Dining in San Diego

[FrogPrincesse]

I just went to Just Fabulous last Friday and sampled a few of the desserts (I had the chocolate sampler). Everything was good and the Gianduja Crunch Pyramide was really outstanding. Here is the description of this pastry from the website: a luscious hazelnut infused milk chocolate base (gianduja) flecked with crunchy bits of tuile cookie. Dark chocolate mousse center, chocolate glaze. I loved it even though I don't particularly like hazelnuts (but I do love chocolate!). The cake was very moist and the crunchy tuile bits gave it a great texture.

I'll have to go back because the selection is huge.

Thanks kalypso for recommending it.

[kalypso]

I'd heard what a great new place Vagabond was. That it was packed every night. That the food was "really, really good". So when a friend proposed checking it out, I jumped at the chance. It's not fusion cooking, it's more like taking some of the best things from around the world and trying to pull them together into a cohesive context. World kitchen is what they call it, I think. The meal ended up being something of a mixed bag.

Vagabond is located at 30th and Juniper in South Park, a neighborhood undergoing a renaissance of sorts. The space is small, the surfaces hard, the crowd trendy and local. While the restaurant has a lot going for it, it's also got a couple of real glaring problems. The first is that it's exceedingly noisy. Three of us were seated at a standard sized four-top and by the end of our meal we could not hear each other at all..........and we were there early. I don't mind normal dining room buzz, but deafening roar does not translate into a great dining experience. The bar area is snug and it was even noisier in there. The other problem was that the space was hot with very little ventilation. Granted yesterday was a warm day in America's Finest City, but when the weather really heats up, without some air circulation that room is not going to be pleasant place to eat.

2 of us started with very respectable, refreshing and generously sized Pisco Sours. Our 3rd had a Campari & Soda. We ordered 2 appetizers while finalizing our selections from the short list of entrees. The deep fried calamari was a stellar rendition. The rings (and tenacles) had been very lightly battered and were crispy and amazingly greaseless. They really didn't need the aioli that was served with them.

Our other app was the charcuterie plate. It arrived with an assortment of 3 cheeses, some dry/hard salami, country pate, duck liver mousse, olives, gerhkins and, of course, chewy country-style bread. The duck liver mouse and the olives were addictively outstanding. The salamis could have been a little more flavorful and there should have been greater distinction between the cheeses. The blue veined cheese on the plate lacked the usual assertiveness and tanginess of blue cheese and tasted remarkably like the other 2 cheese on the plate. All three cheese were actually pretty good, they just tasted a little too similar to each other. I would order the charcuterie plate again, especially as a lunch entree.

The mussel entree has, apparently, become something of a signature dish at Vagabond, and sure enough, one person at our table ordered it. The Prince Edward Island mussels arrived in a 2 qt. (or maybe it was a 3 qt) souffle dish; and the portion is generous! They had been steamed off in a tasty broth along with onions, celery, fennel, spices and finished with a health dose of cream. The resulting sauce was pretty rich and tasty and really good with bread. The mussels were nice and fat, though a bit gritty.

All the presentations at Vagabond are interesting and fairly well thought out, carrying the theme of each dish through without being over the top. One of the best presentations is the Vegetable Stew, which comes in it's own tajine. The generous bed of couscous was topped topped with chick peas and a variety of stewed vegetables. All of it was set off by a yougurt sauce and harissa. I managed to snag a taste and it was pretty good. The person who ordered it really liked the hit that the harissa added.

The least successful dish of the evening was my entree, which was the paella. It arrived in it's very own paella pan looking very seductive. This kitchen is not afraid of spices and using a good amount of seasoning in what it cooks. Unforutnately, the seasoning they decided to use in abundance in the paella was salt. I like salty food - in fact, salty snacks are my downfall - but not to the degree present in this dish. The excessive salt was also not the only problem with the dish. One of the clam shells had cracked into several pieces which were scatter throughout the dish, one of the mussels in the dish was shriveled up and there was far too much grit in the shellfish. The shrimp in the paella, OTOH, where tender and succulent. The morsels of chicken breast meat tender and not overcooked. I just wish I could have enjoyed it more than I did. The salt I can almost forgive, the broken clam shell, shriveled mussel and grit I can not.

