Cafe Japengo

Japengo used to be the hot La Jolla singles spot for Thursday night. And luckily it is not anymore, because that means I can enjoy going an ANY night of the week without fear of running into throngs of hoity-toities.

This Asian restaurant with a Japanese emphasis is located beneath the Hyatt La Jolla, just between the University Town Center mall and Interstate 5. There is a valet parking lot and attendant at the door, or you can usually find street parking on the street before turning into the lot.

Ask for a booth, the screens that divide the booths make for an intimate dining experience. Up to 5 can fit in a booth – they’ll pull a chair up on the end if you ask.

Pretty much everything on the menu is good. The sushi rolls are worth experimenting with and the new head chef has been concocting some interesting delights, like salted steak filets.

But the best part about dinner at Japengo isn’t dinner at all. It’s dessert. They offer several dessert samplers, which I recommend for the un-initiated. The chocolate sin boasts an array of the chocolate dessert, including a few items not for ordering a la carte, like a chocolate dream shot – creamy ice cream with chocolate and Bailey's in an icy shot glass. The larger dessert sampler also includes delights unavailable to order on their own, like the root beer float served in a martini glass.

Of course if you want to focus in, the chocolate lava cake is hands down the best flour-less chocolate cake I’ve had ANYWHERE, and the small one on the sampler doesn’t quite get the texture right. The assorted brulees are also delish, as are the gelatos (though not quite as grandiose). I recommend the tawny port to accompany dessert, especially if you are having anything chocolate.

Cafe Japengo 8960 University Center Lane, San Diego, CA 92122 Tel. 858.450.3355

Asian Progressive Dinner - La Jolla

Join my virtual self for a suggested night of La Jolla dining, making the rounds to FOUR La Jolla/UTC area Asian restaurants.

4:30pm start with drinks ($8-15) at

Zenbu
7660 Fay Ave., Ste. 1 La Jolla, CA 92037

5:15pm Then we'll have appetizers ($10-20) at

Roponngi
875 Prospect St (Cross Street: Bishop Lane)

7:00pm For main dish ($8-15/roll), we'll head over to

Sushi on the Rock
7734 Girard Avenue


And we'll finish off with dessert ($10-20) at

8:30 Japengo
8960 University Center Lane (at La Jolla Village Dr)


I've included approximate prices for the course suggested at each restaurant. If you choose to go on any day between Sunday and Thursday, Zenbu will have happy hour starting when they open at 4:30 with certain drinks on special. Also, Asian tapas are on happy hour at Roppongi from 4-6, which is why there isn't much time alloted at Zenbu. I assume this will make those stops significantly less.

The evening is part known deliciousness, and part adventure. Zenbu looks like it has a great bar and specialty drink and sake selection, although its prices in general are outrageously expensive (make this one a happy hour, for sure!). Roppongi's Asian tapas look intriguing, though they tend to change their menu often. Sushi on the Rock I know has excellent sushi, with lots of interesting vegetarian options, and Japengo has the best dessert menu in San Diego.

Ocean Beach People’s Organic Food Market


Ocean Beach People’s Organic Food Market is a really long name for a grocery store, but perfect describes the store. “People’s” as it is often called in short, is located in Ocean Beach, (practically) on the corner of Sunset Cliffs and Voltaire. It’s is the “People’s” because it is a cooperative; it is member-owned and operated. They sell largely organic products, and it is primarily a food market.

People’s is the most beautiful, aesthetically pleasing grocery store I have EVER been to. It was not always this way. This is actually their third building, though the previous two were also in Ocean Beach, and the last one was literally on the same lot. I never saw the original store, but the second store was nothing special to look at, in fact it appeared a little run down. But excellent management had big visions and great planning, and they built the most recent store from the ground up.



The store has ambient, natural (sun!) lighting. The windows take advantage of the ocean breeze and can maintain a comfortable temperature year round without air conditioning. They have solar panels on the roof, and the lay out is really natural. The deli is located upstairs, and the seating goes around a balcony so you can look down into the store and watch people pour over soymilk for hours.

L Street Fine Art

The L Street Fine Art Gallery is located in the downtown gaslamp district. This gallery exhibits some of San Diego's finest artists, and pairs unlikely artists together creating breath taking interplay between works that may not have ever met otherwise, but seem like they were created to be together in this space.

Currently, the exhibit Domestic Deviation joins established San Diego artist Ernest Silva with up-and-coming artist May-Ling Martinez. This exhibit runs March 3rd through May 21st 2007. This is the third exhibition of the 2006-2007 San Diego Art Prize, which "is given annually to three established artists and three emerging artists who have exhibited outstanding achievement in the field of visual arts."

The space is surprising. In the shadow of the Omni hotel, this tiny space seems to expand as you go inside. The wall is entirely glass, and the art is exhibited along the interior wall, in visible view from the patio and L street.

I highly recommend this gallery at any time, but especially during this exhibit.

L Street Gallery
www.lstreetfineart.com
628 L Street 92101

SD Art Prize
www.sandiegoartist.com