With the recession still nipping at our heels, I thought I should pass along a couple cheap date nights I've been enjoying over the years. No, not Filiberto's, 2 Buck Chuck from Trader Joes, and a walk at Moonlight Beach all for under $9. Something classier ('cause that's who I am). It's LeucadiART Walk and Taste of Mainstreet.
First up is LeucadiART Walk Sunday, August 28th from 10am to 5pm. LeucadiART Walk features a mile of talented artists (painters, sculpturers, musicians, etc) on the west side of highway 101. It starts on Marcheta Street (i.e. Juanita's Taco Shop) and ends around W. Glaucus (Haggo's Organic Taco. Funny- LeucadiART Walk is squeezed between two taco shops). There will be art demonstrations, live music, children's activities, a wine and beer garden, and more. There's even a double decker shuttle service with free parking at the Encinitas Civic Center and Coaster Station (i.e. Vulcan Ave. at D. Street). Make sure to bring your walking shoes and some cash to buy some of the best local art you've ever seen.
Now if your date is not cultured and doesn't have an eye for art, then treating them to a good meal is probably a safe bet at the Taste of Mainstreet (see last year's flier above) happening Thursday, September 8th from 6-9pm. How about more food than you could possibly eat? And every single delicacy you could imagine- Italian, Hawaiian, Peruvian Mexican, Japanese, Vegetarian, American, 7-11 (I don't know how to classify a Slurpee), and more. What's unique about a Taste of Mainstreet type event is that the local restaurants (in this case downtown Encinitas) set up shop on the sidewalks and with your $25 ticket, you get to sample the best of their cooking, around 40 restaurants in all. Tickets though are limited to the first 1000 and they go on sale August 8th, so get them ASAP. Stroll around downtown, eat some fine food, stop off at Union for a drink, listen to live music in the streets- good times. Check out the list of restaurants from last year- and check this link here for updated information!
