The December 2023 issue of Riversider Magazine

December 2023

The Recycled Art of Tio’s Tacos

Inland Exposures The Riversider | December 2023

Another spectacular switch-on ceremony at this year's 31st annual Mission Inn Festival of Lights. Photo by Julian Jolliffe

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Volume 3 issue 6

December 2023

D E PA R T M E N T S 2 Inland Exposures Highlighting our best images of Riverside Photography by Julian Jolliffe 8 Love Letter To Riverside The Holiday season is here 12 Riverside's Finest Leimamo Taylor 14 Hidden Gems Things They Love 16 L ocal Business Rockstars of Tomorrow 18 Eastside Arthouse Duality Group Art Show 20 L ocal Retailer Penrose Record Room

Restaurant Review 42 Downtown Spirit of Texas Craft BBQ 44 Bar & Restaurant Guide The Riversider’s guide to all the best bars and eateries 54 Postcards From Yesterday Riverside Art Museum

F E AT U R E S 24 T he Wirt P. Boggs House A Spanish colonial revival home on Pachappa Hill 28 El Tio de Riverside The artistic universe of Martín Sanchez 34 Historical Riverside Machines for citrus and war

The Riversider Magazine

JULIAN JOLLIFFE

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Love Letter to Riverside The holiday season has finally arrived! We couldn’t be happier to take a walk along the Main Street Mall taking in all of the sights and sounds of the Mission Inn Festival of Lights. The beautiful bright lights welcome in the Christmas season and seem to get better each year.

This issue features the recycled art of Tio’s Tacos and an interview with artist and owner Martin Sanchez. Tio’s Tacos has been a Riverside folk art landmark for decades. If you haven’t been, it ’s a great place to eat and explore all of the unique and interesting artwork created with recycled material directly from the restaurant.

We also feature our Riverside’s Finest, Leimamo Taylor, native Riversider and owner of another unique establishment, the Riverside Airport Cafe.

Leimamo is the cafe’s newest owner who went from being a server to the proud owner. She has successfully transformed the little cafe into one of Riverside’s favorite breakfast and lunch spots.

You can always pick up a copy of the latest Riversider Magazine while you eat great food and are welcomed by their friendly and fantastic staff.

The Riversider Magazine

Riverside is always a wonderful place to be at during the holidays. The Christmas cheer is felt everywhere and there are so many amazing small businesses and restaurants to choose from right here in town. Be sure to get out there and support them as often as you can.

As we ring in the New Year, we are so thankful for all of the support given to us by each and everyone of you. More and more as we are out and about around town, fellow Riversiders approach us and share their gratitude for this magazine.

They share that they’ve tried out a new restaurant because of a review, shopped at a place that they have driven past for years or learned something interesting about Riverside’s history.

We are so humbled and appreciate the individual interactions that we receive from our readers. It keeps us going and stokes our passion on all things Riverside. We truly look forward to shining our spotlight on our one-of-a-kind city in this coming year.

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Compass is a licensed real estate broker (01991628) in the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only. Information is compiled from sources deemed reliable but is subject to errors, omissions, changes in price, condition, sale, or withdraw without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footages are approximate. Exact dimensions can be obtained by retaining the services of an architect or engineer. This is not intended to solicit properties already listed.

Volume 3 issue 6

December 2023

Co-Publisher Alondra Figueroa alondra@theriversider.com

Co-Publisher Zach Cordner zach@theriversider.com

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Contributors Raymond Alva, David Fouts, Jordan Thomas, H. Vincent Moses PhD, Chris Napolitano, Philip Falcone

Special Thanks: Kaitlin Bilhartz, Patricia Lock Dawson, Philip Falcone, Jeremy Leyva, Shane Clark, Evelyn Cordner, Jack Amarillas, The Standerfer Family, Amber Lussier, Leslee Gaul, Liz Gurrola, Lucia Winsor, Riverside Museum, and all of our advertisers.

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On the Cover: Under the mariposa walkway at Tio's Tacos.

Photo by Julian Jolliffe The Riversider Magazine

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The Riversider Magazine

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Riverside's Finest Leimamo Taylor WORDS: ALONDRA FIGUEROA PHOTO: ZACH CORDNER

Riverside’s finest is a lofty title reserved for those stand out community members who unabashedly live, love, and breathe Riverside.

They constantly give back to Riverside in selfless ways giving of their time, expertise and joy, not because they have to, but because they are a Riversider through and through. We are proud to highlight the wonderful Leimamo Taylor, owner of the Riverside Airport Cafe.

Born at Riverside Community Hospital to a Hawaiian father and a Haole (Caucasian) mother, Leimamo has made Riverside not only her home, but she has provided us all with a fabulous restaurant that boasts a genuine family vibe. A former waitress for 25 years that started at Kountry Folks restaurant, Leimamo knew she wanted to one day have her own establishment. She shared that it was through her weekly family dinners at home with her sisters and parents that the idea to own a family style restaurant was born.

Leimamo’s islander father, Alex, was the driving force behind her “Aloha” mentality. “Aloha” is more than just a salutation…it means love, compassion, kindness, and a passion for mutual regard and affection that extends warmth and care. Anyone who knows Leimamo knows that

she embodies this stance daily. Her passion is serving her community delicious food, excellent service and a unique atmosphere to enjoy it in… and boy, does she do this well!

Leimamo’s vision for the cafe began when she started working at the site previously known as the D&D Airport Cafe. She saw the tremendous potential of a restaurant that faces the tarmac and showcases the awesome planes. She worked as a server with then owners, David and Delmy, who had the cafe for 33 years prior to selling it to Leimamo in late 2018. She knew it needed to be revamped and reintroduced to the community and she used all her Aloha spirit to do so.

She also credits her strong work ethic and compassionate foundation as well as the sound financial support from her late father to make it all happen. Leimamo became overcome with emotion and gratitude when explaining that her father had worked hard to provide a solid future for all of his girls and was able to buy each of them a house to build their lives upon prior to his passing. It was this property that gave Leimamo the ability to purchase the airport cafe and make her dream a reality. We too are grateful to papa Alex and his dedication to supporting his daughter

by providing her the tools necessary to grow into the wonder woman that she is today!

Giving back to the community is huge for Leimamo and she and her crew love to celebrate all the holidays. They have Santa and the Easter bunny, but their big Halloween Planes N’ Treats event takes the cake as the most popular Trick or Treat event in the city. This is their annual family-friendly happening that allows kids to dress up and get up close to the planes and pilots handing out gobs of candy. This year it was overwhelmingly popular as thousands of people lined the street patiently waiting to see the decorated planes and enjoy the festival. Be sure to get there early next year if you want your little ones to join in the fun.

Leimamo has become a true pillar of our community by creating a family friendly restaurant filled with positive vibes. Her future is bright and she has plans to fur ther expand the restaurant ’s kitchen to suppor t her growing number of customers. If you haven’t been to the cafe in a while it ’s time to visit it again! I guarantee you will be greeted with great food, smiling faces and feel Leimamo’s beautiful Aloha spirit.

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Hidden Gems The Riversider | December 2023

Owner Victoria Chediak

Things They Love WORDS: JORDAN THOMAS PHOTOS: DAVID FOUTS

In an age of increased technological advances, one local small business has been upholding the importance of creativity and imagination in a unique, nostalgic way. Things They Love is a local business in the heart of downtown Riverside offering a diverse array of toys geared towards children of various ages. Without a doubt, it stands out in an area filled with different restaurants, lounges, and the beloved Mission Inn Hotel. However, what additionally makes it stand out is the memorable experiences created between children and their parents.

The Riversider Magazine

The store’s owner, Victoria Chediak, while pregnant with her first out of three children in 2017, wanted to find wooden and open-ended toys for him to play with. While walking with him, she would look at different stores in the downtown area and aspired for a kid’s toy store that children would love that offered classes such as music and parenting.

At the start of the 2020 pandemic and upon receiving her tax return, Victoria decided to open an online shop with children’s toys and additional items in June of that year. She initially intended the shop to remain in a digital format and eventually transferred it to a physical, brick-and-mortar location after measuring digital results.

By October, her first physical shop was open between Magnolia and Brockton Arcade until January 2022. By that time, the store came to a halt before relocating it to its current space on Main Street in downtown by the convention center.

The name of Victoria’s shop is derived from

a quote by educator Maria Montessori stating: “Children become like the things they love.” With this being the title, the motivation is to offer not just what children love but parents as well. Her first son and being a parent essentially inspired the concept of the store. Victoria was in search of new ways to foster community for parents and children, especially during the start of the pandemic since many businesses had shut down.

What parents love the most about Things They Love is the children's play area where they often meet with other parents to learn from one another. For Victoria, it is therapeutic for them as they gain a sense of calmness and tranquility away from the fluctuations of everyday life. She wants children to see themselves in everything the store has to offer, which is not limited only to toys and crafts but books as well.

Things They Love of fers various books showcasing different cultures and tools to sharpen the minds of children, instilling creativity and curiosity in them early on. Victoria’s intent was to choose toys that teach children to respect social and cultural differences from an early age. Books on numerous historical subjects are placed to educate children on the world around them without them being sheltered, and formatted in a way they are able to understand.

The store offers a healthy mix of leisure and learning. By doing this, parents advance the process in building up their children’s social, physical, and emotional development. As the most influential figures in a child’s life, parents have an opportunity to leverage what Things They Love has to offer, embarking on a diversified journey where mixing business with pleasure can take place.

Things They Love 3537 Main Street (951) 742-5118 thingstheylove.co @things.theylove

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Local Business The Riversider | December 2023

Rockstars of Tomorrow WORDS: KEN CRAWFORD PHOTOS: RAYMOND ALVA

McKenzie, Toxicity's 13 year-old bassist.

Toxicity Band covering System of a Down songs with instructor Daniel Delgadillo.

Learning to play a musical instrument has plenty of upside. It makes you smarter, shows discipline, opens career paths, and most of all… it’s cool.

The ability to pick up a guitar or sit at a piano and kick out the jams has an appeal seldom rivaled. The swagger of a guitar slung over your shoulder seems so effortless but the fact is that get ting good at an instrument is hard labor.

Countless hours of plodding plucks is required to turn your Do-Re-Mis into crowd moving melodies.

Practice is a chore and lessons are repetitive and boring. It’s a cultural meme that piano lessons are attended by kids being dragged, kicking and screaming, to their teachers house or studio.

Rockstars of Tomorrow may skip a few steps to meet the market where they are and introduce fun into the process much earlier than usual. Where it might have been months or years before a traditional music learning environment might have students collaborating with other musicians and playing in front of an audience. Rockstars of Tomorrow has their students in bands within several weeks and performance is built into the program.

Amy Wright, co-owner and manager, gave me a tour of the facilities. She opened her Rockstars franchise with her husband Tommy and their business partners Don and Sherri Miskulin. They all have connections, locally, in varying aspects of music and built and decorated the classrooms and studios themselves. Amy is clearly passionate The Riversider Magazine

about what they are doing at Rockstars and wasn't afraid to throw darts at the more traditional methods of music instruction.

“Old school music lessons aren't fun. [The students] feel cool just coming in here." It isn’t hard to see the “coolness” when you walk in.

Several classrooms, wood-paneled and velvet clad, line the halls. The rooms are dramatically lit and range from more traditional piano, guitar and drum classrooms, to live audio and recording studios and a room with a stage large enough for a full band.