We passed on dessert, in part because we were full and in part because it was too hot in the room and we were tired of yelling at each other to be heard. The waitstaff is young, fairly well trained, efficient and attentive without being intrusive. Our bill for 3 Pisco Sours, 1 Campari & Soda, 2 appetizers and 3 entrees, including tax and tip was $90.

Would I go back? You bet. Vagabond has only been open a couple of months and good restaraunts aren't exactly built in a day. They are doing a lot of things right. Drinks, appetizers and service are strong. The salads I saw at other tables also looked very good, and I might be more inclined to order and app and a salad instead of an entree. Some of the entrees we saw going to other tables - most notably the rack of lamb (the entire rack) and the filet of beef - looked like they might have been better choices than our own. The neighborhood is already embracing the place and the longer it's open the better it will become. Vagabond is definitely worth a visit, just know that it's still evloving and deciding what it wants to be when it grows up.

Edited May 26, 2006 by kalypso (log)

[Toliver]

I was hoping this could go into the "San Diego Cheap Eatz" thread, but it wasn't that cheap.

Phil's BBQ in Mission Hills

We arrived mid afternoon on Memorial Day. We lucked out because Phil's isn't usually open on Mondays. We also lucked out because usually there's a line out the door and you can see by the picture that there wasn't a line when we arrived. Don't let the small restaurant front fool you. The restaurant runs deep and can seat a large number of people.

There's a large free standing menu sign posted outside for those waiting in line to order.

Once you step inside, dine-in customers order right then and there.

There's a menu sign inside in case you forgot what you were going to order.

The BBQ smell is fantastic as you walk up to the joint (apparently, after they opened, neighbors in the area actually complained (!) about the constant BBQ smell...imagine that).

Sorry the picture isn't better but this is a cropped close up from a wide shot with some heavy tweaking in Photoshop to make it look half-way decent.

They use mequite wood to grill the meat. Note the use of wordage. Unfortunately, this isn't a true BBQ joint. They have a separate kitchen away from this grilling area. We happened to be seated next to a door leading to the actual kitchen. The employees would stream in and out out of the kitchen carrying a large stainless steel pot, for instance, and yelling "Hot beans coming through!" to warn customers as they walked down the narrow corridor leading from the kitchen door to the front grilling area.

From what I saw, the kitchen is filled with electric smokers. I'm guessing they were smokers from their configuration (metal racks holding trays of chicken parts and ribs). They weren't professional convection ovens or even regular professional ovens since I know what they look like which is why I am guessing they were smokers. It looks like the meat is pre-cooked in the smokers and then carried on a tray out to the front grilling area to be finished. In fact, everything is brought out from the kitchen to the front grilling/serving area, from buckets of sauce, to beans and coleslaw.

As for the food:

This is almost a half-rack of ribs (we dug into them before I remembered to take a picture). They sell the ribs by the bone (see the menu on their web site). The ribs were quite good with the meat being fall-off-the-bone tender. They did have a great smokey flavor while the sauce had a sweet tang to it. I thought $13 bucks was a bit steep for a half-rack. You can get either two sides with the order of ribs or one large side. I got the slaw and beans (the beans came in a separate container). I was very disappointed in the beans. While they had a decent flavor, I was surprised by the absolute lack of any sort of BBQ flavor in them. Most BBQ joints will toss BBQ meat odds and ends into the beans to help impart a nice BBQ flavor. But this wasn't the case with Phil's.

