10 Tips for a Puerto Nuevo Lobster Run

“Three Lobsters for $16!”

My friend and I were wandering the dusty narrow streets of Puerto Nuevo hearing offers left and right from a score of men trying to lure us to their restaurants. $16 was the best offer we had heard so far. The clincher was not the included promise of beans, tortillas, chips, salsa, and tomato soup, but the one free margarita or cerveza to go along with the meal.

My friend and I used to go on an annual lobster run south of the border and taco runs more frequently until the drug violence and kidnappings reached a fever pitch in the late 90’s. Since that time, we had talked wistfully about returning but never did. Until last year, when we walked across the border to good Old Revolution for some tacos and beer and to see what had changed.

A lot.

There were fewer American tourists not of Mexican descent there than in the 90s. The restaurants and bars were relatively empty during our day trip. But the cheap beers and delicious tacos had remained the same. After this trip, we felt good about driving to Puerto Nuevo. It helped that each of us had coworkers recently visit with nothing but good things to say about their experience.

In the end, we were served more delicious lobster than we could possibly eat, ate fresh paletas for dessert, saw great sights new and old, and met many friendly people.

There are a number of things that you can do to help ensure that your trip is successful:

1. You need a passport or a PASS card to visit Mexico.

2. You need to buy Mexican insurance before you leave the United States and keep it in your car during your trip. You can purchase it online or at a few places in San Diego.

3. Drink bottled water – never tap water - or risk Montezuma’s revenge.

4. Check to see what your cell phone plan covers in Mexico. With my Verizon Unlimited Plan, I was surprised to hear that calls and data were covered in Mexico.

5. Map out your trip before you go to Mexico, making copies to keep in your car in case you lose cell service. We indicated our destination as Villa Ortega’s in Puerto Nuevo.

6. If you do use your phone, driving apps are great albeit a little tricky as the streets in Tijuana seemed purposefully confusing.  Waze did not work for me once across the border. However, Google Driving Directions did. It really was a lifesaver when we missed our first turnoff after crossing the border and found ourselves deep into Tijuana where I’m sure few Americans ever venture.

7. Take the toll road. It is faster, smoother, and feels safer.

8. Once in Puerto Nuevo, just know you will pay for parking. The streets are few and narrow and are a pain to drive.  Save yourself time and frustration and pay for parking in one of the first lots you see.

9. There are lots of lobster restaurants in town, all with different specials. Villa Ortega’s has multiple locations throughout the town as they claim to be the original. We ate at one of these.

10.. A second option on crossing the border on the way back is to cross at Otay Mesa. It usually can save you a bit of time.

Have fun!

Religion, Vegans, and Macs: LA Coffee Shops March

Religion, vegans, and Macs were what I found during my March coffee shop excursions. I am constantly surprised by the uniqueness of the Los Angeles coffee scene. See below:

Holy Grounds Coffee and Tea

Serenity Now

Holy Grounds Coffee and Tea

5371 Alhambra Ave.

Los Angeles, CA 90032

Serenity. This coffeehouse has a very Zen-like courtyard with a large stone fountain and hummingbirds buzzing around the flowers. Religious icons were placed throughout the courtyard including statues of Mother Mary, a golden Buddha, and a fertility goddess. There was even an area for tarot card and tea leaf readers. Very tranquil. Oh, and they also serve a good mocha and pastries from local bakeries. They also have a small lunch menu. Good place to work.

No Animals Harmed Here

The Butcher's Daughter

The Butcher's Daughter

1205 Abbott Kinney Blvd.

Venice, CA 90291

This place surprised me as the daughter is a butcher of vegetables - a total vegan establishment.  Inside was bright and airy with a central island where baristas worked and patrons sat around eating their butchered veggies and/or drank excellent coffee. They also have another counter for to go orders in case you want to take your beverage with you as you stroll along the shops on Abbott Kinney. Definitely a unique establishment.  I listed it under my coffee house visits as that is why I came - for the coffee, but it is more of a café with wait staff and reservations for the tables, so not necessarily a place to sit and write all day.

