The Missus really wanted to get going on our first full day in Big Bear. But first, I needed some caffeine. Right up the street in the Village is The Copper Q, a coffee shop, and while hours are kind of seasonal, it was open on this morning, just a short walk from where we were staying. And they had outdoor seating.
The Americano was decent.
The Copper Q
645 Pine Knot Ave.
Big Bear Lake, CA 92315
Then we headed off for our hike. The Missus had chosen Grays Peak Trail, which was on the opposite side of the lake near Fawnskin. We had gotten there early and easily found parking. The trail starts close to the parking….
It was pretty steep at the beginning.
With almost a 1,200 foot elevation gain and 7 miles out and back.
This was back at the end of October, but there were still patches of snow.
Which JJ enjoyed!
Some lovely rock formations as well.
I was of course pretty tired after this.
Though JJ enjoyed himself.
Also of note is that Grays Peak has been closed so far this year, until July 1st because bald eagles are nesting! Awesome!
We got back to our accommodations, showered, and then headed into the Village for lunch. We had noticed a BBQ restaurant during our previous walks up Pine Knot Avenue that seemed to have a lot of outdoor seating named Jasper’s Barbecue.
So we headed over and decided to have lunch there.
We were seated…the folks working were very nice.
After looking over the menu, we decided on the 2 Meat Combo with a half rack of ribs and hot links as our meats, with cornbread and chicharrones as our side ($41) to share. It was more than enough food for the both of us.
This was basically a non-starter for us. The hot links had decent flavor, nice paprika smokiness, perhaps a bit too salty, but for some reason were really chewy. The ribs lacked smokiness and didn’t even have smoke ring, was really tough, and the sauce kinda tasted like Sweet Baby Ray’s? A bit too sweet for us. As was the cornbread.
The only item we really enjoyed were the fresh fried chicharrones…nice and lightly crunchy. Perfectly seasoned.
Well, I guess we can cross Jaspers off the “list”.
Jasper’s Barbeque
607 Pine Knot Ave.
Big Bear Lake, CA 92315
We headed back to the Marina Riviera for a short break. When we awoke, the Missus wanted to “do something”. I didn’t feel like driving. I had read that there’s a small Farmers Market on Fridays from April thru October on Big Bear Lake, at Ski Beach Park. It was about 3/4 of a mile from where we were staying to we decided to stroll on over.
You actually take Big Bear Boulevard, then turn left down Knight Avenue to the parking lot of Ski Beach. It’s a cute little farmers market in the parking lot.
The Missus did end up buying some lotion and other stuffs from one of the stands.
Big Bear Lake Farmers Market
41216 Park Ave.
Big Bear Lake, California 92315
From April thru October
We had a nice walk back as well.
When dinner time arrived…well, since it was Friday, places were getting kind of busy! When dinner came around, we decided to just have something light at De la Nonna, located in the Marina Riviera. The staff there were so very nice and Kinzey remembered JJ from the night before! We had a $25 discount on food and drinks every evening, so we decided to just avail ourselves of that.
They made me a nice Mezcal Old Fashioned.
We got the Whipped Eggplant.
It had a pseudo XO sauce which had some spice, but was kind of bland overall.
And an Italian Hero Sandwich.
We liked the crisp, but fluffy focaccia…tons of Provolone. We enjoyed the aioli, which had a bit of spice to it.
De la Nonna Big Bear (In the Hotel Marna Riviera)
40770 Big Bear Blvd.
Big Bear Lake, CA 92315
It was a passable dinner and the folks at De la Nonna were so nice and friendly…..especially to JJ!
It was nice watching the sunset from the patio as well!
We ordered the meat rare. but only the large piece was rare, the rest were medium-well, skewing things to the tough side of the scale. The meat was well seasoned, though the "sauces" really didn't go well with the proteins but was necessary for the really dry "garlic bread" bites in our opinion. The Bloody Mary aioli was interesting, but pretty bland; the BBQ Sauce was too sweet. 
Not much has changed since the last time, or even from 1947, when The Barbecue Pit first opened in downtown San Diego.
Other than the prices and having a daily availability of brisket (used to only be on weekends).
Walk up, order, pay and you walk away with your tray of food. Efficient.
Find a seat.
Go back to the condiment bar and beverage station. Remember to grab utensils!
A bowl of Navy Bean Soup-filled with beans, carrots, celery and bits of ham. An excellent version almost always ordered (except when I really want the Pea Soup)..
This went well with a beef sandwich. (Soup and Sandwich, $11.99). This is Pit Barbecue-slow cooked over oak-not overly smoked (there is a smokey BBQ sauce available on the condiment bar). The sandwiches are 1/2 pound, the bread is lightly toasted. It all comes together in each bite. 
The Mister ordered the chopped burnt ends plate ($10.99) which included two sides. The burnt ends are meaty, not fatty.
We decided to share a slice of pecan pie ($4.99) which had an excellent, flaky crust, not too sweet filling and still crisp pecans. A nice treat. 
I went in and chatted with the nice folks at Poseidon and they told me that they were starting BBQ on weekends starting on the 5th of August, running from Fridays to Sundays.
The rib and tips both had a very nice, deep, distinctive smoke ring and a decent, almost "crisp" if uneven bark.
