The Dalai Lama gets it. He believes all humans deserve happiness. He cultivates warm-heartedness. He advocates for forgiveness, tolerance and self-discipline.
In other words, you’re not going to catch me disagreeing with His Holiness much.
But he did say, “Happiness is not something ready made.”
And I have evidence to the contrary, courtesy of a Watsonville icon.
Jalisco Mexican Cuisine (618 Main St., Watsonville) enjoys plenty to recommend it—including classic especialidades de casa, high-value combos and a historic Coast Counties Gas & Electric building that was built in 1931—but the most remarkable element is its ready-made happiness.
Jalisco’s happy hour(s) stretches 3-7pm weekdays, plus every time there’s an NFL game on, which translates to Sundays and extended time on Mondays and Thursdays (and all the other days the league is doing holiday games these days).
The bargains transport me to a bygone era of real-deal happy hours: The solid house margaritas, salty dogs, Cuba libres and screwdrivers are $5. Chicken or carne asada nachos run $10, bacon-wrapped jalapeños $8, flautas $7, sliders and fries $6 and hot dogs $5.
Tell me a better happy hour around Santa Cruz County via @MontereyMCA on IG and I’ll buy.
The lunch specials merit a mention too: Ten options, from shrimp enchilada-relleno combos to wet burritos, start at $11.95.
Vamos, Your Holiness. There are lots of vegetarian options. jaliscorestaurant.com, dalailama.com
OTRA MÁS
Bonus tasty news from another Mexican food favorite in Watsonville: El Frijolito (11 Alexander St, #B) emerged from two years worth of renovations to reopen last month, equipped with a larger kitchen, double-sized dining room and ambitions on an expanded menu. Like Jalisco, this 39-year-old spot also plays the hits, with popular chile rellenos, camarones a la diabla and formidable burritos, plus tacos, tortas and more. As one staffer told me, “un poquito de todo.” She also predicted Frijolito’s locally famous “Hole in the Wall” takeout window will leap back to life in January. Hours are 10am–8pm daily, until 7pm Sundays. @el_frijolito831 on Instagram.
CLOSING NOTES
La Bahia Hotel & Spa (215 Beach St.), geo-located right next to the Beach Boardwalk and across from the Main Beach sand, aims to open this summer, and is bringing a motherlode of culinary intrigue along with it: Its four-sided flavor equation includes a live music-bolstered bar and grill (Low Tide), a Pacific Rim inspired upscale restaurant (High Tide), a pool bar (Plunge) and a Champagne bar (Pearl), labahiahotel.com…Bummer alert: Flower Bar (912 River St., Santa Cruz), the downtown café–flower shop hybrid, closed abruptly earlier this month, after a three-and-a-half-year run peddling floral arrangements, high-end chocolates and an espresso bar with pastries, sweets and sandwiches…Monterey Bay Farmers Markets has developed a holiday gift guide to maximize your Santa game with items like farmstead cheeses, holiday wreaths, cold-pressed walnut oil and fresh-baked pies at Aptos Farmers Market (Cabrillo College, 6500 Soquel Drive) 8am-noon Saturdays, montereybayfarmers.org/holiday-guide…Pebble Beach Food & Wine (April 10–13, 2025) has announced its slate of stars, somms, lunches, dinners, grand pavilions, panels and more, with Giada De Laurentiis, Jonathan Waxman Nancy Silverton and Alice Waters among the 135 chefs participating across 40 events, pebblebeachfoodandwine.com…“Food is art, and food is love,” Mark Bittman once said. “And we should show love and appreciation for those who cook it by eating it with relish.”