This is the Pork Broham sandwich. It's one of the least expensive menu items ($5.95). The pulled pork is flavorful and mixed with BBQ sauce. They put the pork on top of the coleslaw which was odd since I think with most other BBQ joints the slaw usually tops the pork to help retain its crunch. The one drawback is that the bun top is "gi-normous" and quite chewy (there is also a bun bottom down there somewhere). We ended up attacking the bun top with a plastic knife and fork and topping the bun pieces with the pork and slaw...sort of like a BBQ bruschetta, if you will.

This is a large order of their batter-dipped onion rings. This could feed four people. They were rich but each table in the restaurant comes with a bottle of malt vinegar which helps cut through the grease. If you want ranch dressing it's 50 cents extra.

Each table has its own roll of paper towels since your fingers tend to get a little messy eating the ribs and onion rings. They have this hand washing station in the middle of the restaurant with a sink to rinse your hands off and gobs of paper towels to dry them.

I love good barbecue, I really do. And while Phil's was good, knowing that it wasn't "true" BBQ kind of colored the experience for me and the cost will certainly prohibit repeat visitations.

[Toliver]

This is the Pork Broham sandwich. It's one of the least expensive menu items ($5.95).

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Oops. The Broham is actually $6.45. When I wrote my post, I had misplaced the paper menu I brought back from Phil's so I copied the price off their website, which, obviously, hasn't been updated to reflect current prices. Needless to say, I found the paper menu and $6.45 is the current correct price for the Broham.

[FrogPrincesse]

I am a longtime fan of Phil's barbecue and am a little surprised by Toliver's review. My understanding is that the meat at Phil's is not pre-cooked in the kitchen, but rather prepped in the kitchen using a dry rub marinade and then grilled on the barbecue in the front. Phil is at the barbecue most nights so it would be easy to ask him.

[kalypso]

From what I saw, the kitchen is filled with electric smokers.      I'm guessing they were smokers from their configuration (metal racks holding trays of chicken parts and ribs). They weren't professional convection ovens or even regular professional ovens since I know what they look like which is why I am guessing they were smokers.  It looks like the meat is pre-cooked in the smokers and then carried on a tray out to the front grilling area to be finished. In fact, everything is brought out from the kitchen to the front grilling/serving area, from buckets of sauce, to beans and coleslaw.

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I think what you saw were probably his Rationale Combi Ovens; a very expensive but versatile piece of kitchen equipment. You're right his meats are par-baked, cooled and then finished over wood. (My source is someone who knows Phil and has been in his kitchen literally thousands of time)

There are reasons it's done this way, not the least of which may be legal. It wasn't that long ago that Phil's was closed for 9 months because of complaints (potential lawsuits?) from his neighbors there on Goldfinch about smoke and other BBQ nuisances. Additionally, the San Diego County Department of Environmental Health (aka the Health Department) has long been one of the toughest in the State. The recent inspection changes now focus on the primary risk factors of temperature, handling and storage and the penalties for violations (even a first violation) are pretty stiff. So some of Phil's process may also be driven by having to comply with local health regs. Not trying to excuse it, just putting some possibilities on the table.

But...........there are some changes for Phil's coming down the pike. Nor sure when, and not sure how public these plans are, but there a relocation is in the works. Bret Harte said to "go West young man" and that's what Phil's doin'. Parking should be better and there won't be as many residential neighbors to complain or be bothered by odor, smoke and traffic.

Edited June 16, 2006 by kalypso (log)

[kalypso]

Okay, so I made the mistake of trying to find a parking place in OB on Wednesday during the farmer's market. Parking karma was not in abundance, but persistence pays off and after 30 minutes of circling I scored a pretty decent space. And am I glad I did because had I given up, I would have missed The Vine a wine bar that opened up last year on the corner of Bacon & Niagara in what used to be Cucina Fresca.

What a comfortable spot to chat, have a glass of wine and eat some really well crafted food. The Vine concentrates mostly on small production, high quality wines and beers from around the world. There were 3 wine flights of 4-3oz pours for $17. Wines by the glass were numerous and in everyone's price range. I ordered an Argentinian Malbec and the friend I met, a Petite Syrah from CA. Both of these were in the $7-8 range if I recall.

