Erin’s List of Things That Aren’t Here Anymore

(originally published in 2002)

A while back I was hangin’ with my family and we started making a list of
things that used to be in San Diego, but alas, are no with us no more…

restaurants/bars

Organ Powered Pizza

i believe this was on the corner of Kearny Villa and Clairemont Mesa – sorta near Filippi’s

Oscar’s

different than the Oscar’s in the Valley, this was on Midway & Rosecrans where there is now a Rubio’s and a basic strip mall

Sir George’s

where Home Depot is next to the Target on Convoy

Shakey’s Pizza

same general area – possibly on Othello, behind the Target

Straw Hat Pizza

in the shopping mall on Balboa where Vons and Mervyns are

Bacchanal

Clairemont Mesa, near Kearny Villa

Square Pan Pizza

on Clairemont Mesa near 805

The Ginger Jar

sort of Denny’s wanna-be on Clairemont Mesa near 805

Picnic n Chik’n, Clairemont

where the E-Z Out Burger (In-and-Out rip-off), on Genesee

A & W Root Beer

they would bring trays to your car window! This was up by Aero Drive and Convoy

The Real Maine Thing

currently a Roberto’s, on Convoy, this was all seafood – if you go to Roberto’s now I think they still have some of the seafood motifs still up from that era

Taco Jack

across the street from the Jack in the Box on the corner of Balboa and Convoy – my sister worked there… it was awesome!

Journey

a night club somewhere in the Kearny Villa area

Sambo’s

was located in the Clairemont Mesa area between the 805 and 15 – this had a mural of the story of Little Black Sambo – complete with all the stereotypes of the old days – not sure if they got sued or what, but they weren’t around past maybe the late 70s

Winter’s

Tracy and I loved this place – it was a restaurant before with a Matterhorn/Swiss Alpine kind of look, but then it got changed into a club in the early 90s. It had a DJ upstairs and a stage downstairs so you could enjoy either dancing or watching a band – now it’s a funeral home

Baxter’s

on the corner of Balboa and Genesee – bar/restaurant with excellent Long Island Iced Teas

Chillers

in Belmont Park area – i know it’s a club still, but it used to be a club with all kinds of slushy fruity drinks. They had like ten Slurpee-type machines with different drinks inside plus a regular bar

Stuffy’s

On Balboa near Genessee — really huge pancakes. very greasy spoon-ish. yummy, but now it’s a pool supply store.

Nappy’s

was in O.B.

Bob’s Big Boy

All around San Diego, one especially on Balboa in Clairemont. It’s now a Coco’s

movie theatres

Midway Drive-In

where the Denny’s is on Midway and West Point Loma

Tu-Vu Drive-In

Two screens… Two views.. get it? This was somewhere in Kearny Mesa area… not sure of exact location

Fox Theatre

this is now the core of Symphony Hall – all the decor inside is how it was when we used to go to Disney flicks when we were growing up – it had a balcony, even!

((Mystery Theater)), name?

not sure of the name of this, but there WAS a theatre near Balboa and Genesee – back near the See’s and the beauty college – it didn’t stay opened very long

Loma Theatre

now this is the Bookstar on Rosecrans. The sign remains the same, but this was a pretty cool theatre – they rigged it up for Sensurround when they showed “Earthquake” – and i made the mistake of going to see “Top Gun” there when i was severely hung over… oyyy

The Strand

in Ocean Beach, on Newport, it’s opened and closed a lot over the years… back in the early days of the Rocky Horror thingie, this is where you had to come to see it

Clairemont Twin

It’s now the 99 Cent store right next to Krispy Kreme on Clairemont Mesa Blvd. It USED to be one theatre, but they must have figured out it would make more money if they split it in two. For awhile it was a dollar theatre.

The Guild

not sure what it is now, but it was an empty lot last time i saw – in Hillcrest on 5th between University and Robinson

Linda Vista Theatre

somewhere in the Linda Vista Road / Ulric Street area. This showed schlocky B-movies mostly – but the last few rows of chairs had rocking seats… i was never really sure why… plus I believe they also had a smoking section

The Frontier Drive-In

on Midway behind the Target… close to where that IHOP is

Cinema 21

one of the premiere theatres in San Diego is now a church, it had a huge screen and great sound

Valley Circle

Another Mission Valley Theatre which is now gone

Fashion Valley 4

this was in the part near Farrell’s – it was kind of a lame theatre and never really the coolest of hangouts, but… I did see Jaws there!

