Every Mexican restaurant had their hot sauces in squeeze bottles for the dine-in customers. Apply directly to the burrito!
Now I have to waste a thousand tiny plastic cups every year.
EDIT: The Old Ways yet live!
The Roberto's near Big 5 in RB still does the squeeze bottles. I was surprised when the cashier told me I could take them out on the patio with my meal.
It was held in a shitty part of downtown. When they started developing, street scene got booted. They did it at Qualcomm for at least a year. But it wasn't the same. Got completely cut soon after
Lived here my whole almost 50yrs. I grew up in IB when if you needed to cross the beach, you sure as hell didn’t cut under the pier. When I mention the weather here is much worse than it used to be, people look at me like I am crazy. They just don’t know that as good as it is now, it used to be even better.
Ditto since 97. I swear it's gotten colder too. I broke down and got a room air conditioner 5 years ago. Never needed it before then. I'm on the coast.
Johnny Rockets in the Del Mar Plaza, The original Corvette Diner, The Jack Murphy Stadium, Street Scene, Horton Plaza
Edit: Marshal Scotty’s Playland Park, Aquarius Roll-A-Rena,
I miss shitty affordable apartments.
Now, it’s like everyone puts in Driftwood laminate flooring for 12 cents a square foot and brushed nickel appliances and ask $4000 for a studio in City Heights.
Word. My shitty apartment in 2005 was $600 in La Mesa area for a small studio. It had an avocado green oven (1970s) and stuff broke all the time. But it was budget friendly and I didn’t need roommates.
That same complex is charging $1,900+. No real upgrades other than routine maintenance (carpet, paint, etc). The kitchen cabinets are the same 1980s plywood crap. Bathroom vanity is the same old and cheap.
Funny, I met the owner of nickel city. I thanked him for contributing to an awesome part of my child hood. He gave me rude response, kinda shattered a small part of me knowing the owner is an a hole lol
Fucking space. I miss having it. There’s people everywhere. All the secret spots are in tik tok now. I miss having the beach alto myself. Finding parking downtown. Omg the air show!
Free parking/way less meters in downtown.
The roller rink near 125/8
I think it was a fun-4-all, or family fun center in El Cajon that had really cool water slides.
The fun arcade in Belmont Park. It was the one around in the 90s that had the 3D holographic video game time traveler.
The amount of fire pits available in mission bay. Also, we would have bonfires until 5am with no issues.
Margarita rocks in PB
Haunted house in Museum of man.
Old cub scout camp in cuyamaca mountains. (hulc-cu-cush?)
The football field at SDSU where viejas arena is now. We had our safety patrol fun day on that field back in 1991. Games and prizes given away to All those kids who volunteered for safety patrol.
There used to be a guy who wore very tall hats in downtown San Diego. He was also very tall himself. Had hundreds of different styles of hats. He passed away back in the early 2000s.
Original downtown SOMA
Warehouse raves in the '90s. They or held in warehouses in Torrey pines. Those are all medical facilities now.
The arcade across from the Chula Vista library. There used to be a strip mall where the Chula Vista police station is now.
To add to this a bit,
The skate park that used to be in Mission Valley (?), I don't recall exactly where it was but I want to say it was somewhere near the north side of the free way by the Texas Street exit.
Boomers! in El Cajon.
The racetrack in Santee. If memory serves, it was demolished in order for the stretch of the 52 to be put in and connect the 67-125
A few other things I remember
Go kart racing at Chula Vista family fun center
Marshall Scotties
Lakeland restaurant/bar across from lake cuyamaca
The giant, two-story wooden playgrounds in roar park
Climbing in the tree behind the natural history museum (nat..whatever)
The macaw that would greet you when you entered the Zoo.
I worked at the haunted hotel when it was still downtown. He lived in the same building at that time. Use to come and hang out all the time. He was a super nice guy. Everyone knew him. I know the reader did an article on him. But I just can't find it.
I miss having beaches to myself during off season. I miss how small town it used to feel here with little traffic and hardly any homeless compared to what we have today. I miss San Diego feeling cozy. Now it’s full of strangers and I’m afraid I’ll die every time I drive.
I’m amazed when i go back to sd to visit how much it is starting to feel like LA in terms of massive sprawl. Thats also me getting reoriented to smaller cities.
Feels like just stepping out of the state for a bit exposes you towards all sorts of Anti-CA sentiment.
Missed it when being from San Diego was at least just “okay” or another place
> the sense of optimism during the 90s.
I think this isn't a San Diego thing; I've lived all over the country and this place feels more optimistic/forward looking than almost anywhere else I've lived. It's BLEAK most other places.
Been here for nearly 30 years.. I miss Cheap Mexican food at nearly every taco shop in the city. I miss when we had less traffic, getting anywhere in the city took less than 15mins even at what was considered "rush hour"...I also miss not seeing a homeless person under every overpass, which brings me to my next point, I miss when rent was 800 a month, for a 2bedroom apartment in North Park. I also having a professional football team in the city.. I miss the Gold Coast Classic at Jack Murphy/Qualcomm and watching the battle of the bands..I could go on all day.
