Angling for Seafood in Mission Valley
Plus: Coffee with a Cop Today, Exploring Tecolote Canyon, Mulch Meditations, Foster Kittens Soon Available, and Parks After Dark Continues
Seems like quite a few new restaurants and breweries have been opening up in Mission Valley in the recent past. So fast that we are way behind in trying them out. We decided to have lunch recently at one we have had our eye on for a while called California Fish Grill located at 1530 Camino de la Reina. This is a chain that has locations throughout California, Arizona and Nevada. They were founded in 1998 in Gardena, California. We thought it sounded perfect for pescatarians.
According to their website, they only serve seafood that is rated Best Choice or Good Alternative by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program or Eco-Certified by a third party which are leaders in global marine conservation and educating producers on sustainable harvesting practices. You can read more on the website about how and where their wild caught and farm raised seafood is raised/caught. It is very interesting.
However, we were interested in how their food tastes. The restaurant has a nice vibe. There is inside and outside dining and you can eat in or order to go. They have quite an extensive menu of Grilled Specialties, Cali Bowls, Petite Plates, Classics, Salads, Taco Combos, and sandwiches. Although mostly they serve seafood, thee ae a couple of chicken menu items as well as plant based items such as plant based shrimp and plant based battered fish. They also have starters, soups and kids meals, as well as beverages such as kombucha and coconut water.
I always get confused with a large menu especially when it is up on the wall. We were told to use the kiosks to order our meals and then we would be notified when the order was ready. What made this really easy was each of the items showed very clearly on the computer screen and you could see exactly what you ordered and add any add-ons you wanted. Prices were also very clear. Everything was large enough print for even us more mature folks to view easily. The order process was very easy.
I ordered the Shrimp Skewers from the Grilled Specialties group. I counted about 8 shrimp on each of the two skewers grilled to perfection. I ordered diced zucchini with rosemary and fries as sides. There are several sauces and I selected garlic butter. Everything was so tasty. The fries were seasoned just right and rosemary in the zucchini was aromatic and excellent.
Steve ordered the Keto Shrimp Bowl with Green Goddess Dressing. He didn’t count his shrimp, but there were plenty. It also contained mixed greens, fresh mint, red onion, and tomatoes. It looked so healthy. The shrimp were also grilled and seasoned very well. Steve said it was so filling, he could only eat a few of my fries.
We ate outside in their patio area as it was a beautiful day. There were a good number of people picking up to-go orders. We had no wait and I will say the service was excellent — since it was self-serve.
Today’s community event
Coffee with a Cop this Morning
REMINDER: Linda Vista residents, and residents of nearby communities are invited to attend this morning’s Coffee with a Cop. The event will be held from 9:30 am to 10:30 am in the Linda Vista Library. Representatives from San Diego Police Department’s Western Division will be on hand to answer questions and talk with local citizens. Come and grab a coffee and a donut and join your fellow community members. Hope to see you there.
An LV Hidden Gem
Exploring Tecolote Canyon
By Olivia Teates
As sunny weather is finally rolling into San Diego and “June gloom” has begun to pass, local beaches, parks, and canyons, like the Tecolote Canyon Natural Park in Linda Vista, are perfect places to soak up the sun and savor the start of summer. Spreading across both Clairemont and Linda Vista, Tecolote Canyon boasts not only 6.5 miles of sandy trails and wild shrubbery but also plenty of diverse wildlife and fascinating history, making this hidden San Diego paradise a must-see family destination.
Tecolote Canyon was designated a City of San Diego Natural Park in April of 1978. Prior to this designation, Tecolote Canyon had a fascinating history as the former home of the Kumeyaay natives, who embraced respectful coexistence with nature, harvesting during the natural seasons in the lands in which they inhabited. The canyon has been appropriately named, as tecolote in Spanish translates to “owl,” an animal species commonly found in the canyon.
Tecolote Canyon is not just a hiker and biker’s playground but also a perfect place to learn about the elaborate history of Linda Vista and the nature within the community. A great place to start your exploration of the canyon is the Tecolote Canyon Park Nature Center (open Wednesday - Saturday from 10:00 am - 4:00 pm). At the Nature Center, you can take a walk through time and explore a Kumeyaay village or view some of San Diego’s native plant species. The Friends of Tecolote Canyon host monthly “Arts & Activities” for curious young explorers, as well as “Interpretive Walks” that introduce you to the living species of Tecolote Canyon.
As a high school cross-country runner, Tecolote Canyon’s array of trails is perfect for a scenic jog, specifically Battle Trail, which begins only a few steps away from the Visitor’s Center and spans about a mile. The dirt trail is perfect for a quick bike ride, jog, or family hike, with its minimal elevation gain and gorgeous wildflowers lining the trail. Battle Trail is one notable path, but there are many other trails, all with varying elevations, wildlife, and different levels of shade. Another honorable mention within the canyon is the hike along the westernmost side of the canyon (parallel to the Tecolote Canyon Golf Course), which ends at the shaded forest toward the northern side of the canyon. This route provides hikers with more shade and even boasts several small rivers and streams during colder and rainier months.
