South Park Stories
As quickly as the past several years of gentrification took over South Park, one problem lingered: access to organic produce. Crack parks became dog parks, empty buildings became restaurants and restaurants became fusion restaurants, and …
With crêpes, quiches, coffee and no shortage of charm, Café Madeleine gives Francophiles in South Park a destination to aim their morning strolls. The classy little shop pays attention to the small details while catering to the big picture; namely, that locals needed this sort of adorable little outpost to catch up with friends over light fare and hot beverages.
I’ve been spending more time in South Park since my friend Mellie moved from Venice Beach to South Park central, right on Fern Street. One recent evening, Mellie invited David and me to dinner at …
On Wednesday, February 19, what seemed to be an attempted dog-napping at Grape Street Dog Park was thwarted by park regulars, who stopped the would-be perpetrator in the parking lot. More than one eyewitness claimed …
On February 12, the Golden Hill Planning Committee unanimously voted to deny support of a proposed extension of the Balboa Golf Course clubhouse. All present members of the community advisory group took issue with the …
It had been a frustrating day so far — putting out work-related fires and waiting around for a plumber for actual water issues; before I knew it, it was 3 p.m. and neither David nor …
On January 9, the City of San Diego’s Development Services Department issued a notice of site development at the corner of Granada Avenue and Fir Street in South Park. Within days, dozens of nearby residents …
I'm not above a little light reading before dinner. So when the menu at Brabant — South Park's newest Belgian theme restaurant — opened with a list of recommended food and beer pairings, I embraced …
I tend to be averse to sweetening food that's meant to be savory, so I've long put off visiting Eclipse since it moved in to South Park last year. William Gustwiller's confections are unquestionably delicious, …
Agents of the U.S. Marshals Service raided a house in South Park on Wednesday January 15, at 4:30 p.m., arresting at least one occupant and detaining two others while they searched the house. Ten armed …
A woman with a gun robbed a coffee-kiosk tip jar in South Park Tuesday, January 14, at approximately 9:50 a.m. Armed with what appeared to be a black semiautomatic pistol, a woman driving a two-door …
South Park easily claims the title of my dog's favorite neighborhood. It's home to her favorite dog park, pet shop and bar (Hamilton's, naturally). It's also where to find her favorite mid-walk water dish – …
Photographs deceive from the virtual walls of restaurant website image galleries, or the constructed space of press releases, providing would-be guests with a virtual tour of a restaurant’s interior. Enhanced colors create an extra lustrous …
For many residents of Golden Hill and South Park, the fight to dissolve their maintenance assessment district was long, hard, and expensive. In 2011, more than four years after filing a complaint against the city, …
I worked in retail as a teenager. Holidays were hell — long lines, grouchy customers and insane messes to clean up. I haven’t set foot in a mall on Black Friday, or within the month …
Open House: Vista’s Mother Earth Brew Co. has done some major expanding and upgrading at its original brewery, which has necessitated them closing off its tasting room. Come in for a long overdue brew and …
Beer & Cheese Pairing: Equal opportunity artisan Peter Zien, the brewmaster at AleSmith who is also working on opening his own dairy project called CheeseSmith, will drop in to Encinitas Ale House to pair some …
Chargers vs. Redskins Sour Brunch: The Chargers appear to be on the right track. Catch this case of lightning in a bottle along with glass after glass of tart, tasty sour beer from a board …
I didn’t know sheep had rectangular pupils. I guess I’d never gotten close enough to notice. But there they were, pleading up at me as I held the animal’s head and torso in place over …
Hundreds of costumed bicyclists rode along South Park streets on Saturday, September 28, during Tour de Fat, New Belgium brewery’s celebration of beer and bikes. The Colorado brewery is taking this festival to 12 cities …
Already known for a menu informed by a free association of tastes, Alchemy continues to maintain the element of surprise by offering shrubs. No, not the kind arranged, designed, and sold by Monty Python’s medieval …
On any given night in numerous San Diego neighborhoods, you can find an open mic night hosted by a local coffee house. I am a tad obsessed thanks to an experience years ago at a …
Ever seen the South Park trees wearing colorful banded crocheted sweaters and wondered who did that? I've unraveled the mystery! I was downtown with my Nikon shooting Comic-Con attendees and came across a slew of …
My friend Mark’s biggest pet peeve is the existence of beautiful women with tattoos. “I just don’t understand why all these pretty girls are covering their bodies in tats,” he said in frustration after spotting …
South Park artist paints love in many forms, dishes on the Camino de Santiago and The Real World San Diego.
Interview with Encinitas resident Nathan Young about his storytelling showcase called VAMP, held at the Whistle Stop in South Park.
