wind-battered Sonoma County coast, about 100 miles north of San Francisco, Sea Ranch is an architectural wonder and modern-day utopia built on a single hippie premise: to exist in harmony with nature. Nowhere else in California will you find minimalist timber homes so expertly camouflaged that it's like they sprouted from the very soil itself."
"For decades, Bay Area residents have been making the arduous trek up Highway 1, whether they're renting a home - only 20% of Sea Ranch's roughly 1,900 homeowners live there full time - or seeking refuge at the Sea Ranch Lodge, an inn built with the same vision. There's no TV, and high-speed internet arrived only a decade ago. Shorebirds sailing above miles of coastland is the entertainment of choice."
"The approximately 60-year-old hotel, which serves as a hub for residents and guests alike, reopened its public spaces in 2021 and its guest rooms in 2023 after a yearslong, down-to-the-studs renovation spearheaded by anonymous investors who purchased the property and land in 2018. The Sea Ranch Lodge did not confirm the names to SFGATE, but according to the Wall Street Journal, the buyers included Patrick and John Collison, founders of the payments company Stripe, venture capitalist Robin Chan, and Justin Kan, co-founder of livestreaming service Twitch."
"In addition to its 17 stunning guest rooms, the lodge encompasses a general store, a post office, a cafe, a bar and lounge, and a restaurant that feeds both residents and a constant stream of travelers who stumble in for a bite. The lodge also has a robust events business that has nearly doubled in the past year, according to general manager Kristina Jetton. What's perplexing, then, is how difficult it has been for the Sea Ranch Lodge to sustain an executive chef."
Sea Ranch sits on the wind-battered Sonoma County coast about 100 miles north of San Francisco, built around living in harmony with nature. Minimalist timber homes blend into the landscape, and the area draws Bay Area residents who rent homes or stay at the Sea Ranch Lodge. The lodge has no TV, and high-speed internet arrived only about a decade ago. The lodge reopened public spaces in 2021 and guest rooms in 2023 after a down-to-the-studs renovation completed by investors who bought the property and land in 2018. The lodge includes guest rooms, a general store, post office, cafe, bar and lounge, and a restaurant, plus an events business that has nearly doubled recently. Despite its world-class kitchen, sustaining an executive chef has been difficult.
Read at SFGATE
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