College

on College, just south of El Cajon – sort of lame, but they did have midnight movies that we would go to occasionally if we got out of our movie theatre early enough

Park Theatres

this was the theatre that had that cool majorette girl – they still have the neon sign for the shopping center

Cinerama

on University near College – another cool big theatre that got changed into little theatres… is it open now? i dunno

Broadway Theatre

it was a moviehouse at 8th and Broadway

Center 3 Cinemait was a rarity, a “multiplex” of 3 theatres at a time when most theatres were single-screen.

fun stuff

Belmont Park

yeah, okay, it’s still there, but before it used to have more of a Del Mar Fair sort of thing where you could go on rides like The Zipper and other things that would make you sick

Palisade Garden

roller skating on University near 30th

Aztec Bowl

on 30th near El Cajon

Ocean Beach Bowl

on Bacon St. in between Newport and Santa Monica – not too far from Java Joe’s

Dinosaur

we were really easy to please as kids because all three of us – me and my sisters – remember there was a dinosaur you could climb on in Mission Valley Shopping Center I’m not sure where it was, but it was in one of the stairwells down in the parking area below the mall

Tidepools in Ocean Beach

these are really still there down sort of underneath the Pier area near the cliffs, but there has been a lot of erosion since i was a youngster

Marshal Scotty’s

Miniature golf

stores

Walker Scotts

this is a little bit foggy in my mind, but i think it’s like this… Vons in Clairemont Square used to be where TJ Maxx is now… and I think Walker Scott’s was where the Vons is now… but i could be wrong

Grant’s

where Mervyn’s is now on Balboa/Genesee

Kinney Shoe Store

my mom seems to think it was down by Linda Vista Road and Morena Blvd meet

Licorice Pizza Records

next to Long’s, in the same strip mall as Mervyn’s and Vons, I think it’s a pet store now

Woolworth’s

in Fashion Valley, i think near JC Penney’s; Also downtown in between 5th and 6th Aves. & Broadway and C St.

Newberry’s

in Mission Valley, where Sports Chalet is now; Both Newberry’s and Woolworth’s were kinda cool and kinda cheesy…

Coach House Gifts

Mission Valley Center. i think this is now one of those paraphernalia type places where you can get posters and black lights and stuff, but back in the 70s and 80s it was much cooler

Liquor Barn

there were a few of these, but most noticeably near Balboa and Genesee and where Henry’s is on Park!

Fedmart

all hail Fedmart! They are almost always in the location where Targets now are; the one on Convoy/Othello is always known as “The Old Fedmart.” The one on Balboa and Genesee will always be known as “The New Fedmart.” Sometimes i catch my parents calling target by these names to this day. It was not too much different from Target but it had groceries in addition to kinda cheap clothes and other household goods

Gemco

sort of like Fedmart, but nowhere near as cool; plus… it was a membership store… so you had to go with your parents so you could get in with their card. This was on Balboa near Convoy; it’s a Lucky’s or Albertsons or whatevah now

Big Bear

lots of Big Bears city-wide; I think a lot of them are now Vons; the one we’d go to every once in a while is where Henry’s is in Serra Mesa

Alpha Beta

on Linda Vista Road – near roller skating rink – cannot remember exact locations

Safeway

there used to be many across San Diego county, but the one I remember was on Garnet; then when Safeway went out of business they made it a Vons… even though there was another Vons about a block away. I think one of them has closed since then, but I know they kept both of the Vons open for a while

Lucky’s

uhh… there were lots of ’em city wide

Mayfair

there used to be one near my old house, on Ashford St. – it’s been Stump’s for quite a while, but sometimes people still call it Mayfair! There was also a Mayfair on Sunset Cliffs and Niagara – where Rite Aid is in Ocean Beach

Comic Kingdom

There was a great comic book store on University in Hillcrest – great selection. It closed a few years back. Now a third of what was that space is taken with a comic book store called “On Comic Ground” – also good, but nowhere near what CK had been.

Sears

Sears was on Washington Street. For years people said it should be the site of a new San Diego library. But that never came to pass. It was a great central location though.

See also: San Diego Spots