The son of Yvonne Chouinard ,Fletcher has worked hard for nearly a decade now developing, researching and refining his craft of board building. This is the place where it all happens and has happened. The building is extremely important in Patagonia history and the vibe when you drop in tells you that. It’s smack in the middle of the Patagonia Campus. I always stop by when in Ventura. Good pizza around the corner, blocks away from the downtown farmers market on Saturdays.Drop by and hang out on the porch and you could easily run into any number of the Patagonia team riders ...  read more >>>

Donuts, Donuts Donuts Donuts!! Sooooo very good yet so Very bad for you. The pure fat and sugar I guess is what makes them so good. Wouldn’t it be great if they weren’t So Very bad for you? Super cool idea of the month has to be BAKED DONUTS at Beach City Baked Donuts in Redondo Beach. On the border between Redondo and Hermosa down the famous Pacific Coast highway you’ll find the well styled minimalistic shop in the home of what looks like an old style donut shop. The BCBD owners hail from Japan, Koji the owner from Osaka and his wife from Chigasaki. They have brou...  read more >>>

This is the spot! This is the spot it all started at or at least where the work began. Ok maybe not the Exact spot but the Patagonia Ventura store is shop is very near where the work started at the Original Pacific Iron Works. If you make your way to Ventura you Must stop into Patagonia at The Great Pacific Iron Works and of course right up the block to Point Blanks / Fletcher Chouinard shapes surf shack. Patagonia is a giant in the world of climbing and has over the last 5+ year forged a good mark on surfing. A company that has put so much care into what it’s doing and w...  read more >>>

Peaceful and intimate this calming pastry, tea garden offers a great lunch as well. Great for a romantic escape or casual meetings. www.jinpatisserie.com...  read more >>>

This swanky and charming bistro offers wine tastings four times a month!! How can that be bad?! The chef here is from Ne Zealand and blends influences and flavors from N’Zed, Europe, Australia and the United States. Seafood like Trout, Salmon, Scallops, Ahi. Heartier faire like Pork and Poultry as well as steak and rack of lamb. They offer several different preparations of filet mignon, I’m eyeing the one with the Portobello mushroom cream sauce. Check their web site and facebook page for tastings and the daily lunch and dinner menu. www.secondcitybistro.com http://www.facebo...  read more >>>

I don’t often use this word but I’m going to call this shop Exquisite!! I moved ever so slowly through this unique and fresh “everything” store so I could carefully marvel over all the different utensils, tools and crafts I never knew I needed. You can also visit their quality online store, too. Please be amazed by their great selections. http://www.tortoisegeneralstore.com/...  read more >>>

Aptly named after the famous endangered El Segundo Blue Butterflies that visit the region. This excellent little local hang offers up fine coffees and pastries as well as the latest in local talk and news. Great selection of coffee drinks and pastries even fruit loops in a cup! ...  read more >>>

The menu is diverse and tantalizing. Peruvian and Italian mixed delivers dishes like; The hospitable owner may even be on hand. Take in these appetizers chilled mashed potatoes with shredded chicken, avocado stuffed vegetables and steamed shrimp, Peruvian sashimi and fried plantains. Main dishes include many chicken, lamb, seafood and meat dishes.  Delicious and tempting courses like Fried Sea bass with Peruvian beans, Angus steak fillet with fries and plantains as well as grilled Salmon with rosemary and ginger. It’s friendly and the choices abound. www.playablancarestaur...  read more >>>

A south bay landmark since 1969 they call themselves “The Original Eat At Joe’s”. I love these places, on tour for year with rock bands the best places were the greasiest heartiest American cooking joints and this one rates strong. Packed to the gills all day be prepared for a wait. The bustling dining rooms are a great setting to lay out your plans for the day, read the paper or meet a small group for breakfast. I don’t recommend groups too large. I had Conan Special your basic bacon and eggs and French toast with coffee. the couple next to me ordered the famous &l...  read more >>>

This place is a must for the Venice boardwalk tourist. Nothing spectacular about the food but the atmosphere is excellent and the people watching is a 10 on a scale on 1 to 10. I always get the bacon and eggs and check out the array of L.A.’s finest from homeless to exercise clubs, roller skaters to skate boarders, artists and activists, gangstas and supermodels it’s all here. Note: the Café also has a pretty good sports bar attached to it if you are looking to catch any games. http://thesidewalkcafe.com/...  read more >>>

This is amazing. I stopped for coffee and discovered a strange new food. Food in a pie. Steak, chicken, veggies, eggs all of the above. It looked so weird and I was afraid and then I bit into the warm flakey crust of my egg and meat pie and was SOLD Crazy. You will crave this standard from Down Under. The coffee was hearty and strong and as I said the Pie’s are incredible and addictive. This is certainly an excellent Pre or Post surf session re-fuel food and on Mondays you get Free Coffee!! Now that’s a welcome to Redondo Beach. www.mojopies.com...  read more >>>

It’s hard to find a good thrift store, so often it’s either a store full of beat down clothes that show why they are priced low or they are a “vintage” store that is too over priced. Gotta Have It has a nice mix and it hasn’t been picked over. The owner is passionate about her wares and supports the local creativity. If you are in Venice stop by and check out some of the current local designer goodies as well. I was really impressed by the art from local artists and especially CHASE some of which could be found on T-shirts and canvases in the shop....  read more >>>

