South Park Walkabout

The December walk about was really festive!
So many lights and things to look at, just keep in mind that the parking situation is kind of a headache although there are a lot of neighboring streets to park on.
Also be prepared for a lot of crowds.
Make sure to come hungry!

I love the South Park Walkabout, especially in December! The review from Patricia Patti P. W. revealed more about HER personality, and very little in regards to the unique, fascinating neighborhood she is so lucky to live in. I hope she was only having a bad day, frustrated with some of the negative aspects of ANY community event, rather than a reflection of a «Debbie Downer» personality. (interestingly enough, a third of her pics are alcohol related… hmmm). Anyway, I have always loved the South Park neighborhood! Kind of reminds me of how quiet, family friendly Pacific Beach was while growing up in the 1960’s –1970’s. So… Hope your feeling better Patricia Patti P.W., and I thank you for sharing such a wonderful neighborhood event with us intruders.

The Walkabout was a good excuse to get myself and my friends down to exploring South Park yesterday on a Saturday night, but I really think it’s inaccurate to call this a festival.
There was live music — four or five acts scattered along the main street (Juniper) — and the neighborhood stores (tees, clothing, unique gifts, etc) were open late until 10pm versus the normal 7pm Saturday closing time. Only a few places, such as Eclipse Chocolat, seemed to be doing anything special by having a tent outside their restaurant giving out samples of chocolate. There were two or three food trucks out too. I did buy a rad t-​shirt from a local artist who had a table set up near Big Kitchen.
For the most part this 6−10pm «festival» was just walking through huge crowds to go into stores that would’ve been less crowded if you visited during the day time. And because it was pretty dark outside, my friends and I ended up just bar hopping in the area, hitting up the Stone Brewing Co tasting room, the new South Park Brewery, Station Tavern, and Hamilton’s.
All in all, it was a fun night hanging in South Park, but I wouldn’t seek out this «festival» in the future.

This event happens four times a year and gives us the opportunity to go out on an evening stroll where you’ll come across many of the shops and businesses participating. You’ll see tables full of merchandise, shops having specials for the occasion, and the streets become alive with of plenty locals and visitors. The vibe is similar to that you see in a street fair without it really interrupting or being intrusive to the neighborhood but instead showcasing the neighborhood.
Fun times and all for the good of small, local businesses. South Park is really is a a great community that exemplifies just that. SP Walkabout has become a tradition and one that I look forward to and enjoy each and every time.

We came for a short family trip from Phoenix (son, hub, and I). It was fairly close to our hotel and we had nothing else to do. We ate some tacos (forgot the name of the truck) and smoothies (Captain Kirks) and just walked around. It was a nice day out and we all really enjoyed getting out to do something different.

If I could give -.01 Stars I would. Some of us have lived in this neighborhood for over 20 years, over 10 years, over 15 years, over 50 years… You get the idea. It’s time to shut this shite show down. As a long time resident of this neighborhood and of San Diego (35 years), this event has turned into a «Bro Fest» and «Ahole Fest» of epic proportions. My husband and I stopped going to these a year ago because we could not walk on the sidewalks because of drunken jerks on Pub Crawls AND do not get me started on the folks with the double wide strollers, selfishly taking up the small sidewalks not letting ANYONE pass them by.
My husband and I hid at home last night after watching the State NCAA Game at Blue Foot and it’s a good thing, I could not believe the level of aholerly that was displayed in my neighborhood of South Park while we were on our way home. Who the do you people think you are coming into this neighborhood drunk out of your goards trashing the area and picking fights, bullying the local restaurant owners because you have to wait in line. How disgusting. Tonight, I ran into two South Park local business owners who will remain nameless, one of them was in tears. She told me how rude people were coming into the establishment that is an eatery, people yelling and picking fights with the wait staff because they had to wait for 25 minutes to get their food, the other business owner I talked to told me that they were thinking of shutting down on Walkabout Nights.
This used to be a quaint little neighborhood event, now it’s turned into a place where people act like complete douche bags. I saw a drunken fight break out on 30^th and Juniper in the middle of the intersection. How classy.
Shut this event down. I am going to find out who the organizers are for this, then I am going to get a petition going. This area is over crowded as it is, with transplants from the East Coast and where ever they are from forcing out the lower income people… As someone along with my husband who pays property taxes in South Park and who are long time property owners, it’s time for this event to die off — and if you as a business owner REALLY need this event filled with drunken jerks to get people to come to your place of business, it’s time for you to do something else.
Family event no more.
/​end rant

I completed my 4^th South Park Walkabout last night and once again it reminded my of what a great neighborhood South Park has become over the last couple of years. There did seem to be more people than usual but there also seemed to be a bit less participation by the businesses.
Some of last night’s highlights were the Fern Street Café serving their seasonal brew which went well with the brownies from Big kitchen a few doors down. A glass of wine at Crow Thief followed by a cold brew at Graffiti transitioned nicely to posting up at Whistle Stop for some great music and people watching.
Truly a great way to spend a Saturday night and get to know the people, places and things around you.

Stumbled upon this when a friend told me about it. Really cool. Lots of the businesses have deals. They also have a bus to take you from one side to the other. I had a good time. Will definitely do it again next year.

