Ask any PB old-timer about Garnet and he or she will tell you how much it’s changed over the past few decades. The drugstore, the hardware and the department stores are all gone, but Bustamante’s, the small restaurant in the middle of the 900 block between Bayard and Cass, has managed to survive Garnet’s transformation from a “main street” to an entertainment district.
Margee McCormick, a Pacific Beach resident since 1968, said it’s one of her favorites places to eat. She frequently walks from her home on Beryl Street to dine at the place she calls her “nonalcoholic sports bar.”
At first glance, it’s a wonder how a small, unassuming restaurant that serves only breakfast and lunch has remained a staple of Pacific Beach for approximately 50 years.
Other than three name changes, little has changed since it originally opened its doors sometime in the 1960s. Even the menu remained the same over the last 20 or so years.
Some customers, like McCormick, have been coming here for a while.
“It’s been here for so long, some people are gone for 20 years and they come back and find out it’s still here and they’re delighted,” McCormick said.
The storefront, complete with the sun-faded sign, hasn’t changed in decades, said co-owner and cook Edwardo Ramirez. He and his wife Chiko Vargas run the restaurant together seven days a week.
He cooks, she serves. It’s a formula that’s kept them in business since they bought the restaurant from former owner Bertha Bustamante in 1998. Vargas and Ramirez kept the name and menu because “Everybody knows Bustamante’s,” he said.
Old Chargers, Padres and Dodgers flags drape the wall. Frames filled with photo collages of friends and regulars hang above the few tables inside. A T-shirt autographed by pop legend Donna Summer also hangs on another wall, a souvenir from her visit there two Thanksgivings ago.
A quick trip through the kitchen, past Edwardo’s skillfully worked skillet, reveals a secluded outdoor patio in the back.
Krista Frans, a schoolteacher at Warren-Walker School in Point Loma, loves that she can bring her dog here and sit outside enjoying freshly made fruit juices, or agua frescas, made from cantaloupe, strawberry and a mix of pineapple-kiwi.
A regular for about 10 years, Frans said she sticks to her usual order: bacon and eggs with beans and hash browns.
Though the eatery makes good traditional breakfasts, most come for the Bustamante’s Breakfast, the chilaquiles or the Surfer Burrito, Chiko said.
Bustamante’s Breakfast is a mix of potatoes, bacon, onion, tomato and eggs that comes with beans or more potatoes.
An order of chilaquiles is nearly identical ” bacon, onion, tomato and eggs ” but instead of potatoes, it’s mixed with chopped-up tortillas and topped with cheese.
And the Surfer Burrito? The best way to find out is to stop by Bustamante’s and order one. It’s located 956 Garnet Ave. and open daily from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. For information call (858) 483-7350.