Aloha Hilo Hattie-Store of Hawaii

For those who have never lived in San Diego, it hard to describe the relationship that people in San Diego have with Hawaii. One would suppose that living in San Diego people would be satisfied with the ideal weather and beautiful beaches. One would suppose that the many transplants from the cold, hot, and lets just say it uncool, parts of the country would recline in satisfied enjoyment of their coastal paradise. One would of course be horribly wrong. Having shown the moxie to follow their dreams to the land of eternal temeprate sun, the wandering souls of San Diego are not about to settle for some vague approximation of earthly paradise.

Only the real thing, Hawai'i will do. Almost everyone who has the means vacation in Hawai'i and plans to retire there. More than that they often speak of their existence in San Diego as already being in the passed tense. In their mind they are already gone. So it was only natural that when decorating their temporary San Diego residence or outfitting themselves that they would turn to Hilo Hattie. I will miss the giant Hawai'ian shirt and the Hawai'i themed Christmas trees. But for many San Diegans they will just pick up there Hawai'ian goodies when they are there hunting for retirement properties and living their "real" lives. The address of the building is:

301 5th Ave
San Diego CA 92101

The Sun Cafe / Funky Garcia's

10 January 2009

It is with great sadness that I report the passing of the Sun Cafe. The Sun Cafe has been a fixture of San Diego life for decades. It has been own and run by the same family. The art deco building is topped by letters that obviously sported a neon sign at one time. You can see an entry on the cafe at Neon San Diego. More recently one of the more pedestrian beer advertisement neon sign. That is gone too. The Cafe used to display and sell local art on its walls and in its window. The patrons were welcoming of the homeless who often find a hard time fiding a place to dine because of the hygiene problems inherent to the condition. The address for the building is:

421 Market St.
San Diego CA 92101