Cardiff Seaside Market. Banner image above: Texcoco soup from Jorge’s Mexicatessen

Encinitas 101
San Diego is ever changing, with new communities on the rise and old neighborhoods reinventing themselves. To keep you up to date on what’s making waves, we at Ranch & Coast are proud to introduce a new series for 2008 in which we spotlight the must-see neighborhoods of America’s Finest City.

Home to some of the earth’s most beautiful coastline, the city of Encinitas can’t help but exude loads of beach bum charm. Surfers, sunsets, and that iconic stretch of Coast Highway 101 give Encinitas a distinct aura that is hard to find anywhere else. Throughout the decades, Encinitas and surrounding neighborhoods Cardiff, Leucadia, and Olivenhain have seen immense growth and development. An abundance of new shops, restaurants, and businesses bring a bustling aspect to the community. But the culture remains strong — new growth and all, Encinitas is still a lazy beach town at its core.

Texcoco Soup At Jorge’s Mexicatessen
The casual Mexican restaurant is a Southern California staple, and Encinitas is no stranger to delicious Mexican food. Setting high standards in this tradition is Jorge’s Mexicatessen, an unassuming hole-in-the-strip-mall eatery on North El Camino Real with astonishing culinary excellence. Jorge’s Texcoco Soup is a local sensation. This homemade Mexico City-style soup is the ultimate comfort food, with spicy chicken, avocado, rice, and vegetables, and a rich, distinct flavor. Jorge’s many loyal customers don’t seem to mind the long line out the door — this food is well worth the wait. Now after 14 years in business, owner Jorge Guerrero has opened Jorge’s #2 on Santa Fe Drive in Encinitas. (760/942-6809)

Cardiff Seaside Market
In an era of chain stores and supermarkets, Cardiff Seaside Market offers a refreshing grocery experience. This neighborhood store excels in every area. Besides their great stock of daily grocery needs — at competitive prices, by the way — they offer an impressive array of gourmet specialty items so that you can buy your bread and butter in the same place as your candied edible flowers.

Much of Cardiff Seaside Market’s produce comes from local farms. Alongside the apples and oranges are rare items like dragon fruit and horned melon, each with a helpful descriptive placard. Real butchers behind the meat counter ensure that you can get those special cuts of their fine meat selection. They also boast the freshest seafood available. The list goes on — the store has an exciting selection of prepared cuisine, wine, cheese, chocolate, brandy, cigars, and locally grown fresh cut flowers. Open daily from 7:30am-10pm. (760/753-5445, www.seasidemarket.com)

Lemongrass
Day spas have become more popular in recent years, as many people now allow for a bit of regular pampering in their lives. But with a day spa popping up on every corner, a true escape is not always guaranteed. To really help you get away from it all and experience renewal inside and out, Lemongrass on Second Street in Encinitas offers a sacred space off the beaten path. Situated in a beautifully renovated 1914 house surrounded by an enchanting garden, Lemongrass is an Aveda Concept Salon and Spa. The spa menu is spectacular, with customized skin and massage treatments, all featuring Aveda’s plant-based products. And even better, tucked away in the garden is a sacred round structure, called a yurt, where couples and groups (up to eight) can enjoy healing treatments together. (760/633-1970, www.lemongrasscenter.com)

Self-Realization Fellowship Meditation Gardens
As if the ocean views in Encinitas weren’t enough, the Meditation Gardens atop the bluffs at Swami’s Beach are an incomparable sight. It doesn’t cost a thing to walk through the winding paths of exotic flowering plants and trees, desert succulents, mosses and ivies, miniature waterfalls, and ponds that make up the gardens, which overlook a stunning stretch of coastline. Throughout the gardens are benches where people are welcome to sit and reflect as they take it all in. The Meditation Gardens are part of the Self-Realization Fellowship, which founded this 17-acre Encinitas retreat in 1937. Much of the gardens’ original landscape designed by spiritual teacher Paramahanssa Yogananda still thrives. (760/753-2888, www.yoganandasrf.org/temples/encinitas)

Le Papagayo
Leucadia is best known and loved for its laid-back attitude and casual style. But still, there is no shortage of fine dining in the area. At Le Papagayo, it’s the best of both worlds — a sophisticated bistro menu in a setting that is authentically Leucadian. The menu is greatly varied, offering classic items, like Spaghetti Bolognese and Black Angus Rib Eye Steak, to more daring choices, such as Thai Mussels and the Curry Ahi Crusted Crab Cake. With live music every night, local artists’ work on display, cozy patio seating, and an enticing beer, wine, and sangria selection, Le Papagayo serves up a lively, Leucadian evening. (760/944-8252, www.lepapagayoleucadia.com)
— JJ Hall, photography by Kristy Ann Mann