San Diego Metro KOA
Chula Vista, CA
January 15, 2024
I always look forward to market day when we are in San Diego. There are two markets we have perused over the years...both offering a nice variety of locally grown produce, arts and crafts, clothing, and flowers. Both markets also offer a nice variety of prepared juices and foods such as bread, pastas, sauces, sweets, and more. Both markets are always lively and bustling with folks of all ages, wonderful aromas, bright pretty colors and the upbeat sounds of musicians performing on the street corners. Hillcrest opened in April 1997 and these days you can visit their market on Sundays from 9am-2pm. Little Italy Mercato Farmers Market first opened in June 2008 and these days you can visit their market on Saturdays from 8am-2pm for the big market (6 blocks long) or on Wednesdays from 9:30am-1:30pm for the smaller market (3 blocks long).
Our choice this week was a Saturday visit to Little Italy. I have such a good time walking along the sidewalks and taking in all the sights and sounds....sidewalk cafes, store fronts, balconies, trees, fountains and tall buildings make cities such fun places to visit.
A new to me item at the market was speciality mushrooms and there were lots of vendors selling them. I read that the Agriculture Dept. reported the sales from specialty mushrooms grew 32% in 2023. I haven't paid any attention to these strange looking mushrooms that are considered to be part of "other vegetables"...a totally new food group for me. They are considered a hearty meat substitute, low calorie, and can be an important source of nutrients. They caught my eye and my attention so now I just need to learn the differences and find some recipes ! These don't look anything like the small mushrooms I get in the carton at Frys. Mushrooms were not the only thing that caught my eye...
After walking the market we decided to check out El Indio Mexican Restaurant. It's a restaurant that Jeff (whose blog is a great source for yummy places to eat and fun/historical places to explore when in San Diego) mentioned in his blog awhile back that he and his brother visited.
El Indio (The Indian) was founded at the corner of India and Grant Streets as a tortilla factory in 1940 by Ralph Pesqueira, Sr who worked at the airplane factory by night and his tortilla factory making fresh hand made tortillas by day. During WWII, customers from nearby factories soon began asking him for an easy, ready to eat lunch item that they could eat with their hands. Ralph Sr., responded by making the "taquito"...a word he coined meaning "little taco" and the beginning of what we call rolled tacos today. Ralph Sr. passed in 1981, but the family owned business still makes taquitos the same way...hand rolled everyday with a little piece of the tortilla left open to pick up salsa, cheese and/or lettuce...just the way Ralph Sr. made them years ago. I didn't know this piece of history and would have surely ordered the taquito special if I had. Next time...for sure! Ralph Sr. is also credited with "inventing" San Diego's first tortilla machine in his basement. His small tortilla factory was able to increase their quantity of tortillas from 30 dozen a day to 30 dozen an hour...enough to turn his factory into a small restaurant.
Our lunch was fish tacos served with the best refried beans I have ever tasted (and I am pretty picky about refried beans), Mexican rice and corn chips made in house.
They sell bags of corn husks and corn chips and different size containers of their salsas and guacamole to take home.
Seating is inside or patio...they even have a patio across the street and a huge parking lot for customers free of charge.
Thank you Jeff...the food was yummy and I so love the history. It is worth noting that this small family owned "slice of history" has sent care packages to our soldiers while fighting in wars as early as Vietnam. It's long history (83 years) with happy customers has earned the restaurant many accolades and awards.
And we came home with a bag of corn chips and guacamole.
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| Patio umbrellas at El Indio outdoor patio... |
Thru our years of blogging and travels, Joe and I have been fortunate to meet so many great people. After being blogging friends for several years, we finally met Jeff and Fran in person back in 2017. Since that time, we have enjoyed their company quite a few times when we visit San Diego and even once in Tucson. Sunday's outing was a chance to catch up with them. Jeff and Fran planned a meeting for the four of us at Balboa Park for a guided tour of the Marston House Museum with lunch at a nearby (walking distance) restaurant afterwards. What a terrific experience we had as Fran's friend just happens to be a docent at the museum and the four of us had our very own private...take as much time as you need...tour of a beautiful home built in 1905. Our docent was a bundle of energy and so excited to be sharing such a special place and oh my, I could write a book with all the interesting and fun facts she shared with us.
As a quick intro, George Marston (1850-1946) is sometimes referred to as "San Diego's First Citizen". He is recognized for his work as a visionary civic leader, a merchant (Marston Department Store) philanthropist, conservationist, and historic preservationist. He was a leader in the creation of Balboa Park, San Diego's Public Library System, Torrey Pines State Park, Anza Borrego Desert State Park, and the Serra Museum along with Presidio Park. He was founder of the San Diego Historical Society.
