Well, here we are, coasting through another perfect fall, with summer but a hazy, faded memory. So allow me the privilege to revisit, and score the best and worst.
The Best:
The weather, whenever, the cooler, the better. No one should ever complain again about the lack of sun, the marine layer, and the oh-so-frosty nights. While the rest of our planet is incinerating, we have that perpetual cool ocean breeze. July was the hottest recorded month on Earth. Temperatures soared 2.02 degrees above average. But not here, not in the land of magical misty mornings and lazy marine layer afternoons. Did anyone even turn their air conditioning on this summer?
The Taco Stand: Even though we were saddened to see the historic Taco Bell scraped (the last standing monument to drug dealing in the 60s), the Taco Stand takes honors as the best new restaurant. Despite a saturation of Mex, this little chain broke through the clutter of over-priced, bastardized tortilla joints to serve up authentic street tacos and burritos at, well, almost authentic street prices. Plus, it stays open till 10 p.m., as close to all night as we get here.
Rye Goods Bakery: Not only did they bring us a long overdue artisan bread outlet, but their high-quality sour dough loaves are da bomb. Now we can truly claim sister city status with Menton, France – though that Council boondoggle no longer seems to exist, not with the frothing fiscal watchdogs watching every expenditure.
Locals For Laguna Beach: The brainchild of Jason Garza, this “local hub” – and content-rich Instagram page for everything Laguna Beach – makes our town actually look hip, cool and young, despite the fact that those days are long behind us.
More Bicycles: Dare I say we are beginning to resemble a bike-friendly town? Check out the number of high school commuters these days. It’s delightful. But we need more and safer infrastructure, especially in light of the recent tragic fatality.
The Worst:
The Demise of Old School Restaurants: A late-night portobello mushroom taco at Taco Loco was the first thing I ever tasted in Laguna. The cauliflower soup at The Stand was legendary. And baked green mussels at San Shi Go were always a taste explosion. What’s left of our idiosyncratic past, the dives that keep our town funky and distinct? I count Coyote Grill, Dizz’s As Is, Penguin Café, Orange Inn, and Sweetwater Carwash as the only things left. And when they are gone, Laguna will look like La Jolla El Norte.
The Demise of New School Restaurants: OK, some of these closures are spilling into fall, but Suenos, Bonzai Bowl, Another Kind, and Rum Social are alarming signals that our town is either over-saturated with restaurants, the operating costs are too high, or customers aren’t coming because they are either too loud, too expensive or the food’s no good. It’s a tough gig, and retaining good staffers post-COVID is one of the biggest challenges. Speaking of too expensive, Red Dragon’s prices are out of control. Come on guys, we need an authentic Chinese eatery, not soups that start at $16 and go up to $36 (wait, what?), entrees from $30 – $98 (you heard right), and good ole fried rice for $32? I say this with love and respect for one of the world’s great cuisines and comfort foods: we want fast, steaming, affordable family-style platters and pupus, dim sum, egg rolls, giant vats of fried rice, oyster and fish sauce galore, and a noisy, chaotic environment with harried waiters impatient for you to leave. Gourmet Chinese? That’s an oxymoron. It’s not too late to turn things around. You did a beautiful remodel. Now slash your prices in half and watch your gross quadruple.
Music at Bluebird Park. Come on, Arts Commission, why are you serving up formulaic bands when we have musical royalty right here? We should be supporting our own, just as we do with our fine artists. Remember when Jason Feddy did his Beatles tribute, and the crowd went mental? And the same with Great Northern. This year? Neil Young, Elvis, Adele and Doors cover bands? Meh. If we wanted that, we’d go to the Coach House. We’re here to get drunk legally outdoors and go beserker on the dance floor to the music of our friends and neighbors. Why aren’t we featuring hometown hero Nick Hernandez and Common Sense, World Anthem, Rebel Rockers, Salty Suites, 133 Band, Party Foul, Great North and the inimitable Honk? There, I just programmed summer ’24 for you.
No Firepits All Summer: Both the County and our City arbitrarily removed all six firepits at Aliso Beach and didn’t replace them. Last spring, City Council issued a directive to the Fire Chief to return with a proposal to replace some or all of them. We are still waiting, and now, with winter upon us, those beach fires are needed more than ever to provide the cosmic comforts that is a birthright in coastal Orange County. Chief King surely has a proposal. Get it on the docket now!
All in all, there is not much of any real consequence to complain about. Only blessings living in our gilded ghetto by the sea.
Billy is the CEO of La Vida Laguna, an outdoor adventure company, and the host of “Laguna Talks” on KXFM radio – Thursdays at 8 p.m. Email: [email protected].