Groundwork Coffee

Hollywood Grab and Go

Groundwork Coffee Tea Community

1501 N. Cahuenga  Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90028

Across the street from CNN headquarters and cat a corner to Amoeba Records, Groundwork Coffee is at the gateway to Hollywood. It is only two blocks south of Hollywood Boulevard and is very busy with people coming and going. It is a good place to grab a coffee and head out to visit the local sites or have a quick lunch. The plates from the brunch menu looked very good as did the big cinnamon rolls.  All of the street parking, even on the small side streets, is metered at $1.00 per hour.

Mac Life

Found Coffee

1355 Colorado Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90041

Nice clean open coffeehouse. Chill jazzy music was playing low. The crowd was predominantly Occidental College students. And anyone on a laptop, was on a Mac. There was not a single PC in the place. Considering the décor was predominantly white with blue seats, I wondered if there was a connection. For food, they sold a number of pastries.

Found Coffee

Off the Beaten Path: Coffee Shops February

Los Angeles had a whopping .03 inches of rain in February. That's right, not even a half inch for the entire month!   Taking advantage of the beautiful weather, I visited a coffee stand in Griffith Park and walked across the border to Tijuana and found a really nice coffee house there.

Enjoying the sun in Mexico

 

Nice little find

Tierra Mia Coffee

5528 Monte Vista Street

Los Angeles, CA 90042

Quaint coffee house in Highland Park that makes a very good Mexican mocha.  It is in the middle of a residential neighborhood with a small Mexican restaurant next door that has good Yelp reviews. An off the beaten path little gem.

 

Only in no rain
The Trails Cafe

2333 Fern Dell Drive

Los Angeles, CA 90068

It is hard to beat the location being in the center of Griffith Park. You are surrounded by trees, across the street from the trail to the Griffith Park Observatory. While called a cafe, there is no indoor seating. It is really more of a stand with a few  sandwich items and snacks, and lots of coffee choices. Perfect for a caffeine pick me up before or after a hike.

 

International stop
D'Volada

Calle Ignacio Zaragoza 1692

Zona Centro

20000 Tijuana, B. C.

Mexico

American-style coffee shop with good coffee, pastries, and smoothies. It is a nice respite  from the hustle and bustle  of the tourist area of Avenida Revolucion. Interesting chairs, some small some big and plushy, with outdoor seating for taking a load off and people watching. I had a delicious Mexican Mocha (in Mexico).

 

Dragons, Bruce Lee, and Red Lanterns, exploring Chinatown

The heart of Los Angeles' Chinatown is packed with restaurants, stores and art galleries in a two-block square area.

From the Chinatown architecture-inspired Gold Line station walk one block west on College Street to North Broadway. The Dragons Gate is a long three blocks south on Broadway. If its daytime there are a number of Chinese shops and mini malls to wander through along the way.

  

The heart of Chinatown lies to the north between College and Bernard Street and Hill and Broadway. As you head north on Broadway make sure you look to your right between the buildings that make up Blossom Plaza for the rows of red lanterns strung between the buildings. They are beautifully illuminated at night.

Halfway up the block will be a stoplight and crosswalk that leads to Chinatown Central Plaza. Here you'll find souvenir shops, herbal stores, a jazz club, bakeries, the Bruce Lee statue, Chinese-style buildings and other interesting things to see.

Most of the Chinese restaurants are outside the plaza on Hill or Broadway. We ate at Full Moon House which I am happy to say states no MSG on their menu. Our dinner of honey walnut shrimp and seafood fried rice was delicious.

General Lee's in the plaza is an interesting two-story craft bar with a wooden interior giving it an old school Far East feel. For Chinese New Year they had a tasty Year of the Dog drink.

Across Hill is Chung King Court and Road. Painted on the side of the Foochow Restaurant on the corner is a note about how they were a filming location for the movie Rush Hour. The buildings and signs surrounding the court and road seemed a bit more run down than the central plaza across the street. However the businesses in the old storefronts are now primarily art galleries, studios and design companies. It was a very interesting contrast between the old and new. Most of the art galleries are open from noon to 5 p.m. during the later part of the week and weekends.

Central Plaza architecture

One of the last places to close for the evening that is not alcohol related is Lollicup, a boba tea, ice cream, late-night snack type of place. It closes at 11:00 PM. I thought the ice cream was good and found the seating area with its number of mismatched adornments interesting.

Important note 1:  Keep in mind that most of the stores in Chinatown close by 6 or 7 except during special events like Chinese New Year, so go early if you want to shop.

