La Jolla -- one of San Diego's most upscale beach communities -- is also a great stop for foodies.
One of the best way to take in La Jollais sitting on the porch of Brockton Villa, which is across the street from the ocean, and dining on some of chef Mareyja Sisbarro's spring creations.
"You eat with your eyes, I think," says Sisbarro, describing how she came up with some of the new dishes on her spring menu.
Here you'll definitely want to try the Summer Shrimp Wraps or the Baby Spinach & Tri-Colored Quinoa Salad -- great examples of the trend of using produce creatively to accompany daily menu items (and of Sisbarro's thoughts on eating with your eyes).
The shrimp wraps include a mango salsa, avocado Jicama salad and cucumber and shallot salad. The resulting color of the dish is stunning.
But this is outdone by the colors in the presentation of the quinoa salad, which includes tangerine segments, red grapes, blackberries, watermelon radish and toasted pistachios.
"Everything is fresh and crispy, and has many colors," Sisbarro says. "Like San Diego, which is always sunny, and all the colors here."
"You have so much more range in spring," she adds. "I don't like winter as much; the foods are a little heavier. And again, with spring, there is so much more color to work with."
And finally, if you have time for a drive slightly outside of San Diego, Mille Fleurs in charming Rancho Santa Fe is one of the best ways to sample San Diego's seasonal produce. That's exactly how chef de cuisine Martin Woesle approaches his spring menu: No big changes, he says, just the incorporation of lots of fresh produce each day from nearby Chino Farms.
One must-try item here -- the Chino Farms Stuffed Zucchini Flowers. This dish combines seasonal fresh zucchini flowers and a seafood mousse made of scallops, shrimp, lobster, champagne sauce, fresh peas and olives.