Joe and I arrived a little early and enjoyed a walk in the garden. The gardens are listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was a gift to his wife Anna for their 50th wedding anniversary in 1928.
It was a nice surprise to find blooms...pink, red and white camellias, pink, red and white roses, rododendrums, daylilies, and daisies are what I can remember.
The water fountain on the back wall is a focal point in the garden...
And sometimes, I just can't help myself...
The Marston House was designed as the private home for George and Anna Marston and their five children. The Marston's commissioned a prominent architecture firm, Hebbard and Gill, to design what is one of California's finest examples of Art and Crafts Architecture style homes. This home...now a museum...is one of the most important remaining buildings designed by these master architects and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Marston House is located in what we know as Balboa Park...it spans five acres and the home itself is 8,500 square feet. Mary was the oldest child of George and Anna and the last family member to live in this home. She deeded the home and five acres of gardens to the city in perpetuity and held a life estate on the property. She died in July 1987 at the age of 107.
Arts and Crafts Architecture style homes are homes adapted to suit the family's needs. As best I understand, the "Arts" are found in the natural materials, textures, earthy tones and colors, and metals used inside and out.
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| Gorgeous redwood closets at the top of the stairs... |
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| The fireplace in the sitting room... |
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| The library is the only room that has the original seagrass wallpaper... |
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| Beautiful wall lights... |
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| Butterfly (or bowtie) keys are used downstairs to lock in place horizontal boards used on the wainscot wall forming a completely flush detail that is both beautiful and functional. This detail prevents cracks and separation where the two boards join together and allows for the wood to expand or contract. |
The "Crafts" and found in built-ins, a key element in the design style adapted to meet the needs of the family living there. Bookcases, shelves, cabinets are all custom designed and built for specific things the family wanted/needed them for... an example is a cabinet built to specifications to store large rolled up maps at the base of the bookcases in the library that belonged to George who had a love for maps.
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The dining room fireplace and patio doors...
The back wall also had doors that led to the backyard with windows in between. Notice the the detail on the floor in front of the door on the right... |
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| ...all the corners were laid this way. |
In the entrance hall, a built-in bench and a telephone nook are tucked into the staircase.
I could go on and on...the kitchen, the butler's pantry with wooden countertops to reduce noise when food was "plated" for serving, the pantry with a California Cooler, the service porch, the upstairs bedrooms, the upstairs built-in closets and cabinets made of cedar, the bathrooms, the screened sleeping porch, and the gorgeous over-sized pocket doors in the downstairs living spaces and so much more ! I will close with one more little detail...the windows. George and Anna loved bringing the outdoors inside and the home has lots and lots of windows.
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| The staircase... |
And what we found that was so clever...screens were on the inside allowing the windows to be pushed open to the outside and not obtrusive on the inside.
The Marston's had a huge impact on San Diego. And if you have time, George is worth googling and learning about...his family, his home and the way he managed and ran his department store. Today's term "forward thinking" certainly describes him and his family. One third of Mr. Marston's wealth and one third of his time went back to the city of San Diego and San Diego is certainly a better city because of his generosity.
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| Known for his love of ice skating, George was still skating at age 90. |
Our brains were a wee bit overloaded as we walked a couple of city blocks for lunch. Jeff and Fran chose Jimmy Carters Mexican Cafe and what a yummy choice they made.
Inside, the cafe is cozy (with additional outside patio seating), its colorful and fun with lots of choices on the menu. At one time, Jimmy Carter had two restaurants...one an American eatery and the other a Mexican Cafe. He eventually merged the two offering traditional American breakfasts alongside authentic Mexican food dishes. I chose brunch...Jimmy's Skillet...shrimp, crab, mushrooms and chives scrambled with grilled potatoes and hollandaise served with tortillas and a Bloody Mary (not too spicy, just the way I like it).
We all chose something different and we all cleaned our plates...a sure sign we all enjoyed our meals. The best part...sitting with friends.
Thank you again Jeff and Fran. Joe and I enjoyed our time with you and the wonderful morning we shared.
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| Jeff and Fran standing on the sleeping porch taking in the gardens below. |
Back at Belle...Sally makes sure we get lots of walks and that we stop often to enjoy the flowers along the way.
So until next time,
HAPPY TRAILS !
