Olvera Street, Downtown Los Angeles // Mexican Market

 

While in L.A. we stopped by the famous Phillipe's for their raved about french dipped sandwiches. They're sandwiches are named the "best french dipped sandwiches in L.A." I don't know if there's a huge amount of competition for that title, but I will say that they didn't disappoint. They were delicious. The shop is also in a perfect location for exploring the Mexican market in downtown L.A.. After we had our sandwiches we were able to walk across the street and wander our way down to Olvera Street. The street is in the oldest part of downtown L.A. and is part of the El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historic Monument. While it's mostly a tourist attraction now, we did appreciate the history & architecture of the street, and the added artisan crafts & little quaint shops. 

 

  

 
 

 

                                         

 We also timed it perfectly, by luck, that we arrived just before many of the shops were closing soon. This meant that they were open long enough that we could peek in or wander through, but that it was late enough that there wasn't much of a crowd. This helped make the place feel even more beautiful & gave us time and space to appreciate our surroundings. We walked around to the main entrance so we could start from the beginning and had a peek at the plaza that the street was off of. I loved this little, quiet plaza. I especially loved the cobblestone streets and the huge tree in the middle that's probably as old, if not older than,  Olvera Street.

 

  At the entrance of the street, there's a giant cross that almost welcomes you to the market.         Many of the inside shops had adorable step down store fronts that added to the historical ambiance of the place.   Chara, of course, enjoyed walking through the market & stopping for pets from passerby.   We stopped in to buy a churro from Mr. Churros. Because we're suckers. And I read somewhere online that they had "amazing churros." Also, when you're at a Mexican market there's something in your head, well maybe not yours or Zachary's, but something in my head, that says, "Hey, you should be super cultural & get the whole experience. Obviously, that means get a churro." So we went on a hunt to find this Mr. Churro's I had read about. After much searching, we finally found it & got our caramel filled churro. While it was good, it wasn't the best thing I've ever tasted and I guess, I didn't know what the big deal was. But that's not the point though, is it? The point is that I had a churro at the Mexican market and that I'm very cultured. ;) And just in case you think that they don't even have churros in Mexico, (I questioned it myself after writing the above paragraph. I thought,  'Have I been hoodwinked to believing churros are Mexican? Like fortune cookies to China and pizza to America?" Well, upon a little searchy, search I discovered that they do in fact have churros in Mexico, though the paragraph that comes up first from Wikipedia would make you believe otherwise. After our churros, we headed back outside to the plaza for some beautiful lights & a serene, perfect night. We walked around a bit enjoying the weather before we made our way a few streets over to China Town. China Town had less to offer as all the shops were closed & my pictures came out blurry, but we still walked through.   We had a lovely evening at the market. I wouldn't say it's a "must see" in L.A. but if you're there for a leisurely trip, like we were, have an evening to kill,  or just want to walk off your Phillipe's sandwich, I would recommend it.    Have you gone to Olvera Street? What'd you think of it?