Originally Posted by Gardyloo
I wouldn't skip the Napa Valley either, but I'd do it as a day trip from SFO rather than an overnight.
Not a huge fan of Salishan, but agree no "fine dining" in Yachats (or, IMO anywhere else in the Florence-Newport stretch.)
To be honest, if the OP wanted to cut a day or two out of this itinerary, it could be done easily by peeling away from the coast at Reedsport, taking SR 38 over to the freeway, then north to Portland (or, maybe better, to the Yamhill Co. wine country.) SR 38 follows the Umpqua through a gorgeous canyon for a ways, and is (IMO) the nicest route through the Coast Range to I-5. They will have seen enough beautiful coast on Calif. SR1 and US 101 in Oregon that it won't be that huge a sacrifice to skip the bits north of Reedsport.
There is plenty of great food and lodging in Napa, especially if you can score a res at French Laundry. I'd spend the night there and then cut over to the coast.
I agree that SR38 is a great route, but if you cut over there you miss the parts of the coast with the rocks and great wave action. I'd consider compromising by going through Lincoln City, then taking 18 to 99 and up through the Oregon wine country, but you do miss Astoria etc that way.
I also agree about resturants. Florence has some good ones, Newport some fair ones, and then in Lincoln City you have some pretty good ones: Bay House, Salishan, and Black Fish.