This would be the first of its kind in San Diego and what better place than the centrally located Liberty Station (the former NTC)...
It's located in Barracks 8 next to Stone Brewing World Bistro & Garden. We parked on the opposite side actually, where we saw this boat that served as seating complete with a mini garden.
Our first two stops opened earlier than all of the other vendors (7:30 am as opposed to 11 am). We perused the cases at Le Parfait Paris and decided on just one pastry, our favorite, the chocolate almond croissant.
I saw the Ludi's macaron which I enjoyed the weekend before with the Educator GF's. The one with raspberries next to it also looked good but we wanted something not as fancy since we knew we would be having lunch later.
I was curious about the one below (the layered one with the coffee bean on top). Next time, we'll have to try that one.
We had to have some coffee and thank goodness they have a awesome coffee vendor here, The West Bean (we love their downtown location). Darlene wrote about their Kryptonite iced cold brew (infused with mint). I was curious to see how it compared to Philz version of the mint mojito or Better Buzz's version.
Bert recognized one of the baristas whom we saw recently at Por Vida (the guy in this photo who is cut off). Nice guy! Well, everyone who works here is super nice!
The owner putting in some fresh mint into my mint infused cold brew. It was pre-sweetened which saved me the trouble of having to do it myself. It was just right too - not too bitter and not too sweet.
Bert's macchiato was so cute, served in a tiny cup. You'll notice that it's paper. No ceramic cups here. I'm sure they don't want to be washing cups constantly or having to worry about guests "taking" their cups home. It would be different if they were not in this space I suppose. I know in their downtown location, everything is in a ceramic cup unless you are taking your coffee to go.
Lovely yellow wall courtesy of Cane Patch Pies, which wasn't open but I took the liberty of sitting at their bar stools so I could take these photos. As for the Krytonite drink, I liked it much better than Philz since they don't overload the drink with mint like they do. Our recent Philz visit (in Burlingame during break; post is forthcoming), Bert noticed that half of the cup was crammed with mint leaves and ice and not that much coffee itself. Here, not so much mint filler which is good!
Bert's macchiato was so smooth and perfect, unlike some versions at other places which taste burnt. There was no need to add any cream or sugar to this as well. That's when we know it's made right but then WestBean always does coffee right.
Across from WestBean is this Raw Bar, where I admired their tiles...
It reminded me of a game that TC used to play with various shapes. It was supposed to teach her spatial relations, coordination, fine motor skills, etc. We had fun with that game ourselves as adults.
While waiting for our sandwich later that morning, I noticed this pet place, Howlistic it was called.
Pizzle and Bully Sticks = penis snacks for Fido and Rex. Yum!
At this vendor (ice cream and baked goods), we admired the cookies and brownies arranged like precious artifacts underneath glass domes. But $4 or 5 for cookie? Pass.
My tip - if you like coffee and pastries, go as early as 7:30 am. We went on a weekday and it wasn't so bad until after 12 noon. I won't even bother to go during the weekends. If you're not antisocial like me, then crowds may not be a big thing, so have at it.
Who else went to LPM?
Here is Kirbie's initial visit when they first opened. Am waiting to link future foodblogger posts (Mary, hint hint).
[Update 4/26/16 - Mary's post, hot off the press!]
+ articles:
"San Diego plans to open $3 million public market at Liberty Station" LA Times, Sept 2014
"San Diego's first food hall is now open" SD Union Tribune, March 18, 2016
"The Ultimate Guide to Liberty Public Market" SD Eater, March 21, 2016
"Liberty Public Market - Meet the Artisans" SD Eater, Feb 18, 2016
Liberty Public Market
2820 Historic Decatur Road
San Diego, CA 92106
(619) 487-9346
libertypublicmarket.com (the sit has
Le Parfait Paris
(619) 245-4457 + reviews from you know where
The WestBean
(619) 709-3232 + reviews from you know where again
It was almost 11 am which is when most of the food vendors open up. We already knew which two vendors we wanted to try, so Bert made his first move while I grabbed a table...
4 comments:
I really want to visit on a weekday like you suggested to avoid the crowds. Both coffees look amazing. I haven't had a mint infused brew in ages. Do they have unsweetened cold brew there as well? I recently ran out of milk in the house so have been *trying* to drink my coffee black which has been no bueno. It's commendable how baristas just know how to make a better brew.
Hi Faye, if you can go early on a weekday, do it. You can time it so you can go to the places that are open before 11 am, then make a beeline for whatever eateries you want to eat at. Perhaps going with a friend or two, you can split up and order at the different places. The coffees at WestBean are always so good. I'm pretty sure they have plain cold brew, then you can add what you want to it later. I saw on their IG that they also do mint mocha but it's not on their menu. I want to try that next time.
Haha, I got your hint, I wrote my review! :D I LOVE that boat with the seating/garden! Man, if I had seen that I would have taken a photo of it but I missed it. The mint coffee sounds really good - I'll have to try that in the future! When I go again I will definitely NOT go in the afternoon... UGH. Too crowded, man.
Heh heh, it worked! I'll have to add your link then.
The boat is pretty cool but there's no shade. The boat is on the other side.
The mint coffee is good but Better Buzz has their own version called the Mint Mojito (which is like a copy of Philz Mint Coffee).
Crowds suck!
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