Clairemont Mesa West, San Diego, CA

Tecolote Canyon runs right through Clairemont Mesa West, so a surprising number of San Diego blocks here end at a canyon rim rather than another street. The neighborhood covers the central part of the Clairemont mesa around Genesee Avenue and Balboa Avenue, with North Clairemont to the north and Bay Park and Bay Ho off to the west. Housing is classic Clairemont. Most homes went up during the 1950s and early 1960s, in the postwar build-out that Carlos Tavares and Lou Burgener started, and the streets curve with the canyon edges instead of running in a grid. Single-story ranch houses dominate, many expanded or remodeled over the years, and the lots along the rims get green canyon views out back. The canyon is the neighborhood's backyard. Tecolote Canyon Natural Park has an entrance off Genesee Avenue, and its trail runs for miles down the canyon floor toward Mission Bay, with a public golf course tucked into one stretch. Mount Etna Neighborhood Park has three ball fields and a playground, Mount Acadia Neighborhood Park adds softball diamonds and a tot lot, and the East Clairemont Athletic Area on Mount Acadia Boulevard has more softball and baseball fields. The center at Genesee and Balboa is one of Clairemont's main commercial corners, and it eats better than it looks. Mike's Red Tacos built a following on birria tacos and then pushed the same stew into ramen and fries. A few doors away, The Forum Coffee House roasts beans in-house and bakes its pastries in-house each morning. Mexican counters, a Thai kitchen and a Mediterranean grill share the same lots, and a pho shop sits around the corner on Balboa. Aldi on Balboa Avenue covers basic groceries, and Clairemont Town Square, a few minutes north, has a Vons and the bigger chain stores. Genesee and Balboa both carry traffic out to Interstate 805 on the east and down to Interstate 5 and the Blue Line trolley on the west, so most trips start with a short drive. The commercial side is mostly strip centers wrapped in parking, and walking to them from the canyon streets is possible but rarely pleasant along the wide arterials. Step back from Genesee, though, and Clairemont Mesa West turns quiet fast, with ranch houses facing the scrub and oaks of Tecolote Canyon across the back fence.