JEREMY THE BLOGGER

Since 2008, this unassuming Italian restaurant has been serving the community of Huntington Beach, CA and the surrounding area, delicious and high-quality masterpieces.  In recent years, they have expanded their dining room with a warm and inviting atmosphere.  Some top recommendations are: Tortellini Spinaci (cheese filled hat-shaped pasta, red onions, fresh spinach and Vodka sauce) and Linguini Pescatore (linguini with Mexican Wild Shrimp, calamari, fresh Venus clams and mussels in a light tomato white wine sauce). Don’t let the generic strip mall where this restaurant is located discourage you from walking in and enjoying a little  slice of Italy.   Like their website mentions, “Let Mona Lisa Cucina experience and mastery in the kitchen, take your palette on a journey to exquisite flavors.”

Located in Point Loma, a community within the city San Diego, CA, is the Pearl Hotel.  Ideally situated one block from America’s Cup Harbor is a perfectly restored mid-century modern hotel which offers a quaint and surprisingly quiet respite from the bustling surroundings.   Originally constructed in 1959 and operating as a sportsman lodge throughout the 1960s, the Pearl Hotel as seen today, was carefully renovated in 2020 to reflect the sophistication of the 1960s with added modern conveniences and style. The boutique hotel consists of 23 rooms surrounding an inviting courtyard pool, which connects with the on-site restaurant and cocktail bar.  Rooms range from cozy spaces (Mini Pearl) to spacious suites (Pearl Suite) and everything in between, offering something for everyone.

This location of Bristol Farms sits directly in Downtown Yorba Linda, next to the vibrant old town and just down the street from the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum.  This is a large store, fairly new, with a clean and modern design.  The staff is friendly and they have a wonderful selection of products, some of which I haven’t seen before at other Bristol Farms locations.  There are some nice looking restaurants in the same center, along with a Peet's Coffee and a fast charger for EVs as well, near the front of the store.

Another housing tract with historical significance in the University Heights neighborhood of San Diego, CA, is the Valle Vista Historic District located in the northeast corner of the area mostly on Panorama Dr., between Alabama and Louisiana Streets. Valle Vista Historic District built between 1908 to 1950, features many different architectural styles such as Craftsman, American Colonial Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival, Tudor Revival, Minimal Traditional and Ranch. This is an easy self-guided walking tour as the neighborhood is mostly flat and has a horseshoe layout with a couple cross-streets. 

This award-winning local San Diego, CA roaster with Filipino roots, has some delicious drinks you won’t find anywhere else, such as the bibingka crème brûlée latte (inspired by a Filipino rice cake, featuring milk infused with Philippine coconut and vanilla bean). According to a May 26, 2022 article in the San Diego Union-Tribune, “Mostra was founded in 2013 by a team of four Filipino American friends…” and “Mostra, the Italian word for “performance,” sources its beans from all over the world, including the Philippines.” The baristas are friendly and take great care in creating these one-of-a-kind drinks and the space for their Hillcrest location is modern and trendy. They have four locations in San Diego county and more on the way!

In the late 1880’s, Corona, CA (founded on May 4, 1886) started with a few hundred acres of lemons and by 1954 was known as “The Lemon Capital of the World”, with thousands of acres of citrus groves as far as the eye could see.   The Corona Heritage Park and Museum encompasses a small portion of the original 1911 land that was once a vast grove of over 2,000 acres of lemons. Today, the property is home to some original structures, along with several other historic buildings that were moved there from various sites around the city of Corona.  There is a museum, antique stores, a rose garden and much more!

In San Diego, CA there is a neighborhood called University Heights, which is located about four miles north of the downtown core.  Within this neighborhood lies four distinct historical districts, featuring homes and commercial buildings dating back as early as 1907 with various architectural styles such as Craftsman, American Colonial Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival, Tudor Revival, Minimal Traditional and Ranch. The first of these districts that I have visited is the Spalding Place Historic District which consists of a few commercial buildings and about ten humble Craftsman bungalows, built between 1909 and 1912.  This narrow and unassuming street hosts a delightful collection of quality homes from the past, many of which have been nicely kept up and restored.  Spalding Place is located one block south of Adams Avenue, between Park Boulevard and Georgia Street.

I have tried an abundance of vegan food over the years and this place is at the top of my list.  A lot of vegan food tries too hard to mimic traditional meat dishes by using overprocessed methods as their “meat”.  Vegan by Zamorano was a refreshing change, utilizing vegetables instead of chemicals for their vegan “meat”.  It’s challenging to find vegan Mexican cuisine, so that made this place all that more special.  According to their website, they “...started as a pop-up restaurant in 2018 with one goal in mind: Providing authentic vegan Mexican food at an affordable cost to the Orange County area.”  Apparently they are Orange County's first and only vegan taqueria. Everything was fresh and delicious, from the salsa and chips, to the housemade vegan nacho cheese, housemade cashew crema and everything in between.   I chose three items on my first visit: The Asada Nachos (chips, housemade vegan nacho cheese, refried pinto beans, vegan asada, pico de gallo, guacamole, red salsa, and