MARY WISNIEWSKI
Assistant Living Editor
Silver bells, cockleshells or pretty maids in a row do not grow in every garden. Or at least not at John’s Garden, in the Malibu Colony Plaza.
This Malibu market and deli grows something better: good food and service. This can be attributed to Jim Musante, who opened the business after graduating from high school. He has owned John’s Garden for the past 31 years.
Musante wears an orange shirt under a blue apron that contrasts with his kind brown eyes. It is not so surprising he has been the owner for so long, as he seems relaxed and congenial.
Musante usually works five days a week and generally arrives by 8 a.m.
It is a good business for him to be in because he said he has always enjoyed food.
“I have loved food all my life,” he said.
Musante partly attributes this to his Italian grandmother, who always made great food, and his dad, who had a truck route to distribute produce.
When Musante first opened up John’s Garden, it only sold produce but branched out to sandwiches, soups and salads because of customer suggestions.
“We always listen to customers,” he said. “We want healthy products.”
Perhaps that is why John’s Garden continues to have regulars.
“There are a lot of regulars since we’ve been opened,” he said. “Some kids playing in the playground bring their kids one day. They all have different stories.”
Many regulars are Pepperdine students, a clientele Musante enjoys. Celebrities have also been known to grace the joint.
Musante said Robert Redford, Paul Newman and Ellie McGraw all came in together one day causing a commotion. On another occasion, Robin Williams entered the store and joked around by picking up a banana and pretending to use it as a phone.
The regulars come for the food. A popular choice is the turkey and avocado sandwich. Musante said he is always experimenting with food and treats it as a hobby.
“It’s important not to be afraid to eat something,” he said. “John’s Garden is unique because of its food and products.”
John’s Garden also stands apart from other food businesses because of its smaller size.
Musante said he likes the appeal of a smaller business versus a larger restaurant because restaurants require late hours and make it hard to spend time with his family as well as pursue his hobbies that include kayaking, hiking, enjoying the beach and being in nature.
“I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the beaches and couldn’t go kayaking,” he said smiling.
Born in Santa Monica, Musante is certainly no stranger to Southern California. In particular, he said Malibu has always been a good place to be because of the location and the people.
Musante said people used to ride up to his business by horses but now it is just by cars. These days, there are a lot more houses, and of course, more traffic, he said.
Although John’s Garden is located near other food establishments, Musante said the competition is good. After all, he said he has been told that owners have two jobs — one is to bring people in and the other is to keep on bringing those same people back.
John’s Garden is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.
11-02-2006