Dining in San Diego

[Octaveman]

I'm going to be in San Diego in August. I'll be staying at a place in Hotel Circle (the Super 8 gave me a cheap rate; I hope it won't be horrible, but as long as the room doesn't smell and has nothing infesting it and I'm able to sleep on the bed, that'll be OK), in order to go to a convention at the Town & Country Convention Center, and I won't have any wheels (not so atypically of a New Yorker, I've never gotten a driver's license). Any advice or recommendations? If there's some public transportation, I'd be more than happy to avail myself of such for some good meals. I'd prefer to keep most of my meals under $30-35; good taquerias most welcome.

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A couple of things.

1. There is a steak place called Albie's Beef Inn on the same side of the freeway you are on and not too far from your hotel. Ask someone which way to go but if you're on H.C. South, you will go left as you face out from your hotel looking at the freeway. They have pretty good food there. There is also Kelly's Steaks at the T&C but I've never eatin there so I can't comment.

2. Go to Fashion Valley mall which is behind or north of the Town & Country. Just walk down Fashion Valley Rd. until you hit it.

2a. While there, you can go to the food court, eat at Rubio's and have yourself a Rubio's Special: two fish taco's, chips and beans. Rubio's has the best fish taco's I've ever eatin.

2b. Also while at the mall take the Blue Line Trolley(a map) to Old Town for some sightseeing and some Mexican grub. There are several places to eat. My two favorites are Coyote Grill on San Diego Ave. and the restaurant in the middle of Bazarr Del Mundo. I think I prefer the outdoor restaurant in Del Mundo but very good eats at both places. Old town is not far from your hotel...down Hotel Circle to the left to Taylor street...not all that far away (3 miles?). The hotel may even have a shuttle service to the mall and also to Old Town. Time wise, it may be better just to go straight to Old Town from your hotel versus taking the trolley. The blue line also goes to down to the Tijuana border if you have the time.

2c. Also at the mall but not in the food court is P.F. Changs. Very good upscale Chinese food not over your budget. There's also a Cheesecake Factory but the few times I've eatin there it wasn't all that good. Both places are at the opposite end of the mall from the trolley station near Robinson's May on the outskirts of the mall.

3. Not too far from the mall is Forever Fondue on Friars. A short taxi ride from the hotel or even from the Fashion Valley mall but may be a little too far to walk there and back. Only a mile or two from the mall.

4. There's Gordon Biersch Brewery accross from Mission Valley Mall (not Fashion Valley mall). May be too far to walk though. Hotel shuttle to MV mall then walk over? Another short taxi ride? Haven't yet to eat there but heard was good.

5. A great fish house called Kings Fish House is in Mission Valley not too far from the other places or your hotel. Yummy food.

6. Right next door to Albie's is Adam's Steak and Eggs...very good breakfast.

7. For Japanese buffet, I recommend ONami over Todai.

I suggest getting a map of the Mission Valley area with street names then check out THIS website for a whole list of restuarants in the MV area. This link is the most comprehensive list of area restaurants I've seen.

Cheers,

Bob

[Pan]

Thanks, that's information I can use.

I find the SignOnSanDiego website a little alarming, though, because a TGI Friday's is 8th in order of Citysearch editors' picks (Mission Valley, All Cuisines).

[Toliver]

Thanks, that's information I can use.

I find the SignOnSanDiego website a little alarming, though, because a TGI Friday's is 8th in order of Citysearch editors' picks (Mission Valley, All Cuisines).

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Mimi's Cafe is listed 6th and it's a horrible restaurant (PF Chang's is rated 89th by them ). So don't judge by their picks.

I just Googled your hotel and it looks like you're pretty close to the Town & Country convention center.

The Trolley is a great idea for getting around. As Octaveman pointed out, the nearest trolley stop is about 1/4 mile north of the convention center in the Fashion Valley mall. You can take the trolley east to Mission Valley to get to Gordon Biersch. It might be about the third stop after you board the trolley. Here is a map showing where the Gordon Beirsch is in Mission Valley. I believe trolley stop is at just about the "T" in "Mission Center Rd" on the map which is just down the street from the brewery.