Important note 2: The Gold Line and Uber make it very easy and inexpensive to reach Chinatown if you don't want drive and hunt for parking. The Gold Line station makes for a great starting point for your excursion.

 

Great Day Santa Monica

Santa Monica is an amazing place to visit for a day or a weekend. From the pier, amusement park rides, 3rd Street Promenade, movie theaters, restaurants, street performers and of course the great sandy beach, there's something for everyone.

 

Everything is close to each other with parking structures throughout the area. We parked in Lot 6 on 2nd street: free first 90 minutes, then $1.00 for every hour thereafter. Not bad if you're headed out only for a few hours.

 

Restaurants run the gamut of cuisines and price. As my son and I were eager to get to the pier, we stopped for a quick bite at Stefano's Pizzeria. They primarily sold pizza by the slice, which I'm sure is one reason why there were a number of high schoolers here. Their outdoor tables are also great for people watching as it was right on the corner of Arizona and 3rd.

From here we walked south on the Promenade past the dinosaur statues, stores and a street magician then through the Santa Monica Place open air mall.
 

Then we joined the throngs of people and headed to the pier on this glorious sunny 75-degree January day. From the top of Ocean Boulevard you have to walk down a long ramp to the pier itself. At the top of the ramp were two sets of street performers. One set was a pair of guys wearing a Trump mask and the other a Kim Jong-un mask who were posing for pictures with tourists. The other was a music dance troupe.

 

On the pier is the historic merry go round, restaurants like Bubba Gump Shrimp, lots of vendors and musicians. I particularly enjoyed watching two young women sing while their father played a ukulele. There were also fishermen on the pier and people swimming in the water. From the pier, are great views of Santa Monica beach and Malibu to the north. Looking south is Venice Beach  and the hill of Palos Verdes.

 

After walking to the end of the pier and passing a sign that said "66 End of the Trail",  we headed back to the car. We stopped at an intranet coffee shop and picked up a good smoothie for the hour and a half long drive to go 15 miles back home. Traffic from Santa Monica to anywhere in L.A. after 4:00 is a tough.

 

A great day out in Santa Monica!

Venice Beach Highlights

With its live performers, artists, stores selling everything from sunglasses to t-shirts to Egyptian artifacts to marijuana dispensaries, Venice Beach is like a carnival where you can spend an entire day.  For the athletic, you can rent skateboards, surfboards, bikes, roller skates and more. This post will help you hit the highlights of Venice Beach even if you only have 3 hours to spend.

Free parking is available on Venice Way a couple of blocks away from the beach. A block closer and lots charge $20 for day parking.

We ate lunch at Great White on 1604 Pacific Ave. across from the street sign over Windward Ave. that welcomes people to Venice. From the outside tables
you can watch people standing on the corner taking pictures under the sign, like a young woman modeling in a red dress as a couple of guys stood by and watched. The food is amazing. I had the coco salad with salmon that was superb. 

From here we strolled under the Venice sign on Windward Ave. to the beach and boardwalk passing a great mural of Venice in the 50's. Venice Beach is filled with amazing street art. Make sure to look down each side street and alley as well as on the upper stories of buildings as you never know what you will see.

Cutting across the boardwalk we passed through graffiti palm trees to watch skaters in the skate park just to the north of Windward Ave. Even though I skated a little in my youth, I never learned how to keep your skateboard on your feet when you were in midair like these skaters.

Then we crossed the broad sandy beach down to the blue-green ocean, kicked off our shoes and walked in the shallows of the cold water heading north.  We cut back across the sand to the boardwalk when we reached the northern end of shops and walked south.

Temporary street vendors, performers and artist line the western edge of the boardwalk while storefronts and restaurants line the eastern side. As mentioned, you can find almost anything for sale here, a wide variety of food, and lots of handmade street art.

Make sure to check out #1 Bordello Alexandria house on Westminster Ave. a half block east of the boardwalk. It is a two-story purple painted house covered with Greek and Roman statues, gargoyles, paintings and wrought iron grill work. It is one of the coolest houses I have ever seen. 

We had arrived at Great White at noon and we're in our car and headed home by 3:00 pm. It was an amazing three hours.

If you have an extra 20 minutes, head south of Windward 3 blocks and check 

out Muscle Beach as it is an iconic location if you want to see heavily muscled bodybuilders.