Speaking to Mike Hess recently, he revealed that while he "brewed almost every drop of the beer" his first year in business, by the time Mike Hess Brewing turned five this July, he'd gotten too …

While a military brat living on Camp Pendleton, I kicked off my high school career going to Fallbrook HS (go Warriors!). I took that 45-minute bus ride every day for a couple of years and …

Given the number of craft beer companies launched in San Diego over the past couple of years, starting a brewery almost seems easy. Of course, it's not, and given the capital investment required to purchase …

Police arrested a suspected bicycle thief in South Park on August 5, after neighborhood residents used a location-based social media website to raise alerts about the crimes and disseminate a description of the suspect. NextDoor.com …

North County craft brewer Iron Fist has established a presence in the downtown area. Its new Barrio Logan tasting room officially opened July 24, setting up shop in the Mercado Del Barrio development that seeks …

Passing through Rancho Bernardo, I stopped by a shop known to have a great bottled beer selection and wound up with an incredible lunch spot. I knew Brothers Provisions shares ownership with Urge Gastropub, so …

Grocery stores have been transforming before our eyes the past few years. Henry’s became Sprouts, Albertsons became Haggen, both try to play the role of a Whole Foods alternative, and even Target has decided to …

It’s easy for me to get into a rut when eating ethnic food. Once I’ve tried a couple of dishes that capture my imagination, I tend to go back to them. Especially since I usually …

San Diego breweries took 13 awards and two Honorable Mentions in this month's California State Fair Commercial Craft Brew Competition. 1086 Beers were judged in 34 Categories overall, with locals recognized in 10 of them. …

Hot coffee may be a year-round drink, but with summer temperatures rising, cold brew becomes a greater focus for local shops. At Coffee & Tea Collective, they’re experimenting with longer steep times, taking a standard …

At 11 a.m. on July 20, 450 bottles of Velvet Speedway Stout became available for purchase on the website BrownPaperTickets.com at $35 apiece, with a two-bottle limit. According to multiple sources involved with the beer, …

The team behind Poor House brewing have opened a second nanobrewery in North Park. Barn Brewery sits just around the corner from the 30th Street brewhouse, adding its name to the growing number of young …

The under-construction Liberty Public Market announced its vendors on July 23rd, with an event showcasing an assortment of food purveyors specializing in foods ranging from lobster rolls to a natural meats butcher shop. The 22,000-square-foot …

I found Beach Plum in a shopping center off El Camino Real and picked it over a few other unfamiliar restaurants in the same center because it looked nice. Or because I like plums and …

The craft beer landscape looked a lot different in 2009. Yes, by all accounts this was still an objectively great beer city, but we had about a quarter of the number of breweries we do …

Whenever I mouth off about what makes a good pastrami sandwich, somebody’s around to chime in about one restaurant’s in particular: Rare Form, Consortium Holdings’ take on a Jewish deli. Now, I’m almost as big …

I can think of a lot of flavors to look for in a summer beer and, frankly, chocolate's not one of them. Still, that's one of the flavors associated with the Orange Roughy, a South …

Business park restaurants don’t play by the same rules as other food businesses. They serve a calculated need — to provide a quick, convenient lunch to nearby professionals. They don’t worry about decorating because something …

The second week of July, members of the Facebook group Seoul Brew Club started posting photos of Stone IPA and Ruination 2.0 to their community page. In this way, the group of homebrewers and beer …

Macaroni salad is a guilty pleasure of mine. Here I write about all kinds of food, and I demand some semblance of quality. But apparently I’m easily won over by a little cold pasta and …

A little outside Ensenada, Valle de Guadalupe has a reputation as Baja's wine country. For a couple of years it was also home to a small brewery with a loyal following and key restaurant placements. …

Later this summer, longtime North Park coffee roaster Caffé Calabria will launch its first offsite expansion in 15 years, opening a satellite coffee bar in a ground-floor storefront at the 1 Columbia Place high-rise in …

It’s five o’clock somewhere. Or so day-drinkers like to say, usually while ordering a stiff pour of bourbon. Prohibition may have failed, but the lasting legacy of the temperance movement is this notion that hitting …

Following a year of buildup and private tasting events, Pacific Islander Brewing Company (PIB) became the latest craft entity to open in Santee, opening the doors of its Polynesian-style tasting room and patio to the …

Benchmark Brewing Company started canning last month, releasing four-packs of 16-ounce tallboys to all the usual craft bottle shops and liquor stores. The shiny silver cans feature simple bold lettering and the company brand, with …

