Santa Rita, Salinas, CA

Santa Rita in Salinas is a name that still anchors a stretch of North Main that is part neighborhood, part shopping strip. The place people drive here for is La Mariposa Bakery, at 2020 North Main, which sells Mexican and French-influenced breads, champurrado, tamales and a chile relleno burrito. For other meals, Senior Taco and El Michoacano cover the taco side, Banda Burrito is another quick stop, and Cold Stone Creamery handles dessert. Denny's and Fish and Chips are the sit-down choices. Erik's DeliCafe, in the Santa Rita Plaza shopping center just over the line in Harden Ranch, is the sandwich stop. Just over the line in Harden Ranch, Pho #1, Ike's Love & Sandwiches and Fosters Freeze North Salinas widen the choices. In Northgate, Pasta Mia in the Northridge Mall food court serves made-to-order pasta, so a night out never needs more than a few minutes in the car. Green space inside Santa Rita is modest. Santa Rita Park and Soto Square are the two parks in the boundary, and the Northridge Farmers Market in neighboring Northgate adds a produce option. Houses fill the side streets off the main road, and what you see first is the commercial strip, so a house here usually means a short hop to bread, tamales and a taco. Daily errands bundle easily. Shop and Save is the grocery within its borders, Yeyus Mexican Products carries Mexican pantry goods, and Foodmaxx sits a short distance away in Harden Ranch. Most trips are by car, and anything farther runs through US 101 or the city's bus lines. Traffic is the compromise. With so much of the neighborhood's business on one arterial, the sound of cars is part of the background. Living in Santa Rita means the bakery is a regular stop, and the rest of the week fits around it.