Focusing on the social aspect of playing music might be the real genius of Rockstars of Tomorrow.

Rock music is a communal experience. When I visited, I watched a band, most of them under fourteen years old, play “Toxicity” by System of a Down on the performance stage with lights and sound much better than most of the places any of my bands have ever played. These kids knew they were doing something awesome and when they tell their friends at their elementary and middle schools that they were at band practice, you know it gets a better reaction than accordion lessons with Mr. Finkleblatz ever would. The reaction is the point, isn’t it? Confidence and swagger are the marks of a rockstar; no one looks to the big stage for lessons in humility. You can't buy rockstar attitude, but you can get your kid lessons at Rockstars of Tomorrow.

Baylie, Toxicity's 11 year-old singer.

Rockstars of Tomorrow 3392 Tyler Street (951) 344-5554 rockstarsoftomorrow.com @rockstarsriverside

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PRESENTED BY EASTSIDE ARTHOUSE Written by MIchelle Espino On September 23, 2023, Duality made its debut as the Eastside Arthouse’s sequential annual group show which commemorated the anniversary of the studio’s grand opening. The artists were tasked to work as a pair and create a unique body of work that combined their individual styles to achieve a harmonious juxtaposition.

Many incorporated their own icons or motifs to personify their artistic identities; while others, completely stepped outside of their customary stylistic approach.

Roberto Cervantes X Tine Torres

Julie Rose X Jared Wright

The results of this commissioned series manifested not only with what the group was able to visually achieve, but also as two individuals who shared a similar goal. Estrella Martínez and Keely Berry describe their process as one of shared empathy and understanding which then developed into their short film titled, The Indifference of Nature. During the opening reception of Duality, visitors were able to enter a cubic-like space where one sat and regarded a screen with painted landscapes by Berry, wore headphones to listen to the sounds of Mother Earth and spoken word by Martínez. The installation successfully transported the public to a place much further than the walls of the arthouse with details such as tattered shoes and a notebook where one could write what resonated with them.

Totaling a series of nine works, this showcase exemplifies the limitless versatility that this collective is able to achieve by enhancing each other’s creative capabilities. What makes this dynamic group a powerful force in the Inland Empire’s art community is the innovative energy that is cultivated and distributed within the studio of the Eastside Arthouse.

The Riversider Magazine

Keely Berry X Estrella Martinez

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Rick Garcia X Jonathan Godinez

Totaling a series of nine works, this showcase exemplifies the

limitless versatility that this collective is able to achieve.

James Carrera X Natali Rosas

Rosy Cortez X Perry Picasshoe

Jessie Welch X Maryam Crogman

EASTSIDE ARTHOUSE 4177 Park Avenue eastsidearthouse.studio @eastsidearthouse Juan Navarro X Stephanie Godoy

Ekaterina Orlovie X Willis Salomon

Local Retailer The Riversider | December 2023

“ Globally Known and Locally Respected” WORDS: MANO MIRANDÉ PHOTOS: ZACH CORDNER

Located in the basement of the Life Arts Building in downtown Riverside, The Penrose Record Room opened its doors in October 2023 to an overwhelming response. The hand-painted sign above its entrance, complete with two rotating 45 records as the O’s of its logo leads guests down a set of stairs into what feels like a snapshot of an era frozen in time. With checkerboard floors, stained wood paneling, and hand-made record bins, the Record Room’s vintage aesthetic provides a unique experience for anyone who steps inside.

The Record Room’s opening is the result of collaborative efforts by Penrose Records label owner, Gabe Roth, and local musician and labelmate, The Riversider Magazine

Matt Beld. The Riverside natives shared a love for collecting records and grew up hanging out in local record shops, and although it only took them a few months to construct the Record Room, its story began over two decades prior.

Roth moved to New York to attend NYU after he graduated from North High School in the 1990’s.

In 2001, he founded Daptone Records with fellow musician Neil Sugarman in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn where they converted a two-bedroom home into an analog recording studio. Roth produced and performed on countless records for such notable artists as Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, Charles Bradley, Lee Fields,

and Amy Winehouse. He dreamt of opening a brick and mortar shop as an extension of the label, as fans from around the world knocked on the studio’s door expecting to find a record store.

Unable to find the right person to run the shop before Roth moved back to Riverside in 2010 to start a family, his idea would remain a dream for years to come.

It was in Riverside that Roth caught wind of the growing “Souldies” scene in Southern California and a resurgence of artists creating original music authentic to the classic Soul and Oldies songs that have resonated with Chicano and Lowrider culture since the 1950’s.

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Local Retailer The Riversider | December 2023

Penrose's Matt Beld and Gabe Roth

“I became aware of this blossoming scene and it was exciting to hear these young artists dig into music that›s been close to my heart for a long time,” Roth said.

Roth recognized these artists’ potential and saw an opportunity to utilize the infrastructure he had in place through Daptone to release and distribute their music but had nowhere to record them locally.

The Riversider Magazine

In 2018, he converted an indoor racquetball court inside The Life Arts Building in downtown Riverside into a recording studio and created Penrose Records, named after his daughters Penelope and Rosie. He added emerging artists Thee Sinseers, The Altons, Los Yesterdays, and Thee Sacred Souls to the label’s roster and scheduled the release of their debut singles for the spring of 2020, with a West Coast tour to follow. The tour was inevitably canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the singles were released and well received nonetheless, and Penrose established itself as a well-respected label among the Souldies community.

Prior to the pandemic, Roth was re-introduced to Matt Beld at a monthly Soul night in downtown Riverside where the two struck up a conversation about “good singers.” Matt sited his bandmate and vocalist Vicky Tafoya among others like Ray Charles and Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, and Roth was impressed with Matt’s knowledge and taste in music.

Ironically, a few months later a mutual friend told Beld that Roth was looking for back-up singers

for his new label and a meeting was set up between them and Tafoya.

“What was supposed to be a 20 or 30-minute meeting wound up us playing Vicky’s songs for Gabe for about 7 hours,” Beld described. “Gabe just stopped and was like, ‘First of all, she is not a back-up singer. She can probably sing backgrounds, but this is a whole other situation.’” Roth invited Tafoya to record two of her original songs soon after, which became Vicky Tafoya and the Big Beat’s debut single on the label in 2020, and the band’s induction to the Penrose family.

As Beld and Roth continued to work together, Roth saw potential in Beld from his previous experience of working in record shops and selling merch for artists like Dick Dale and X. He appointed him as merchandise manager for Penrose Records at their live events.

It wasn’t long before Roth realized Beld could be the perfect candidate to run a record shop like the one that he dreamt of at Daptone over twenty years before. Roth recalled, “It's always been a

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KUCR's legendary DJ Mr. Blue checking out Riverside's new vinyl goldmine.

dream, but it didn't come true until I connected with Matt. I was talking to him one night and told him how I always wanted to have a record store as an extension of the label, and he kind of looked real serious and was like, ‘Man I've always wanted to run a record store’, and I said, ‘Well, how would you like to own one?’ So, we decided to go into business together that night, and that was in May. We moved pretty fast after that.”

In only a matter of months, The Penrose Record Room would open its doors, but it was no easy task, as Beld explained, “In May, we did not have a lease and we did not have one record. Here we sit in November and the place is fully built and operational, and we got about 10,000 records.”

The first step was to find a location. It was never a question that the two wanted it to be in

Riverside. “We looked around for a spot and we thought, you know what, probably couldn’t get any better than putting it in the basement of the building of Gabe's studio," Beld said.

With the lease secured, Roth and Beld spent the following months finding records wherever they could and hours discussing the shop’s aesthetic.

“Back east, they had what was called a ‘Finished Basement,’” Beld explained. “ Your basement would have furniture and wood paneling, and in the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s, this is where you would have your record parties. Out here in California, we didn’t have basements, so it was called a Rumpus Room.” This concept not only became the influence for the shop’s aesthetic, but its name as well.

There’s no doubt that The Penrose Record

Room will become a welcome addition to the local community and a haven for both record enthusiasts and casual visitors alike. As Beld put it, “Most importantly, we want this very much to feel like a place where people can come in, hang out, get involved in our listening stations, go through the bins, ask a lot of questions, and interact, because that’s how we grew up going to record stores.”

Penrose Record Room 3485 University Ave. Basement entrance on Lemon St. (951) 200-9531 penroserecordroom.com @penroserecordroom

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The Wirt P. Boggs House Built in 1926

The granite-cladded Spanish Colonial Revival home surrounded by a labyrinth of pathways and terraced gardens takes the high ground in Riverside atop Pachappa Hill WORDS: PHILIP FALCONE PHOTOS: JULIAN JOLLIFFE

Picture it: Riverside, 1925 , atop 1,175-foothigh Pachappa Hill looking nor thwest to the mighty Santa Ana River and bustling downtown Riverside—the Municipal Auditorium is moving along in construction, the Mission Inn is adding rooms in both the Moorish and Gothic styles, and the Fox Theater construction plans are underway.

As Riverside’s star continues to rise in the northern end of town, a more tranquil life in the sea of orange groves in the center of town is appealing to Mr. Wirt P. Boggs. Boggs came to Riverside as a young man in 1893 and went to work in the booming printing industry of the day—starting at the Riverside Press Company where he met his future wife, Estella, who was a linotype operator.

For over t went y years, the couple lived downtown—close to work and in the heart of California’s most desirable cit y. In 1925, the Boggs couple bought thirty acres of land outside of downtown on Pachappa Hill with plans to sell their cottage to construct a stately home on the The Riversider Magazine

hill. The land was rugged terrain and had many high peak s and low valley s , speck led w i th monumental boulders and mature trees. Twentyfour of the thirty acres were later subdivided and sold of f with six acres remaining for the Boggs home.

Construction began in 1926 following a $2,000 permit issued for the construction of a basement and garage—both to serve as the base of the home atop the granite hill foundation. To clear way for the construction, boulders were chiseled and drilled to insert explosives for breaking apart large swaths of granite that would later serve as the home’s foundation and smaller granite shards used for terraced retaining walls, decorative flower beds, and pathways to navigate the property. A driveway was forced through two boulders, leading to the modest carriage-style garage with protruding boulders inside the building. With all the necessary work needed to prepare the property, Boggs did not begin construction on the home above the

garage and basement until two years later on April 14, 1928.

The home was designed in the Spanish style with countryside features showcased through the use of stone and simple wooden balustrades.

The home was designed with the signature Spanish red clay tile roof, consisting of seven rooms, and having outdoor balconies, bridges, and pathways cascading from the multi-leveled home.

O n e m o n t h a f t e r h o m e co n s t r u c t i o n commenced, Mr. Boggs died at age 52. In a seemingly unheard-of action for the era, Estella Boggs, her sister-in-law Nydia Boggs, and aunt Louise Brink completed the home’s construction in 1929. The cost of construction was $14,000. Estella and Nydia Boggs lived in the home for the next decade until Estella married a longtime friend and the couple sold the property in 1942. Since 1942 the home’s ownership has gone through multiple families.

