Video:FEAST!: Syrian treat maker Hakmi Sweets makes Dubai chocolate barsSmooth chocolate on the outside, crunchy, gooey, and green on the inside. People who are very online will have heard of  Dubai chocolate, which has become …

Video:FEAST!: Starvin Marvins, a sandwich party pad in Pacific BeachI notice changes in Pacific Beach as I drive north along Mission Boulevard for the first time in a couple years or so. Newer buildings, refurbished …

Video:FEAST!: Egglet griddles up sweet Korean street toastBreakfast sandwiches have a surprisingly global history, beginning with the lardy egg sandwich 19th Century factory workers in London called a bap sandwiches, and extending to New York …

Video:FEAST!: At 4pm, this Farmer's Table restaurant in Chula Vista becomes Acqua e FarinaThere's a red tractor parked in the grass outside Farmer's Table in Chula Vista. It fits the rustic imagery cultivated by the …

Video:FEAST!: Tijuanazo makes Hillcrest part of the "Taco Megaregion"A new taco compendium regards Tijuana and San Diego less as neighboring taco towns, than as part of a sprawling taco landscape. Taco Megaregion: The Essential Guide …

Video:FEAST!: Mama G brings saucy Peruvian flavors—and geography—to Mission ValleyThere's a Peruvian flag planted in the middle of my pasta, which has been tossed with large pieces of red onion, tomato, and sirloin. And just …

Just about ten thousand miles separate the island of Jamaica from the more than 7,600 islands of the Philippines. I wouldn't know this tidbit, except I'm sitting in a particular eatery in Vista that happens …

Thanks for noticingLost Abbey finds a new wayAnderson’s apogeesAntique modernHeavenly hall undergroundMounting MadraParent-friendly playgroundThe van man canPeaceful, eaze-y feeling

This year makes it 10 that I’ve been visiting San Diego restaurants and writing about it for the Reader’s Feast column, so I’m taking a look back at a few the best things I’ve eaten …

Video:FEAST!: Hongyuan Kebab takes Korean BBQ for a spinSometimes it feels like half the food I've ever eaten, I tried for the first time in the Convoy District. That was certainly the case when I …

Video:FEAST!: Tender Hooligan sells food as an excuse to be around recordsThat's what I get for putting style over substance. I wanted to check out Tender Hooligan, the listening bar that recently opened on Chula …

Video:FEAST!: I like Glutenus Maximus Bakehouse and I cannot lieAm I above driving an hour just because a new bakery in Vista has a funny name? I am not.PlaceGlutenus Maximus Bakehouse3265 Business Park Dr # …

The decor around me says "fast casual." The unselfconscious pile of meat, cheese, and fries in front of me says "San Diego taco shop." The writing on the wall as I walk in the door …

Video:FEAST!: Art Burgers wants to make burgers even juicierHow good would a burger have to taste in order for it to be considered a work of art? Better than a double double? As good as …

Video:FEAST!:Following pistachios to Lucca Italian Sandwich ShopIf you look over at just the right moment, you might spot the little counter shop as you pass by its B Street location. But you could be standing …

Video:FEAST!: The irregularly delicious Parlor DoughnutsMost donut shops are independent operators, even individual operators. For example: with no employees on the payroll, the owner of my favorite neighborhood donuterry closes shop when he goes on …

Video:FEAST!: North Park shows up in Crown Point with pizza and beer (and soda)"Friends & neighbors," read the lighted marquee letters that stretch across the ceiling above the pizza counter. The same words have been …

One of my favorite pandemic memories involves watching a basket packed with sourdough and croissants lowered to me by rope out the window of a third story East Village loft. Admittedly, I was chasing a …

Video:FEAST!: The Mental Bar brightens the neighborhood with lattesI'm an every day coffee drinker, but a different sort of caffeine craving led me to Encanto this week. Specifically, to the stretch of blocks along Imperial …

Video:FEAST!: Surfside Fish House brings casual seafood inlandVisions of a celebratory seafood feast drew us to Surfside Fish House, a sharp-looking casual eatery technically nine miles from the surf, yet evidently intent on bringing all …

I had to be careful not to call it a food truck, when I first checked out gourmet slider specialist Rosemarie's. Its chef cooked out of a trailer small enough, I'd have believed it if …

On the table in front of me, a take-out box nearly overflows with steamed rice, macaroni salad, and a shining pile of teriyaki. I can make out the short rib, beef, and chicken in there, …

Video:FEAST!: Jomaru Korean Hot Pot offers three meals in oneOur server takes one look at me and decides I will need a bib. What she hands me is more like a plastic smock, or apron: …

It was only a few months into the pandemic that one of my editors emailed me to suggest our readership must surely be getting tired of covid-era food stories already, and we could move on …

Video:FEAST!: Vincenzo's cheesy pastas, and now breakfast pizzaShould I start or finish with the macchiato?I've taken a seat at the bar at Vicenzo Cucina and Lounge, a newcomer to the heart of Little Italy, set …