We opened with the Olive sampler which consisted of 4 varieties of olives, 2 black and 2 green. All the olives were good and the nicoise olives very good, but we'd just tasted far better olives from the olive vendor at the farmers market (below).

I'd never really considered chopped chicken liver sexy let alone super sexy, so of course I had to order Shannon's Super Sexy Pate to find out. I don't know that I'd call it sexy, but I might go as far as seductive. Silky smooth with no grittiness, it came with thinly sliced apple and perfectly ripe pear. Best of all it came with enough crunchy crostini to equal the amount of pate.

The stuff was pretty good and we'd already dug in when I remember to take the picture

The Empanadas Verde were equally as good. The achioted flavored pastry crust for the empanadas was light and flakey, something I certainly wasn't expecting.

They were stuffed with a mince of beef and pork that had been seasoned with chiles, raisins and a bit of cheese. The drizzle on top is lime crema, along with a salsa verde. I would have liked a little more filling to even out the ratio of crust to filling, but since the crust was so good I didn't mind.

For me, the least successful dish of the evening was the Veggie Gratin, and even it was pretty good.

The gratin was a layered affair of potatoes and leeks bound together by a Gruyere cheese sauce. Unfortunately, there was just enough too much nutmeg in the sauce so that it was too noticeable rather than just a pleasant accent. The sauteed veggies accompanying the gratin were outstanding. The asparagus, red peppers, red onions and mushrooms had been tossed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and not overcooked. There isn't a potato on the face of this Earth that doesn't have my name on it, but this is one time when the vegetables (alas) trumped the spuds.

Portions are small and can be shared. My friend and I shared everything. Prices range from $6.95 - 11>95 for the savory plates. There are also salads and a soup, as well as several varieities of cheese boards.

All the plates that we'd had so far had been good to very good, but the best was yet to come.............dessert And you'll have to use your imagination to get an idea of it because we'd eaten about three quarters of it before I remembers I should have taken a photo. Oh, well.

I had eyeed all the strawberries in the farmers market but hadn't purchased any. Lucky for me, The Vine had, and they had sliced and macerated them so that they were nice and sweet without being cloyingly sweet. The berries were used to fill a feather light biscuit, along with some house-made whipped cream that had been flavored with Pedro Ximenex sherry. The combination sherry and strawberries with the elegantly lush mouthfeel of real whipped cream was almost too good to be true. Strawberries are not my first choice for berries, but wow, if I could have berries like this everyday I might just change my mind!

If I lived in OB I'd probably end up being a regular here. They've got lots of interesting wine, and beer, imported Belgian beers even. So far, the food I've sampled as all been several cuts above average and clearly well prepared. The space itself if very comfortable and the whole vibe of the place friendly and welcoming, a neighborhood desitnation. As our govenator says........I'll be back.

[eigbok]

I'll be heading to San Diego next weekend. Is Sushi Ota still as good as I remember? Is the Omakase dinner still availible? How much and what can I expect to be eating?

Thanks in advance!

[Captain Hongo]

I haven't been down for a while. What's going on with Casa de Pico and Old Town?

[Octaveman]

Casa de Pico is now in Grossmont Center next to BJ's.

[Kouign Aman]

I did not know that about Casa de Pico. Oh my! Thanks.

Old Town is mostly the same, only Bazaar del Mundo (sp?) changed management. Its been made a tad more historically correct apparently. (I havent been to the Bazaar since the change over. Must remedy that).

Sushi Ota still very good, pricey. I think probably still the best in San Diego.

[Octaveman]

I guess Sushi Ota is an acquired taste. I hate the place. Ate there once at the one in Hillcrest and the fish quality was aweful. I couldn't find anything I really enjoyed eating. Cream cheese does not belong in sushi. I was hard pressed to find anything where the flavors didn't mask the flavor of the fish. I even had the Mexican version of the sushi menu which was supposedly better. I was going to give it a 2nd chance at the place downtown but after looking at the menu, my wife and I left and ate somewhere else. I know many people like it but I guess I prefer quality to imagination.