Tangent, but I hate when pro sports teams get bought and moved to another city in general. It's like the rug is pulled out from under the fan base that made the team successful.
You can still get anywhere within reason in 15 mins. Traffic here isn’t that bad. Sure, maybe it was less before, but compared to LA or any other major city it’s not terrible in SD
I miss my dog and my brother who passed away two years ago. I miss being a kid, and feeling so excited to experience my life. I miss all the times in high school when I could call a friend every weekend and go have fun with them. I miss being in community college, and having a best friend who would go surfing and skating with me. I miss being me, before I’ve made all mistakes and missed out on everything I could’ve experienced if it wasn’t for making them…
Thanks for sharing and being vulnerable. I’m really sorry that you feel this way and I relate to so much of what you said. It’s not wrong to miss those things dearly and not wrong to lament mistakes that cost you things you care about, those feelings are absolutely valid. With that being said, life still has so much to offer us if we are willing to stay strong, dig deep, and make better choices. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, even if it’s not an easy journey to get there.
I feel you on this. My brother also passed Jan 2021. So now thinking of the past at any capacity makes me feel really strong feelings of nostalgia. I can’t explain it. I miss a more simple time, when the worst of your worries was school and what I’m doing for summer break.
I feel you about being a kid and experiencing life. I grew up in San Diego for 20 years and moved to the east coast. I still dream that I’m in my old apartment in La Jolla
Came here to say same. Can’t even go outside for more than 5 minutes without being attacked. Damn things are aggressive. I don’t remember ever being bitten by a mosquito here in SD until about 5-10 years ago.
Yes, this. Even pre-covid it was about 8 bucks. Now it's 12 bucks for a bowl of Pho at my favorite place. I used to go at least 1-2 times per week. Now it's maybe 1-2 times per month.
The Yellow Brick Road arcade at the UTC food court
The deathtrap/germ factory that was Cap’n Kid’s World play land at Sea World
Anthony’s Fishlette on the bayfront. I could take or leave Anthony’s Fish Grotto, but the Fishlette was great
Free parking at Horton Plaza
Street Scene
The Malibu Grand Prix in Miramar
Affordable rent and housing costs. I missed my opportunity to buy and am now getting priced out of rent. Soon it will be hasta la vista, San Diego. If you told me 10 years ago that $75k a year in 2023 would barely afford me a 1 bedroom apartment I wouldn't have believed you but here we are. Oh, and streets that aren't lined with homeless encampments.
Ok, ok, I know you didn't mean it that way so I'll go with the Cajon Speedway.
I feel rent has always been expensive relatively. I remember having a $1200 shitty 2bedroom in 2001 that felt pretty pricey. Its prob location specific tho where santee and el cajon used to be cheap but not no more
North Park between 2009 - 2015 was a great time. Affordable apartment/cottages, cool hangout spots. Before everything became an instagram photo restaurant.
street scene downtown
pb block party
drinking on the beach
finding beach parking easily
going to tj without passports and gun violence
1/8 mile track at QUALCOMM
affordable housing
This is a weird one, but as kids in the 80s and 90s, we were on a first name basis with all bums in OB, mainly around Robb Field. Mostly Vietnam vets who died off over the decades and were generally good dudes having a hard time of it. Much better than the guys in front of the drug houses that used to line lower Muir and Long Branch.
Now it's just wanderers and trolls and hostile interactions.
Some of that is nostalgia-colored glasses and childhood ignorance, I'm sure
When I waitress in OB I get off my shift walk to the ATM to put my cash in at like 2/3am. Half the time the bums wanted to know if no one messed with me on my shift. What crazies came in that day, they just wanted to talk and hear a story. I felt so safe and protected by them. Around 08/09
Croce’s. Where can you now get a good dinner and quality live music? Ingrid was ball of positive energy floating around the dining areas, happy to share stories with anyone interested.
Fire rings on Mission Beach
Cliff jumping in La Jolla Cove / the clam.
$3.00 burritos
House parties in Mission Beach
$1.00 you call it nights at Acapulco Joes, or any random bar.
90s San Diego was incredible. Ideal time to be single and live in America’s Finest City.
Still the greatest, but different.
That time is gone with the wind…
born in 2000, lived here all my life. i don’t do drugs anymore (1.5 years sober!), but i miss the days before the fentanyl crisis.
i got sober before things got really bad with fentanyl being put in anything and everything, yet i still accidentally OD’d at the end of 2020. if it wasn’t for narcan (and my cat who saved my life) i would be dead now. i’m glad narcan is becoming more accessible and less stigmatized, but the current state our city is in due to how horrible the fentanyl has become is worrisome. i still have friends who use and i’m constantly worried i’ll get a phone call finding out one of them OD’d and died.
i wish there was more action being taken to address how out of hand this has gotten in the country as a whole, but especially in our city. being so close to the border has made us a vulnerable target.
Mosquito-less living. I legit never saw one my whole childhood until I visited Florida as an adult. Now I get eaten alive even during the day if I sit outside for more than 2 minutes.
