Silicon Valley, California, Cultural Wasteland?

I've been spending a lot of time in Silicon Valley recently. I know that the smartest and most innovative people in the world are here, but it's also an interminable, featureless suburb. I've been staying in Menlo Park, and the best thing I can say about my area is that it is right next to a huge Mexican enclave. The area centers around Middlefield Road and is anchored by
Chavez Supermarket. There are all sorts of Mexican restaurants and shops, including several Mexican seafood joints within a stone's throw of each other. After a late night at the office, I often stop by Tacqueria El Grullense, the local late-night burrito chain and browse the bilingual newspaper El Reportero, which has all articles in both English and Spanish.

The local gourmet grocery mart, Sigona's, carries a whole host of dried fruits, as well as Mexican produce such as tejocote, nopales (cactus), mescal (sugar cane) and tamarindo. They recently featured a recipe for the Ponche (see next post). Menlo Park also features the ultra-gourmet supermarket Draeger's, which is famous for purveying balsamic vinegars costing hundreds of dollars.