Regarding Casa de Pico, now I'm unsure about the Old Town location. The Bazaar del Mundo webiste still lists it as a restaurant but the interenet brings up comments to the contrary. From the net...

"As of 18 May 2005 Casa De Pico will no longer be found in Old Town! However, two new locations are planned. Summer 2005 it will open up in the Grossmont Shopping Center along Grossmont Drive and in the summer of 2006 Casa De Pico will open in the New location of Bazaar Del Mondo which will be at the Old Police Station near Seaport Village!"

Here is another quote from the net...

One of my many favorite hangouts in San Diego is Bazaar del Mundo in Old Town, and I have been very fortunate to visit there many times over the past 30 years with family and friends. Located on the grounds of Old Town Historic Park, Bazaar del Mundo is the vision of Diane Powers, who leased the property from the state 33 years ago, and who converted the crumbling and boarded-up Casa de Pico Hotel into the thriving community it is today. It is also the most profitable state park in all of California.

In a decision that many have questioned, the state decided to award the lease when it came up for renewal to a New York corporation, which plans to convert the park to their vision of an Early California theme. Because of this decision, Bazaar del Mundo, as we know it today, is shutting down in May.

I haven't been down there so I have no clue what's really going on but it's a safe bet that Casa de Pico is not there.

Edited June 22, 2006 by Octaveman (log)

[kalypso]

I guess Sushi Ota is an acquired taste.  I hate the place.  Ate there once at the one in Hillcrest and the fish quality was aweful. 

←

Two different places.

Sushi Ota is an independent restaruant located in Pacific Beach. It is considered by many to be the best sushi in San Diego. The Japanese baseball team that competed in the recent World Baseball Classic final at Petco dined at Sushi Ota frequently when they were in town.

Sushi Otta is a chain based out of Mexico City; Hillcrest is one of their branch operations. The sushi at Sushi Otta is not considered to be the best sushi in town, although some people really do like it, and as far as can be determined, the Japanese baseball team did not dine at Sushi Otta when they were in town for the WBC.

As for Old Town......there was a huge article in the business section of the U/T yesterday about fallout from the switch to Delaware North. Y-T-D business is down 60% over the same period last year. Business from locals is down even more. Last year y-t-d income was $21 million, this year it's just hitting $8 million. Anyone can do the math; it's not hard to see that both locals and tourists have voted with their feet and their dollars. You can now find parking in Old Town, something that was nearly impossible before.

No one is impressed with the makeover of the space. Delaware North committed $12 million in upgrades to Old Town and has spent only $3 million so far. They have had to make concessions because of the poor public reception to their conceptualizaion of what San Diego was like between 1820 and 1870. How a company based in New York would know about San Diego 150 years ago is still a mystery to me. The primary color scheme was khaki. They've had to add color because everyone hated the bland color scheme. They've had to pipe in Mexican Musiak because no one wanted to listen to their original sound track. The restaurants are very easy to get into, no waiting. Even the cadre of local resto reviewers haven't done much with the new eating places. The State Parks department doesn't care because they'll still get their guaranteed money this year and it was more than what they were getting from Diane Powers

Tourist are beginning to return, if only because Old Town is in every tourist brochure about San Diego ever printed. Locals are more unforgiving and are staying away in droves. The Gaslamp has been equated to San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf, but local San Diegans are more willing to frequent the Gaslamp than San Franciscans are the Wharf. I think the better analogy is that Old Town has become San Diego's Fisherman's Wharf attraction. It no longer has any resonnance or relavance with locals, old habits and old memories die hard.

[mmm-yoso]

Actually Sushi Itto is the Mexico City based sushi chain. ick........

[Octaveman]

Kalypso, thanks for enlightening me on the sushi ota/otta confusion. I wll have to try that place soon then. And yes, mmm-yoso, it's sushi itto that sucks big rat b****. Appreciate the correction.