Alchemy's Ricardo Heredia, Noble Experiment's Anthony Schmidt, and the U.S. Grant's Jeff Josenhans share their glass art.
I found Bianca Poletti enjoying the San Diego weather while sipping tea outside Rebecca's Coffee shop in South Park. The 26-year-old recently moved to Seattle where she works as a visual merchandiser for the popular …
Heymatt: Why in the world does 30th Street morph into Fern Street between Juniper and Ash streets? Not only that, 30th doesn’t disappear during its run as Fern but actually continues as an entirely separate …
Ours was a normal little enclave affectionately referred to as our South Park “Hood”. It was really like any other small community, an up and coming neighborhood, home to all sorts of folks, of all …
Makeout Weird helps bridge the gap between new media at UC San Diego and down-and-dirty experimental performance in the real world.
Judy the Beauty on Duty’s Big Kitchen serves a big breakfast in South Park.
Rose Wine Pub in South Park caught my attention when it opened about 16 months ago. It was a holiday walkabout night and the cozy bar, which seats about 30, was standing-room only. Wanting to …
The menu of Alchemy has expanded considerably since I first ate there after its opening, and the restaurant has become a South Park neighborhood favorite. Of course, there’s not much else to eat in the …
South ParkWednesday, February 168:45 p.m.The sign painted on the building reads Delicious Food, Great Beer, Philanthropy, but I won’t notice this until I leave. For now, I dart from my car into South Park Abbey, …
It’s just a truck. A big white square food- wagon outside a bar. But look at its chalkboard menu: Local wild halibut, side of ceviche tostada, $4.75 Mandarin salad — local Satsuma mandarin, roasted local …
It was 8:20 p.m. on a Wednesday in mid-October. Over 100 San Diegans were wedged into the Whistle Stop bar in South Park, listening to marketing guru David Lecours, the emcee for San Diego’s ninth …
Established in 1979, the bar on the corner of 30th and Juniper went defunct for a decade in the ’90s and reopened as the Whistle Stop during the summer of 2001 in the heart of …
"You don’t know us, but we know you,” the text message read. “You are one of the selected few.” The message, from a Mr. Smith, gave the location of a South Park wine bar where …
Sorry, Carla. I’m in love. With Madeleine. Whoever Madeleine is. It’s Thursday morning, South Park, the sun’s coming and going, but that’s okay. Here on the dogleg between Fern and 30th, life feels good. You …
San Diego's Development Services Department wants to tear down some of the restrictions built into the City's Land Development Code. Among the bundle of changes included in the department's update are regulations dealing with “companion …
"Are you seeing another woman?” It’s Carla, on the cell. “Sweetheart, corazón, what da heck makes you ask that? Seriously.” “You never come straight home these days. You’re always calling from a different place.” She’s …
Twenty people attended District 3 city councilmember Todd Gloria's latest community coffee klatch on August 14 at Grant's Marketplace in South Park. (Contrary to what the photo suggests, alcoholic beverages were not served.) Gloria spent …
1:43 a.m. I wake up. My dog is pacing, wants out. She's standing with her head cocked, listening at the open window. I listen too. There is splashing coming from the back yard. I feel …
Ain’t it funny how things happen in strings? Maybe that’s what string theory’s all about. But one week after chew-chewing gourmet burgers downtown at Neighborhood, I’m being tempted by another hip joint (heh-heh) that sells …
“Life’s too short to drink crappy beers,” says Todd. He’s sipping on his Allagash Black, a dangerous-looking high-octane brew from Maine. But most of the 27 microbrewskis on tap behind the bar we’re sitting at …
In July 2009, members of the Greater Golden Hill Maintenance Assessment District (MAD) convinced a majority of city councilmembers to cut fiscal year 2010's assessment in half, preventing the collection of new assessments until existing …
“Real pizza?” says Jeremiah. “The first five years I was out here, I had it flown in from New York.” Good Lord. Some guy in South Park is having his pizzas flown in from the …
Alchemy doesn’t turn lead into gold, but its kitchen does turn good ingredients into palate-pleasers. Open seven months and well populated since Day One, it was bound to be a hit, given all the starving …
Saturday, June 27, was a sad day for Cindy Funkhouser. It was the day she was to host a memorial service for her grandmother at her South Park residence, near the corner of 32nd Street …
Not long after the monthly meeting of the Greater Golden Hill Maintenance Assessment District began on Monday, July 6, committee member John Kroll read a prepared statement to the 40 or so residents that sat …
At a March 2 meeting of the Greater Golden Hill Maintenance Assessment District, members of the MAD Advisory Committee objected to a proposal by the Greater Golden Hill Community Development Corporation (GGHCDC) to use nearly …