Fentiman Farms

Our family has been going here for years! We used to love this place for its freshness in persimmons and selling them by the box. Although, prices have gone up a bit lately, but more recently to note, don’t expect any customer service from the lady in charge or even a friendly smile. She’s been grumpy the past few years and we’ve heard that there’s a bit of resistance towards Asians, not sure if she loves it there or is forced to be there, or really looks down on Asians.
We came by today and got the glare the whole time as we tried to smile and say hi but she all she did was look at us with a negative body language… Just fair warning but get your persimmons and go or re-​consider coming here.

I love this place, they have the best jujube in town. I live 45 mins away from the farm, but every year around September, we would drive up here to get the fresh, crunchy and juicy fruits. We don’t buy them in pounds, we bought boxes!!! That’s how good it is!!! Lecia and Britta are sweeties, wonderful people. If you haven’t eaten the jujube here, you must try, you will not buy it anywhere else, but here :)

I live in El Centro and go up to La Jolla to our small condo where we seek some relief from the hot summer months. My son discovered the farm and their wonderful produce last year. In spite of the long drive, we went back 4 or 5 times to purchase boxes of their jujubes, the best !!! I can’t wait for the next harvest in September. All the ladies are very nice and friendly.

We’ve been coming to Fentiman Farms since the late 80’s. We kept coming back for three reasons: Being from North County ourselves, we like to patronize local businesses; their merchandise were fresh — the sweetest Fuyos in this part of San Diego, and most importantly, the friendly staff. Nestled in a small valley surrounded by rocky hills of Reidy Canyon, it has become our getaway spot from the hustle and bustle of our small coastal city. We would see the place grow from a simple, but well-​kept fruit and produce stand to what it is today. Now my grandchildren would buy plants from the Oasis Nursery. Our hearts shrank when we learned that the fruit stand may close; that the Fuyo orchard may be replaced by nursery greenhouses. But, we were overjoyed when, in 2004, Mr. Altman told us that the fruit stand will continue to operate and Jujubes will be added to their inventory. We would see the Jujube plants transform from saplings to mature trees of today. And so our seasonal weekly drive to Reidy Canyon continue. What may seem a perfect story would take an ugly turn.
On Friday, September 21, 2012, my wife and I, with shopping lists from friends, headed out for our first visit of the season to Fentiman Farms. On hand at the store were two young ladies, one a African-​American, the other of undetermined ethnicity. There were also several patrons who were actively picking their own choices of Jujubes to buy. I even assisted the black lady refill one of the bins. As our usual practice, my wife and I split; she, to fill her friends’ shopping list, I, to one side of the store for ours. When I was finished I took my bag of extra large Jujubes to the register, which the black lady set aside to wait for my wife to finish. I then went outside the store to the nursery side. I briefly conversed with the black lady who was getting ready to drive away in a «‘Gator». While outside I heard my wife and the other young lady engaged in what sounded like an argument at the register. From what I gathered at the time, the young lady had opened one of the bags and said that extra large fruits were mixed in with the smaller ones that my wife had picked for her friends. My wife emphatically argued that all the fruits that she had picked came from bins of smaller size located at the other side of the store. The exchange between the young lady and my wife became personal and heated. It escalated and took an ugly and sensitive turn when the young lady commented «I do not like Asians, they do bad things», or words to that effect. I considered this as accusing my wife and I of theft. This is also ironic as a great majority of the store’s patrons are Asians, and as it turned out, the other young lady was herself Asian. The black lady, who by this time have returned, attempted to diffuse the situation by taking over the register and telling the other young lady to «shut up». We paid for our purchases and left the store in a haste. Am I complaining? Perhaps it may appear that way, however, my primary reason is to let the management become aware of the conduct of one of its employees.
The only good thing to come out of this very unfortunate incident is when the black lady (I regret to not have asked for her name) came out of the store to apologize for the way her companion had acted. This young lady’s conduct during the entire incident was not only admirable, but commendable as well. Would we continue to patronize the Fentiman Farm? Certainly. The problem is between us and an employee who has an attitude and lacks the most basic of customer service. It is different with my wife who stated that she will not set foot in the store again as long as «that Asian» cashier is there.

Although i am not a persimmon fan, my mother loves them. During the persimmon season which starts towards the end of October, they offer a variety of persimmons. I go a couple times a season to bring home fresh persimmons for my mom. They can sell them by the pound or in small, medium, and large boxes. This is a steal considering that at local farmer’s markets they can sell for up to $ 4.99 a pound! Persimmons have a pretty long shelf-​life, but my mom loves these so much that she can go through a large box in a couple of weeks. Its important to note that they do not allow customers to pick their own persimmons off the trees. However, you’ll find their selection plentiful.