MarketInk: Food Blogger Lauren Mapp Ate 80 Seafood Tacos So You Don’t Have To

Lauren J. Mapp, a San Diego food journalist who recently launched the “Tides & Tacos” food blog, opted for a traditional menu of turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole, and pies for her Thanksgiving meal.

“It’s true that my two favorite food groups are seafood and tacos, which is the reason for the ‘Tides & Tacos’ name,” Mapp told Times of San Diego. “But, for Thanksgiving, we stuck with the basics.”

Mapp, an alum of Times of San Diego, is also a former reporter with The San Diego Union-Tribune. She left in May of this year, launching “Tides and Tacos” on Substack in June.

During her five years at the U-T, she was considered a highly proficient staff writer. Her 2021 story on searching for the best local California burrito had the highest number of conversions (people becoming subscribers to read the story) and was the eighth most-read story on the website with more than 100,000 views.

The burrito story also was a winner of 2022 awards from the San Diego Press Club and the San Diego Society of Professional Journalists.

Earlier this year, she won another Press Club award for her “Tides & Tacos” introduction column titled, “Welcome to Tides & Tacos, a project sharing diverse stories of San Diego’s food scene.” Her subhead was, “How years of working for restaurants and newsrooms amid an ever-shrinking media market led me to creating my own space for culinary journalism.”

“I had a very wild and interesting time at the U-T,” Mapp said. “It included reporting through a pandemic, building an Indigenous communities beat, navigating an ownership transition and covering East County politics.

“But, in my last 10 months of employment, I was balancing three very different beats, including caregiving, senior care and aging, Indigenous communities, and East County. I felt it was thwarting me from achieving my long-term career goals.”

Mapp said she wants to write a book on Indigenous food sovereignty, agriculture, and culinary traditions with her mom, Lorraine Kahneratokwas Gray.

Mapp relocated to San Diego in 2005 and worked her way through college, earning degrees in culinary arts, journalism, and political science, by working as a server, craft cocktail bartender, and line cook. She attended San Diego Mesa College and San Diego State University, and wrote restaurant reviews for both schools’ student newspapers.

“While some food writers have a background in the culinary industry, there are many more who have no or limited experience working in restaurants,” Mapp wrote on Tides & Tacos.

“Many food writers don’t know about how carrying countless buckets of ice can permanently strain one’s shoulders or how even the most seasoned chef might knick the tips of their fingers with a razor-sharp knife. Nor do they look down at their arms and see the remnants of a hot pan that slipped and accidentally burned their bicep. Not that I’m speaking, ahem, from personal reference or anything.”

She said her goal with “Tides & Tacos” is to cover the local food scene, ranging from where to find the best version of various dishes to deep dives on niche topics within the culinary and agricultural space.

“As a Black and Kanienʼkehá:ka (Mohawk Nation) woman who grew up farming and gardening with my family, I’m excited to use Tides & Tacos to tell diverse stories of chefs, farmers and food producers throughout our region,” she said.

Recent posts on “Tides & Tacos” have been titled, “Tasting Tijuana: A day trip across the border leaves me craving another round,” “North Park beverage blogger blends Indian ingredients with American culinary culture,” “How food plays a part in Juneteenth celebrations,” and “I ate more than 80 seafood tacos so you don’t have to.”

“I grew up in New England, where in the 90s the only ‘Mexican cuisine’ that was widely available in my city came from Taco Bell,” Mapp said. “So, when I moved to San Diego and finally had real tacos and Mexican food, I fell in love.”

Mapp said “Tides & Tacos” is different than other food media because, as she said: “I don’t have advertisers to please or agreements with restaurants to fulfill. So, my content solely contains honest reviews of the restaurants I cover.

“Unlike other food influencers who run a dime-a-dozen across social media platforms, I don’t accept free food or financial payments in exchange for positive coverage. In abstaining from such opportunities, my readers can trust that if I am recommending a dish from a specific restaurant, it’s because I genuinely enjoy it and I think they will enjoy it, too.”

December’s posts for “Tides & Tacos” are planned to feature holiday cocktail recipes using locally sourced ingredients. Previous posts under the “San Diego Sips” banner on “Tides & Tacos” have included “Spice up cocktail hour with kimchi and corn liqueur,” “Fig harvest makes for tasty, late summer cocktails,” and “Roasted lemon gives autumnal edge to these late summer cocktails.”

San Diego County Fair Honored with Marketing Awards

The 22nd District Agricultural Association, the public entity that operates the San Diego County Fair, reports that it has received 10 awards from the International Association of Fairs and Expositions for marketing communications, advertising, and publicity efforts for the 2024 Fair.