Animal House sells bits of history and even has some itself to brag about. The shop is in the block made famous by Orson Welles “Touch of Evil” where this street posed as a dangerous street in Mexico circa late 1950’s. So much has passed through the intersection and down this block it’s a must visit spot and many treats can be found in the area. Animal House is a place to find Dog Town classics, vintage accessories and concert shirts as well as fine vintage clothing and collectible denim and leather. It has the perfect mix of vintage, collectible and contemporar...  read more >>>

This surf shop is an international destination. There are only a few shops as cool as this in all of California, maybe all the United States. The vibe is super laid back and friendly and you could hang out for a while appreciating the original art on the walls the many independent shapers crafts and even a complete library of surf videos and a listening station for music purchases. At Mollusk you can find all the latest Warriors of Radness and Ando goodies too. Mollusk also carries the latest from Dano, Junod, Rainbow, Mandala, Swift, Wegener, Gato Heroi, two birds and others. www.mollusk...  read more >>>

Now, I can eat expensive and I can eat scary things off taco carts in alleys in Mexico but I sure do prefer delighting in a meal that hits all the buttons in the taste buds. I often hunt for that great combination of flavors, and creations matched great atmosphere and affordable prices. Now of course affordable is relative as I am willing to pay a little more than average for quality adventure in gastronomy. Gastronomy is the study of the relationship between culture and food. At Farm Stand you’ll find a blend of simple foods from recipes found in French, Italian, American and Mediter...  read more >>>

Walk throught Abbot Kinney Blvd... Abbott Kinney Boulevard is a culture all in itself. It’s a place for art, education, film, music, business, and medical marijuana, eating and drinking and of course shopping. Any day and night you can find celebs and stars of the underground from music and film, super models, artists, writers and all walks of the people that define Venice and Santa Monica California. The place has so much character that I find myself making plans to get over to Abbott Kinney and meet some friends any chance I can get. It doesn’t hurt that Abbott Kinney flows no...  read more >>>

I met Lisa years ago helping her find people interested in one of her inventions, the Cinch-Sac. It’s a great piece of surfing equipment that’s been copied many times. It’s a changing mat that cinches up to be a bag that hold your soaked wetsuit. Check it out in our products section. What I quickly learned though was Lisa is more than an inventor, she's an avid surfer, a camper and traveler, a big fan of Westy’s (VW Westfalia vans), a business woman with a talent for sewing. Lisa makes hats, beanies, changing towels, hand bags, board bags, board carriers and ...  read more >>>

Good, clean, comfortable and inexpensive near the beach is sooooo hard to find. This hotel is even close enough to L.A. to work as a home base if you are visiting Venice, Santa Monica and the West Side. Finding anything under $130 is extremely hard in the L.A. are and this cozy functional place can bring you in for possibly half that on the right dates. Be sure to tell them we sent you!! The motel is near authentic ethnic cuisine in Thai food and French as well as a few good Mexican and American places. St Raphael is excellent well priced French, Eat at Joe’s is a solid greasy spoon ...  read more >>>

Cool, no, Super Cool shop alert! The shop has such a warm feel and through many lay out changes I think they have finally found the one that directs the flow allowing the visitor to cruise through and see all Thalia St has to offer. Here you’ll find brands like KookBox, Captain Fin Co., RAEN, VANS, Ando, Brixton, Hippy Tree, INSIGHT and Toddland as well as many other cool little brands. Also find surfboards by Swift, KookBox, Wegener, Junod, Gato Heroi and others. Deep on the coast protected by the lush hills of Laguna this great little destination is a must for surf travelers an...  read more >>>

Whenever I am in L.A. I try as hard as I can to grab a lunch at this special market on the corner of Centinela and Venice Blvd. This authentic Japanese market has all you could ever want from a quick bite of Japanese cuisine. The atmosphere is cafeteria food court style but there is usually some interesting show or sports, in Japanese, on the flat screens and plenty of L.A. style people watching. Here is my insider tip. I usually go first into the Market area and grab some poke style, sashimi style ahi tuna or fresh sushi from the sushi counter. Then I head over to one of the food court s...  read more >>>

There are a ton of people in L.A. nearly 13 million to try and give you and exact number and a good 130,000 live in the Venice Santa Monica area. There aren’t many breaks to choose from along the beaches that provide shore for some kinder of breakers and let me tell you from experience more often than not they are...shore breakers. It’s a tough surfing existence but if you go everyday and stay core it is pretty dang cool to surf dog town. You have an area that is bordered by Playa Vista on the south that leads into El Segundo, West L.A. and Culver City to the east, Santa Monica...  read more >>>

  1 block east of PCH and Morse, just around the corner from the DAV. Good eats guiding in your travels is one of our objectives here at Recalmag and here’s a really good one to plug into your GPS. Primo Market offers quality food in several perfect packages. Shop at the market for all your basic needs from toiletries to groceries. If you are in a hurry or if traveling and you don’t have a place to cook Primo has a great selection of prepared foods from meatloaf to chicken to sa...  read more >>>

Here’s a good spot for sushi in Santa Cruz near Pleasure Point and the Hook. I like dropping for a great and simple lunch after a surf at the point. This day I had edemame, spicy tuna and a soda for under $11. It’s across the street from Freeline surf, the Mel family’s surf shop and just a couple doors down from the Billabong store. The atmosphere is excellent sushi bar style with several small private rooms for groups super friendly service indoor and outdoor eating. Drop on by and tell them we sent ya.  ...  read more >>>