Video:FEAST!: Long lines and order limits can't take the shine off Asa BakeryI'd heard Asa Bakery & Cafe could attract long lines, and sell out of certain popular items, so I've made a plan to …

Video:FEAST!: La Mesa Pizzaworks wins with phony pepperoni"Why is our pepperoni so bright red?" asks one of the boys, eyeing his pizza."What kind did you get?" asks the other, eyeing ours.PlaceLa Mesa Pizzaworks7406 University Avenue, …

Video:FEAST! The Whaling Bar dusts off its literary pretextsOf course he would be drinking here. In a room barely buttoned enough to contain its bar. Behind windows that dull the scolding, morning-after daylight down to …

The more Kearny Mesa's Convoy District has leaned into its pan-Asian businessplace identity, the more fascinated I've become with those not-pan-Asian restaurants trying to succeed there. Thanks to the excellence of mariscos shop El Viejon …

Like a wave that's traveled thousands of miles before breaking on San Diego shores, Makai Sushi and its chef/owner Matt Oliver formed over a great time and distance prior to landing in Hillcrest.PlaceMakai Sushi3968 Fifth …

Video:FEAST!: Take me down to the Burrito CityYou can find roughly a million “taco” shops in San Diego. And, I don’t mean restaurants that serve tacos (that number’s closer to ten million) — I’m talking …

Video:FEAST!: Rise Southern Biscuits & Righteous Chicken, y'allMost weeks, I’m all too happy to ignore it when an out of state franchise lands in San Diego, no matter how buzzy or inexplicably successful it might …

Video:FEAST! At Flour Atelier, cupcakes are in full bloom“Look at those pretty flowers!” I hear, followed by, “Oh! There are pretty cupcakes too!” I’ll hear some version of this conversation several times in the fifteen …

Video:FEAST!: Angry Pete’s goes from Pop-Up to Drive-ThruStoners be warned. When muscle memory steers your Cheesy Gordita Crunch craving into the drive-thru off Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, you’ll be in for an Angry awakening. The Taco …

Video:FEAST!: Barn House BBQ arrives as the last smoked meat standing in Lemon GroveI had not yet heard that Lemon Grove was about to lose its best barbecue restaurant, when I walked into its newest. …

Video:FEAST!: Smash and Stack food truck lands its burgers in BonitaI spotted a pink alien over the skies of Bonita.Which was weird, because food trucks don’t usually have signs 20-feet tall. The illustrated extra terrestrial …

Video:FEAST!: Bok Bok Dok is like K-Pop: sweet, spicy, and crispIt’s been fun watching the population of Korean restaurants in San Diego slowly tick up, and branch out from the Convoy district into other parts …

Video:Shawarma Guys goes from Yelp #1 to Hot & New in La MesaOn the television screen behind the counter, Guy Fieri bites into a wagyu beef egg roll. Seated at my table, I respond by …

A beautiful walk offers reason enough to visit Shelter Island, when the skies are blue, and the boats gleam white in their berths. But, knowing some of those boats have recently been out to sea, …

In a beachy, white cottage in the Village of La Jolla, feasters who lean bohemian may now find a Blue Whale. That’s the name of a daylight hours café that recently emerged in a converted …

Video:New to Chula Vista, Las Ahumaderas invokes classic Tijuana street tacosI used to be one of those mythical San Diego taco fiends who could jump in the car to chase a craving, and wind up …

Video:FEAST!: Bread & Cheese (and smoothies) and Breakfast BurritosA good number of restaurants — most even — switch their menus when breakfast time gives way to lunch hour. But I can’t recall any doing so …

When it’s too much a challenge to find parking on Convoy, I’ve learned that if you drift west across the 805, you can find a smaller, yet no less diverse cluster of restaurants along Clairemont …

Video:FEAST!: Oodles brings The Nood Bar’s noodle fetish eastWhat’s your favorite type of noodle? If you’re not sure, here’s where you can go to find out: La Mesa, home to the newly opened Oodles By …

I’m pretty sure there used to be a Subway franchise in this nonglamorous Little Italy location. Laurel Street marks the northern border of the neighborhood, where restaurants and piazzas give way to industrial zoning and …

A party of ten sits down at the next table, just after my first slurp of broth from the boat noodle soup, and right before the fish platter arrives.PlaceSo Saap4134 University Ave., San DiegoI’ve been …

When my ribs plate arrives, it doesn’t look all that different from the average BBQ order. There’s a metal serving tray, lined with butcher paper, and there are smoked ribs in a glistening coat of …

Chargrilled chicken with warm flour tortillas, rice, and pinto beans. A simple, sustaining meal that efficiently feeds a family, best made after an old family recipe. And for those who haven’t got such a recipe, …

Video:Chanis Donuts machineCan you call something a donut if it doesn’t contain nuts? Obviously, the answer is yes. What if you take away milk and eggs? As a proliferation of vegan donuts around San Diego …

For something like seven years, a certain cult favorite soul food outfit from Los Angeles has teased the idea it would open a San Diego location. And maybe someday soon, we can all discover it’s …