Approaching the front of the home, up the driveway between the large boulders, one is

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greeted by stone arches resembling spider leg offshoots from the main structure. The most prominent arch is above the main walkway and serves as a bridge with stairs coming down from the third-floor hallway balcony. The main pathway wraps around the southern side of the home to the front door. To the left of the main pathway is an exterior fireplace and stone slab picnic table with seating that predates the home. The area resembles the ruins of a sacrificial altar—said to be a popular place for Riverside’s high school students in the early 20th century to host initiation The Riversider Magazine

programs for school clubs. Today, the stairs along this pathway are adorned with colorful Mexican tiles—an addition made in 2003 by the then-owner.

Other stone arches mark entrances to pathways around the property. Decorative peacock wall sconces illuminate the ground floor exterior hallway leading from the garage to the main entrance pathway.

Through the arched front door, surrounded by blue and gold Mexican tiles, a t wo-sided entry fireplace is steps away, flanked by a Moorishstyle cone-topped telephone nook. The fireplace

tile in the entryway is a natural stone color and subtle, the f lip side of the f ireplace is more elaborate in the great room with a decorative band of designs framing the f irebox. Coved plaster ceilings are in every room on the main floor, Spanish-style stencils embellish the ceiling in the great room—on the sides and at the base of the central chandelier. Wooden and glass arched door ways lead of f the great room to additional rooms and balconies. Beautiful views of Riverside are visible out of every window in the home. Upstairs bedrooms also boast coved

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plaster ceilings and a bathroom with original tile and vanit y are designed in the textbook Spanish Colonial Review style of the day.

The backyard is surrounded by more granite and boulders protruding out to the edge of the hillside property. The landscape juxtaposition is most clear from this vantage point as the untamed natural environment on the lower summit is in the same view as the highly developed and manicured neighborhoods in the distance.

To d a y , t h e g r o u n d s a n d h o m e a r e meticulously maintained by owners Michele

and Paul Allen. The home, nestled among rugged terrain, is no longer the detached Pachappa Hill in the sea of orange groves away from downtown.

Today, it is at the center point of some of Riverside’s mos t desirable neighborhoods—the Wood Streets, Victoria Woods, and Magnolia Center.

The vision captured by Mr. Boggs and his contractor Jonas Griffith in 1928 was achieved by three Boggs family women who—ahead of their time—lead the execution of completing a stately home atop a hill with views of nature, metropolitan life, and groves of Riverside’s golden fruit.

“EL TIO DE RIVERSIDE”:

THE ARTISTIC UNIVERSE OF MARTÍN SANCHEZ

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WORDS: MANO MIRANDÉ PHOTOS: JULIAN JOLLIFFE

Downtown Riverside is known for historic landmarks like The Mission Inn, The Fox Theater, and The Riverside Municipal Auditorium. While these destinations have attracted countless visitors from afar, there are several cultural landmarks that have become an integral part of downtown’s landscape and helped shape the community’s identity, as well.

Perhaps the most notable of these is Tio’s Tacos, located on Mission Inn Avenue and Chestnut Street. Established in 1990, Tio’s began as a modest family-owned Taco Shop, but today, it offers much more than authentic Mexican food to its patrons, it offers a one-of-a-kind experience.

Every inch of the property surrounding Tio’s Tacos is covered with sculptures and hand-painted art pieces made entirely with recycled materials from the restaurant and found objects such as tin cans, bottles, plastic containers, seashells, toy dolls, and even bicycles. Countless visitors who have been fortunate enough to witness this experience first-hand can attest to its magnitude and impact.

But what many may not know is that the artist responsible for these unique works of art is Tio’s Taco’s owner and founder, Martín “Tio” Sanchez.

Sanchez was born in Sahuayo, Mexico, in the state of Michoacán. The seventh brother of sixteen siblings, Sanchez began working at only five years old shining shoes, washing cars and running The Riversider Magazine

ZACH CORDNER

Tio's Tacos owner Martin Sanchez with his grandaughter Galilea.

errands in the town’s mercado after his father passed away the year before. At sixteen, Sanchez came to the United States in 1984, where he sold oranges along the freeway exits and surrounding neighborhoods of East L.A. He then worked in several restaurants and started to sell tacos in local parks before he decided to return to Mexico in 1988 to marr y his long time s weethear t , Concepción.

The couple returned to the United States in 1990, this time to the Inland Empire where they opened Tio’s Tacos in downtown Riverside and have remained ever since. The restaurant’s name came from a nickname that was given to Sanchez by the other children of his hometown, Sahuayo.

Sanchez explained, “As a child, I had leadership skills, but I didn’t know I was a leader. All of the other children would follow me and come to me if they had any problems or needed help with other situations. That’s why they called me ‘Tio,’ Tio Martín.”

One year af ter Tio’s Tacos opened, the couple’s eldest daughter, Estefany, was born in 1991, followed by Kimberly in 1995, and finally Maitan in 2005. Sanchez and his wife ran the restaurant with their daughters’ help once they were old enough, and eventually expanded into four additional locations throughout Riverside as Tio’s Taco’s popularity increased.

In 2000, Sanchez purchased the lot adjacent to the original downtown location where only one of three historic Victorian homes still stood on the lot after a fire had tragically destroyed the other two years before. Sanchez was able to get approval from the city to sanction the property for both commercial and residential use, and his family made it their home for several years to follow. It was on this property that Tio began creating his recycled art in 1995, but his artistic roots stretch all the way back to his childhood in Sayuaho.

As a child, Sanchez didn’t have the luxury of owning any toys of his own. Instead, he used his imagination to build them out of cans, wood, and any other objects he could find. “I didn’t know that I had a skill or a talent, but I built my own creations that rivaled the toys of the other children.

They would let me borrow their toys because they all wanted to play with mine,” Sanchez recalled with a proud grin.

The skill and drive to create things out of found objects and recycled materials that he learned as a child would only grow in imagination and magnitude as an adult. Sanchez easily spent anywhere from sixteen to twenty hours a day working on his creations when he began using the back lot of Tio’s as his workshop.

“When you have the commitment to the work and you enjoy it,” Sanchez explained, “yes, you get tired, but you don’t feel it because you want it to keep growing and you want to see more.”

Sanchez’s passion and commitment to create art has not waivered today and although he designs and collects all of the materials for his projects himself, he occasionally enlists the help of others like his good friend, Ignacio “Nacho” Martinez, to complete them, particularly when it comes to larger projects.

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The Riversider Magazine

Sanchez fondly described Nacho as his “right hand man.” He jokingly added, “He’s the one that’s tolerated me the most.” Together, the duo created the first large-scale project at Tio’s Tacos in 2005.

“The first thing we designed was the patio, but the first big things we created were the figures in the front,” Sanchez explained.

The figures impressively tower two-stories above the ground and feature a man and a woman with exaggerated physical features and facial expressions. Fashioned out of wire frames wrapped around two large palm trees filled with thousands of aluminum cans and plastic containers, the figures have greeted guests of Tio’s Tacos for nearly two decades. Although they have become a celebrated part of downtown Riverside’s landscape and culture today, Sanchez’s work was initially met with mixed response from both city officials and the public.

As Sanchez collected materials from the restaurant’s waste to use for his artwork, over time, the items began to stockpile around his property, which The City of Riverside considered to be trash and an eyesore to the community. He spent three years in court battling to protect his property.

Sanchez described what he believes to be the real reasons behind the city’s legal action.

“I think they did it just to harass me or drive me away because they had other projects in mind for the property,” he said. “When you first start, you don’t see issues, but as you grow, there are always people who are envious, or want your property, or just don’t like you.”

Sanchez continued to build his creations despite the court case, and as years passed, the city began to better understand the purpose of his work, and that his creative method was not only helping to reduce waste in the community but improving the environment as well. The case was eventually dropped and the public’s opinion shifted along with it.

“Thankfully, within the city there was a big group of people who supported me, but now I feel like Riverside supports me fully, both the city and the community, unconditionally,” Sanchez said.

This support from the city and its residents culminated in 2019 when Riverside Mayor Rusty Bailey invited Sanchez to create a public art installation titled “Mariposa Alley” in an alleyway between 9th and 10th Street adjacent to City Hall. The project was part of a plan by city officials aimed to enhance the quality of life of Riverside residents and features hundreds of hand-painted Monarch butterflies of various sizes made out of thousands of recycled tin cans affixed to the alley’s walls.

Completion of the project was no easy task for Sanchez. “I had to have a lot of help because it was a lot of materials, it’s all recyclable, it’s not something you can just buy or make from a machine,” he described. “It was all made by hand and we used thousands of cans for it.”

Sanchez enlisted the help of four to five people, including his daughters and granddaughter who helped paint the butterflies. His granddaughter, Galilea, even helped Sanchez come up with the project’s name.

The installation has attracted countless Riverside residents and visitors from outside the region to marvel at and pose for photos in front

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“EL TIO DE RIVERSIDE”:

THE ARTISTIC UNIVERSE OF MARTÍN

SANCHEZ

of Sanchez’s work. While Mariposa Alley has become a staple to the community, the project has a much deeper meaning for Sanchez.

“I started the project because in December, January, and February, Monarch butterflies leave the region and go to Michoacán. I wanted to have something to represent my home state,” he explained.

Sanchez’s proud heritage can also be seen at Tio’s Tacos where he assisted his longtime friend, Ignacio “Nacho” Martinez, in creating a hand-painted mural which depicts his hometown of Sahuayo in impressive detail. “It reminds me of my home and reflects buildings that I knew as a child,” Sanchez said.

Along with the mural, Nacho has helped paint all of the restaurant’s signage by hand and

has assisted Sanchez with several other projects including the back-patio’s floor, which features a tile mosaic that depicts multiple iconic buildings from throughout downtown Riverside. This attention to detail is just a part of what makes visiting Tio’s Tacos such a unique experience.

Setting foot on the restaurant’s property is like taking a step inside the imagination of Martín Sanchez. From the wedding chapel sanctioned by the Catholic church and made entirely of recycled glass bottles, to the Selena statue and full-size airplane made of tin cans on its roof, no matter how many times you visit Tio’s Tacos, there is always something new to discover. It is because of this quality that the restaurant and Sanchez’s art has rightfully earned international notoriety

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The Riversider Magazine

and attracted the attention of media outlets and visitors from around the globe.

Sanchez foresaw the restaurant’s potential to attract the attention of the media years prior, as he recalled, “I remember I told my daughters when they were very young that this was going to be something. I would look at it as something unique and original and that someday there would be a lot of newspapers or magazines or TV stations, and I did get to see that.”

Sanchez’s premonition has since become a reality, as Tio’s Tacos has been featured in countless newspaper and magazine ar ticles as well as respected news networks and television programs including KCET, Telemundo, Univision, The Food Network, The Travel Channel, and was even on an episode of MTV Cribs “Extreme Homes.” It has received international press that has reached as far as Arabic language news stations and Asian news networks in Korea and Japan.

“The media attention has helped a lot,” Sanchez explained. “At first it was because of the court and the city, the three years that they kept me in court, then they started to see something different, or rare, a lot of recyclables, and it started to cause a lot of attention because the people started to talk about a place that recycled everything and that’s when the media came.”

Despite his early legal struggles, Sanchez’s love for Riverside has only grown with time, as he continues to remain committed to serving his communit y. Sanchez and his family have made Tio’s Tacos a space for countless community events over the years including fundraisers, workshops, cultural celebrations, and local vendor markets.

As Sanchez put it, “I’ve always said, I’ve always told my daughters and my wife, that all of this is not ours, it is the community ’s. Yes, according to the government and the laws, it is

ours, but God has only let us borrow it, it really belongs to the community”.