It's really too bad about old town or rather bazaar del mundo. I enjoyed spending nary a nice warm summer night eating dinner there and leasurely perusing the shops. My mom also loved to go there when she was in town. She always tried to make sure she got to go. I'm really bummed about how it changed. Thanks for the info on what's happening with it. I hope the company loses their butt's on the deal and end up selling it to someone who cares about something other than making money.

[kalypso]

Kalypso, thanks for enlightening me on the sushi ota/otta confusion.  I wll  I hope the company loses their butt's on the deal and end up selling it to someone who cares about something other than making money.

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Hmmmm....................The State of California is broke, the City of San Diego is broke, and disgraced itself in the process of becoming broke............big contract company from foreign territory - oh, sorry, the East Coast - comes riding in on their trusty kahki colored, buckskin steed with money in their saddle bags? Having once worked for an extremely large, multinational contract food service provider I can only tell you they will extract their gold no matter how hard they have to squeeze that turnip to get blood out of it. The State and Delaware North will end up winning in this contract, the consumer will not

OTOH, the indie restaurants in Old Town but outside of the State Park have reported seeing an uptick in their traffic from locals who wouldn't come before because of parking and the tourists.

Diane Powers still owns Casa Guadalajara which is right there on Taylor St. on the outskirts of the state park. She also moved some of her retail shops from the Bazaar del Mundo to the complex next to CG. She says her biz is down at CG and the retail shops. She's attributed this to the fact that most locals don't realize that she owns Casa Guadalajara or that she moved some of the retail next to that restaurant. I suspect the article in the U/T yesterday will help her a little with both operations. If not, Casa de Pico can help cover her losses. It's doing booming, land office business over in Grossmont Center. The wait can be 90 minutes to 2 hours on a weekend. I've been in the new restaurant and I can safely say that she did a bang-up job on the remodel of that old Chevy's. Somehow, though, I couldn't bring myself to wait 90 minutes for a table (on a Sunday night, no less), so I left for Por Favor in downtown La Mesa where I had a good, though hardly stellar, meal much faster and for far less dinero.

[mizducky]

Diane Powers still owns Casa Guadalajara which is right there on Taylor St. on the outskirts of the state park.  She also moved some of her retail shops from the Bazaar del Mundo to the complex next to CG. She says her biz is down at CG and the retail shops.  She's attributed this to the fact that most locals don't realize that she owns Casa Guadalajara or that she moved some of the retail next to that restaurant. I suspect the article in the U/T yesterday will help her a little with both operations.  If not, Casa de Pico can help cover her losses.  It's doing booming, land office business over in Grossmont Center.  The wait can be 90 minutes to 2 hours on a weekend.  I've been in the new restaurant and I can safely say that she did a bang-up job on the remodel of that old Chevy's.  Somehow, though, I couldn't bring myself to wait 90 minutes for a table (on a Sunday night, no less), so I left for Por Favor in downtown La Mesa where I had a good, though hardly stellar, meal much faster and for far less dinero.

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Ah... I was wondering about Por Favor. So Gayla, would you say that "good but not stellar" is a description that would cover that restaurant in general?

[kalypso]

Ah... I was wondering about Por Favor. So Gayla, would you say that "good but not stellar" is a description that would cover that restaurant in general?

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I think that's a fair assessment. Por Favor isn't terrible, in fact they do some things pretty well, it's an average to good purveyor of Cal-Mex food. My nephew had the carne asada steak plate last time we were there and it was very good, better than anticipated. Atmosphere is decidedly downscale, a little sprucing up would help.

La Torta a couple doors down from Por Favor is good too. My choice for Mexican in San Diego is probably Chilangos in Hillcrest.

[Octaveman]

Agreed, I almost didn't recognize it the first time I went. The time you go definately makes a difference. I went there on a Friday around 5:30 and the wait was only 25 minutes. I've eatin at Por Favor once and also agree, it wasn't bad. It served it's purpose which was to stuff my belly.