Both the Cheesecake Factory and PF Chang's are on the northeast side of the Fasion Valley Mall. PF Chang is, in fact, not even part of the mall but is northeast across the end parking lot.

Adam's & Albie's are on the same side of Hotel Circle as your hotel, just a ways west. Adam's has corn fritters (they're like pancakes) that are quite tasty though the last time I was there on a weekend it had an hour wait to be seated.

[Octaveman]

I just Googled your hotel and it looks like you're pretty close to the Town & Country convention center.

The Trolley is a great idea for getting around.  As Octaveman pointed out, the nearest trolley stop is about 1/4 mile north of the convention center in the Fashion Valley mall.  You can take the trolley east to Mission Valley to get to Gordon Biersch.  It might be about the third stop after you board the trolley.  Here is a map showing where the Gordon Beirsch is in Mission Valley.  I believe trolley stop is at just about the "T" in "Mission Center Rd" on the map which is just down the street from the brewery.

Both the Cheesecake Factory and PF Chang's are on the northeast side of the Fasion Valley Mall.  PF Chang is, in fact, not even part of the mall but is northeast across the end parking lot.

Agreed, don't rely on those editor picks. I gave that listing as a comprehensive list of restaurants in your area not to be confused with order of quality. You can use that list to find places based on addresses and reference distance to your hotel, etc.

Changs is about 50 yards NE of the East end of the mall or Robinson's May department store. It's in Fashion Valley's parking lot but not the actual mall itself. Also weird how the map for Changs puts it in the wrong place. The star should be in the upper right corner of that map.

The Trolley stop is at the West end in front of JC Penny. If you look at the map Tolliver gave you to Gordon Beirsch I think your hotel is close to the corner of Hotel Circle South and Bachman (might have to move the map toward the west and zoom in). This may be hard to see but from your hotel, you will walk to the right underneath 8 to Hotel Circle North. As soon as you go under the freeway HCN goes to the left (to get to Fashion Valley and trolley stop) and Camino De La Riena goes to the right. This street takes you behind Mission Valley Center and toward the restaurants, Kings Fish House and Gordon Beirsch.

Also noticed that Forever Fondue is not that far West of Fashion Valley on Friars on the right side if your interested in Fondue.

Bob

[Pan]

Thanks. I'm sure the directions will become clear to me when I'm there.

"Upscale Chinese" is a little bit of a red flag for me, because in New York that tends to imply "coat check and white tablecloths plus overpriced, mediocre food pandering to white people" (e.g., Shun Lee Palace, Shun Lee West, and apologies to those who feel differently about those places). Is that inapplicable to Chang's? How big a Chinese community is there in San Diego? Is there a Chinatown? A Japantown? A Korean neighborhood? Vietnamese pho places?

[Octaveman]

Thanks. I'm sure the directions will become clear to me when I'm there.

"Upscale Chinese" is a little bit of a red flag for me, because in New York that tends to imply "coat check and white tablecloths plus overpriced, mediocre food pandering to white people" (e.g., Shun Lee Palace, Shun Lee West, and apologies to those who feel differently about those places). Is that inapplicable to Chang's? How big a Chinese community is there in San Diego? Is there a Chinatown? A Japantown? A Korean neighborhood? Vietnamese pho places?

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P. F. Changs is not what you're invisioning or maybe it is I don't know. No coat checks or white table cloths. By upscale, I mean it's higher class and quality than the average Chinese restaurant. I've been eating at Changs for a very long time. I love their food but then again I'm white so what do I know. I'm sure they do cater to the masses but the food is good. They don't take reservations and on weekends you can expect 1-2 hour waits. Go to their website and look at their menu. P.F. Changs

The Kearny Mesa area on Convoy between Clairemont Mesa drive down past Balboa is well known as having the most concentration of asian places for shopping and eating. I used to work in that area and frequented a few places for lunch quite often. Don't know what's all there now but it's still heavily asian. Jasmine or Emerald are places that are probably more on the authentic side compared to Changs and they're in this area. It's been a long time though.

