We met up with Hayden, Vanessa’s boyfriend, and I met his family who took us out to Genoveva’s for lunch. I had steak fajitas and horchata which are always favorites of mine. Everything was made quickly and tasted good, though there wasn’t anything that struck me as particularly special about the authenticity or flavor of the food, it’s a good option if you’re in the area.
After lunch, we drove to Santa Monica beach where we spent most of the afternoon. The parking structures are the only parking you should expect to find in the Santa Monica area but the good news is there’s a lot of them and they’re all very reasonably priced and close to the third street promenade and the beach and boardwalk. We didn’t rent bikes, but if you decide to go there are lots of great bike rentals in the area and it’s a great way to get around Santa Monica.
For dinner, we ate poke at Mainland Poke, the first time they made my order, the Fresno Umami, the employee (who was new) put a ton of spicy sauce on it. I tried to eat it but my mouth was on fire after only three bites. They were kind enough to remake it at no extra cost, without the spicy sauce this time, and it was delicious. I will say it’s a ton of food and raw fish isn’t something I would keep for leftovers, so you should consider splitting the dish with someone.
After that, we returned to Hayden’s house where I fell asleep while we watched horror movies and snuggled with Hayden’s dogs: Ollie and Violet.