William Pierson recalls his kindergarten teacher giving out brown slabs of rolled clay with which he and his classmates were to form and decorate candy dishes as Mother’s Day gifts. After looking around, he says he picked up a wooden block to form the clay around before trimming and painting the edge. He had, he […]
Jennifer Fumiko Cahill
Jennifer Fumiko Cahill is the managing editor of the North Coast Journal. She won the Association of Alternative Newsmedia’s 2020 Best Food Writing Award and the 2019 California News Publisher's Association award for Best Writing.
Outlaw Rodeo at the Fair Marred by Two Horse Deaths
Without horse racing for its second year in a row, the 130th annual Humboldt County Fair replaced the thunder of hooves on the track with Saturday’s Outlaw Rodeo College Invitational. While it attracted a strong crowd as the largest single-day event, the injury and subsequent deaths of two horses cast a pall over the festivities […]
Best of Arts, Entertainment & Recreation
Best Night Club and Best Place to Shake Your BootyThe BasementLots of night clubs are cool. But walking into The Basement and taking a seat with a swanky cocktail or mocktail, surrounded by polished wood and good lighting, makes you feel a little cooler, too. Which might contribute to one’s confidence at booty shaking. The […]
Best of Services
Best FloristPocket of PosiesThis pocket-sized shop holds big things — you’d be forgiven for zipping past it on Broadway, but you’d miss out. Not only are there the requisite beautiful blooms and fragrant wreaths, but I once went in last minute to order a corsage for a young lady whose aesthetic was sort of intergalactic […]
Best of Cannabis
Best Local Cannabis ProductSpace GemWhen you had to fly next to the weird man-spreader who took the armrest and breathed on you from takeoff to landing, who from Humboldt had your back? Space Gems. Maybe it was the tiniest little nibble of Sleepy Fig to calm your nerves or a sour rainbow of fruity drops […]
Best of Weddings
Best Outdoor Wedding VenueMitchell GroveFormerly Arrington Apples, the orchard amid redwoods is secluded and lovely, and close enough to town not to require long drives or camping. So we get why Mitchell Grove is a favorite for al fresco nuptials. The vibe, according to the owners, is “DIY-ish,” allowing couples and their entourages to do […]
Best of Bonus Round!
Best Local Radio StationKMUDLet’s hear it for Redwood Community Radio and the folks who support it. KMUD DJs are spinning every conceivable genre from reggae to gospel and covering topics from literature to ecology. Tune in for national news, your local city council meetings and updates on helicopters in the hills. Sounds like Humboldt’s Best […]
Best of – Retail
Retail Antique Store 4th Street Mercantile215 Fourth St., Eureka 4thstreetmercantile.com Appliance Store Poletski’s Appliance Center510 Harris St., Eureka(707) 445-3138 poletskis.com Bicycle Shop Revolution Bicycles2811 F St., Eureka (707) 443-98611593 G St., Arcata (707) 822-2562revolutionbicycle.com Bookstore Booklegger402 Second St., Eureka(707) 445-1344 Find us on Facebook Car Lot for New Cars Mid-City Motor World4800 N U.S. Highway […]
Feeling Lucky?
Granted, choosing — or winning — the Best of Humboldt isn’t a game of chance. But we do feel a little blessed flipping through the list of winners and perusing the bounty of our county. No better reminder to go out and enjoy some of these local gems and mark a few new ones off […]
Best of Food and Drink
Best Farmers Market VendorFocaccia by the PietrinisWhen in Rome … make a colorful Roman hand gesture in disappointment, for the Pietrini brothers Fulvio (who does the baking) and Flavio are somehow in Humboldt instead, at the Old Town Farmers Market selling their marvelous focaccia at the stall with the rainbow lettering. The $5 squares of […]
Flow State
Now, friends, is not the time to lock in. Now is the season of drifting along with the current, at least for the weekend. Make waves while the sun shines. This issue of the Insider has a slew of slowed-down activities to enjoy at your leisure. Flip through our Perfect Trips and plan (or don’t […]
Bubbles Takes You Back
Forget rage rooms. People should be cutting 4-pound loaves of colorful, translucent glycerin soap to relieve stress. Just watching Carla Hayes, owner of Bubbles, slice them into fragrant, candy-colored chunks is soothing. In fact, your cortisol might cool just walking in and taking a deep breath. Bubbles has been open since January of 1973, when […]