I went to the Walkabout again this past weekend and as usual all the South Park shops and vendors dished up an excellent experience. I am almost a little sad that it has gotten so popular because it would seem that the secret of the best little neighborhood in San Diego has gotten out. Nonetheless this event allows you to enjoy all the art, food and shops with your friends, family and four-​legged friends. It only happens 4 times a year so make sure to mark your calendars for the next one!

The Art Oberfest was our first, and definitely won’t be our last. Free samples were great, specials at bars and restaurants, beautiful art, friendly people.

The Walkabout is a great event! All the neighborhood shops and restaurants do something special for the night. It might be a little bite or a drink etc. There are Old Town Trolleys to take you up and down 30^th

This was really fun! (Went last night) Quarterly event.
There were tons of people walking around, live music, food and drink samples from the local businesses, BBQ, beer specials, entertainment, a cool yard sale that had some really neat things. The stores were open till about 9:30 or so. Great to see all the buzz in the neighborhood. Oh, did I mention the free trolley?
I am not sure, but think this may be the only neighborhood walkabout in San Diego. Such a quaint little neighborhood. Brings me back to my childhood where people were out and about and felt safe to walk home in the dark without getting mugged or shot in a drive by.
This is definitely worth checking out and get there early if you are driving as finding a parking spot can be next to impossible. (Better yet, take the bus)

I love the walkabout — seeing people out on the street enjoying themselves, kids running around happily, shops open late, restaurants preparing food on the sidewalk and giving tastes for free, I wish it was more often than every 3 months. Last night we enjoyed the puppet ballet at Madeline, walked down to Halcyon to buy Blossum green tea for a Christmas present for the folks, met friends at Maureen’s studio, viewed the art works at the new Disclosed Unlocation gallery, enjoyed the live music at Velo Cult, and listened to Anthony Vasquez playing Spanish guitar outside of his studio. We didn’t even know that Anthony was in the neighborhood and offering guitar lessons. I am a committed SLOB (Support Locally Owned Business), and bought all my xmas presents from the local shops. Check out the new Progress gift shop!

I’ve been to 3 of these things now… I don’t know why, I always end up going! And every time we have a nice time.
All the shops and restaurants that participate do a really good job of getting in the spirit.
This last one was the «holiday» walkabout. One shop even had like a small orchestra playing inside. Some other places had a guitar player or other musician. This time a lot of shops had hot cocoa, hot cider, hot toddies, and wine. For food there was cookies, chocolate, s’mores, mac n cheese, grilled pears with caramel, spiced nuts, artichoke dip, vegan stuffing, and more. One store had bingo every hour to win a gift basket.
Everyone was so friendly, happy and nice.
Maybe because it was chilly and gets darker earlier in the winter, there weren’t a ton of kids running around (as some other people complained).
I like this event because it makes me like San Diego more. People are just having a nice time and enjoying their neighborhood. SP walkabout is my favorite walkabout. :)

This was fairly low key & fun! It was exactly what it sounds like: businesses staying open later for people to meander through. Some crafts were for sale (knitted doodads, jewelery, weird stuffed animals etc) were on display on random sidewalks. It was a nice evening to walk & I saw a couple of new places to try (kudos to the Lady at Citizen Video for the good DVD idea)
We bought some very good veggie pizza & water for dinner & red velvet cupcakes for dessert & had ourselves a time! Loved the S’mores from the bicycle shop.
Yes there ARE children at this event! (Eek! how dare people bring kids to an outdoor neighborhood event, the nerve… you’d think South Park was a residential neighborhood or something…). We took our son to it as a matter of fact (did switch from stroller to carrier as it got more crowded). Not sure why this bothered some reviewers… (after all you don’t want us to take ‘em to restaurants either). If families with kids make you break out in hives, you may want to stay away or just go later.

As a lifelong resident of South Park, I must admit that this is a fabulous way for the local businesses to make money. That said, it is not really a cool event. It always reminds me how this neighborhood has become so expensive, while not really getting any better or worse.
The walkabout is an event for young families and the yuppies who have taken over the neighborhood. If your looking for a vibrant street party, this is not even close.

The Walkabout is a great chance to get out and spend an evening. There’s always free food, wine, entertainment, and drinks (you just tip if you feel like it). There’s also free animal treats at the South Bark Dog Wash. It’s a good chance to just meet the workers and owners and also the people of the neighborhood.

I like South Park. Its still kinda hidden away and low key but still very cool at the same time. Theres really not a whole lot of businesses in the area, just enough for the local neighborhood which makes the walk about very concentrated.
I went with some fun people last time and its always funny to watch your friends getting hammered with booze from a big ceramic jug. It was also sprinkling the last time I went, and very cold and I was was feeling miserable that night until Mason loaned me a sweatshirt, that I still have and need to give back to him. haha.

This was my second foray into the South Park Walkabout, I went sometime last year. It’s always a fun event, with lots of free food, entertainment, and cameraderie. This time, we took advantage of the shuttle bus. Pretty great!
Be sure to hit up South Bark Dog Wash, they always have a lot of great nibbles. Grant’s gave away DE-​LISH chai tea, and the new Velo Cult had smores — you can’t beat that! I didn’t try any of the samples at Alchemy (gazpacho and ceviche), but my friends gave them A+ reviews.
I know the economy sucks right now, but it seemed that the sample sizes were WAY smaller then last year. Am I just being greedy? Or hungry?