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

Dinner at the Movies: Cinepolis Del Mar Luxury Cinema

One of the pleasures of the holiday season is going to see big, loud, explosion-filled action movies. So John and I headed up to Del Mar to see Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol at Cinepolis Luxury Cinema in the Del Mar Highlands Shopping Center. Yes, yes, I know...Tom Cruise. But he's managed to keep his mouth shut lately, and Jeremy Renner's in it, so off we went.

Cinepolis is a terrific concept - reserved stadium seating, big, comfortable, reclining easy chairs, full bar, dinner service, and the usual popcorn, candy and snack movie items. Tickets run from around $15 - $22 for adults, depending on the movie and showtime.

We had gotten there a little early, and tried to order food in the lobby restaurant, but were told that we had to order inside the theatre. No problem. We look over the menu, the movie starts, and we settle in. There's nobody coming around, so we push the service button. Still nobody. In fact, we notice that no one else is getting any service either. Well, we figure, we don't know their system, so we watch the movie and kind of forget about it. An hour into the movie, a young man comes over and tells me, "We don't have any food. Our truck didn't come yet. But we'll bring you a soft drink on the house." I asked if we could at least get some popcorn, but no, they didn't have that either.

The whole thing sounded bogus, so John went out to the lobby to check. Sure enough, it was. He ordered food from there and was told it would be brought right away. Four minutes before the movie ended (running time for MI: GP is 133 minutes) our food arrived.

These are John's short rib sliders ($13). Nice job on those onions. The meat, what little there is of it, is as tough and chewy as it looks.

I had asked for a prosciutto panini ($11), but got a mayonnaise sandwich with a side of turkey and a slice of provolone.

Our dessert selection is Xangos Caramel Banana ($8) which is supposed to be cheesecake, bananas, caramel and a "flaky tortilla pastry". At least they got the caramel part right. I almost never throw food away, but made an exception in this case.

We enjoyed seeing the movie here and would go back for that. The reclining seats are very comfy, the middle armrest can be raised so it becomes a little sofa, and the sound system is good. But eat somewhere else first.

Cinepolis Del Mar

12905 El Camino Real

San Diego CA 92130

858-794-4045

Hours: Vary according to show times.

Movie tickets can be ordered online.

Need to know: Alcohol is not served at all movies, check online for details.

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

Previous article

Ramona musicians seek solution for outdoor playing at wineries

Ambient artists aren’t trying to put AC/DC in anyone’s backyard
Next Article

Poway’s schools, faced with money squeeze, fined for voter mailing

$105 million bond required payback of nearly 10 times that amount

One of the pleasures of the holiday season is going to see big, loud, explosion-filled action movies. So John and I headed up to Del Mar to see Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol at Cinepolis Luxury Cinema in the Del Mar Highlands Shopping Center. Yes, yes, I know...Tom Cruise. But he's managed to keep his mouth shut lately, and Jeremy Renner's in it, so off we went.

Cinepolis is a terrific concept - reserved stadium seating, big, comfortable, reclining easy chairs, full bar, dinner service, and the usual popcorn, candy and snack movie items. Tickets run from around $15 - $22 for adults, depending on the movie and showtime.

We had gotten there a little early, and tried to order food in the lobby restaurant, but were told that we had to order inside the theatre. No problem. We look over the menu, the movie starts, and we settle in. There's nobody coming around, so we push the service button. Still nobody. In fact, we notice that no one else is getting any service either. Well, we figure, we don't know their system, so we watch the movie and kind of forget about it. An hour into the movie, a young man comes over and tells me, "We don't have any food. Our truck didn't come yet. But we'll bring you a soft drink on the house." I asked if we could at least get some popcorn, but no, they didn't have that either.

The whole thing sounded bogus, so John went out to the lobby to check. Sure enough, it was. He ordered food from there and was told it would be brought right away. Four minutes before the movie ended (running time for MI: GP is 133 minutes) our food arrived.

These are John's short rib sliders ($13). Nice job on those onions. The meat, what little there is of it, is as tough and chewy as it looks.

I had asked for a prosciutto panini ($11), but got a mayonnaise sandwich with a side of turkey and a slice of provolone.

Our dessert selection is Xangos Caramel Banana ($8) which is supposed to be cheesecake, bananas, caramel and a "flaky tortilla pastry". At least they got the caramel part right. I almost never throw food away, but made an exception in this case.

We enjoyed seeing the movie here and would go back for that. The reclining seats are very comfy, the middle armrest can be raised so it becomes a little sofa, and the sound system is good. But eat somewhere else first.

Cinepolis Del Mar

12905 El Camino Real

San Diego CA 92130

858-794-4045

Hours: Vary according to show times.

Movie tickets can be ordered online.

Need to know: Alcohol is not served at all movies, check online for details.

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

Cinepolis: the Bar & Menu

Next Article

Give Your Sweetie the Gift of Cinema & Free Popcorn This Valentine's Day

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