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The Linda Vista Update wishes to thank Olivia Teates, our summer intern from Francis Parker School, for contributing the above article and the accompanying photos.
Commentary
Musings about Mulch
Ask someone to come up with a list of things that are constantly underrated in relation to their true value and you’ll often hear things like … a good peanut butter and jelly sandwich, President Harry Truman, a comfortable pair of socks, 7-11 coffee, and perhaps Padres second baseman Ha-Seong Kim. However, after walking around Linda Vista, and having a series of discussions with one local resident, and then conducting some research, I insist one other item should get added to this list. I am now convinced that mulch, that simple mixture of organic waste products, is vastly underrated in terms of the value it can bring to not just our gardens, but also our environment. I dare say mulch does deserves a party to celebrate its value to our society.
It turns out mulch is in dire need of a good publicity agent; someone who can effectively praise the virtues of mulch to the public. Too many people take mulch for granted. And who can blame them, after all, there’s nothing visibly fancy or flashy about mulch. There are several places in Linda Vista where mulch has been employed in large, somewhat prominent areas, and yet I am confident the typical Linda Vista resident has not taken notice of this material and the role it plays in providing us with a more healthy living space.
When speaking of mulch, I mean the mulch that is usually made up of leaves, grass clippings, bark, and wood chips—in other words, lowly organic stuff that is otherwise usually meant to be discarded and disposed. Local residents who own a garden or enhance their yards with attractive landscaping designs surely value how mulch can help things grow while at the same time making their property more aesthetically pleasing. But I am speaking more about the way mulch can be used as an environmental management tool.
As I have recently learned, mulch has several significant environmental benefits. First, mulch helps to keep soil moisture in place, thus reducing the need for more watering. It can act like a sponge to soak up rainfall. Californians are always seeking various ways to reduce water consumption, and mulch is one practical way of doing so. Who doesn’t want a less expensive water bill?
Second, mulch helps with temperature control. It does so by insulating soil, keeping it cooler in summer and warmer in the winter. Imagine if we in Linda Vista could replace large swaths of concrete or gravel with patches of mulch. In the summer, such areas would generate much less heat. We could reduce the effects of Urban Heat Island. In the meantime, the mulch would reduce the amount of weeds and help with the growth of vegetation by adding nutrients to the soil.
Third, mulch can reduce soil erosion by protecting against the wind. It can also slow the speed of water in hilly areas and increase the water infiltration rate of soil.
Fourth, mulch can serve to sequester carbon in the soil, which can help address the effects of climate change.
I would not know all this had I not recently run into Christina Bambino, a Linda Vista resident. She is a graduate of Humboldt State University. She has also more recently received training as part of the UC California Climate Steward Program. This program prepares citizens “to volunteer in activities ranging from community and participatory science, land and water stewardship, environmental justice and civic engagement, and education and interpretation activities.”
She first made me mulch-aware when I heard her speak passionately about the subject at a local community event. She then later took the time to give me her thoughts on mulch and her overall perspective on climate action solutions and community gardening. Finally, a couple weeks ago I attended a community event she coordinated at Carson Elementary STEAM Magnet—a noontime “Mulch Party”-- a celebration that marked the school receiving a truck load of mulch for the Carson Community Living Garden. At this event, I watched as a large truck full of mulch was greeted with cheers! This was the rare occasion in which much underrated mulch received the degree of appreciation it fully deserves.
If it was up to Christina, she would “prioritize our schoolyards, and joint-use parks, to activate creative youth development power, so they are encouraged to start helping our neighbors with more mulch/growing potential,” and she would also look at areas around LV….”The abandoned area between Skateworld and the carwash, the corners of parking lots and public parks, (like at Carson STEAM Magnet) would be great starts for community mulch pickup areas.
I suggest that as LV Update readers walk around the Linda Vista area in the next few days, they take the time to closely scrutinize where a truckload of mulch might be placed. And when encountering an area already covered with mulch, they wave in the direction of the area and say “Thanks, mulch. I appreciate you.”
Foster Kittens Soon Ready for New Home
The two foster kittens we are fostering for the SD Humane Society are almost ready for adoption. Professor Puddings (a male domestic short hair) and Lauren (a female domestic long hair) are getting prepared for their big day. We will turn them back over to the SD Humane Society on July 17 and they should then be ready for adoption the next day July 18 (Tuesday). If you have any questions about them, feel free to drop us a note and we will fill you in on how talented these two are, and how after taking an LV Update-sponsored kitten aptitude test they placed in the top 99th percentile of all kittens available in SD County.
If you want to see what animals the SD Humane Society has available for adoption, you can go HERE.
Parks After Dark Begins Second Weekend
This past weekend, the San Diego Parks and Recreation Department began this summer’s version of its popular Parks After Dark program at the Linda Vista Recreation Center. The program got off to a rousing start with plenty of families participating in the fun program on Thursday, Friday and Saturday night. Kids and adults were happily engaged with a number of activities that included games, arts and crafts, face painting, music and free food.
For a schedule of weekend activities, please go to this San Diego Parks Foundation web page and see what is happening this Thursday, Friday and Saturday night.
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Intern, Olivia, delivered a fine, concise article about Tecolote Canyon & its’ trails. Nice going!