Author: Mercy Baron

Like the poster on Fox Mulder’s wall, we, at the OB Rag, aim to find it.

I’m referring to the rumors that have been flying around our little beach community in regards to all the assaults, sex crimes and attacks that have been occurring in alarming numbers here the last couple of months and even longer. Most of them are true, but some of them just ain’t.

It seems that we hear of an incident, and within 24 hours, we “hear” of several more. In response to all of this, many of us have formed the OB Citizen’s Patrol, along with the guidance of Tim Nolan, owner of Tower Two Cafe.

The first meeting was on October 8, and over 30 people crammed into Tim’s resto to voice their concerns and sign up for the first organized patrols since the 1970’s. Tim said it started way back then in response to local crime and the time had come again to relaunch the patrols. Tim was involved back then, and has been patrolling ever since. He has gone out on his own for many years to make the neighborhood safe for his family.

Roger and Yasuko’s Shop Help Make OB What It Is

Bernie’s Bicycle Shop has been an Ocean Beach institution for almost 45 years. That’s a long time in a town that is celebrating it’s 125th Anniversary!

Current owner, Roger Lovett, had been a regular customer of Bernie’s since he was a kid. Not every grown up can claim they bought the bike shop they used to hang out in when they were little. When Roger bought the shop in it’s original location on Voltaire and Ebers in 1989, he was jokingly threatened by long time customers to retain the original name of Bernie’s. And so he did.

Two years later in 1991, he moved the shop to it’s current location at 1911 Cable Street (used to house the Sunshine Surf Shop). Twenty-one years is a long time in a town that has seen too many businesses close in just the last few years alone. There used to be 4 bike shops in OB but most have closed.

By Mercy Baron

Rocky’s Surf Shop on the corner of Abbott and Muir, in Ocean Beach, closed it’s doors September 15 after serving the surf community for an impressive 25 years. Owner, Doug Yates, was very forthcoming in my interview with him on the state of the surfing industry in Southern California today, and how it has affected his decision to close the doors to a surf shop destination.

Rocky’s was originally started in 1990 by original owner Robin Marion and was then bought by John Holly. Doug started as an employee about 12 years ago, and then bought it from John about 5 years ago in 2008.

Doug stated that in 2005, Clark Foam of Mission Viejo, the world’s largest supplier of surfboard blanks, went out of business, and they accounted for 80% of the blanks being made in the surf world. To fill that need, money poured into the industry with boards being made in China and Taiwan, which were made so cheaply, that it created a glut of boards.

By Mercy Baron

Without a doubt, the gourmet food truck scene is one of the hottest trends rolling right now in the gastronomical world. Between the TV offerings of, The Great Food Truck Race on The Food Network, and Eat St on The Cooking Channel, to President Obama tweeting about his fave truck in D.C., (D.C. Empanadas) you just can’t get any more au courant with a hopefully, long lasting fad.

It all started just a short four years ago here on the West Coast, with the Kogi BBQ truck in Los Angeles. I remember reading about it when I still lived there and was hoping to catch up with it someday, but never did.

In the beginning of 2010, the Southern California Mobile Food Vendors Association (SoCalMFVA) was created, becoming the first organization started to protect the rights of gourmet food truck owners.

By Mercy Baron / Special to the OB Rag

Ah, the sweet smell of ganja is in the air, I must be at a 311 and Slightly Stoopid concert. On Saturday, August 25, these two bands came to play at the Cricket Wireless Amphitheater. 311 Ska rockers returned for the third year in a row that I’ve seen them there, and OB homeboys made good, Slightly Stoopid opened for them.

The BBQ House
5025 Newport Avenue
Ocean Beach, CA 92107
(619) 222-4311

Editor: Please welcome Mercy Baron in the first ever post of her new OB Rag column, “Rockin’ Round OB Town” – it’s a review of one of her fave bbq places right chere on Newport. And by the way, Mercy is a certified Kansas City BBQ Society Judge.

By Mercy Baron / Special to the OB Rag

Q, or BBQ, is my thang. It’s so much my thang that I just got certified earlier this year as a Kansas City BBQ Society Judge. This past Saturday, I judged my first BBQ competition in Vista. I tasted some good Q….and some not so good Q.