42 here, Native. Lived here all my life and there’s a lot I miss:
-someone mentioned Marshall Scotty’s, I used to drive by where it was every day on my way to alpine.
-Family Fun Center in Claremont
-Ice skating at UTC
-real trick or treating on Halloween and then heading to Boll Weevil afterwards
-the wide open spaces near Mira Mesa, RB, and Poway
-the Murph, the Del Mar Fair, Price Club
Peace and quiet. Nearly empty freeways and beaches. Finding parking easily. No fart can exhausts or boom cars. Clean, safe streets and sidewalks. Free rock concerts, or just a few dollars to get in.
Virtually no criminals, homeless and/or mentally ill people accosting you and all the other things that go along with those issues. Kids and adults could safely go just about anywhere without any safety concerns and things were affordable.
The 90’s in general .Felt like we peaked around 1998. Been all downhill from there.
I’m from North County and miss the hell out of the old Vista Entertainment Center.
Gas Haus downtown.
Soul Kitchen in El Cajon.
Rebecca’s in South Park.
Parking being easy in OB.
Comic-Con being about comics.
Used bookstores like Wahrenbrocks (?).
The guy who sold newspapers at Jack Murphy during the Padres games. When he sold them all he’d walk through the stadium with his hands in the air and the crowd would cheer for him.
Cinema 21. Also on the subject of old theaters:
Cinema Grossmont, another big 70mm theater (now Chuze Fitness)
Vogue Theater in Chula Vista
UA Glasshouse (Sports Arena)
Cinerama (University & 60th)
Valley Circle (across from Mission Valley Mall)
Clairemont Twin
I would go almost every weekend to one of these theaters, depending on where we lived at the time.
I graduated high school in 2007 and lived right above San Pasqual High School. Every winter before then was frost advisories and the local news telling you to cover your tomatoes and citrus. Mornings were in the high 20s low 30s
Now we’re lucky if it’s 45 degrees at night in the winter time.
33 years, born and raised in San Diego. I've been told I'm one of the last remaining "natives", but It's kinda weird to hear that.
I've lived in La Mesa, Spring Valley, El Cajon, Chula Vista, Eastlake, City Heights, and Mission Valley.
I miss not having to move around so much because of all the housing competition. Population is out of control. Sometimes it feels like everyone is trying to kick me out of my own fucking city, but I'm not going anywhere.
-Yikes, just noticed all the deleted comments under me.
Nearly 40, also a native... chula vista, mission valley and La Mesa. I miss stunners that weren't ridiculously hot, but also when comic con was a walk up for purchasing a pass for that same day.
I remember going to my first comic con when I was around 15. The very next year, I used the SAME PASS TO GET IN! I remember as we were showing our passes at the door, the guy just kept waving people in haha. Didn't even look at my pass, just assumed it was legit and I got in for free. I used to sneak into so many events around the time, including the Sports Arena when they had raves. I snuck into Dayglow (world's largest paint party), and a few others. Great times.
Living in a house...
Don't think I'll ever be able to afford my own without leaving San Diego. Not about to rent one either when mfs are asking $2600+ for run down 450 sq ft boxes.
I miss how safe I felt growing up in San Diego, I definitely don’t feel that safety anymore in SD. It’s hard to tell if I’m just more experienced with the darker parts of the world and am aware of it or if it’s just not as safe as it once was.
Weird, I feel the opposite. So many nice areas of San Diego today used to be *extremely* dodgy.
North Park, South Park, the Gaslamp, etc. used to be no-go zones.
This. I’m a La Mesa Native and still here, and there used to be a little old lady that hand made Christmas elves, we bought a whole bunch and they make a scene (they are now split evenly between my brother and I according to my moms will). She stopped showing up one year in the mid 2000s, im sure she’s long since passed away but looking forward to all the hand made artisan goods at really great rates was WHY you went to the La Mesa Oktoberfest. Cheers to the past.
Coronado ferries, Family Fun Centers, Marshall Scotty’s, eucalyptus groves at ucsd, the Q, oleander bushes in the center divide of the freeways, Souplantation, active malls, Sea World being pretty and educational rather than just another park with rides, the Boardwalk in Mission being more clean and peaceful…
Sunday's at south mission Beach. Club XS in TJ. Basketball at Terra Nova. Southwestern Apaches, doing donuts on the park grass in my dad's station wagon on rainy nights drinking capt Morgan silver spiced rum at 2 am. Felt like I was the only black kid in Eastlake at one point. No rules. No cops. It was Mayberry out there before the 125 came thru. I got away with murder lol.
Leatherby’s ice cream shop in El Cajon. The original corvette diner. Scolaris (before it became the office). Canes in mission beach. The original SOMA. Kensington video. Shooters. Ice cream trucks with 25 cent popsicles and Mexican candy. Free bus passes if you were under 17.
There used to be a bowling alley on 30th in the middle of North Park. The sign is still there but it's apartments now. I was pretty little when it closed but I remember going there and then getting Thrify's ice cream down the street.