In many ways, Martín Sanchez has lived up to the nickname given to him by the children of Sahuayo long ago, “Tio”. He has become Tio to the local community by providing a space to host community events, a Tio to the environment by transforming countless tons of recycled waste into beautiful works of art, and a Tio to the city of Riverside for bringing international recognition and attention to the communit y through his artistic passion and love for his craft.

D e s p i te h is co u n t l e s s a c h i e v e m e n t s , contributions, and international acclaim, at his core, Martín Sanchez remains a gentle, soft-spoken, and humble individual with family at the center of his being. When asked what project throughout his lifetime he is most proud of, Sanchez simply replies with a smile, “de mis hijas,” “my daughters”.

Tio's Tacos is located at 3948 Mission Inn Avenue

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Historical Riverside The Riversider | December 2023

Machines for Citrus and War The Gritty Story of Fred Stebler, George Parker, and the Making of Food Machinery Corporation (FMC) in Riverside, 1901-1960 WORDS: H VINCENT MOSES, PHD

The Riversider Magazine

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Stebler-Parker Company employees and office staff, c1910. Courtesy of Museum of Riverside

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Historical Riverside The Riversider | December 2023

Stebler patented Conveyor and Orange Sorter, National Orange Company Packing House, c1815. Courtesy of Museum of Riverside

Riverside’s George Parker and Fred Stebler were fierce business rivals. By 1909, Parker owned and operated the Parker Machine Works (P.M.W.); Stebler owned the California Iron Works (C.I.W). Both made packing equipment for California’s vast citrus enterprise.

Stebler manufactured all varieties of citrus handling equipment for the packing house: conveyors, fruit sorters, sizers, frosted fruit separators, and a comprehensive array of additional packing equipment. Most of his machinery came from his own patented designs.

Parker held sway in manufacturing orange and lemon box makers and nailing machines but insisted on entering the handling equipment arena against Stebler. They fought vicious legal battles over Stebler’s argument that Parker infringed on Stebler’s patents for a decade. The warfare almost bankrupted both men until a resolution beneficial to both came into focus in 1921.

This is the short version of that rivalry and their joint creation of a total monopoly on citrus machinery manufacturing with the arrival of Food Machinery and Chemical Corporation (FMC) in 1929. This story of FMC’s Citrus Machinery Company and the 14th Street plant is personal. My late father-in-law, Dr. Robert Whitmore, managed that division during the mid-twentieth century, carrying on the tradition of constant innovation set by Fred Stebler and George Parker, the founders of the Citrus Machinery Company. Their original company became FMC's Fresh Fruit and Packing Division in 1929. That division, for decades, proved vital to the success of the citrus enterprise in California and around the citrus-growing world and an arm of the “Arsenal of Democracy.” This is the way it came about.

The Riversider Magazine

Stebler patented Automatic Orange Field Box Conveyor-Dumper, c1915. Courtesy of Museum of Riverside

A young Fred Stebler Parker Orange Box Lidding Machine (Lidder), c1920.

Courtesy of Museum of Riverside

The California Iron Works, the Parker Machine Works, and the Origin of Stebler-Parker Company, Citrus Machinery Manufacturers, 1921-1929 Fred Stebler was born to Swiss immigrant parents in Iowa on December 28, 1870. Altogether, he had roughly three months of formal schooling. Most of his knowledge came through the school of hard knocks. Indicative of this fact was the years spent in the Dakota Territory living in a three-sided sod lean-to. Fred limped all his life as the result of a broken hip received from a fall out of a hay rick.

Stebler became an apprentice machinist at age twenty and obtained eight years of experience with different shops before his arrival in California.

On July 5, 1899, at age 28, Fred Stebler arrived in Riverside from Illinois and shortly bought a half interest in the Crawford and Fay Machine Shop and, by 1902, became sole proprietor. In 1903, he took in Austin Gamble, and in 1908, they were associated with California Iron Works, manufacturing citrus packing equipment. This partnership lasted until 1909 when Stebler again became the sole owner of C.I.W. His second sole proprietorship held until January 1, 1921.

By the end of his career, Stebler had obtained around 40 patents on various fruit processing apparatus. Among those devices were sizers, conveyors, washers, dryers, clamp trucks, elevators, dumpers, labelers, railroad car squeezers, separators, and fruit distributors.

The partners Gamble and Stebler, had built houses across from one another on Sixth Street and Redwood. Stebler bought out Gamble in 1909 and continued under the California Iron Works handle until 1921, when he merged with his archrival, George D. Parker, as Parker-Stebler Company., manufacturers of citrus packing house machinery.

In 1909, when Stebler became C.I.W.'s sole proprietor, George Parker opened his Parker Machine

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Historical Riverside The Riversider | December 2023

Works. Initially, he made only the massive nailing apparatus, but he was encouraged by Stebler's critics, such as F.N. Dunbar, manager of the La Mesa Packing House in Riverside, Parker entered the field of citrus processing machinery in direct competition with C.I.W. He ultimately gained patents on sizers, separators, conveyors, washers, dumpers, and elevators and cut into Stebler's market with them.

The legal fur really flew. Stebler accused Parker of intentional and willful disregard of Stebler's patents and sued him at every opportunity. The litigation continued unabated for ten years. Riverside's papers hardly went a day without reporting a charge or countercharge lodged by one or the other of these business warriors.

Finally, a merger came about through the intervention of William B. Clancy, president of the Citizens National Trust and Savings Bank of Riverside.

Clancy was a banker for both these extremely competitive businessmen and knew they would bankrupt each other unless he did something to

get them off their constant battle over patent infringement. Stebler claimed Parker constantly infringed on Stebler's patients and refused to cease machiner y production based on these stolen patents. The war threatened both their businesses. In 1921, the two competitors merged their operations under the Stebler-Parker Company, Manufacturers of Citrus Machinery.

These men needed each other to complete the domination of the citrus packing industry.

They were also in competition with young Hale Paxton of Redlands, who held patents on his brand of citrus lidding machines, and the merger helped Stebler-Parker maintain a lead in the business.

Eventually, Paxton would join Stebler and Parker in what became the Citrus Machinery division of FMC in 1929. By 1930, the FMC Citrus Machinery Division claimed total control over packing house equipment worldwide. Stebler’s constant innovation had made it so and had turned packing houses into the equivalent of Henry Ford’s assembly line.

FMC new model Water Buffalo, with transport and offensive capabilities, c1944, manufactured at the expanded 14th Street facility, Riverside. General Douglas MacArthur praised the new model Water Buffalo for its enhanced capabilities and added firepower.

FMC Water Buffalo Monument, Lake Evans, Fairmount Park, Riverside, CA. Photo by Zach Cordner

The Riversider Magazine

The Rise of FMC, 1929-1940 The creation of the Stebler-Parker Company was hailed by Riverside papers as a great boon to the citrus industry. Growers and packers, however, viewed matters differently.

Many of them felt the Stebler-Parker Company, in tandem with Parker Machine Works, constituted an absolute monopoly on manufacturing citrus machinery. As Dana Keech, former patent attorney for Hale Pax ton and later F ood Machiner y Corporation, related in an inter view with the author in the 1980s: "The California Citrus League, made up of the California Fruit Growers Exchange (Sunkist), Mutual Orange Distributors (Pure Gold), and A merican Fruit Grower s (Blue Goose), considered. the Stebler-Parker Company a monopoly based on their control of patents." As Keech went on to say, "The Citrus League (California citrus trade association) considered this a heavy burden on packers. The League wanted a free market in citrus machinery so packers could not be compelled to purchase non-patented accessories to obtain one item of patented equipment."

By 1928, Keech had contacted John Bean Manufacturing Company, Sprague-Sells Corporation, and Anderson-Barngrover Manufacturing Company and invited them to Southern California to inspect the citrus industry. The July 1929 issue of The California Citrograph carried a full-page ad announcing the formation of Food Machinery Corporation through the consolidation of the S t e b l e r- P a r ke r C o m p a n y w i t h J o h n B e a n Manufacturing Company, Anderson Barngrover Manufacturing Company, and the Sprague-Sells Corporation.

By late October 1929, Stebler and the other "Food" leaders had purchased the Pioneer Brush Company and Roberts and Huntington Company to consolidate with Stebler-Parker Company under Citrus Machinery Company, a Division of Food Machinery Corporation. Those firms comprised the only real competitors to Stebler-Parker Company and were now a part of the conglomerate. Further, under Fred Stebler’s management, the existing patents were improved, and so was Food Machinery Corporation's hold on the citrus machinery market.

In 1936, after George Parker's death (1931), FMC purchased the Parker Machine Works and patent rights in an estate liquidation sale. A short time later, in 1936, they negotiated the purchase of the Paxton Nailing Machine Company.

Food Machinery Corporation, Citrus Machinery Division, under Fred Stebler, thereby gained almost air tight control over ever y. aspect of citrus machinery production.

Fred Stebler retired as manager of Food Machinery Corporation, Citrus Machinery Division, in 1937, though he maintained close contact with the organization for years afterward. From time to time, the company bought inventions from him.

One, the drop-roll olive sizer (1941-42), became quite successful. The patent application and purchase agreement were handled by none other than Dana Keech, who was then the patent attorney for FMC.

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Stebler Parker Company building at Santa Fe Avenue and Vine Street.

Photo by Julian Jolliffe

By contrast, Stebler's nemesis, George Parker, died in 1931 at age fifty-two while embroiled in yet another patent suit and Hale Paxton suffered a fatal heart attack in 1937. At the time, he was the Manager of the Nailing Machine Division of Food Machinery Corporation and was only thirtyeight years old. Stebler died in 1957 after profiting mightily on capital increases in his FMC stock. He was eighty-six years old.

FMC’s War Machine: The Water Buffalo, LVT, (A) 1944-1852 FMC’s Citrus Machinery Company continued its market domination through the 1930s and 1940s, improving its machiner y and designing new products to enhance the pack lines of orange and lemon houses. The business extended its control over deciduous fruit packing equipment and moved aggressively into canning line equipment.

In 1959, my late father-in-law, Dr. Robert Whitmore, took over as director of the Fresh Fruit Research and Packing Division of FMC at Riverside and held that position until the division began to withdraw from Riverside due to the shift of citrus into the Central Valley. The company made much money for Sunkist Growers and other citrus entities through constant innovation during his tenure.

In one instance, Whitmore and his research staff increased valuable orange peel oil extraction from 40% to 75%, vastly increasing growers’ profits.

On another occasion, Dr. Whitmore broke a Japanese embargo on California citrus by proving that FMC Flavor Seal wax for oranges and lemons came from natural pine products. The months-long embargo had cost California growers millions, and Sunkist had threatened to sue FMC for breach of contract.

Before those heady years, however, the arrival of war on December 7, 1941, sent FMC Riverside into the unrelated field of war production, contributing to the “Arsenal of Democracy” while maintaining its domination over citrus packing machinery. By 1944, the Navy had contracted FMC to produce a tracked landing vehicle based on FMC’s design of what the Florida Division called the Alligator, a tracked amphibious tank-like apparatus for use in the Everglades. In 1944-45, FMC Riverside, at its expanded 14th Street plant, turned out 12 LVTs daily. FMC dubbed it the Water Buffalo. The model produced at Riverside served its primary function of transport but added firepower. It featured a 37 MM cannon, a 30-caliber machine gun in a revolving turret, and two 30-caliber machine guns in hatches to repel strafing attacks from the Japanese Air Force.