Last weekend I found myself drinking canned craft beer at an underground synth-pop show in an apartment upstairs from a fabric store on Adams. People at the party seemed pretty energized and were just starting …

Since its debut in spring 2013, Miramar brewer Saint Archer has expanded square footage, distribution range, production volume, and its roster of beers. Pending approval of a winemaking license, the craft beer company aims to …

Sometimes, being in the neighborhood is all it takes to discover a tasty new beer. That's how I wound up dropping by Pacific Brewing Company (PBC) in Miramar. A constant flood of beer news out …

I’m amazed how many restaurant delivery apps and web sites have sprung up in San Diego the past few years. Read about some of them here, here, and here. As I dig deeper into available …

June 26th marked the official opening of the new Alpine Beer Company Pub (1347 Tavern Road), a long-overdue expansion of the restaurant and taphouse affiliated with increasingly popular Alpine Beer Company. The new location sits …

Drive-thru burger joints hold a distinct place in Southern California lore, but this being the 21st Century, the only burger I’m willing to eat in my car anymore starts and ends with the word “double.” …

Normal Heights lost a coffee shop in June, then promptly gained a replacement, as the owners of Broke Girls Coffee Bar (3562 Adams Ave) sold their business, brewing equipment and all, and moved on to …

A failed plea to city officials to install a new fence to enclose the Grape Street off-leash dog park in South Park led to a crackdown that resulted in more than two dozen dog-owners receiving …

June marked the 20th anniversary of local yeast purveyor White Labs. Mayor Kevin Faulconer saluted the milestone during an appearance at the National Homebrewers Convention, declaring June 11, 2015, to be "White Labs Day" in …

You do not find a lot of Korean restaurants west of the 5. Maybe the cuisine’s not as popular as I imagine it to be. Maybe sundubu jjigae will never be the next ramen, doomed …

The Linda Vista Original Sab-E-Lee changed location this year. Thai food fans know the small and authentic northeastern Thai spot as one of the best such restaurants in town and would anticipate a big move …

I’d like to find out how many cheesesteak restaurants there are in the U.S. There have been quite a few in San Diego, and while a number of them have come and gone, you can …

Among the 13 gold-medal-winning local beers at this year's San Diego International Beer Competition were several I haven't tasted yet. It probably goes without saying, but I've suddenly taken an interest in trying them all. …

Home-field advantage served craft brewers well this week, as local brewing companies claimed a full third of the medals at the June 20th awards ceremony for the San Diego International Beer Competition. San Diego county …

Last October, Ballast Point opened a massive brewery, packaging, and distribution center on Miramar's Carroll Way, with a 600-seat restaurant, 100 employees, and reported tax subsidy from the City of San Diego. At the end …

Monday June 8th, AleSmith social media announced the opening of the Observation Room, a modest tasting room located at the front entrance of its new, even-bigger-than-it-sounds 105,000-square-foot headquarters. The low-key announcement belies the vastness of …

When I ran into a couple of Tijuana brewers at the National Homebrewers Conference conference last week, they mentioned that Coronado Brewing Company has been generous and supportive of the rising ranks of brewers living …

Carmel Mountain Ranch roaster Mostra Coffee has continued its unique brand growth with a couple of distribution deals that will widen availability of its coffee throughout Southern California. The first deal will place freshly roasted …

The population of beer enthusiasts in San Diego rose by 2700 for a week in June. The 37th annual National Homebrewers Conference took place in Mission Valley's Town & Country convention center. The actual event …

I haven’t watched it in a while, but I used to love the show Top Chef for the occasional insight it offered into the minds of creative chefs. The drawback was having to sit on …

A different sort of brewery has opened in North Park. Brewing supply store the Homebrewer soft-opened a tasting room in February. The 21-tap room has a few design revisions in store before its official summer …

I spend more time than most worrying about the authenticity of tacos. There are thousands of versions in San Diego County, and most would pass any test you might come up with, even those using …

Star-spangled red, white, and blue flames decorate the sides of the American Flavors food truck, along with a bald eagle, Mt. Rushmore, the statue of liberty, and Joe DiMaggio. It’s the mobile-kitchen version of the …

The first weekend of June was the last weekend in operation for Stone Brewing's original Company Store location in South Park. From Friday to Sunday the tasting room and growler fill station hosted what they …

I recall trying Supernatural Sandwiches two or three years ago, when it was a stall at the since-closed San Diego Public Market. I liked it. (I liked the market, too.) From there Supernatural moved to …