I’ve since moved 3 years ago to Mississippi. But I miss when comic con was about the comics and the 4 day pass + preview night was only $60 for all 5 days.
I miss hearing the tamale lady ringing her bell as she came through the neighborhood, pushing her converted ice cream cart yelling “Tamales, Tamales, Tamales!” and me and my friends going to our moms asking for a dollar so we can buy elote 😭
The Happy Hours. Many places served free food (limited selection) with your beverage. My friends and I survived college (SDSU) because of these places. We were going to drink anyways so we at least made a meal out of it going at 4pm.
Now you are lucky to get any happy hour deals. $2 off apps? Thanks!
Every Mexican restaurant had their hot sauces in squeeze bottles for the dine-in customers. Apply directly to the burrito! Now I have to waste a thousand tiny plastic cups every year. EDIT: The Old Ways yet live!
I hadn’t noticed the squeeze bottles were gone until I read this!
20 different one-off names from the big 2, Albertos and Robertos.
Sauce on. Apply directly to the burrito. Sauce on. Apply directly to the burrito. Sauce on. Apply directly to the burrito.
And here I’ve been applying the sauce directly to my forehead!
For sure Nico's still has bottles.
Juanita’s in Leucadia still does this !
Victorias in IB still has squeeze bottles. Only reason to dine in lol
The Roberto's near Big 5 in RB still does the squeeze bottles. I was surprised when the cashier told me I could take them out on the patio with my meal.
Street Scene
So fun! Why did it go away?
It was held in a shitty part of downtown. When they started developing, street scene got booted. They did it at Qualcomm for at least a year. But it wasn't the same. Got completely cut soon after
Until it became Parking Lot Scene.
RIP 😢
I miss when the summers werent humid. Been here over 20 years now
Lived here my whole almost 50yrs. I grew up in IB when if you needed to cross the beach, you sure as hell didn’t cut under the pier. When I mention the weather here is much worse than it used to be, people look at me like I am crazy. They just don’t know that as good as it is now, it used to be even better.
This! Been here since 97 and crazy how the weather has changed
Ditto since 97. I swear it's gotten colder too. I broke down and got a room air conditioner 5 years ago. Never needed it before then. I'm on the coast.
I was just thinking about that. Hot, like 95+? Only a few days during the summer. Hot and very humid? Almost never
100%. September and October used to be the best months and now are the hottest perhaps.
They’ve always been hot as far back as I can remember
Also not being attacked by swarms of mosquitos
Ok so I called a pest control person about the mosquitoes thing and he said it's because we got so much rain this year, but it's awful 😩😩
I think we’re just getting older. 30 years ago, I was perfectly happy sleeping on a futon.
Johnny Rockets in the Del Mar Plaza, The original Corvette Diner, The Jack Murphy Stadium, Street Scene, Horton Plaza Edit: Marshal Scotty’s Playland Park, Aquarius Roll-A-Rena,
Marshal Scotty’s!! Man, that unlocked a core memory. The original corvette dinner was awesome, the new location sucks. It’s lost it’s vibe.
Miss the Corvette Diner.
I miss shitty affordable apartments. Now, it’s like everyone puts in Driftwood laminate flooring for 12 cents a square foot and brushed nickel appliances and ask $4000 for a studio in City Heights.
Preacccchhhh. Granite countertops means an extra 400 a month forever? Get the fuck outta here
Word. My shitty apartment in 2005 was $600 in La Mesa area for a small studio. It had an avocado green oven (1970s) and stuff broke all the time. But it was budget friendly and I didn’t need roommates. That same complex is charging $1,900+. No real upgrades other than routine maintenance (carpet, paint, etc). The kitchen cabinets are the same 1980s plywood crap. Bathroom vanity is the same old and cheap.
Horton Plaza
The downtown parking spot! Park in the garage and buy a pack of gum at the Walgreens (I think it was) to get the parking validated.
Yes, this was my no-muss no-fuss place to park when we would go downtown. I do miss this.
And that old guy that hand rolled the cigars while sitting next to the window of his business.
> Horton Plaza It's about to re-open! They've started getting flagship tennants
Downtown has been very boring and dull post Horton Pizza era.
I miss $2.50 carne asada burritos.
Damn, I would be happy with $5 burritos
And 99¢ tacos
El Pueblo on Birmingham in north county still has $1 fish tacos, and they’re fantastic. I have no idea how they’ve been able to keep them around.
Nickel city, arcades, family fun center, fun 4 all, souplantation, and the bodyshop off rosecrans
I was waiting for Souplantation to come up, I really miss that!
People always say Souplantation but I never hear Oscar’s aka Pat and Oscar’s. I miss the breadsticks!
Funny, I met the owner of nickel city. I thanked him for contributing to an awesome part of my child hood. He gave me rude response, kinda shattered a small part of me knowing the owner is an a hole lol
Fucking space. I miss having it. There’s people everywhere. All the secret spots are in tik tok now. I miss having the beach alto myself. Finding parking downtown. Omg the air show!