Honors included a Best Marketing campaign award for the Fair’s 2024 “Let’s Go Retro” theme and overall marketing campaign. The theme was based on a nostalgic journey through the cultural zeitgeist of the 1950s through the ’90s.

First-place awards included the VIP Media Booklet in the miscellaneous marketing category, outdoor billboards in the outdoor advertising category, and Meta ads promoting carnival rides in the online advertisements category.

Second-place awards included a Kids’ Day ad in San Diego Family Magazine, a food gatefold ad in San Diego Magazine, and a paper cube souvenir item.

Third-place awards included a digital advertising video, music in radio spots, and a promotion that appeared on milk cartons distributed by San Marcos-based Hollandia Dairy.

In total, the Fair received 24 awards from IAFE. Other categories included agricultural, competitive exhibits and non-fair facility usage.

A statement said IAFE’s awards program recognize fairs across the country for achievements in marketing, publicity, competitive exhibits, photography, and agricultural education efforts. Entries are judged by panels of experts in their respective fields. The judges base their decisions on creativity, use of theme, production excellence, best use of resources, highest level of innovation and other criteria. The District competes in divisions with other large fairs held in the U.S.

Nearly 900,000 people attended the 20-day, 2024 San Diego County Fair.

“We are deeply honored to receive this slate of awards from our industry peers within IAFE, and we are extraordinarily grateful to have the opportunity to create a safe, enjoyable and educational experience for our community at the Fair,” Carlene Moore, the District’s chief executive officer, said in a statement. “We are looking forward to another great year in 2025.”

The 2025 San Diego County Fair will open June 11 and run through July 6. This year’s theme is “Summer Pet-tacular,” a celebration of pets and pet ownership.

The 22nd District Agricultural Association owns the Del Mar Fairgrounds. It is governed by a nine-member board appointed by the governor. Fairgrounds operations are primarily funded by revenues generated by hosting events, including the annual San Diego County Fair.

Additional Duties for Jack in the Box’s Chief Marketing Officer

San Diego-based Jack in the Box, Inc. has announced that Ryan Ostrom, executive VP, chief marketing and digital officer, is assuming additional responsibilities for Jack operations in addition to his current function. Ostrom’s new title is chief customer and digital officer, effective Dec. 6.

Ostrom’s new role is part of a strategic leadership restructure that includes the departure of Tony Daren, senior VP and chief operating officer, who has been a member of the Jack in the Box executive team since June 2021.

A statement said Ostrom, in his new role, will continue to drive their initiatives of building brand loyalty and driving operations excellence while fostering alignment and efficiency across teams. He has been with the company since February 2021, leading the path for the digital transformation of Jack in the Box and Del Taco and modernizing how customers engage with the brands.

“I am excited to lead this next chapter for the company as this evolution will help us create greater alignment and focus,” said Ostrom. “I am confident that we will navigate this transition seamlessly and continue to drive value for our customers.”

Jack in the Box, one of the nation’s largest fast-food hamburger chains, operates 2,200 restaurants across 22 states, along with Del Taco, the second largest quick-service-restaurant chain with 600 restaurants across 17 states.

Sun Country Builders Hires Marketing Manager

Carlsbad-based Sun Country Builders, a general contractor specializing in affordable housing, has named Carolina Alban-Stoughton as marketing and business development manager.

A statement said Alban-Stoughton will help the company grow by leading client relationship interaction, identifying new business opportunities and overseeing the company’s marketing, business development and public relations initiatives.

“We are pleased to welcome Carolina to the Sun Country Builders team,” said John Ahlswede, president of Sun Country Builders.

“Her penchant for strategic and creative thinking and her extensive experience in communications and marketing will aid us as we continue our steady growth.”

Previously, Alban-Stoughton was the senior content strategist for Carlsbad-based irrigation company Calsense, where her primary focus was increasing the company’s brand awareness.

Prior to that, she was director of communication and engagement at the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, where she led member and community engagement efforts, adapting them during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

During her career, she worked on the television series “America’s Most Wanted.” Additionally, as a native Spanish speaker, she was responsible for Latino media outreach and bilingual services for the late U.S. Senator Harry Reid (D-Nevada).

Alban-Stoughton has been honored with writing awards from the San Diego Press Club for his articles in the Carlsbad Business Journal.

She has a master’s degree in broadcast journalism and public affairs from American University and a bachelor’s degree in communications from Universidad de Lima.

Sun Country Builders, now in its 45th year in business, has built or renovated more than 6.5 million square feet of quality multi-family housing units throughout Southern California. The company has built or renovated more than 117 multi-family housing projects, helping house more than 8,700 people.

Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based public relations and marketing consultant. His MarketInk column appears weekly on Mondays in Times of San Diego.