Go to that Signonsandeigo web site with all the restaurants and do a search by neighborhood. Select Kearny Mesa and most of that stuff will come up. This area is maybe 4-5 miles north of your hotel up hwy 163.

Bob

Edited June 22, 2005 by Octaveman (log)

[Pan]

I'm hearing that downtown is one of the areas to go for some good food. Any recommendations for places downtown that will be accessible by trolley?

Octaveman, I apologize for any misunderstanding. I'm white, too; it's just that I like Chinese-style Chinese food (yeah, I know, loaded term).

Edited June 22, 2005 by Pan (log)

[Octaveman]

I'm hearing that downtown is one of the areas to go for some good food. Any recommendations for places downtown that will be accessible by trolley?

Octaveman, I apologize for any misunderstanding. I'm white, too; it's just that I like Chinese-style Chinese food (yeah, I know, loaded term).

←

No apology needed. Yeah, downtown is loaded with good places and the trolley stops not too far from it. The area is called the Gaslamp Quarter and is on 4th and 5th avenues between Broadway and K street. Fifth avenue is the main street of this area. You want to stay above 500 on the street address if possible since there's a lot of construction going on below that and the majority of the better stuff is above that. There is a place or two below that fall below the 500 mark but it's well worth the walk. But you'll end up coming back up to the 600-800 area on 5th.

Places I've been to and liked were:

Monsoon (Indian)

Georges on 5th (steak)

Greystone (steak)

Rama (Thai...ask to sit in the back by the waterfall)

Dakota (American with Southwestern infulence)

Rei de Gado Brazilian Steakhouse (all you can eat, they bring the meat to you on skewers and you make your choice)

Places I heard were good but have yet to go:

Taka Sushi (sushi, duh)

Star of India (Indian)

La Strada Trattoria (Italian)

Aqua Blue (fusion seafood)

Croce's (fish, meat, pasta. They have a main restuarant, a small jazz bar and an R&B club that sometimes gets top names)

Don't go to:

Aqua Al 2

Sushi Itto

The House of Blues just opened up and it looks big from the outside. There are plenty of places to check out for nightlife including bands from cover bands to blues to piano bars and jazz combo's. More exciting nightlife than Mission Valley. The official website Gaslamp.org

Bob

[Toliver]

Be aware that the trolley stops to the south of the Gaslamp District. I mention this because though the Gaslamp District is only along a couple of downtown streets (4th through 6th?), they are quite large city blocks. It can be a long walk from the trolley stop up to Dakota's, for example.

[Octaveman]

Be aware that the trolley stops to the south of the Gaslamp District.  I mention this because though the Gaslamp District is only along a couple of downtown streets (4th through 6th?), they are quite large city blocks.  It can be a long walk from the trolley stop up to Dakota's, for example.

←

That is true for the Orange Line stopping at stop 33 at the south end of the Gaslamp but from Mission Valley you'll already be on the Blue Line. DO NOT get on the Orange line to get to the Gaslamp. Stay on the Blue Line which runs along C street, get off on stop 28 (5th Ave) and walk south for one block to Broadway which is the north end of the Gaslamp Quarter. The majority of places start at E street which is one more block south of Broadway.

The main drag is 5th Avenue. 4th Avenue is plenty loaded with restaurants too. 6th Avenue is sparse. 4th Avenue is the east end of Horton Plaza, a really nice 4 level outdoor mall.

Bob

P.S. Depending on your schedule you may want to get the Day Tripper pass which is unlimited rides for any number of days.

Note: edited to fix problems caused by my brain moving faster than my fingers.

Edited June 23, 2005 by Octaveman (log)

[Carlsbad]

The trolley is an excellent choice if you want to get away from Mission Valley. I'm told that there is a foot bridge from the Town and Country over the river and right into the Fashion Valley trolley stop area. You can take the trolley to Old Town, Little Italy, or downtown, and as noted above, you can get off at 5th and C and walk south on Fifth, or change lines and get off across from the San Diego Convention Center, near the new ball park, and walk up Fifth, depending on where you are going.

