A couple of months ago was the first time in a long time I’d heard or seen anything about Ojai, California. It was photos of an Instagramer/YouTuber at Bart’s Book Store, an outdoor bookstore there. I saw the pics and on that alone knew, someday soon, I’d have to go.
Like I do before I go anywhere new, I researched the town. I watched any and every YouTube video I could find where people shared their Ojai experience. From what I could gather, pretty much what you do in Ojai is eat, relax and shop, which is fine. I like to do all three…well, not so much shopping. But I like souvenir shopping which is what I would be doing in Ojai, so this was great.
Initially, I was planning on doing an overnight trip. I would stay in Ventura, because the Ojai hotels were crazy expensive, then I would basically eat my way through the town. I’d try their ice cream shop, maybe a cupcake. I like to try ice cream and cupcakes everywhere I go. Believe it or not, it’s hard to come across a good cupcake. But that plan was adding up fast so I just decided to make it into a day trip.
There were several places that I wanted to hit up for sure – Bart’s Bookstore, The Farmer’s Market, and somewhere to eat. Bookstores have kinda been my thing lately. Now when I travel somewhere new, I want to stop by an independent bookstore. Though when I’ve gone, I’ve yet to buy books. So far, I’ve purchased chapstick (San Diego) and a tote bag (Columbus, OH).
I left home too late to make it to the Farmer’s Market on time. I arrived at 1:00pm and it closed at one. They were packing up as I rolled by. Next I was going to go to Bart’s Bookstore, but had to first stop and see how to get there, only to pull up to a restaurant called The Nest.
I’d planned on going to Ojai Rotie to eat, but was hungry and the food smelled really good so we – me and my Mom – decided to eat there. This restaurant was a small, unassuming place, tucked in the corner of a neighborhood shopping center.
The seating was all outdoors and packed. The line was long and moved slowly. The menu was pretty compact – no Cheesecake Factory here. Oh, and the prices were high—at least to me—so I was surprised when I got closer in line to see that you’re just ordering from a window. You order at a window, pick up from a window, find your own place to sit and they have the nerve to ask for a tip.
I blame Starbucks – Starbucks and perhaps Coldstone Creamery are the culprits for this. Now everywhere you go people are asking for tips at the register and they didn’t even do anything except ring up your order. Then they stand there and look at you while you decide if you want to give them 10%, 15%, 20% or my favorite nothing- though I wonder what are they going to do to my food if I don’t tip.
There’s a reason it’s called gratuity – it’s for people who go above and beyond, not just simply for doing your job. Money you get for doing your job is called a wage, and your employer is responsible for giving it to you, not me the customer.
Now, I will gladly tip someone when I think they’ve done an exceptional job, but I don’t like this expectation to tip just because you took my order and prepared my food – um hello, that’s your job.
Nevertheless, I tipped $5 because this dude was nice, and who knows what they’re doing back there with my food. That’s the end of my little rant.
My Salmon Toast 
My Drink Up Close
I got the smoked salmon on sourdough. It came with goat cheese, pickled purple onions (that’s right purple, not red) capers and tomato. I washed it down with their Demin and Diamonds cocktail. My Mom got brisket tacos and an horchata cold brew. My food was $20 and my drink $15 before taxes. My Mom’s was like $17 and $9 – pricey when you’re finding your own tabling and picking up at a window (did I already mention that?). Even pricier when your given one slice of bread. When I walked up to the window and saw my meal, I was like is this it? This all I’m getting for $20. To myself, of course.
Thankfully, the food was pretty good – a little on the salty side, but pretty good nonetheless. The drink was perfect. I’m not a fan of strong drinks, so I was going to tell him how to make it. But I thought let me see how he makes it first. I’m happy to report he didn’t disappoint. No overwhelming alcohol taste, just the sweet refreshing berry flavors coming through with a subtle hint of that burning sensation that liquor gives at the end. I had a bit of my mom’s taco which was pretty good too.
I don’t think the salmon, however, was smoked. It looked more like baked salmon that had a smokey flavor added to it. But it was still good. I finished my food in no time flat. Then it was off to the bookstore.
I was actually surprised at how many people were out in this small town. Most of them, I’m sure, were from LA and had the same idea as we did. The good thing, though, was parking was still pretty easy, despite the crowd. The outdoor bookstore was quite a cool concept. When I got there, I didn’t feel like browsing much. I made my way over to the fiction section to see if they had any Toni Morrison “Song of Solomon” hardcover books for sale – they didn’t. Then I made my way around the entire store just to see what was there, and picked up random books whose authors and titles I knew not of, but just so my mom could take my picture.
I didn’t buy anything from the bookstore. From there we headed back home. I have no souvenirs. Just pictures and this post.
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