There is or used to be a small place called Mario's De La Mesa on the corner of Grant and La Mesa Blvd that looks like a normal house with a sign out front. It's a little further east of the downtown shops past Allison. I remember it being pretty good the last time I ate there a couple of years ago. Anyone else been there?

[kalypso]

There is or used to be a small place called Mario's De La Mesa on the corner of Grant and La Mesa Blvd that looks like a normal house with a sign out front.  It's a little further east of the downtown shops past Allison.  I remember it being pretty good the last time I ate there a couple of years ago.  Anyone else been there?

←

Been there/eaten there

Marios is still there and it's not bad either, definitely better than Por Favor.

It is a converted residential house with the rooms serving as small little dining rooms. I kind of liked it this way except some of the rooms get hotter than others because of the way the rooms are configured which aren't exactly conducive to great air circulation. If the weather is really nice there is a great little patio out back that probably seats about 30 or so. Since the East County can get so hot during the summer, it's more pleasant to sit on the patio than inside. The only drawback being you get a great view of their parking lot. I think Mario's claim to fame is supposed to be some of the seafood dishes he serves.

Hours can be sporadic, it took a long time for me to finally eat there because every time I went by it was closed. Definitely closed on Mondays.

[Captain Hongo]

Thanks, Octaveman and Kalypso for the Old Town update, I appreciate your help. I guess I'll eat at the Rockin Baja Lobster. I'll miss Casa de Pico, it was fun. Delaware North had the concession at Kings Canyon National Park, up near Fresno, but lost it for not doing that good a job.

Da Captain

[Kouign Aman]

Rockin Baja Lobster is immediatly next door to Berta's Latin American place, which is a lot more interesting.

Casa Fandango, in the Old Town park, near the entrance to the old Bazaar del Mundo, is also decent mexican eats.

[pnapoli]

On the casual side I would love to try the Linkery in North Park that opened last year and obviously specializes in homemade sausages (choucroute anyone?).

do try it, FrogPrincesse! my good friend Jay owns The Linkery and i can vouch for the quality of the sausages. you can read more about the restaurant and the sausages in particular at their great website

Edited July 13, 2006 by pnapoli (log)

[lancastermike]

My wife is coming to San Diego for the ESRI convention the second week of August. I am coming along as her guest. I really have read the San Diego threads and there are some places that sound nice.

When I first heard we were coming I thought that we could find real Mexican food. It simply does not exist were we live. From reading your posts that does not seem to be the case in San Diego as much as I had hoped for.

Your posts are great. The thing for us travelers is being able to understand where places are located. We are staying at the Marriot right at the convention center.

Anyplace good that is within walking distance? If not, reachable by the trolley?

I guess what I was looking for is tips more by area and how to get to them. I love the cheap eats thread and lots of those places sound great.

Thanks to all

[Honkman]

My wife is coming to San Diego for the ESRI convention the second week of August.  I am coming along as her guest.   I really have read the San Diego threads and there are some places that sound nice.

When I first heard we were coming I thought that we could find real Mexican food. It simply does not exist were we live. From reading your posts that does not seem to be the case in San Diego as much as I had hoped for.

Your posts are great.  The thing for us travelers is being able to understand where places are located.  We are staying at the Marriot right at the convention center.

Anyplace good that is within walking distance?  If not, reachable by the trolley?

I guess what I was looking for is tips more by area and how to get to them.  I love the cheap eats thread and lots of those places sound great. 

Thanks to all

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Two good places for real Mexican food in SD are Chilango and Mama Testa both in Hillcrest, so it would be necessary to take a cab but both are definitely worth the small trip. Chilango is mainly central mexico based food and Mama Testa is a restaurant specialiced on Tacos from all over Mexico. The exmaples of tacos from every region in Mexico.

http://www.chilangosgrill.com/

http://www.mamatestataqueria.com/

Edited July 14, 2006 by Honkman (log)