Little Italy is pretty little, but it's pleasant and there are several Italian restaurants that serve decent Italian food. There is also Indigo Grill, which serves a sort of native Pacific coast cuisine. The various restaurants in Little Italy and downtown are described in signonsandiego.com and The San Diego Reader.

In the downtown/Gaslamp area, you might take a look at Cafe Cerise, Athens Market, Sevilla, La Gran Tapa, and Rama, all of which would be comfortably in your price range.

In the area to the east of the Gaslamp, San Diego has its own East Village area. There are several places there you might find interesting. Cafe Chloe is getting some very good reviews you'll find if you google it. Jsix is also getting good reviews. If you are into jazz, I highly recommend Dizzy's. They only serve light snacks and non-alcoholic drinks, but it's a good music scene.

If you can hitch a ride or take a cab (only about 2-3 miles up the 163 to University exit) to Hillcrest, there are several others detailed in the above websites. Among those, I would also highly recommend the above-mentioned Region, which has a slow food, Chez Panisse feel to it.

If you can hitch a ride to the Convoy area, which is San Diego's Chinatown, Koreatown, and Little Saigon all rolled into one, I would whole-heartedly concur with Emerald and Jasmine for good, quite authentic Hong Kong/Cantonese cuisine. I would also recommend Phoung Trang for authentic Vietnamese food. They have pho, and some Chinese dishes, but I would skip them in favor of the other Vietnamese dishes. There are also several Korean barbecue places along Convoy. Keep in mind though that the businesses are spread out and you need a car to navigate.

[Pan]

All that information and all those links are much appreciated!

I'm particularly intrigued by Indigo Grill, as it serves a kind of food I don't think I can get in New York. It's a little pricey by my standards, though it looks possible to get dinner there for $35-40 total (but also $50 or more). But more importantly, how good is it? Does a dish like "Pumpkin & Sesame Seed Crusted Brie on a fresh corn tortilla with mole negro, honey roasted garlic & grana-scallion flatbread with serrano jelly" work? If it does, I will keep the place in the front of my mind for my trip.

[FabulousFoodBabe]

And what a time it was! The clouds were gone by about 9:00 every day, and the weather was positively gorgeous.

Due to various aircraft malfunctions which were, thank God, found before the plane took off, we were about four hours behind schedule, which put us into San Diego in the late afternoon. A walk on the beach, a drink on the deck, and dinner outside at the Del -- Sheerwater's, I think it is -- was our evening. We'd been up since 4:00 a.m. (oy). The food was not bad for hotel food -- my husband's lobster ravioli was nice, as was the fish and steak my sons had. I just got some flatbread with tapenade and goat cheese, and a nice glass of wine. Afterward, we walked down to Moo Time Creamery in Coronado for dessert.

The next morning, and every morning I was there, I walked on the beach from Coronado shores up to the military base and back again, and then stopped by Bistro 1134 for a coffee. We had a couple of breakfasts there as well -- good eggs, waffles, granola, and nice people. My kind of place.

Another breakfast we just had to have was at Tent City, because of their sign declaring the best "Egg Benedicts [sic]"in town. They were pretty good; I had mine with some smoked salmon, so they weren't exactly EB, but the hollandaise was lemony and smooth and the eggs were so perfectly poached and pretty to look at that I had to admire them for a few moments.

Dinner on our first night was at George's Ocean Terrace in La Jolla Cove. We had halibut with fingerling potatoes, served veracruz style (onions and bell peppers); and sea bass with fresh herbs, with fresh corn, peas and teardrop tomatoes. Fish tacos were amazing -- grilled, with lime-accented crema and some cabbage; mango salsa on the side. We had to try the smoked chicken, black bean and broccoli soup ... it seemed like an odd thing to have regularly on the menu, and it was really really goooood. It worked. The carnivorious firstborn had flatiron steak in an asian-style marinade, with a pile of onion rings. And for dessert -- the macadamia and coconut cake with roasted banana ice cream is my new favorite dessert of all time. We tried the chocolate dessert, too -- frozen mousse and fresh marshmallows over a dark chocolate ganache. But my favorite was my cake.