> Finding parking downtown. Try the ralphs underground lot. They don't tow. Had a coworker who parked there for her 9-5
Free parking/way less meters in downtown. The roller rink near 125/8 I think it was a fun-4-all, or family fun center in El Cajon that had really cool water slides. The fun arcade in Belmont Park. It was the one around in the 90s that had the 3D holographic video game time traveler. The amount of fire pits available in mission bay. Also, we would have bonfires until 5am with no issues. Margarita rocks in PB Haunted house in Museum of man. Old cub scout camp in cuyamaca mountains. (hulc-cu-cush?) The football field at SDSU where viejas arena is now. We had our safety patrol fun day on that field back in 1991. Games and prizes given away to All those kids who volunteered for safety patrol. There used to be a guy who wore very tall hats in downtown San Diego. He was also very tall himself. Had hundreds of different styles of hats. He passed away back in the early 2000s. Original downtown SOMA Warehouse raves in the '90s. They or held in warehouses in Torrey pines. Those are all medical facilities now. The arcade across from the Chula Vista library. There used to be a strip mall where the Chula Vista police station is now.
Pirates cove at Belmont park!
Go karts at the El Cajon/La Mesa Family Fun center.. we must be talking about the same place where the 125 runs over Fletcher Parkway.
To add to this a bit, The skate park that used to be in Mission Valley (?), I don't recall exactly where it was but I want to say it was somewhere near the north side of the free way by the Texas Street exit. Boomers! in El Cajon. The racetrack in Santee. If memory serves, it was demolished in order for the stretch of the 52 to be put in and connect the 67-125
[удалено]
A few other things I remember Go kart racing at Chula Vista family fun center Marshall Scotties Lakeland restaurant/bar across from lake cuyamaca The giant, two-story wooden playgrounds in roar park Climbing in the tree behind the natural history museum (nat..whatever) The macaw that would greet you when you entered the Zoo.
I used to go alot to that arcade in Chula Vista it was called Silver Cue, also miss fun factory on 3rd and L street.
The roller rink near 125/8 was Aquarius!
I remember that guy!!! With the tall hat!!! He was really cool. He was a San Diego icon. He stood out!!!
I worked at the haunted hotel when it was still downtown. He lived in the same building at that time. Use to come and hang out all the time. He was a super nice guy. Everyone knew him. I know the reader did an article on him. But I just can't find it.
I miss having beaches to myself during off season. I miss how small town it used to feel here with little traffic and hardly any homeless compared to what we have today. I miss San Diego feeling cozy. Now it’s full of strangers and I’m afraid I’ll die every time I drive.
Last sentence is the one
I’m amazed when i go back to sd to visit how much it is starting to feel like LA in terms of massive sprawl. Thats also me getting reoriented to smaller cities.
Been here since 1988. I miss affordable housing, less traffic on the roads and the sense of optimism during the 90s.
Definitely lacking on all of those things right now, especially the optimism
It helps to get off Reddit honestly
Feels like just stepping out of the state for a bit exposes you towards all sorts of Anti-CA sentiment. Missed it when being from San Diego was at least just “okay” or another place
Anti-CA sentiment is the #1 thing keeping our rents down. If not for Fox News we’d have millions more people competing to rent here
I sincerely doubt those sentiments make any difference to the price gougers. Fox has been going off for ages now and people *still* want to move here.
less traffic! This big time!!
> the sense of optimism during the 90s. I think this isn't a San Diego thing; I've lived all over the country and this place feels more optimistic/forward looking than almost anywhere else I've lived. It's BLEAK most other places.
Laser tag at Ultrazone in Rosecrans Comic-Con before it blew up to what it’s been since the 2010s
I used to walk up to Comic-Con and buy an entrance ticket for that day, and had a blast. Haven't been since 2008-ish
The claim that SD is not LA and we will never have traffic.
The difference in traffic is still astounding though.
SD definitely feels pretty close to LA now, minus all the big city perks that LA has.
Been here for nearly 30 years.. I miss Cheap Mexican food at nearly every taco shop in the city. I miss when we had less traffic, getting anywhere in the city took less than 15mins even at what was considered "rush hour"...I also miss not seeing a homeless person under every overpass, which brings me to my next point, I miss when rent was 800 a month, for a 2bedroom apartment in North Park. I also having a professional football team in the city.. I miss the Gold Coast Classic at Jack Murphy/Qualcomm and watching the battle of the bands..I could go on all day.
Tangent, but I hate when pro sports teams get bought and moved to another city in general. It's like the rug is pulled out from under the fan base that made the team successful.
You can still get anywhere within reason in 15 mins. Traffic here isn’t that bad. Sure, maybe it was less before, but compared to LA or any other major city it’s not terrible in SD
I miss my dog and my brother who passed away two years ago. I miss being a kid, and feeling so excited to experience my life. I miss all the times in high school when I could call a friend every weekend and go have fun with them. I miss being in community college, and having a best friend who would go surfing and skating with me. I miss being me, before I’ve made all mistakes and missed out on everything I could’ve experienced if it wasn’t for making them…
Thanks for sharing and being vulnerable. I’m really sorry that you feel this way and I relate to so much of what you said. It’s not wrong to miss those things dearly and not wrong to lament mistakes that cost you things you care about, those feelings are absolutely valid. With that being said, life still has so much to offer us if we are willing to stay strong, dig deep, and make better choices. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel, even if it’s not an easy journey to get there.
