A few days ago, Fred Jackson called the El Paso Media Group offices to notify us of an upcoming City Council ruling on food vendors, namely the push carts that sell water, soda, candy, pork rinds, cotton candy etc. to the pedestrians walking in and around Downtown. Jackson is the president of the El Paso Restaurant Association and is very interested in bringing about some guidelines for the food vendors. A few worth mentioning; matching branding and "El Paso" décor for the carts, a bi-lingual language requirement, and a limit to the amount of food vendors in the Downtown area.
Jackson was calling for no one in particular and more than anything wanted to share his opinion on food vendors and to let our editorial offices know about the agenda item in Tuesday's council meeting. I listened to Jackson for about 10 minutes, took some notes, assured him I would let our editorial staff know about the meeting and thanked him for the call.
Fast forward to Sunday morning at 11 a.m. My kids and I were doing our routine loop around Downtown consisting of a walk from my office on Stanton and Franklin, to the "culture cluster" on Cleveland Square. The walk is about 15 city blocks and usually I can count on the Jack-in-the-Box on the corner of S. Oregon and Main for a milkshake and fries if my kids get tired and hungry. My kids are always hungry as they are growing boys so I usually at least pack an apple or granola bars, but if I forget I don't panic seeing as I'm in a Downtown and there will be some refreshments if necessary (at least, one would think).
As the walk began the first thing we passed was the shut-down Jack-in-the-Box and my kids could see the alarm in my face when I realized our food standby was no longer an option. "Don't worry guys, we'll find something to eat Downtown if we get hungry and after the History Museum, we can sit outside and eat our apples," I said as calmly as possible. They both barely bought it, but we carried on.
Lucky for us the History Museum has chilled water fountains so we were able to hydrate, but after the exhibit on beans, garlic, grapes and the big turkey the pioneers ate on the trail getting from Mexico City to Santa Fe, we were all extra hungry and cut our tour short to go eat our apples outside. As we sat snacking in the newly installed, shaded seating on Cleveland Square, I began to scan the streets for a food vendor. There was one guy selling popsicles by the library, but that snack would only hold us for a short while. Next I began my mental Google Earth mapping skills of the area to include a walking distance my kids could handle; Los Colorines in the Chase Building, closed on weekends; Leo's on Mills, closed on the weekends; Big Bun on Franklin, closed on Sundays; Tejas Café on Mills, closed on Sundays; Pike Street Market, closed on weekends; Ruli's International Café; closed on Sunday afternoons; Café Central, closed on Sunday afternoons. Then I remembered the Camino Real had Azulejo's in the lobby.
We all made our way over to the Camino and checked out the Azulejo's menu. My kids like very basic food at their age and one really wanted a burger and the other one really wanted flautas; neither of these items is on the lunch menu. Looking inside the restaurant we saw that it caters to a touristy clientele that dresses nicely on a Sunday morning and we did not fit that bill. We stopped by the perfectly stocked snack shop and got some water and peanut butter crackers that would buy us at least another 20 minutes to find a joint more our style.
By now it was around 3 p.m. and we made our way toward San Jacinto Plaza where I told my boys we would find one of those cool food vendor guys and buy a really yummy something. San Jacinto Plaza was full of Sunday afternoon patrons enjoying the lack of bus fumes but no food vendors. I was annoyed, shocked, let down and even hungrier and my boys were right there with me. We had been Downtown since 11 a.m., in the heart of Downtown, not on the outskirts, and didn't pass one single dining option. Lucky for us the Little Caesars on Mesa and Robinson is open on Sundays and we got in our car and peeled out of Downtown on our way up Mesa; no looking back for any of us.
As I ate the warm pizza in Madeline Park with my kids, I thought of Fred Jackson and the people who oppose food vendors and made a point to write this opinion piece to show them how much food vendors and a variety of places to eat are necessary on the weekends in Downtown. And then I thought of all the hard work my friends at MCAD had recently put toward enhancing public art Downtown to culturally feed locals and tourists walking the streets. While we ate our apples at Cleveland Square, we enjoyed the beauty of the recently installed Sols, namely one by Roberto Salas. Then I thought, too bad we couldn't eat that public art, it would have extended our stay Downtown for several more hours.
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Item from upcoming City Council meeting, Tuesday, Sept. 9, City Council chambers on the 2nd floor of City Hall:
An Ordinance extending the term of Ordinance 16013 which granted a Special Privilege to Mario Hernandez, Hector Cobos, Jr., Eber Martinez, Maria Cobos, Margarita Cobos, Juan Torres, Pedro Orona, Hector Cobos, Maria Prieto, Maria Grado, Jack Kellog, Jesus Hernandez, Eusebio Coronel, Victor Ochoa, Carmen Cox, Maria Chavez, Eunise Morales, Maria Barraza, Santiago Aguilar, and Brandon Palma to encroach onto a portion of various public rights-of-way with a food-vending concession in the Downtown Area. Applicant: City of El Paso. (District 8) [Development Services/Planning, Esther Guerrero, (915) 541-4720] POSTPONED FROM 09-02-08 (Attachment)