Since my husband worked most of the day and my oldest wanted to lay on the beach and pretend he was traveling alone , my younger son and I spent one day driving up to Chino Farm (and the surrounding area), and then spent the afternoon at the Del Mar fair! We had a wonderful meal of funnel cakes, Indian fry bread, barbecue sandwiches, fresh lemonade, roasted artichoke ... As an Ohio girl, I can remember our State fairs and the long line to see the sculptures of Jack Niklaus and various cows and livestock, done all in butter. Nothing like that here! But we did enjoy the goat display; especially the one that was bleating and sounded just like a person imitating a goat.

I let my husband pick the Mexican restaurant one night and we were reminded again of a standing rule in our marriage: I don't pick the golf courses, and he doesn't pick the restaurants! Miguel's wasn't all bad. The salsa had lots of sauce in it, the fish tacos were nasty ... but the margaritas were cold and plentiful, the enchiladas suizas were nicely done, and the service was good. And it was a nice surrounding. I'd still recommend trying to find something outside the tourist zone, though. (And my family was very, very happy there. So it was okay.)

I did force everyone to go to the In and Out Burger on Balboa avenue. Husband ordered a Neapolitan shake and felt like very much the insider The boys raved about the fries and declared it their favorite fast food joint, next to Sonic. (Thank God we have to travel 5 hours by car to get to the nearest Sonic ... and 5 by plane to get to the In and Out!). They didn't have any of the bumper stickers at this place, though -- I can remember when people would put them on their cars and block out letters so that it read, "IN AND OUT _URGE_" Juvenile, yes.

I just realized how much I've written, and I've only done about half the trip! We had just three full days there, and I feel like we could have spent a lot more. UCSD and Birch were very big fun, for my Oceanography-nut sons; the whole La Jolla and Del Mar areas were so beautiful. Seeing Chino farm was kind of cool. And my eye-rolling, bored, MomthatisSOlame teenagers, insisted that we go to the Zoo -- and they loved it.

I already ate all the See's that I bought.

BTW, we had a 2-hour delay coming home. Add that to the 4 hours going to California, and that makes six hours sitting on a JetBlue plane, going nowhere. And this is what's weird: No one complained. No one! It must be the television or something, I guess. I've been on Delta flights that sat for 30 minutes on the runway, and people have gone berserk.

Fabby

[Toliver]

Thanks for posting a follow-up on your time down there!

I was also in San Diego the week before July 4th and can attest that the weather was absolutely superb. I hated having to leave town.

I also ate my way through the Del Mar Fair and will post pix in one of the appropriate "Fair Food" threads elsewhere.

Thanks again.

[Pan]

Just a quick remark, since I have only a moment right now:

Some warnings I got about San Diego were greatly exaggerated. I ate well and was able to get from Hotel Circle to locations in Old Town and Downtown San Diego easily via trolley, bus, and foot. I also had the chance to meet up with mizducky, who took me to a very good Afghan restaurant called Khyber Pass that is superior to Ariana Afghan Kebab House in New York.

I'll post separately about some of my meals, but I really want to thank you all for your recommendations, and especially mention of Indigo Grill, which was really worth going to. [Edit: Here's the Indigo Grill thread.]

Edited August 16, 2005 by Pan (log)

[JennyUptown]

What a great topic - and timely too given that I'm heading to San Diego (staying in La Jolla) for Labor Day Weekend. My friends and I are taking in a little Surf Divas action. Look out!!

Edited August 22, 2005 by JennyUptown (log)

[Susan in FL]

We will be bringing in 2006 in San Diego, staying in or near the Gaslamp Quarter, and we're wondering where we will go for dinner and whether we should be making a reservation now. I have searched online, but haven't been able to find events for this year. Is it correct that the Gaslamp Quarter is the downtown area, and do you know of any events in hotels or restaurants or whatever with good food and drink? Would you recommend any "packages" with dinner and entertainment/celebration for the evening? We already have our accomodations, so that needn't be included.

We've gone to these New Year's things on the east coast in the past, and the food wasn't the greatest, so maybe we should instead plan to have dinner at a good restaurant separately, and then go elsewhere for more celebration.

Any ideas for Sunday brunch on New Year's Day would be appreciated, too.