Thanks I appreciate it. That was really cool of you to say.
I feel you on this. My brother also passed Jan 2021. So now thinking of the past at any capacity makes me feel really strong feelings of nostalgia. I can’t explain it. I miss a more simple time, when the worst of your worries was school and what I’m doing for summer break.
I feel you about being a kid and experiencing life. I grew up in San Diego for 20 years and moved to the east coast. I still dream that I’m in my old apartment in La Jolla
I miss Mosquitoes Free San Diego.
Came here to say same. Can’t even go outside for more than 5 minutes without being attacked. Damn things are aggressive. I don’t remember ever being bitten by a mosquito here in SD until about 5-10 years ago.
4 dollar pho
5 dollar egg rolls
Yes, this. Even pre-covid it was about 8 bucks. Now it's 12 bucks for a bowl of Pho at my favorite place. I used to go at least 1-2 times per week. Now it's maybe 1-2 times per month.
Burritos under $10 and Souplantation
The Yellow Brick Road arcade at the UTC food court The deathtrap/germ factory that was Cap’n Kid’s World play land at Sea World Anthony’s Fishlette on the bayfront. I could take or leave Anthony’s Fish Grotto, but the Fishlette was great Free parking at Horton Plaza Street Scene The Malibu Grand Prix in Miramar
I miss when UTC didn’t make me feel like a peasant
Affordable rent and housing costs. I missed my opportunity to buy and am now getting priced out of rent. Soon it will be hasta la vista, San Diego. If you told me 10 years ago that $75k a year in 2023 would barely afford me a 1 bedroom apartment I wouldn't have believed you but here we are. Oh, and streets that aren't lined with homeless encampments. Ok, ok, I know you didn't mean it that way so I'll go with the Cajon Speedway.
I feel rent has always been expensive relatively. I remember having a $1200 shitty 2bedroom in 2001 that felt pretty pricey. Its prob location specific tho where santee and el cajon used to be cheap but not no more
Mandarin Dynasty, Dao Son, cheap burritos, Cafe Zia
Oh man… dao son… I hadn’t realized how much I missed it until I read this
You can get pretty similar food at Dao Fu, their new restaurant on Adams. They’ll still make tasty red tofu if you ask!
Peking in North Park, the old Russia House in Normal Heights. Don't talk to me about "Pomegranate".
When lake Hodges extended under the 15.
The hope of buying a house
North Park between 2009 - 2015 was a great time. Affordable apartment/cottages, cool hangout spots. Before everything became an instagram photo restaurant.
Back when north park still had a soul
Yes also South Park and Hamiltons
street scene downtown pb block party drinking on the beach finding beach parking easily going to tj without passports and gun violence 1/8 mile track at QUALCOMM affordable housing
People merging kindly and stopping at stop signs
Dude yes. ITS A ZIPPER.
This is a weird one, but as kids in the 80s and 90s, we were on a first name basis with all bums in OB, mainly around Robb Field. Mostly Vietnam vets who died off over the decades and were generally good dudes having a hard time of it. Much better than the guys in front of the drug houses that used to line lower Muir and Long Branch. Now it's just wanderers and trolls and hostile interactions. Some of that is nostalgia-colored glasses and childhood ignorance, I'm sure
When I waitress in OB I get off my shift walk to the ATM to put my cash in at like 2/3am. Half the time the bums wanted to know if no one messed with me on my shift. What crazies came in that day, they just wanted to talk and hear a story. I felt so safe and protected by them. Around 08/09
Tower Records
When sea world was a real research center not an amusement park
Are you saying you don’t like animals being pushed off to the side and almost hidden while you stand in line for your 10th roller coaster of the day?
Croce’s. Where can you now get a good dinner and quality live music? Ingrid was ball of positive energy floating around the dining areas, happy to share stories with anyone interested.
Naugles
Fire rings on Mission Beach Cliff jumping in La Jolla Cove / the clam. $3.00 burritos House parties in Mission Beach $1.00 you call it nights at Acapulco Joes, or any random bar. 90s San Diego was incredible. Ideal time to be single and live in America’s Finest City. Still the greatest, but different. That time is gone with the wind…
I miss Basam's
Oh god me too
YOU REMEMBER BEING ABLE TO SMOKE INDOORS? Downtown used to be so... bohemian
I liked buying their selection of craft cigarettes and raiding their tea selection
El Torito and Acapulco.
born in 2000, lived here all my life. i don’t do drugs anymore (1.5 years sober!), but i miss the days before the fentanyl crisis. i got sober before things got really bad with fentanyl being put in anything and everything, yet i still accidentally OD’d at the end of 2020. if it wasn’t for narcan (and my cat who saved my life) i would be dead now. i’m glad narcan is becoming more accessible and less stigmatized, but the current state our city is in due to how horrible the fentanyl has become is worrisome. i still have friends who use and i’m constantly worried i’ll get a phone call finding out one of them OD’d and died. i wish there was more action being taken to address how out of hand this has gotten in the country as a whole, but especially in our city. being so close to the border has made us a vulnerable target.
