Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Southern comfort in East Village

Everything the doctor wouldn’t want you to order

Grilled meatloaf sandwich with rustic mac 'n' cheese
Grilled meatloaf sandwich with rustic mac 'n' cheese
Place

ACME Southern Kitchen

901 E Street, San Diego

For the same reason we keep returning to New Orleans, David insisted we try out ACME Southern Kitchen when he realized (upon researching the menu after driving past the joint on his way home) that they served homestyle southern comfort food of the fried, buttery, and cheesy variety.

Interior of Acme Southern Kitchen

Since David and I are big fans of blunch (taking our first meal of the day at lunchtime, not to be confused with brunch, which is usually earlier) we held off that evening and went the very next day check out ACME’s take on the midday meal.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Parking wasn’t too difficult, as the East Village has yet to get as crazy crowded as Downtown. The décor is more contemporary-urban than cozy-southern. The cold industrial quality that usually comes with high ceilings, dark wood, exposed brick and iron fixtures is successfully warmed with low-hanging lamps and country accents, such as the little red hen wallpaper.

Tasty sweet and spicy beans

I was pleased to find the food as comforting and nostalgic as cartoons on Saturday morning (of which, incidentally, the word acme reminds me). I ordered the grilled meatloaf sandwich on a house-baked white roll with American cheese. Because of my perennial hate-hate relationship with mayonnaise, I asked to have the Comeback Sauce on the side, just in case. And speaking of sides, each sandwich comes with one, so I went cheeseballs to the wall and ordered the exceptionally cheesy macaroni and cheese. When it comes to mac-n-cheese, I stand firmly in the creamy camp so, while I am sure that ACME’s more granular and lumpy version has its supporters, it was not my ideal. The meatloaf patty was satisfying in the way a good burger satisfies, and the bun that swaddled it was fresh, with a hint of sweet to complement the savory meat and cheese within. (About that bun, all of the restaurant's baked goods, such as rolls, cornbread, biscuits, etc., are made a street over at chef/owner Terryl Gavre's new Bake Sale Bakery).

We got the sweet and spicy baked beans to share. They are exactly as advertised, sweet and spicy, with just enough salt to help all of the flavors shine.

Fried chicken and waffle

David ordered the house specialty: fried chicken and waffle with jalapeño honey. The chicken was superb, hot and juicy inside, and the cornmeal in the crust gave it an extra crunch on the outside. The meat was served boneless, and while surely anathema to some die-hard fried chicken traditionalists, David appreciated the kitchen’s decision. The waffle, however, was a little sad. The superior fried chicken was begging for a more robust Belgian style waffle rather than the thin, soggy, pancake-ish affair that lay beneath it.

Overall, if you’re looking for a taste of everything the doctor wouldn’t want you to order — fried, bready, cheesy, and lip-smacking — pull up a seat at ACME, sit back, and indulge.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Pie pleasure at Queenstown Public House

A taste of New Zealand brings back happy memories
Grilled meatloaf sandwich with rustic mac 'n' cheese
Grilled meatloaf sandwich with rustic mac 'n' cheese
Place

ACME Southern Kitchen

901 E Street, San Diego

For the same reason we keep returning to New Orleans, David insisted we try out ACME Southern Kitchen when he realized (upon researching the menu after driving past the joint on his way home) that they served homestyle southern comfort food of the fried, buttery, and cheesy variety.

Interior of Acme Southern Kitchen

Since David and I are big fans of blunch (taking our first meal of the day at lunchtime, not to be confused with brunch, which is usually earlier) we held off that evening and went the very next day check out ACME’s take on the midday meal.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Parking wasn’t too difficult, as the East Village has yet to get as crazy crowded as Downtown. The décor is more contemporary-urban than cozy-southern. The cold industrial quality that usually comes with high ceilings, dark wood, exposed brick and iron fixtures is successfully warmed with low-hanging lamps and country accents, such as the little red hen wallpaper.

Tasty sweet and spicy beans

I was pleased to find the food as comforting and nostalgic as cartoons on Saturday morning (of which, incidentally, the word acme reminds me). I ordered the grilled meatloaf sandwich on a house-baked white roll with American cheese. Because of my perennial hate-hate relationship with mayonnaise, I asked to have the Comeback Sauce on the side, just in case. And speaking of sides, each sandwich comes with one, so I went cheeseballs to the wall and ordered the exceptionally cheesy macaroni and cheese. When it comes to mac-n-cheese, I stand firmly in the creamy camp so, while I am sure that ACME’s more granular and lumpy version has its supporters, it was not my ideal. The meatloaf patty was satisfying in the way a good burger satisfies, and the bun that swaddled it was fresh, with a hint of sweet to complement the savory meat and cheese within. (About that bun, all of the restaurant's baked goods, such as rolls, cornbread, biscuits, etc., are made a street over at chef/owner Terryl Gavre's new Bake Sale Bakery).

We got the sweet and spicy baked beans to share. They are exactly as advertised, sweet and spicy, with just enough salt to help all of the flavors shine.

Fried chicken and waffle

David ordered the house specialty: fried chicken and waffle with jalapeño honey. The chicken was superb, hot and juicy inside, and the cornmeal in the crust gave it an extra crunch on the outside. The meat was served boneless, and while surely anathema to some die-hard fried chicken traditionalists, David appreciated the kitchen’s decision. The waffle, however, was a little sad. The superior fried chicken was begging for a more robust Belgian style waffle rather than the thin, soggy, pancake-ish affair that lay beneath it.

Overall, if you’re looking for a taste of everything the doctor wouldn’t want you to order — fried, bready, cheesy, and lip-smacking — pull up a seat at ACME, sit back, and indulge.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Birding & Brews: Breakfast Edition, ZZ Ward, Doggie Street Festival & Pet Adopt-A-Thon

Events November 21-November 23, 2024
Next Article

San Diego Dim Sum Tour, Warwick’s Holiday Open House

Events November 24-November 27, 2024
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader