We spent time back at the Salton Sea again, and made our semiannual pilgrimage to the Oasis Date Gardens. They've rearranged the store somewhat, and I'd say it was an improvement. Their mascot, Raul Medjool, has been released from exile in the video viewing room. He now greets the visitor who comes in by the main entrance.
The tasting table, with varieties of dates to sample, has new signs. One or two date varieties that I bought last year weren't on display, and a couple of new varieties were there. Most of my favorites were still my favorites, but one variety (Khadrawy) didn't seem as good as in past years, and I didn't buy any. The Medjools seemed unusually plump and delicious even for that variety. I bought a pound or two of each of these:
The daily special (listed in the sign next to Raul Medjool) looked enticing, but neither of us could pass up their bacon cheeseburger.
We like to stock up on dates when we come through, but we had an additional, special reason to get them this time: visitors! @Porthos and his bride drove out to see us while we were camped at the Salton Sea. Intrepid Southern Californians that they are, they thought nothing of driving the couple of hours (each way) rather than our trying to meet halfway somewhere. We had a lovely time. I don't have any actual photos of the appetizers; we were too busy chatting for me to take photos. However, I had set up hummus (store-bought) and crackers, pita chips, and stuffed dates that looked like this:
Those on the left are Medjools; those on the right are Honey dates. The Medjools are more conducive to stuffing due to their size.
Bless them, Porthos and his DW brought us a host gift: 4 bottles of assorted beer from favorite local breweries. I can't think why I didn't get a picture of the last beer: a stout that was quite nice.
I'm not much of a wheat beer fan (that's my darling's favorite) but I love the Hangar 24 label. 
We visited a few hours, and then they, intrepid drivers that they are, headed back to the L.A. Basin to visit her father. I'll bet that was 8 hours' worth of driving, given where they needed to go next. We were honored to be put into their long route.