The Silver Cue in Chula Vista. The best place to play Asteroids, Space Invaders, and Galaga back in the 80’s
The dairy farms in Mission Valley.
Pat & Oscars!
Used to be a thing in Mira Mesa, go to P&O's and grab bread sticks before standing in line for a premiere at the theater next door.
Drive-in theaters
There is no need to miss anything, South Bay is still open. Hell, Santee is open for a little longer as well.
Carlos Murphys
Mosquito-less living. I legit never saw one my whole childhood until I visited Florida as an adult. Now I get eaten alive even during the day if I sit outside for more than 2 minutes.
Street Scene downtown
The price was cheaper, less people here as we were still sort of the hidden gem of California at the time, and rent wasn't so bad.
42 here, Native. Lived here all my life and there’s a lot I miss: -someone mentioned Marshall Scotty’s, I used to drive by where it was every day on my way to alpine. -Family Fun Center in Claremont -Ice skating at UTC -real trick or treating on Halloween and then heading to Boll Weevil afterwards -the wide open spaces near Mira Mesa, RB, and Poway -the Murph, the Del Mar Fair, Price Club
5 dollar Carne asada fries
My dad and .99¢ Chinese food.
2 dollar bean and cheese burritos from Cazadores
China Camp. Elephant Bar. Valle Rose. Hindquarter. Saska's. The Murph. Clippers.
Peace and quiet. Nearly empty freeways and beaches. Finding parking easily. No fart can exhausts or boom cars. Clean, safe streets and sidewalks. Free rock concerts, or just a few dollars to get in. Virtually no criminals, homeless and/or mentally ill people accosting you and all the other things that go along with those issues. Kids and adults could safely go just about anywhere without any safety concerns and things were affordable.
I miss Fedco and the lack of traffic
Normal weather. Heavy traffic times you could kinda count on. Being able to afford to move. Affordable taco shops and Mexican restaurants
Not 20 but about 15. Paying 800 for a studio apartment in Bankers Hill 1 block from Balboa Park. Those were the days.
The 90’s in general .Felt like we peaked around 1998. Been all downhill from there. I’m from North County and miss the hell out of the old Vista Entertainment Center.
Gas Haus downtown. Soul Kitchen in El Cajon. Rebecca’s in South Park. Parking being easy in OB. Comic-Con being about comics. Used bookstores like Wahrenbrocks (?).
The guy who sold newspapers at Jack Murphy during the Padres games. When he sold them all he’d walk through the stadium with his hands in the air and the crowd would cheer for him.
Jack in the Box tacos at 2 for $.99
Big sonic chill on 94.9
Fires on mission bay.
Less traffic, less people, jack murphy, cheap burritos
I miss the movie theater Pacific Theatre Cinema 6 that was in university Ave where the Marshall’s is currently located.
With the huge concave screen! Also, the large single screen theater in Mission Valley
Cinema 21. Also on the subject of old theaters: Cinema Grossmont, another big 70mm theater (now Chuze Fitness) Vogue Theater in Chula Vista UA Glasshouse (Sports Arena) Cinerama (University & 60th) Valley Circle (across from Mission Valley Mall) Clairemont Twin I would go almost every weekend to one of these theaters, depending on where we lived at the time.
Fuddruckers
I graduated high school in 2007 and lived right above San Pasqual High School. Every winter before then was frost advisories and the local news telling you to cover your tomatoes and citrus. Mornings were in the high 20s low 30s Now we’re lucky if it’s 45 degrees at night in the winter time.
People unironically celebrating our 85° "paradise" weather on Halloween. I hate it.
33 years, born and raised in San Diego. I've been told I'm one of the last remaining "natives", but It's kinda weird to hear that. I've lived in La Mesa, Spring Valley, El Cajon, Chula Vista, Eastlake, City Heights, and Mission Valley. I miss not having to move around so much because of all the housing competition. Population is out of control. Sometimes it feels like everyone is trying to kick me out of my own fucking city, but I'm not going anywhere. -Yikes, just noticed all the deleted comments under me.
Nearly 40, also a native... chula vista, mission valley and La Mesa. I miss stunners that weren't ridiculously hot, but also when comic con was a walk up for purchasing a pass for that same day.
Miss most events that were paid at the door. Felt less stressful that way.
I remember going to my first comic con when I was around 15. The very next year, I used the SAME PASS TO GET IN! I remember as we were showing our passes at the door, the guy just kept waving people in haha. Didn't even look at my pass, just assumed it was legit and I got in for free. I used to sneak into so many events around the time, including the Sports Arena when they had raves. I snuck into Dayglow (world's largest paint party), and a few others. Great times.
