Reevaluating The Gaslamp Quarter in San Diego

When it comes to tourism, the Gaslamp Quarter is just behind the beaches when it comes to gravitational pull. Especially at night, tourists flock to this downtown area for the many restaurants and bars that fill the historic streets of this once “colorful” (aka seedy) part of town.



Walking around with a camera, you will find plenty of architectural details to shoot.



The kind you don’t find in the newer boxy high-rises that are popping up all over town, ruining the skyline and character of the quaint San Diego neighborhoods. And let’s not get into what they are doing for the street parking and traffic…



Back to the topic at hand…



Small branded details like this are a huge plus with me:



The fact that gritty art like this can still be found not only harks back to the once not-so-family friendly nature of the Gaslamp, but also helps give a quirkiness that counters the homogenous feel of some of the national chains that have invaded here over the years.



Last weekend, I got out of my introverted bubble to attend the Gaslamp Pet Parade, thanks to my friend Thomas.



Beau is not an introvert.



The parade was adorable. This type of thing is so California.



Santa was on hand…



and one of his elves, handing out candy canes (I wonder if they are organic?):



The pets and their owners were quite creative:












After the parade finished, I snapped a few more shots of the historic buildings that have survived, like this one from 1913:



closer:



…and closer for the interesting details one would typically miss from the street, just walking (or staggering) by.



I have often avoided the Gaslamp for its touristy reputation, but it pays to revisit and reevaluate every so often. I had a blast!
 
See more Gaslamp Quarter in San Diego photos at my main website.

Born and Raised

Born & Raised is a restaurant in Little Italy that has been on my “to-do” list for many years. It is one of the many Instagram-able locations that Consortium Holdings, LLC has created throughout the San Diego area (including my fave, The Lafayette Hotel). Typically, I love the design and aesthetic of that group’s restaurants; the food usually falls far behind. While not awful, it rarely gives a “wow, I can’t wait to eat there again” experience. Created in 2017, it replaced Nelson Photo Supply, where I used to buy my camera equipment and order prints of my work.



The Basile Studio did the design work on B&R, creating what is reminiscent of a 1920s/30s luxury ocean liner. From their website:

We transformed the 1930s-era building into an entirely custom 10,000 square-foot upscale steakhouse. Upon entry, the first floor dining room reveals a network of curved camel-colored leather booths, parquet and terrazzo flooring, tambour paneling, and brass throughout. Utilizing wood from a single walnut tree sourced from Northern California, book-matched veneer covers the ceiling joining 8 LED-top-lit cladded-column “blooms.”



The interior is rich looking, with a warmth that creates the perfect atmosphere for this Michelin rated upscale steakhouse. From the Michelin Guide website:

If Frank Sinatra broke bread with Tupac, they’d probably meet at Born & Raised. No expense was spared making this wildly polished, upscale steakhouse that resembles a mid-century, art deco dream lined with black-and-white photos of old-school rap legends, like Eazy-E. There is a glassed-in meat cutting room in the back; and a lovely, open-air rooftop bar overlooking Little Italy. Waiters dressed in tuxedos and Converse shoes drift between tables, pushing nostalgic tableside carts where they whip up starters on the spot or pour a drink to order. Certainly, you’re here for the impeccably cooked steaks, but don’t miss the tartare, prepared tableside with quail egg, capers and cornichons (to name just a few embellishments) and served with herbed aïoli.



The staff was friendly and you can tell that they attempt to give off an old-world vibe as if they were Musso and Frank in Hollywood. Despite the valiant attempt, it feels more like Musso and Frank in training. Our waiter was nice enough, but lacked the experience and know-how one would expect from an establishment that has a $$$$ ranking.



That was the only real negative. The food scored high marks and other than the price, I would definitely be a frequent diner here. The steak was out of this world…



and the carrot cake received high marks as well.



This is definitely a special occasion place, other than maybe a good spot for an after-work cocktail at the well-stocked bar. The occasion that brought me here was my friend Kevin’s birthday.



The staff was attentive to Kevin’s birthday, and definitely made him feel special.



See more Little Italy in San Diego photos at my main website.

Temple Tuesday: Dating Shirley

Shirley Temple was probably one of the most photographed people in the world during the 1930s and 1940s. Photoplay Magazine photographer Hyman Fink went out to Shirley’s Rockingham manse to do a photo shoot of the teenage star right about the time she was making a comeback in David O. Selznick’s epic drama, “Since You Went Away.” This first photo shows Shirley at her Steinway piano:



When acquiring vintage photos of Shirley, even without any publicity captions or notations on the back, it’s fairly easy to date them based on her appearance. My initial guess was that this session took place in 1943/1944. Below, Shirley reverently holds her special Oscar from 1935, sitting on the fireplace mantle.



In this shot, she pretends to arrange a vase of fresh cut gladiolas.



These two photos show her playing a game of Backgammon with her father, George. Based on the weary head in the hand pose, I would guess he isn’t winning.



Yup - Shirley appears to be going in for the kill!



This image shows Shirley relaxing on the couch reading the Funnies. You youngsters out there probably aren’t aware that one of the highlights of Sunday mornings back in the day was going through the COLOR comic pages that were inserted into the paper. Yes, paper.



Zooming in for a closeup, we can see the Seein’ Stars feature, created by illustrator Feg Murray, written about in a previous post:



I was able to find this item on eBay, which dates the photos to January 9, 1944:



It doesn’t appear that Photoplay Magazine did any kind of feature with these shots; the only use I could find was from the June 1944 issue, where just one of the photos was part of a double-page collage spread:



In this day and age of instant gratification and people obsessed with posting a plethora of photos immediately, it’s hard to fathom that it took five months for only one shot to be shared with the public. And there you have it folks - an inside peek at how I “date” my vintage photos.

See more photos of Shirley Temple at home at my main website.