Oceanside is without a doubt the most happening place in the county these days. New eateries, breweries, theaters, and concerts – it’s all happening in Oceanside! Sure Oceanside extends out to College Blvd. in the East, but Downtown Oceanside proper is really where the action is and South Coast Highway is the main vein of fun!
Travel East on Oceanside Blvd. to the shore and head North on South Coast Highway. There is probably at least three or four restaurants on every block and every one of them stand out as great places to grab a bite or a beer. But something unusual popped up recently that is a bit of a mystery. I hired a local tour guide to take me to this new yummy Shangri-La.
He took me North up South Coast Highway to Washington Street and lo and behold, here was the fabled oasis of fun. He tells me the placed used to be a used car lot, but now has been transformed into a secret beach hangout six blocks East of the tracks. It’s a modular collection of repurposed shipping containers arranged into a village of fun. The main container serves as an open-air taproom with a really good selection of North County craft beer. I immediately ordered two glasses of the Black Plague Hellhazer and passed one to my guide. The village has a mixture of beach sand, AstroTurf, and wood flooring with a whole slew of picnic tables and beach chairs to kick back on. The village also features 4 other containers, which serve Mexican Food, That Food, Burgers, and the last one offers coffee and sandwiches. I tried the coconut shrimp from the Thai pad and it was top shelf yummers served with a tangy ginger sweet & sour sauce. If you can do coconut shrimp, you’re outstanding in my book. My guide had a burger and he let me have a bite so I can tell you it was excellent. It’s that smashed-style burger that is so popular right now. I can’t vouch for the tacos, but they sure looked good!
There are plenty of umbrellas but honestly, this place is for kicking back with a cold beer and soaking up some Vitamin D. Shorts and flop-flops are par for the course and it seems to be just out of range of the afternoon beach fog. But what is this place? It’s brand new and doesn’t even have a name yet? There is just a banner that reads “Cool Spot. Cocktails and Food.” That’s it. But let me tell you, it was really fun to kick back in the sun with coconut shrimp and a cold Hellhazer.
I highly recommend this spot to all my North County amigos if you can find it. There is something for everybody and you can simply sidle up to a container and order whatever you want! No drama! That one fussy friend? – send them off to the server to deal with their issues. Need another beer? Go get one! Eazy-peezy! Its dog friendly and even kids are allowed which I don’t like because honestly it’s not a playground. I assume the little critters wander off before evening. Go check out the Cool Spot! It’s really cool!
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