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Escape

Downtown fish bar charges a premium price, but the fish is seafood is indeed fine.

A sense of good humor marked the menu at Escape Fish Bar with little snippets and jokes (“stalk us on Facebook!”). The staff, while perhaps a shade over-friendly on a quiet night, came off as nothing if not hospitable.

Spirits are a new addition there and, while I doubt it will become a cocktail destination, I was given a tasty whiskey sour garnished with a few slices of excellent pickled jicama. Give me more of that sweet, tangy acoutrement anytime!

There’s no doubt that Escape is on the pricey side. Plates of grilled fish run up to $25 and the bulk of the starters are over $10. I feel like I could have pushed dinner for two up over $100 without a small effort. Still, the prices were more or less deserved. Fish chowder, built with a dairy-free coconut base, had unexpected richness and a tangy, almost smoky bite. Topped with a needless (but delicious) filet of fried fish, I’d call it an excellent variation on chowder as we know it.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jan/14/38345/

Crab cakes ($15) had plenty of delicate crab meat and, perhaps most importantly, a generous serving of that marvelous pickled jicama. Neither bready nor chewy, their texture and composition were spot on, although the liberal application of spicy tartar sauce overwhelmed the subtle crab flavor.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jan/14/38346/

The most expensive dish on the menu, a $25 swordfish plate walked a fine line in terms of expense. The fish was of exceptional quality, finely seasoned and adroitly grilled, but I have a hard time saying it was really worth the price of entry. The portion was generous and the cilantro-lime rice was quite nice, but the simplicity of the plate demanded a more modest price tag in my eyes. While I enjoyed every bite of the masterfully grilled fish, I would have been more comfortable with paying marginally less since the preparation was so modest. For a lot of people, that’s a judgment call to be made one way or the other.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jan/14/38347/

738 Fifth Avenue
619-702-9200

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A sense of good humor marked the menu at Escape Fish Bar with little snippets and jokes (“stalk us on Facebook!”). The staff, while perhaps a shade over-friendly on a quiet night, came off as nothing if not hospitable.

Spirits are a new addition there and, while I doubt it will become a cocktail destination, I was given a tasty whiskey sour garnished with a few slices of excellent pickled jicama. Give me more of that sweet, tangy acoutrement anytime!

There’s no doubt that Escape is on the pricey side. Plates of grilled fish run up to $25 and the bulk of the starters are over $10. I feel like I could have pushed dinner for two up over $100 without a small effort. Still, the prices were more or less deserved. Fish chowder, built with a dairy-free coconut base, had unexpected richness and a tangy, almost smoky bite. Topped with a needless (but delicious) filet of fried fish, I’d call it an excellent variation on chowder as we know it.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jan/14/38345/

Crab cakes ($15) had plenty of delicate crab meat and, perhaps most importantly, a generous serving of that marvelous pickled jicama. Neither bready nor chewy, their texture and composition were spot on, although the liberal application of spicy tartar sauce overwhelmed the subtle crab flavor.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jan/14/38346/

The most expensive dish on the menu, a $25 swordfish plate walked a fine line in terms of expense. The fish was of exceptional quality, finely seasoned and adroitly grilled, but I have a hard time saying it was really worth the price of entry. The portion was generous and the cilantro-lime rice was quite nice, but the simplicity of the plate demanded a more modest price tag in my eyes. While I enjoyed every bite of the masterfully grilled fish, I would have been more comfortable with paying marginally less since the preparation was so modest. For a lot of people, that’s a judgment call to be made one way or the other.

http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jan/14/38347/

738 Fifth Avenue
619-702-9200

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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
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