Suggestions, please!

[mizducky]

Hi Susan--

Yeah, the Gaslamp is downtown (or, perhaps a little more accurately, it's a several-block strip that runs through/alongside downtown). I'm afraid I'm no use for suggesting New Year's Eve dining venues for you, however, because I'm usually either working behind the scenes for Fearless Housemate's band on that night, or staying home and avoiding the "Amateur Night" drunks on the freeway.

My impression from working some of these New Year's Eve parties in the past is that, for those that offer dinner, yeah, the dinners aren't all that inspiring. So you probably would be happier going to a restaurant than getting a package deal. Others might well have experiences differing from mine, though...

(And alas, FH's usual holds for New Year's Eve have fallen through this year, so I don't even have a gig of his to recommend--unless he decides to do something crazy and throw his own NYE event...)

[Carolyn Tillie]

A bit on the old-world style, my favorite restaurant in the Gaslamp was always Ida Baileys (named after a notorious Victorian madam). For the midnight revelries, I would totally play it by ear and bar-hop the Gaslamp. It is a wild night in a wild area with a great many fabulous bands playing.

I imagine that some packages will be available through places like the Horton Grand. You'll have a fabulous time, regardless!

[Susan in FL]

Ellen, please let me know when you find out where your housemate's band will be on New Year's Eve, just in case it's in the area accessible to us by foot. Neither do we want to be in a motor vehicle that night -- even a cab.

A wild night in a wild area sounds good to me!

I will welcome any ideas for a restaurant to go to, in the event that we opt to dine in a restaurant, and then do the town after that.

[Carlsbad]

Can you describe what kind of New Years Eve and Sunday brunch experiences you want? Elegant? Wild? Fancy? Not Fancy? Expensive? Not Expensive?

[Susan in FL]

Yes.

Seriously, most important is that it's good food -- We're not looking for a certain cuisine in particular (although I would be interested in knowing if there is a really good Thai or Vietnamese restaurant, for at least one meal during our stay). Elegant or casual is fine, although not black tie; fancy or not fancy; expense doesn't matter, although I really don't want to pay three or four hundred for a dinner for the two of us.

If the food and drink are excellent and the service is good, we will be happy with anything from a brew pub to upscale dining with perhaps a prix fixe.

On second thought, not anything requiring too dressy attire. My husband wouldn't be too happy with that. ...And not something too wild. We're in our 50's, and don't want to be in the middle of a bunch of noisy rocking twenty-somethings.

[Octaveman]

There is an "event" at the Embarcadero that rings in the New Year each new year. It's very close to downtown and a very nice outdoor mall called Seaport Village. I'm not sure where to guide you for the NYE bash but if you do a search for Embarcadero New Year's Eve it should give you something of value. I've never been but I think it's a family atmoshpere with bands playing on stage and it outdoor's.

Actually here are a few links you can check out:Here, Here, and Here.

For Thai in the Gaslamp I would highly recommend Rama. My wife and I ate there and the atmosphere is very cool. Be sure to make reservations and ask to sit in the back near the waterfall. Very cool place to eat. Oh and the food is very good too.

For steak, I would recommend either George's on 5th (located in what used to be a bar and brothel run by Wyatt Earp) or Greystone.

For Italian I would recommend Trattoria la Strada

For Indian I would recommend Monsoon

Bob

[Susan in FL]

Good information, Bob. That's a great start for helping us choose.

I wasn't expecting this to be an early date for planning New Year's; I am surprised that so many sites have not switched from 2004 yet. I'll keep my eyes open for that change.

I like the sounds of the restaurants you linked, especially Rama. Thanks!

[mizducky]

Actually here are a few links you can check out:Here, Here, and Here.

←

Re: that first link--First Night Escondido is the New Year's Eve event which Fearless Housemate's band (Rockola) headlined two out of the past three years. It was a terrific event, but alas, rising expenses and liability concerns have led to them cancelling it for this coming New Year's Eve (which is why FH suddenly finds himself at loose ends for a gig this NYE). The other events mentioned above, however, are still totally "go" as far as I've heard.