The new model Water Buffalo was designed and

engineered by FMC in conjunction with the Navy’s Bureau of Ships. General Douglas MacArthur considered the Water Buffalo an essential weapon in the island-hopping campaigns of the Pacific Theater, especially in the Battle of the Philippines.

These fighting machines went ashore with the Marines to establish beachheads and provide limited cover for advancing troops.

Today, a Water Buffalo stands across from the VFW building in Fairmount Park as a constant reminder of FMC Riverside’s role in the war effort.

Conclusion: Solar Max for the 21st Century FMC eventually abandoned its vast saw-toothed facility at 14th and Commerce Street, leaving behind a legacy of citrus machinery manufacturing and war machinery production. Today, however, the building has found a genuinely appropriate reuse as the home of Solar Max, a producer and distributor of solar panels. Solar Max, like FMC Citrus Machinery Division, is powered by innovation, helping push the United States toward clean energy production. Ching Liu and her company at the start of the 21st century carry on the historical precedent Fred Stebler and George Parker set at the beginning of the 20th century.

Riverside can be proud of both these titans of innovation.

The Riversider Magazine

Dear landlocked lovers of the ocean blue,

Surf’s up.

Love, O’side

Scan to explore

VisitOside.org VisitOside.org

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Dining: Downtown The Riversider | December 2023

Owner Santos Aviles

Spirit of Texas Craft BBQ WORDS: KEN CRAWFORD PHOTOS: ZACH CORDNER

You could say Santos Aviles, founder and owner of Spirit of Texas Craft BBQ, went into business out of boredom. An East LA raised, Salvadoran immigrant, Santos went to USC and made his living investing in student housing around his alma mater. He retired from real estate and moved up the mountain to Lake Arrowhead where he took up smoking meat as a hobby. Santos did not love the retired life and when his wife encouraged him to turn his hobby into a second career, Santos went full speed into slow cooking.

This was not to be a simple time killer. If Santos was going to do BBQ, he wanted to be the best. He went to the source, Central Texas, to learn about the equipment, ingredients and techniques from some of the best pitmasters in the world. After securing a location with room for The Riversider Magazine

the large smokers, Santos opened his first location in San Bernardino in 2021.

I'm willing to take a little drive for something unique and as word about someone making excellent BBQ on the far north end of San Bernardino got to me, I packed the family in the car and we went and gave it a try. It was, indeed, excellent.

Spirit of Texas is not fine dining, not innovative or challenging, but classically simple and delicious.

Beef, pork, chicken, and sausages are all expertly smoked, served by weight, sliced to order, and served with a smile.

The brisket and spareribs were among the best I’ve had in California. They are served dry.

The sauce on the table is great, but not needed.

Like the main courses, the sides are simply done and well-executed. The spicy mac and cheese and

cornbread are standouts. Great food coupled with over the top friendly service is a winning combination that is no accident.

“Our mission is to bring very good food with phenomenal customer service,” says Aviles.

It didn’t take long to realize that if people were willing to make the pilgrimage to San Bernardino that his little corner on Highland and Medical Center might not just be a way to entertain a retiree. Santos saw the start of an empire and quickly moved to secure new locations and equipment to prepare for the expansion of his brand of BBQ. Riverside is lucky to have been the next in line for Spirit of Texas and they opened their doors, on Market and 9th, coincidentally during the Riverside Day of the Dead Festival on November 4. Even without the festival traffic, he is regularly selling out before closing time and the new smokers are being built to meet the unexpected demand at the Riverside location. I asked Santos about the traffic at the Riverside spot and he said “People here were expecting us. We opened at triple the projected sales!”

Santos loves what he does and he has the business experience and excellent product to make Spirit of Texas a long running institution. I see it as a destination restaurant and a place to pick up something for the family on the way home.

Downtown is a restaurant environment on the rise and I hope Santos and his squad are around for a while.

Spirit of Texas Craft BBQ 3965 Market Street (951) 462-1117 spiritoftexasbbq.com @spiritoftexasbbq

Blumenthal & Moore is devoted exclusively to the defense of the accused. The award-winning firm, based in Riverside and serving Inland Southern California, is distinguished by a team approach to criminal justice: Each client is served by a team of top litigators with more than 100 years of criminal defense experience.

The firm is led by Virginia Blumenthal, who in 1975 established the first woman-owned law firm in the Inland region, and Jeff Moore, a former Riverside County prosecutor.

In 2023, Ms. Blumenthal received the Civil Rights Law Giant Award from the Riverside County NAACP Youth Council, as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Corona Chamber of Commerce. In 2022, Ms. Blumenthal received the Roy Hord Volunteer of the Year Award from the Riverside Downtown Partnership and the Poly High School Bear of Distinction honor for outstanding alumni.

In 2019, she argued before the California Supreme Court — a rare distinction for a trial attorney. Three months after oral argument, the state high court issued a 6-1 decision in Ms. Blumenthal’s favor.

Ms. Blumenthal also has been selected the Riverside Community College District Alumnus of the Year, received the James H. Krieger Meritorious Service Award for outstanding community service — the highest honor of the Riverside County Bar Association — and was named Citizen of the Year by the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce.

She has been named one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers in the United States by the National Trial Lawyers.

Mr. Moore grew up in Northern California, the son of an attorney who served as Public Defender and, later, as the elected prosecutor of their small county. In law school, Mr. Moore interned in that office, helping prepare and litigate a capital murder trial. After graduating from the Hastings School of Law in San Francisco, Mr. Moore was hired as a Deputy District Attorney for Riverside County.

Serving nearly a decade as a Deputy District Attorney, Mr. Moore spent time on various specialized prosecution assignments, including major narcotics, arson, and white-collar crimes. After the successful prosecution of thousands of cases — including dozens of jury trials — Mr. Moore put his experience to work defending the accused in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

In 2006, he joined Blumenthal Law Offices, and for the past 17 years, Mr. Moore has defended cases at every level and in nearly every courthouse in the Inland Empire.

In 2020, he joined Ms. Blumenthal as a partner at Blumenthal & Moore, which also features attorneys Brent Romney and Heather Green. The team’s care for craft and community has earned many accolades for the firm, including the 2023 the Small Business Eagle Award from the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce.

(951) 682-5110 3993 Market Street Riverside, CA 92501 blumenthallawoffices.com

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Bar & Restaurant Guide The Riversider | December 2023

