{"id":236816,"date":"2014-03-31T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-03-31T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/downtown-favorites\/"},"modified":"2014-03-31T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2014-03-31T07:00:00","slug":"downtown-favorites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/downtown-favorites\/","title":{"rendered":"Downtown favorites"},"content":{"rendered":"

Darlynne and Marc Menkin |\u00a0It\u2019s All Happening<\/p>\n

\"Darlynne<\/a>
Darlynne y Marc Menkin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s hard to believe that we started our tour company almost 11 years ago. During that time, Downtown has gone through so many changes, particularly its restaurant and bar scene. Just in the last year, there\u2019s been a major influx of new businesses, which is great for us since we enjoy featuring unique places on our tours.<\/p>\n

On a recent Friday night, we were wandering through the Barrio de las l\u00e1mparas de gas<\/b> in search of a new adventure and we couldn\u2019t help but notice all the changes. Not only did we meet interesting people along the way, we discovered some favorite new hangouts.<\/p>\n

\"Leo<\/a>
Leo the Pomeranian in his toy convertible, making friends during a recent Urban Challenge\/Scavenger Hunt (Photo by Marc Menkin)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Our first stop was Lucky Liu\u2019s<\/b> at 332 J St. This is a fantastic Chinese restaurant that recently opened. Although it looks small from the outside, don\u2019t be fooled. The vibe inside is eclectic and the d\u00e9cor pops. We also got a behind-the-scenes tour of the kitchen so we met the manager and his staff.\u00a0 All the guys in the kitchen were Asian and watching them in action was amazing. We felt like we were watching a live cooking show.<\/p>\n

As for the menu, it\u2019s a good mix of classic Chinese favorites like handmade pork and shrimp dumplings and tasty noodle dishes like Beef Chow Fun and Dan Dan Noodles. We especially liked the Moo-Shu Chicken and Steamed BBQ Pork Buns but surprisingly, our favorite entr\u00e9e was the Honey-Glazed Walnut Shrimp. We probably wouldn\u2019t have ordered it if it wasn\u2019t for our waiter who insisted we try it. When we took our first bite, we were glad we listened to him. It was out of this world.<\/p>\n

After we said goodbye to our new friends, we headed to Fifth Avenue<\/strong>, which strolling along is never dull. From the energetic sign twirlers to colorful street performers, we were constantly being entertained. Of course, our favorite character was a cute Pomeranian named Leo<\/strong> who drives a toy convertible. Well actually, his owner is controlling the car using a remote control. Leo is a local celebrity in the Downtown scene and he even has his own Facebook page. He always attracts a huge crowd whenever he drives down the sidewalks of Fifth Avenue. Since we\u2019re Centro<\/strong> every week, we\u2019ve gotten to know Leo\u2019s owners who say they get the biggest kick out of watching people\u2019s reactions to their dog.<\/p>\n

As cute as Leo is, he\u2019s not the only cool character in town. Have you ever noticed those guys in uniform who sweep the streets and strike up friendly conversations with pedestrians? They are Maintenance Ambassadors<\/strong> and part of San Diego Downtown Partnership\u2019s Clean and Safe Program<\/b>. Ken Smith is one of the Ambassadors whose territory includes Fourth and Fifth avenues in the Gaslamp. He\u2019s a friendly guy who always has the most interesting stories about Downtown. He enjoys helping people and it shows.\u00a0Our Scavenger Hunt teams love running into him because he\u2019s knowledgeable and always up for a little mischievous fun.<\/p>\n

\"Clay<\/a>
Clay Facials are a great way to rejuvenate your face (Courtesy Spa Velia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After our walk along Fifth Avenue, we decided to check out the Headquarters at Seaport District<\/b>. If you haven\u2019t been there, it\u2019s the former San Diego Police Department Headquarters that is now a 100-thousand-square-foot complex featuring four restaurants and 18 shops. We stopped in for happy hour at Puesto, a Mexican restaurant that\u2019s known for its unique tequila drinks and street tacos. The restaurant is casual and has an upbeat, modern vibe. We were indoors near a large picture window that opened, allowing a nice breeze to pass through. You can also sit outside and watch the parade of people walk by. Now that the warmer months are approaching, it\u2019s a perfect location to enjoy the outdoors.<\/p>\n

Our adventure that night was done around 9 p.m. We woke up early the next day and decided to treat our sore muscles to a relaxing massage at Spa Velia<\/b> on Harbor Drive along the Martin Luther King Jr. promenade. The day spa recently relocated to Downtown from Little Italy. When you enter, the soothing music and tranquil waterfall sounds are a stark contrast to the bustling city noises and you can instantly relax.<\/p>\n

The Spa offers a complete menu of services including massage and body treatments, nail services and makeup artistry. We signed up for a one-hour massage and one of our therapists was Nadiyah. We typically prefer not to talk during a massage but Nadiyah was so interesting that it was easy to engage in a light conversation. We found she enjoys volunteering and often does complimentary massages at senior assisted living facilities. Listening to her stories of how she\u2019s helped so many seniors was inspiring.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A red Ferrari on display on Spanish Landing during a previous Bella Italis. This year’s event takes place April 26. (Photo by John Boren)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As we got ready to leave, fate had one more intriguing encounter for us. Another guest named Susan had just finished getting a massage and mentioned how great she felt. She talked about her kids and shared how her husband of 33 years had been seriously ill. It was an unusual conversation to have with a stranger but it was not depressing; it was heartfelt and a good reminder to appreciate every day and count your blessings.<\/p>\n

Queremos escuchar de ti -<\/b><\/p>\n

One of our favorite films is Ferris Bueller\u2019s Day Off and a red Ferrari is part of the movie. If you love seeing sweet Italian cars, the Bella Italia event is for you. It’s April 26 at the Spanish Landing Park, which is north of the airport and just off of Harbor Drive. Take a photo of yourself and a friend with a car and the most creative picture wins two tickets to an Urban Challenge in the Gaslamp Quarter\/East Village. Email your fun picture to tours@wheretours.com<\/a> by April 29, 2014.<\/p>\n

\u2014Marc & Darlynne Menkin are the co-owners of \u201cWhere You Want To Be Tours.\u201d Many of their tours and team-building scavenger hunts feature secret Downtown areas.\u00a0They can be reached at menkin@wheretours.com.\u00a0For more info about their walking, bicycle and bus tours of San Diego, visit dondetours.com<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Darlynne and Marc Menkin |\u00a0It\u2019s All Happening It\u2019s hard to believe that we started our tour company almost 11 years ago. During that time, Downtown has gone through so many changes, particularly its restaurant and bar scene. Just in the last year, there\u2019s been a major influx of new businesses, which is great for us […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":236817,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"Downtown favorites","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11549,11547,11600],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-236816","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-entertainment","category-features","category-sdnews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/236816","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=236816"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/236816\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/236817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=236816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=236816"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=236816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}