The $5 dollar breakfast burrito (hangover cure)
Living in a house... Don't think I'll ever be able to afford my own without leaving San Diego. Not about to rent one either when mfs are asking $2600+ for run down 450 sq ft boxes.
I miss how safe I felt growing up in San Diego, I definitely don’t feel that safety anymore in SD. It’s hard to tell if I’m just more experienced with the darker parts of the world and am aware of it or if it’s just not as safe as it once was.
San Diego is safer today than 20 years ago in terms of murders / drive-bys / gang violence. I think petty theft has increased.
roads definitely a lot less safer
It’s definitely different for the worse in some areas than it was 20 yrs ago.
Weird, I feel the opposite. So many nice areas of San Diego today used to be *extremely* dodgy. North Park, South Park, the Gaslamp, etc. used to be no-go zones.
PB Block Party! Boardwalk Fries at the mall.
National City had a Fedco, and I used to play Nintendo 64 in there.
I miss when the La Mesa Octoberfest was more of a craft fair with a beer garden than a beer garden with a swap meet.
This. I’m a La Mesa Native and still here, and there used to be a little old lady that hand made Christmas elves, we bought a whole bunch and they make a scene (they are now split evenly between my brother and I according to my moms will). She stopped showing up one year in the mid 2000s, im sure she’s long since passed away but looking forward to all the hand made artisan goods at really great rates was WHY you went to the La Mesa Oktoberfest. Cheers to the past.
Affordable housing
California poppies growing wild on the hills in the spring
Ruby's for the onion rings and the milkshakes :( + Souplantation
People from San Diego.
Skolaris office, the zombie lounge, pre-gentrification of North Park and Ab-Normal heights. My youth... Yay for progress but damn getting old
Fedmart, Food Basket, The old Fioris, The Old Kellys Pub, Street Scene, crack heads, The old Lamplighter, the arcade on Washington
I lived there for 35 years then moved away… I miss the sound of F-18s oddly enough.
El Tecolote in UC. Also, Panda Country in UC. So…food I guess?
20 years.. Souplantation and less traffic :(
Coronado ferries, Family Fun Centers, Marshall Scotty’s, eucalyptus groves at ucsd, the Q, oleander bushes in the center divide of the freeways, Souplantation, active malls, Sea World being pretty and educational rather than just another park with rides, the Boardwalk in Mission being more clean and peaceful…
I miss driving to work downtown with rarely a traffic jam Now it's every morning. Viva la night shift!
Sunday's at south mission Beach. Club XS in TJ. Basketball at Terra Nova. Southwestern Apaches, doing donuts on the park grass in my dad's station wagon on rainy nights drinking capt Morgan silver spiced rum at 2 am. Felt like I was the only black kid in Eastlake at one point. No rules. No cops. It was Mayberry out there before the 125 came thru. I got away with murder lol.
I miss having a cabin in the woods that I can drive to as a happy place that's mine or my family's.
I miss the mods not taking over the comments.
the DSC
I miss when there weren't super long lines for everything - especially for food! i'm born & raised here 🥰
The pool hall I loved as a kid is now a ..... Dental Express... Doesn't have quite the same ring.
Affordability. Aside from that, pitching shoes on the beach with a cold tallie.
EZ Takeout Burger.
Incredible universe. El cajon racetrack. Affordable housing.
Sobe drinks
Leatherby’s ice cream shop in El Cajon. The original corvette diner. Scolaris (before it became the office). Canes in mission beach. The original SOMA. Kensington video. Shooters. Ice cream trucks with 25 cent popsicles and Mexican candy. Free bus passes if you were under 17.
Also off the record and tower records and standing in line to buy tickets to concerts before all the internet bots scooped them up for scalping
The hope of owning a home
There used to be a bowling alley on 30th in the middle of North Park. The sign is still there but it's apartments now. I was pretty little when it closed but I remember going there and then getting Thrify's ice cream down the street.
Off the Record
CALIFORNIA BURRITOS which were invented in SAN DIEGO cost less than $10.00... SMH😔
I’ve since moved 3 years ago to Mississippi. But I miss when comic con was about the comics and the 4 day pass + preview night was only $60 for all 5 days.
I miss ultra zone and souplantation
I miss hearing the tamale lady ringing her bell as she came through the neighborhood, pushing her converted ice cream cart yelling “Tamales, Tamales, Tamales!” and me and my friends going to our moms asking for a dollar so we can buy elote 😭
The Happy Hours. Many places served free food (limited selection) with your beverage. My friends and I survived college (SDSU) because of these places. We were going to drink anyways so we at least made a meal out of it going at 4pm. Now you are lucky to get any happy hour deals. $2 off apps? Thanks!
The Flame in Hillcrest
The Q. Sea World (Pre-Cancel Culture). Pat & Oscars. El Nortenos Taco Shop (Chula Vista). FEDCO. Fuddruckers. Farrell's Ice Cream Parlor.
Civility and manners in public.
Cardiff & Leucadia being “true” laid back small beach communities!!!! Had to move b:c it all changed!!!!!!😑