AMERICAN (NEW) Pixels Bar And Eatery 3535 University Ave (951) 683-7957

ProAbition Whiskey Lounge & Kitchen 3597 Main St (951) 222-2110

The Rustik Fork Eatery

1355 E Alessandro Blvd Ste 101 (951) 656-3555

The Salted Pig

3750 Main St Ste 103 (951) 742-5664

Yard House

3775 Tyler St (951) 688-9273

BAKERIES/DONUTS American Donuts 3355 Iowa Ave (951) 329-3238

Baguette Bakery & Café 767 W Blaine St B (951) 788-5300

Baker’s Dozen Donuts 6100 Magnolia Ave (951) 369-0198

Beignet Spot 4019 Market St (951) 224-9830

Better-Be Donuts Café 1015 E Alessandro Blvd (951) 653-0166

Cakebox

3557 Main St A (951) 660-4179

Casey’s Cupcakes

3649 Mission Inn Ave (951) 328-6908

Chela’s Panadería 4022 Park Ave (951) 680-9983

Christy’s Donuts 8151 Arlington Ave (951) 977-8166

Cookie Co. Riverside 195 E Alessandro Blvd (951) 521-0846

The Cookie Plug

2915 Van Buren Blvd J1 (951) 505-0146

Cupcakes & Curiosities 3569 Main St (951) 452-6271

Delicias del Horno Bakery 3969 Chicago Ave (951) 456-9448

Donut Cravings

7132 Van Buren Blvd (951) 789-8324

Donut Tyme

5225 Canyon Crest Dr (951) 788-5043

Donut Queen

5501 Mission Blvd (951) 369-8797

Dunkin’ Donuts

18641 Van Buren Blvd (951) 384-2882

Dunkin’ Donuts 4922 La Sierra Ave (951) 777-8377

Freshh Donuts 781 W Blaine St (951) 682-5648

P.S. I Crepe You

6095 Magnolia Ave (951) 742-5167

Isabella’s Cupcakes & More 5225 Canyon Crest Dr #28 (951) 782-9200

Linda’s Donuts 3950 Pierce St (951) 351-8288

Lindmair Bakery 9230 Magnolia Ave (951) 688-2131

Lola’s Bakery

4026 Chicago Ave (951) 683-1219

Miss Donuts & Bagel 3962 University Ave (951) 787-0193

Mochinut

1242 University Ave (951) 534-0756

Mr. Blue’s Donuts

19009 Van Buren Blvd Ste 123 (951) 780-3188

Nothing Bundt Cakes

3639 Riverside Plaza Dr #502 (951) 787-1885

Ochoa’s Mexican Bakery 10330 Arlington Ave #3 (951) 359-8128

Ortiz Bakery

421 Iowa Ave #A (951) 787-9138

Pepe’s Panaderia 3511 Madison St (951) 353-8801

Rainbow Donuts 3758 La Sierra Ave (951) 688-7889

Randy's Donuts

Law’s Restaurant

River Ranch Bar & Grill

Riverside Cookie Shoppe

Shooters Sports & Grill

Smoke & Fire Social Eatery

Simple Simon’s Bakery & Bistro

Sire Restaurant

Spirit of Texas BBQ

BARS/LOUNGES

Stagecoach

3519 Van Buren Blvd (951) 588-5678 6737 Brockton Ave (951) 686-6374

3639 Main St (951) 369-6030

Star Donut

5145 Jurupa Ave #H (951) 530-8006

Steve’s Donuts

7201 Arlington Ave Ste C (951) 323-7153

Uncle Chuang’s Bakery 3740 Iowa Ave #109 (951) 275-8800

Urban Dripp

3750 University Ave #175 (951) 742-5949

US Donuts

4786 La Sierra Ave (951) 352-1893 3720 Sunnyside Dr (951) 823-0797

Winchell’s Donut House 1705 University Ave (951) 682-8834

Woodcrest Donuts

19510 Van Buren Blvd Ste F7 (951) 653-5054

Yvette’s Bakery 6729 Indiana Ave (951) 742-5541

Yum Yum Donuts 3247 Arlington Ave (951) 683-5489

9640 Indiana Ave (951) 354-7021

10226 Indiana Ave (951) 785-9588

6440 Magnolia Ave (951) 683-7473

Downtown Experiment 3601 University Ave (951) 355-2606

Lake Alice Trading Co 3616 University Ave (951) 686-7343

Locals Public House 191 Alessandro Blvd (951) 780-1800

Mezcal Ultra Lounge 3737 Main St Ste 100 (951) 333-8558

The Brickwood 3653 Main St (951) 352-2739

The Lobby

3730 Main St (951) 742-5020

3750 University Ave, Ste 125 (951) 742-5585 5225 Canyon Crest Dr #9 (909) 542-9054 3965 Market St (951) 462-1117

3775 Tyler St. Unit B (951) 602-1940

BREAKFAST DINERS & CAFES Amy’s

10635 Magnolia Ave (951) 689-0296

Brandon’s Diner

10246 Indiana Ave Ste A (951) 359-3617

Brandon’s Diner 9646 Magnolia Ave (951) 637-2782

Brandon’s Diner Jr Of City Hall 3900 Main St (951) 778-2588

Cafe Le Reve

The Menagerie

141 E Alessandro Blvd Ste 10A (951) 215-0007

The Presidential Lounge

5225 Canyon Crest Dr Ste 40 (951) 784-2233

3581 University Ave (951) 788-8000 3649 Mission Inn Ave (951) 784-0300

Crest Cafe

Daily Brew Coffee House

VIP Nightclub & Restaurant

2955 Van Buren Blvd (951) 352-7477

W. Wolfskill

5620 Van Buren Blvd (951) 352-2690

3673 Merrill Ave (951) 784-2370

Flo’s Farmhouse Cafe

BAR & GRILLS

4281 Main St (951) 374-1176

Art’s Bar & Grill

BBQ

17950 Van Buren Blvd (951) 789-8843

Charley Rokk’s Authentic Texas BBQ

Kountry Folks

3357 University Ave (951) 683-9520

Duke’s Bar & Grill

3221 Iowa Ave (951) 248-1143

Events Sports Grill

10560 Magnolia Ave #A (951) 352-2693

Fire Up Grill

3750 University Ave (951) 289-9071

Flat Top Bar & Grill

17960 Van Buren Blvd (951) 780-0114

Hotz Kitchen & Cocktails 3720 Mission Inn Ave (951) 782-3212

Joe’s Bar & Grill

10909 Magnolia Ave (951) 637-3931

5145 Jurupa Ave (951) 774-0039

Cowboy Burgers & BBQ 5573 Arlington Ave (951) 977-9454

Dickey’s Barbecue Pit

3540 Riverside Plaza Dr Ste 314 (951) 683-9700

Gram’s BBQ

3527 Main St (951) 782-8219

Messi Soul Kitchen

4270 Riverwalk Pkwy #104 (951) 588-6252

Mongolian BBQ

1242 University Ave STE 7 (951) 686-0702

Joanna’s Cafe

3653 La Sierra Ave (951) 354-0437

Soup Shoppe

6712 Magnolia Ave (951) 781-4710

The Riverside Airport Cafe 6951 Flight Rd (951) 688-3337

Rodeo Cafe

17136 Van Buren Blvd (951) 780-0388

BREWERIES All Points Brewing Co. 2023 Chicago Ave Unit B8 (951) 213-6258

Carbon Nation Brewing 9860 Indiana Ave, Unit 19

Euryale Brewing Company 2060 Chicago Ave Ste A-17 (951) 530-8865

Packinghouse Brewing Company 6421 Central Ave Ste 101-A (951) 333-9261

Route 30 Brewing Company

9860 Indiana Ave Ste 19 (951) 776-7083

Route 30 Tap Room 3740 Mission Inn Ave

Stone Church Brewing & Bistro 3737 Main Street (951) 233-0323

Thompson Brewing 9900 Indiana Ave (951) 289-7533

BURGERS Baker’s Drive Thru 2221 Main St (909) 884-5233

Baker’s Drive Thru 6686 Indiana Ave (909) 884-5233

Baker’s Drive Thru 1300 Blaine St (909) 884-5233

Baker’s Drive Thru

Farmer Boys

3303 Madison St (951) 351-9700

HK BBQ House

Bolcupop

Toasted

Johnny’s Burgers

Ho Choy’s

The California Lounge

Twee Coffee

Mission Burgers

Ho Ho

Coffee Court Bistro

Krak Boba

MGM Burgers

Hong Kong Fastfood

4825 La Sierra Ave (951) 688-1000 3394 Madison St (951) 687-3599 4606 Pine St (951) 682-7272 1691 Main St (951) 276-1744

Monty’s Good Burger 3605 Market Street (213) 915-0257

Nikko’s Burgers

9295 Magnolia Ave STE 112 (951) 352-7290

Original Tommy’s

7504 Mission Grove Pkwy S (951) 780-4201

R Burgers

5980 Van Buren Blvd (951) 358-9203

R Burgers

3812 Pierce St (951) 353-0919

Boys Burgers

Slaters 50/50

BurgerIM

1201 University Ave #110 (951) 783-9555

Chris’ Burgers 407 Iowa Ave (951) 781-8542

Cowboy Burgers & BBQ 5573 Arlington Ave (951) 977-9454

Dairy Queen

8610 California Ave, Suite 101 (951) 343-4075

Farmer Boys

3400 University Ave (951) 680-0900

Farmer Boys

2901 Iowa Ave (951) 782-9003

11130 Magnolia Ave Unit C (951) 588-8138

Johnny’s Burgers

5396 Mission Blvd (909) 884-5233

10920 Magnolia Ave Unit 105 (951) 441-8868

Tastea

Tim Boba

Riverwalk Burgers & Grill

BurgerIM

3375 Iowa Ave (951) 823-0700

Bobaloca

Baker’s Drive Thru

2585 Canyon Springs Pkwy (951) 656-6500

Boba Fiend Tea House

Greedy Cat

9910 Magnolia Ave (951) 688-2471

1666 University Ave (951) 784-4350

Burger Boss

1299 University Ave #104-E (951) 686-2182

George’s Drive-In

10225 Magnolia Ave (909) 884-5233

10737 Magnolia Ave (951) 689-1294

Frice Szechuan Restaurant

3750 University Ave Ste 125 (951) 742-5585

Star Burgers

7207 Arlington Ave (951) 689-5050

Zorba’s Restaurant 450 Iowa Ave (951) 686-5830

Zorba’s Express

1400 University Ave Ste 108 (909) 655-7235 3740 Iowa Ave #102 (951) 777-1368 10352 Arlington Ave (951) 785-1188 3511 Madison St (951) 637-2411 1490 University Ave (951) 686-2223

Jade China

2712 Canyon Springs Pkwy (951) 653-9200

Little Beijing Chinese Fast Food 5800 Van Buren Blvd (951) 509-1188

Lucky Wok

2995 Van Buren Blvd (951) 688-2888

Monark Asian Bistro

5225 Canyon Crest Dr #64 (951) 683-1073

Mr. China Express

8451 Colorado Ave #8301 (951) 687-8967

Mr. You

19530 Van Buren Blvd G7 (951) 653-1740

Peking Restaurant 11170 Magnolia Ave (951) 687-4822

Wok In Kitchen

5050 Arlington Ave #101 (951) 343-7888

ZiZi BBQ House 3740 Iowa Ave (951) 534-0960

770 University Ave (951) 787-0094

COFFEE/TEA/JUICE

CHINESE

1201 University Ave Ste 101 (951) 530-8666

Big Sky Bistro

1575 University Ave Ste A (951) 328-1688

Canton Chinese Food 1756 University Ave (951) 684-6126

China Wok Inn

5771 Mission Boulevard (951) 680-9810

Chen Ling Palace 9856 Magnolia Ave (951) 351-8511

Chinatown

10935 Magnolia Ave (951) 785-6197

7 Leaves Cafe

Arcade Downtown 3870 Main Street (951) 266-6839

Arcade Coffee Roasters 3672 Chicago Ave Ste A (951) 266-6839

Arcade Coffee Roasters

5225 Canyon Crest Dr. Ste 17A (951) 266-6839

Back to the Grind 3575 University Ave (951) 784-0800

19009 Van Buren Blvd (951) 789-8646 3605 Market Street (951) 595-4513 3649 Mission Inn Ave (951) 784-0300 3607 10th St (951) 328-0866

Coffeecito House 3882 12th St (951) 405-4599

Condron Coffee

3696 Sunnyside Dr (951) 880-3354

Crave Coffee & Tea 3590 Central Ave (951) 289-9436

Daily Brew Coffee House 2955 Van Buren Blvd (951) 352-7477

Ding Tea

1575 University Ave Ste E (951) 429-9706

Flavor Theory

11090 Magnolia Ave (951) 977-9698

Goodwin’s Organics Cafe 191 W Big Springs Rd (951) 682-2667

JUJUBAR

19040 Van Buren Blvd (951) 780-0224

Kung Fu Tea

3678 Central Ave Ste 102 (951) 254-9609

Kraemer’s Coffee Bistro 6734 Brockton Ave (951) 686-4400

Lift Coffee Roasters

2060 Chicago Ave Ste A10 (951) 742-7413

Molinos Coffee

3660 Mission Inn Ave (951) 276-7147

Nekter Juice Bar

5225 Canyon Crest Dr Ste 7B (951) 224-9842

R&B Tea

1889 University Ave Unit 105 (951) 462-4142

Sharetea

10920 Magnolia Ave Ste 103 (951) 406-5165

Sharetea

3740 Iowa Ave Ste 103 (951) 530-8536

1450 University Ave Ste N (951) 462-1929 6160 Arlington Ave Ste C9 (951) 977-9847 9344 Magnolia Ave (951) 335-0599 3907 Chicago Ave Ste B (951) 742-5341

DELI/SANDWICHES Backstreet Restaurant 3735 Nelson St (951) 683-6650

Butch’s Grinders 4602 Pine St (951) 781-8511

Cheba Hut

3505 Market Street Ste 101 (951) 777-1117

Diane’s Deli

2900 Adams St #B1 (951) 689-2900

D’Elia’s Grinders

2093 University Ave (951) 683-7380

D’Elia’s Grinders

9009 Van Buren Blvd (951) 780-3354

European Intl Market &Deli 7120 Indiana Ave G (951) 274-9100

Firehouse Subs

10080 Magnolia Ave (951) 588-8785

Jimmy John’s

3747 Central Ave Ste 102 (951) 779-0010

Jimmy John’s

4270 Riverwalk Pkwy Ste 122 (951) 977-9672

Jimmy John’s

10277 Magnolia Ave (951) 354-2149

Marisa’s Italian Deli

5225 Canyon Crest Dr #20 (951) 788-3899

M & M Deli

1960 Chicago Ave #D1 (951) 684-6861

My Hero Subs 355 Iowa Ave A (951) 784-7370

RiverCrust Deli

6235 River Crest Dr Ste F (951) 656-8145

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Bar & Restaurant Guide The Riversider | December 2023

Subs & Spuds

Cherry On Top

The Sub Station

Cherry On Top

Tummy Stuffer

Cold Stone Creamery

The Upper Crust Sandwich Shoppe

Dairy Queen

5225 Canyon Crest Dr Ste #83a (951) 369-1491 3663 Canyon Crest Dr (951) 683-4523 1159 Iowa Ave O (951) 369-1266

3573 Main St (951) 784-3149

FILIPINO Nanay Gloria

10959 Magnolia Ave (951) 977-8831

FRENCH Le Chat Noir

3790 9th St (951) 786-9266

GERMAN European International Market & Deli 7120 Indiana Ave G (951) 274-9100

HAWAIIAN Ohana Cravings

3740 Iowa Ave, Ste 104 (951) 742-5555

Ono Hawaiian BBQ 3531 Madison St (951) 351-0888

Ono Hawaiian BBQ

3540 Riverside Plaza Dr #324 (951) 328-1988

Ono Hawaiian BBQ

2721 Canyon Springs Pkwy #101 (951) 656-6188

Park Ave Polynesian Restaurant 4038 Park Ave (951) 344-1090

ICE CREAM/FROZEN YOGURT Afters Ice Cream 1201 University Ave

Baskin-Robbins 7024 Magnolia Ave (951) 682-3131

Canyon Crest Ice Cream & Water 5225 Canyon Crest Dr #27 (951) 675-7385

3560 Riverside Plaza Dr (951) 213-6018 19009 Van Buren Blvd Ste 125 (951) 780-0800 9867 Magnolia Ave Ste C (951) 637-0920

