Thoughts on La Jolla?

[P47P47]

Angelino socialites fine each other a dollar,
For saying "La Jolla",
But they reward each other with a Picasso or a Goya,
For saying "La Hoya",


- Ogden Nash

[USDefault]

Advise your family they need to really investigate any La Jolla purchase, in particular (1) horrible smells arising from sea lion and related fecal matter, and (2) horrendous traffic, especially into and out of the Prospect tourist trap zone as well as Torrey Pines and UCSD flow.

Do not rely on the sellers to advise you; sellers will downplay smell and traffic issues. Do not rely on any realtor -- realtors lie, and they will lie to your family's face; all they care about is closing the transaction (read: commission), and any La Jolla property is going to be a fat payday for the undeserved six-percenters.

So for any La Jolla property, you need to visit it multiple times per week, at various times of day, to see if the traffic is something you want to put up with. I don't know what the odors are like right now, but if you are anywhere near the coast, you really want to be there for a while when the coastal smell is bad.

Anecdote: had a colleague (luckily) rent an ocean-facing La Jolla apartment. The odors were so bad they had to keep the windows and sliding glass door shut all the time. Unable to eat or drink on their ocean view balcony, the smell made food taste like fecal matter. They vacated within six months, said it was the worst place they had ever lived due to the smell, and of course they ate the moving and storage fees. They are damn lucky they didn't sink over $2mm on this place, they would have been stuck with it for certain.

Finally, none of this is exaggeration. You want the freedom to pull a Floyd Mayweather when it becomes unbearable. Again, I don't know how the odor has been during Summer 2015, haven't been there yet.

[elchevere]

The stench in La Jolla is limited to a small stretch of Prospect Street, not the entire Village.

[USDefault]

You may be right, as of today. Two years ago, I personally smelled it far beyond that. We were driving in and were like, "What the F is THAT"? This was around the time of the Mayweather incident, maybe a couple weeks after. It was beyond disgusting. We thought about eating near the village post office, that's at least a ten to fifteen minute walk -- still smelled it. When you can smell seal ***** in the back of the Brooks Brothers, it's bad; didn't get to use my annual money-off card they mail to regulars, I just wanted to leave. Restaurants all over were hemorrhaging customers, and I know because I asked and they told us.

But as you say, this is no longer the case and perhaps the problem has been contained.

[LuvSouthOC]

I was there last weekend and it was foul.

[elchevere]

I ate at Donovans last night then went up to the rooftop bar at Georges and there was no smell. Even when I have smelled it in the past, it is confined to a small section....I have smelled it near George's in the past but not on the outdoor deck of Eddie V's just up the street.

[USDefault]

How is the Donovans in La Jolla? The UTC one was o.k. Half-seafood tower was the way to go.

[elchevere]

I like the 3 course $45 deal at Donovans....caesar salad, I opted for the 6 oz beef tenderloin which was tastey, cooked a perfect medium rare, came with 2 sides (garlic mashed and snow peas), and choice of dessert. Nice ocean view tables at this new location but I liked the ambiance (old school) and the bar at the UTC location better.

Probably best Steakhouse in SD (though no Peter Luger)....Cowboy Star was off the last time I went, JRDN at Tower 23 is good, and I love the skirt steak at Grant Grill and need to try their ribeye.

[sav858]

Some spots the seaweed can pile up and cause an odor, nothing like around Prospect St though with the bird crap. I was in SD last week, north end of Windansea (the best end imo) was fine but the south end smelled like rotting seaweed which from past my experiences seems more common on that end. Not all of La Jolla smells, it's very localized. If you're inland just a a block or two it probably won't be an issue anywhere.