Good, Better, Best

Inside

SOMETIMES THE SUBJECT requires the “search, find and evaluate” type of research. Others are found by happenstance——an editor busts the back window of his convertible and finds the one specialty repair place in town where price and service beat all the rest. Such is the nature of putting out an annual “Best of San Diego” issue.

San Diego Magazine associate editor Julia “Sporty” Beeson oversaw production of this year’s 112-component effort. It’s a good thing Beeson is an accomplished triathlete——she ran all over town checking out art houses, boutiques and new cafés.

Beeson got help from the magazine’s editorial staff, including frequent contributor Marcia Manna and food critic David Nelson. Yes, it was Nelson who chose Nicolas Carbonne of La Jolla’s Tapenade as Best Waiter. Nelson would know good service——he’s been reporting on a lack thereof for years.

But editor’s picks aren’t our only offering. Unlike many publications that dictate categories to be voted on, we let our readers suggest the categories——and then nominate winners. In our February and March issues, we ran ballots, which you returned by the hundreds. We got a number of great suggestions, and the best ones are listed in the magazine. One lucky reader won a $100 restaurant voucher for weighing in. (To find out if it was you, go to the Web Exclusives section of sandiegomagazine.com and click on “Contests.”)

For the icing on the cake, we solicited local notables on their notions of what’s best in San Diego. Thank you to our TV, radio and entertainment brethren——yes, that includes City Attorney Mike Aguirre——for your time and efforts.

THIS JUNE MARKS THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY of the Rock ’n’ Roll Marathon. A huge hit at the outset, the race brought fun to a sport not usually associated with laughs——much less rock music. The trend has caught on nationally, and, as Kelly Bastone reports in her story this month, San Diego has proven to be the vanguard.

The quarterly Travels mag-within-the-mag also arrives with this issue. It’s one of our largest Travels sections ever. Laura Byrd writes about driving to Mendocino in a 2007 Saturn Sky Turbo. Judith Morgan sends a glowing dispatch about a train ride from Russia to Finland. And our California Summer Guide covers San Diego attractions, the Del Mar Racetrack and statewide “soft adventure” packages.

There’s also our bimonthly San Diego At Home magazine, plus stories on current events, dining, theater, business, style, events and all things North County. This lineup deserves to make some sort of “Best Of” list.

Enjoy the issue.

RON DONOHO
Executive Editor

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