8610 California Ave, Ste 101 (951) 343-4075

Dairy Queen

6665 Magnolia Ave (951) 684-6280

Frostbites Crepes & Frozen Delights 10347 Magnolia Ave (951) 352-4903

La Michoacana 3961 Chicago Ave 951) 248-9142

Mixies Ice Cream & Cookies 3605 Market St (951) 595-4520

Spoonful Yogurt Café

4270 Riverwalk Pkwy #120 (951) 729-5882

Toi Moi Italian Ice & Juice Shop 10181 Hole Ave (951) 343-4146

Yogurtland

1242 University Ave Ste A (951) 683-1950

Yogurtland

3510 Tyler St #104 (951) 772-0229

Aloha Pizza & Pasta 755 W Blaine St (951) 788-8830

Antone’s Italian Food 4125 Sunnyside Dr (951) 682-5900

Antonio Pizza

195 E Alessandro Blvd (951) 776-1888

Antonious Pizza Cafe 3737 Main St (951) 682-9100

Bella’s Pizza

5196 Arlington Ave (951) 351-3131

Blaze Pizza

3540 Riverside Plaza Dr (951) 789-3212

Blaze Pizza

10920 Magnolia Ave Suite 107 (951) 474-5855

Bricks & Birch

3605 Market Street #5 (951) 500-7776

Capone’s Pizza

7207 Arlington Ave F (951) 689-3520

Dave’s New York Style Pizza

1490 University Ave #102 (951) 787-9900

DeMatteo’s Pizza 7030 Magnolia Ave (951) 682-6198

Dematteo’s Woodcrest

18590 Van Buren Boulevard (951) 429-7317

D’Caesaro Pizza & Italian 6160 Arlington Avenue C4 (951) 687-0777

Enzo’s Pizza

INDIAN

10170 Indiana Ave (951) 351-2375

Bombay Stores

Farfalla’s Cucina Italiana

1385 W Blaine St (951) 788-3042

Gandhi Indian Cuisine

1355 E Alessandro Blvd #205 (951) 653-4147

India Sweets & Groceries 779 W Blaine St (951) 784-7400

Masala Mischief

223 University Ave Ste 150 (951) 224-9692

wNamaste Indian Kitchen 6061 Magnolia Ave (951) 275-5316

Punjab Palace Cuisine of India

1766 University Ave (951) 686-9968 The Riversider Magazine

ITALIAN/PIZZA

5250 Arlington Ave (951) 354-5100

Fast 5 Pizza

5300 Arlington Ave (951) 977-9090

Fast 5 Pizza

1889 University Ave #108 (951) 781-3838

Fiesta Pizza

6110 Van Buren Blvd (951) 353-8007

First Class Pizza & Pub 4290 Riverwalk Pkwy (951) 354-7900

Lava Coal-Fired Pizza

1725 Spruce St Suite #101 (951) 823-0238

Mamma Mia Restaurant and Bar

10971 Magnolia Ave (951) 729-5555

Fuego Hibachi 3750 Main St (951) 742-5039

Marcello’s Pizza & Pasta

Joe’s Sushi Japanese Restaurant

Marcello’s Pizza & Pasta

Kotsu Ramen & Gyoza

Mario’s Place

The Lowkey Poke Joint

783 W Blaine St (951) 781-9996 6519 Clay St A (951) 681-9797

3646 Mission Inn Avenue (951) 684-7755

MOD Pizza

9555 Magnolia Ave (951) 353-1929

3522 Madison St Ste 101 (951) 299-8889 11860 Magnolia Ave (951) 299-7699

Mokkoji Shabu Shabu

3444 Arlington Ave (951) 374-5255

1575 University Ave Ste B (951) 905-4007

New York Pizza Co

Momo Sushi

The Old Spaghetti Factory

Ohana Sushi

3570 Van Buren Blvd (951) 688-4000

3191 Mission Inn Avenue (951) 784-4417

Papa Joe’s Pizza

5115 Jurupa Ave B3 (951) 680-9090

Papa Joe’s Pizza 10555 Indiana Ave (951) 688-1188

Pietro’s Italian Cuisine 6788 Brockton Ave (951) 784-1310

The Pizza Place...

18955 Van Buren Blvd (951) 780-5588

Romano’s Chicago Pizzeria 285 Alessandro Blvd (951) 780-7399

Scratch Pizza

4950 La Sierra Ave #8 (951) 359-2023

Shakey’s Pizza Parlor 5941 Van Buren Blvd (951) 689-7700

Tower Pizza

3375 Iowa Ave (951) 518-4300

University Pizza Company 1201 University Ave #116 (951) 823-0630

Viano’s Restaurant 16810 Van Buren Blvd (951) 780-3000

JAPANESE/POKE RAMEN/SUSHI AhiPoki

3540 Riverside Plaza Dr STE 310 (951) 530-8255

Amagi Sushi

19510 Van Buren Blvd Unit F6 (951) 656-8144

Big Tuna

4270 Riverwalk Pkwy (951) 343-0201

9844 Magnolia Ave (951) 999-9123 195 Alessandro Blvd Ste 8A (951) 789-0443

Oishii Sushi

6133 Magnolia Ave (951) 784-2550

Ooka Sushi & Hibachi Steak House

3525 Riverside Plaza Dr #200 (951) 779-0099

Otsuka Ramen & Bar

10949 Magnolia Ave (951) 353-9888

Pacific Cabin Sushi 3770 9th St (951) 782-0888

Poke Bar

3740 Iowa Ave (951) 405-8233

Poke Bistro

3375 Iowa Ave Ste K (951) 394-8580

Pokilicious Riverwalk

4290 Riverwalk Pkwy #306 (951) 376-1377

Ramen Okawari

3740 Iowa Ave #104 (951) 680-9411

Rohey’s Wok & Grill 4294 Riverwalk Pkwy (951) 359-5272

Saku Ramen 3643 Main St (951) 742-5849

Silverlake Ramen 3775 Tyler St (951) 934-9160

Soho Ramen Riverside 3605 Market St (951) 595-4528

Sumabi

3530 9th St (951) 823-0278

Sushi Asahi

2955 Van Buren Blvd Suite #D2 (951) 637-1313

Sushi Ok

5228 Arlington Ave (951) 689-8054

Sushi Okoku

10380 Magnolia Ave (951) 343-2225

Sushi R91

1630 Spruce St (951) 682-1323

Sushi Station

19029 Van Buren Blvd #115 (951) 789-0068

Sushi Times

1400 University Ave Ste A101 (951) 777-1037

Sushingon

6060 Magnolia Ave (951) 224-9590

Taiyos Sushi & Poki 11120 Magnolia Ave (951) 343-1112

Teriyaki Plus

7120 Indiana Ave (951) 788-8337

Tomo 7 Sushi

5519 Van Buren Blvd (951) 343-5991

Top Grill

5225 Canyon Crest Dr Ste 94 (951) 530-8668

Vanilla Fish

5225 Canyon Crest Dr Ste 55 (951) 777-1950

Zen Street

3600 Central Ave #1 (951) 683-3648

KOREAN Chimak House

11120 Magnolia Ave, Unit A (951) 343-1120

88 Korean Corn Dog 3740 Iowa Ave

Manna Grill

1201 University Ave #110B (951) 530-8033

Kimchichanga

1995 University Ave (951) 684-9800

Koreana Grill

10051 Magnolia Ave Ste A1 (951) 688-9000

Saet Byul Asian Market 9555 Magnolia Ave (951) 637-5652

Wang Cho Korean BBQ 3639 Riverside Plaza Dr (951) 788-8889

MEDITERRANEAN Elias Pita

1490 University Ave Ste 103 (951) 686-6800

Fufu’s Mideast Grill 3605 Market Street (951) 595-4527

Georgie's Mediterranean 5225 Canyon Crest Dr Ste 57 (951) 823-0440

Greek Street Grill

3312 La Sierra Ave Ste 103 (951) 352-0801

The Halal Guys

1201 University Ave, Ste 102 (951) 742-7656

Kabab EL Basha 365 Iowa Ave (951) 289-9511

Kabob House

10901 Magnolia Ave (951) 353-9711

Lucky Greek

3887 Merrill Ave (951) 686-2621

Panini Kabob Grill 1298 Galleria at Tyler (951) 352-6318

Sam’s Pita & Kabab 9799 Magnolia Ave (951) 376-1269

MEXICAN Acapulco Pollo

8151 Arlington Ave Ste O (951) 406-1215

Ahumadas Mexican Grill 7614 Evans St (951) 368-4583

Anchos Southwest Grill & Bar

Birrieria Xolos

9696 Magnolia Ave (951) 376-1226

Fuego 360 Rotisserie Chicken

Cactus Cantina

Green Taco

Cañada's Grill

Habanero Mexican Grill

Casa Mota

Ixtapa

Carlos's Tijuana Tacos

Joe Aguilar’s Templo Del Sol

3900 Main St (951) 778-2588

151 E Alessandro Blvd (951) 789-0211 10436 Magnolia Ave (951) 588-6758 8151 Arlington Ave (951) 352-7383

3980 University Ave

Castaneda’s Mexican Food 6751 Indiana Ave (951) 786-0996

Castañeda’s Mexican Food 1450 P University Ave (951) 786-0996

Chilitos Mexican Grill 3847 S Pierce St Ste F (951) 509-1002

Cielito Lindo

10277 Arlington Ave (951) 352-3214

Costa Delmar

4561 La Sierra Ave (951) 588-8798

El Chapala Seafood Restaurant 8201 Arlington Ave (951) 359-7560

El Fogon Mexican Grill 765 Blaine St (951) 782-8959

El Habanero

6160 Arlington Ave (951) 343-5868

Antojitos Mexicanos La Ribera

El Ojo De Agua

Armando’s Mexican Food 4294 Riverwalk Pkwy Ste 200 (951) 343-5896

Ay Mi Pa

3775 Tyler St #1B (951) 729-6174

Azteca Market

5125 Jurupa Ave A2 (951) 530-8791

Bajio Mexican Grill 3760 9th St (951) 786-9573

Birrieria Little Tijuana

12702 Magnolia Ave Unit 25 (951) 268-6895

16960 Van Buren Blvd Ste D (951) 800-9061

Brandon’s Diner Jr Of City Hall

10773 Hole Ave (951) 352-0240

4773 Tyler St Ste 2d (951) 353-1852

Fish Taco Xtreme

2115 University Ave (951) 779-6293

El Patron

3204 Mission Inn Ave (951) 777-1131

El Silencito

1091 Center St (951) 312-6542

El Torito

3639 Riverside Plaza Dr Ste 526 (951) 684-6816

El Trigo

4155 Park Ave (951) 787-6937

Estrella Taqueria Lounge 3635 University Ave (951) 999-4323

Fire Up Bar & Grill 3750 University Ave (951) 289-9071

3866 La Sierra Ave (951) 456-3705 3812 Pierce St (951) 353-2272

2472 University Ave (951) 224-9145

4093 University Ave (951) 777-1132

1365 University Ave (951) 682-6562

Juan Pollo

6055 Magnolia Ave (951) 683-3513

Kalaveras

1690 Spruce St (951) 742-5761

Kimchichanga

1995 University Ave (951) 684-9800

La Bufadora Baja Grill

497 E Alessandro Blvd Ste B (951) 776-2881

La Bufadora Baja Grill 5650-52 Van Buren Blvd (951) 687-7237

La Cruda Mariscos 6733 Indiana Ave (951) 777-0862

Las Campanas

3649 Mission Inn Ave (888) 326-4448

Las Nuevas Islas 4920 Jackson St (951) 772-0020

Little Green Onions 6723 Brockton Ave (951) 328-1273

Mariscos El Camaron Loco 3340 Mary St (951) 682-3882

Mercado Don Juan #3 3375 Iowa Ave (951) 787-9292

Mezcal Cantina Y Cocina 3737 Main St Ste 100 (951) 888-2240

Miches De La Baja

1242 University Ave Ste 5 (951) 742-5633

Mi Lindo Apatzingan 9948 Magnolia Ave (951) 688-0908

Mr. Taco

2435 Main St (951) 682-4020

Mr. Taco

18590 Van Buren Blvd (951) 776-9900

Olivia’s Mexican Restaurant 9447 Magnolia Ave (951) 689-2131

Palenque

3737 Main St (951) 888-2240

Pepitos Mexican Restaurant

5225 Canyon Crest Dr Ste 42 (951) 783-9444

Pepito's Mexican Restaurant 8845 Trautwein Rd (951) 776-8262

Placita

1805 University Ave (951) 405-8730

Quesadilla Dave's & Cantina

3678 Central Ave, Ste 107 (951) 742-5579

Ramiro’s Cocina 9418 Magnolia Ave (951) 354-6146

Ranchito Tacos Al Carbon

Los Cabos Tacos

2995 Van Buren Blvd Ste A1 (951) 359-8646

Los Fredo’s Mexican Food

3700 Van Buren Blvd Ste 109 (951) 688-8682

11840 Magnolia Ave (951) 352-2653 9111 Magnolia Ave (951) 525-3411

Los Novillos Market 2650 Main St (951) 530-8893

Lucies Locadas

1601 University Ave (951) 423-4828

M Taco

4111 Main St (951) 784-7135

Maria’s Mexican Kitchen 17028 Van Buren Blvd (951) 780-2034

Rancho La Perla

Retro Taco

3744 Main St (951) 742-5606

Rico’s Tacos El Primo

1788 University Ave Ste 102 (951) 782-9610

Rodrigo’s Mexican Grill 3848 La Sierra Ave (951) 687-2280

Rolando’s Taco Shop

19530 Van Buren Blvd Ste G6 (951) 656-0304

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Bar & Restaurant Guide The Riversider | December 2023

Señor Baja

6033 Magnolia Ave (951) 369-5720

Sushingon

6060 Magnolia Ave (951) 224-9590

Taco Station

4088 Mission Inn Ave (951) 782-8226

Tacos Y Más

10203 Hole Ave (951) 687-1344

Taqueria Azteca

5959 Arlington Ave Ste E (951) 509-3670

Taqueria 2 Potrillos 10088 Magnolia Ave (951) 588-8772

Taqueria Mi Ranchito 4724 La Sierra Ave (951) 352-0528

Taqueria Tomateros 9164 Magnolia Ave (909) 257-1545

The Tamale Factory 3663 Main St (951) 342-3023

Tijuana’s Tacos

8151 Arlington Ave (951) 343-7777

Tina’s Mexican Food 2421 University Ave (951) 686-1524

Tio’s Mexican Food 19009 Van Buren Blvd Ste 124 (951) 780-7776

Tio’s Tacos

3948 Mission Inn Ave (951) 788-0230

Tony’s Mexican Food 3870 Chicago Ave (951) 788-4410

Tony’s Mexican Grill 9670 Magnolia Ave (951) 729-6141

Tuxies Juices

6030 Magnolia Ave Ste 3 (951) 781-1048

Yoli’s Mexican Grill 3225 Market St (951) 801-7104

Zacatecas Cafe 3767 Iowa Ave (951) 683-3939

PAKISTANI Al-Karam Pakistani Cuisine

3457 Arlington Ave Ste 101 (951) 742-5610

Mirchi Restaurant 1385 W Blaine St (951) 400-2825

Punjab Palace

10359 Magnolia Ave (951) 351-8968

SEAFOOD California Fish Grill 10920 Magnolia Ave Suite 101 (951) 405-6880

Market Broiler 3525 Merrill Ave (951) 276-9007

Pacific Grill

1299 Tyler St (951) 643-8168

Pier 76 Fish Grill

3555 Riverside Plaza Dr Ste 108 (951) 341-9297

Rockstar Shrimp 767 W Blaine St (951) 530-8620

Shrimp Shack Cajun Fusion 3605 Market St, Ste 9 (951) 742-5558

Seafood & Crawfish 10173 Magnolia Ave (951) 359-5999

Star Crab

10051 Magnolia Ave (951) 977-9440

STEAKHOUSES Duane’s Prime Steak & Seafood 3649 Mission Inn Ave (888) 326-4448

Flat Top Bar & Grill

17960 Van Buren Blvd (951) 780-0114

THAI Angel Thai Cuisine 6736 Brockton Ave (951) 788-1995

Sam's Bann Thai

3203 Mission Inn Ave (951) 742-7694

Best Thai Cuisine 1735 Spruce St F (951) 682-4251

To advertise in

Please e-mail: advertising@theriversider.com

THERIVERSIDER.COM Facebook.com/TheRiversiderMagazine @riversidermag

Gra Pow

497 E Alessandro Blvd #D (951) 780-1132

Monark Asian Bistro

5225 Canyon Crest Dr #64 (951) 683-1073

Morefire Thai

2955 Van Buren Blvd #F1 (951) 359-1331

Riverside Thai Kitchen 7755 California Ave (951) 729-6675

Royal Orchid Restaurant

9791 Magnolia Ave (951) 354-6100

TK Thai Cuisine

11860 Magnolia Ave Ste T (951) 509-3701

VEGETARIAN/VEGAN

Roots Restaurant & Bar 3700 12th St (951) 405-8324

Veg & Go

1201 University Ave Ste #115 (951) 213-6233

VIETNAMESE/PHO 5 Stars Pho Restaurant

4950 La Sierra Ave (951) 772-0700

Cha2o

1400 University Ave Ste A104 (714) 406-3090

Ocean Pho

4069 Chicago Ave Ste 100 (951) 742-5272

Pho 81

3434 Arlington Ave Ste 20 (951) 742-5878

2995 Van Buren Blvd Ste A13 (951) 977-8869

Goodwin’s Organic

Phở 99

Craveabowl

91 W Big Springs Rd (951) 682-2667

4557 La Sierra Ave (951) 688-2671

La Sierra Natural Foods

Pho Anh

11550 Pierce St (951) 785-2563

Monty’s Good Burger

5646 Van Buren Blvd (951) 977-9889

Pho Anh Hot Pot & Crayfish

3605 Market Street (213) 915-0257

10271 Magnolia Ave (951) 729-6668

Oasis Vegetarian Café

Pho Anh Hot Pot & Crayfish

11550 Pierce St (951) 688-5423

231 E Alessandro Blvd (951) 215-0585

Pho DJ

5180 Arlington Ave (951) 354-2799

Pho Ha

10185 Magnolia Ave (951) 354-8918

Pho Ha #7

1820 University Ave #101 (951) 680-0790

Pho Star Bowl

10051 Magnolia Ave (951) 299-8130

Phở Vinam Restaurant

1201 University Ave #107 (951) 784-4290

WINE BARS/WINERIES The Brickwood 3653 Main St (951) 352-2739

Canyon Crest Winery 5225 Canyon Crest Dr Ste 7A (951) 369-9463

Mario’s Place

3646 Mission Inn Ave (951) 684-7755

“ The Best Donuts in the Inland Empire located here in Downtown Riverside” 3750 University Ave #175 Riverside, CA 92501 (951) 742-5949 Website: urbandripp.com Instagram: @urbandrippdonuts

OPEN EVERYDAY Mornings: Monday through Sunday 7am to 12pm Evenings: Thursday through Sunday 5pm to 10pm Family Founded Owned & Operated

Riverside's #1 breakfast & lunch spot!

Open Everyday 6:30am to 2pm Live Music Every Sat. & Sun. 10am-1pm Open all day Friday from 6:30am - 9pm 6951 Flight Road Riverside, CA 92504 951-688-3337 riversideairportcafe.com @theriversideairportcafe

Chicken Fried Steak & Half Order

Bacon Cheeseburger & Mini Sliders

Full Sandwich & Half w/ Soup

Bonjour French Toast & Half Order

PLEDGE TO

Paper No More in 2024

COMPROMISO A “NO MÁS PAPEL” EN 2024

SWITCH TO PAPERLESS BILLING TODAY

CAMBIE HOY A LA FACTURACIÓN ELECTRÓNICA

SAVE PAPER, POSTAGE, TIME. GO PAPERLESS.

AHORRE PAPEL. AHORRE FRANQUEO. AHORRE TIEMPO. NO USE MÁS PAPEL.

There’s no better time to embrace the simplicity and sustainability of going paperless with your billing. By making the switch to digital statements and transactions, you not only streamline your record-keeping but also contribute to a greener future. Simply choose to go paperless with your Riverside Public Utilities bill and save time, paper, and postage.

No hay mejor momento para adoptar la sencillez y sostenibilidad de la facturación sin papel. Al hacer el cambio a extractos y transacciones digitales, no sólo agiliza su mantenimiento de registros, también contribuye a un futuro más verde.

Simplemente seleccione no utilizar papel en su factura de Riverside Public Utilities y ahorre tiempo, papel y franqueo.

RiversidePublicUtilities.com/GoPaperless

54

Postcards From Yesterday The Riversider | December 2023

Riverside USO Headquarters, circa 1950 COURTESY OF CHRIS NAPOLITANO COLLECTION JULIAN JOLLIFFE

Riverside Art Museum, 2023

SHOP LOCAL, SUPPORT LOCAL THIS HOLIDAY SEASON COMPRE LOCAL, APOYE LO LOCAL ESTA TEMPORADA DE DÍAS FESTIVOS

ShopRiversideNow.com

Masters of Illusion Saturday, January 6

The Temptations & The Four Tops

Theresa Caputo Live!

Sunday, January 14

Saturday, January 27

Aaron Lewis

Air Supply

Sunday, January 28

Friday, February 9

Pedro Fernández

Colter Wall

Friday, February 16

Saturday, February 17

Te Doy La Vida Tour USA

Los Ángeles Azules El Amor De Mi Vida Tour

Friday, April 12

Tickets available at Ticketmaster.com Learn more at HarrahsSoCal.com Must be 18 or older to attend shows.

Entertainment subject to change or cancellation. Must be 21 or older to gamble and attend events. Know When To Stop Before You Start ®. Gambling Problem?

Call 1-800-GAMBLER. Owned by the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians. Managed by HCAL, LLC. ©2024, Caesars License Company, LLC. All rights reserved.

The Riversider Magazine

The Experience

The Little Songs Tour