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Entries
Swoon is brilliant
At the new dessert bar in North Park, the pastry cooks are doing some smart things with sweets.
Where once stood Caffe Carpe Diem (an ill-fated coffee shop that closed several outlets across town at once), now we have Swoon Dessert Bar (3139 University Avenue, 619-528-0875). The space has been extensively, maybe expensively, remodelled and it looks great. …
Normal Heights: Chicken, wine, custody battles
At Proprietor’s Reserve, Ed finds wine, HH deals and a warning: Don't bring your ex. It's too small for hissy negotiations
No, not talking about me. Carla and I are fine. And when she has an issue, an entire school cafeteria would hear it anyways. Actually, I was heading for that classy French joint, Bleu Bohème, in Kensington on Carla's recommendation. …
Three-Way Dinners' inaugural meal at Cusp
The first of three dinners from this new chef series has the head chefs from Jsix, Cusp, and Saltbox cooking together.
Peas are often that vegetable you corral to the side of your plate, walling it in by mashed potatoes so as not to infiltrate your main course. Thursday, March 14, however, peas have been picked to be the seasonal building …
Prodigy-to-protégé hand-off at San Diego Brewing Co.
A changing of the brewhouse guard for long-time local brewing bastion
Visiting San Diego Brewing Company (10450 Friars road, Mission Valley) in the late nineties was my first experience tasting beer in the same place it was brewed. I still remember how foreign, and how abundantly cool, that concept seemed to …
Afternoons at Brooklyn Girl
The popular, Mission Hills spot has a quieter, more reserved lunch scene.
Partly because everybody’s been charmed by her cheeky, chic-y design and partly because the food is pretty good and she deserves it, Brooklyn Girl (4033 Goldfinch Street) has gotten a reputation as a bit of a scene where diners are …
Sustainable Seafood Week swims into San Diego; swims out March 15
Over 75 regional restaurants offering sustainable seafood options during week-long event to benefit San Diego Oceans Foundation.
Everyone's gotta eat but finding eco-friendly choices, especially when it comes to seafood, can sometimes prove difficult. Non-profit ocean stewardship organization San Diego Oceans Foundation (SDOF) has helped take the guesswork out of this yummy endeavor by pairing up with …
Allen's Alley Cafe
Vista breakfast spot has longevity and charm to spare.
No restaurant in Vista has been open longer than Allen’s Alley Cafe. In the restaurant world, sixty years is practically an eternity. I mean, Allen’s is no White Horse Tavern, but it’s been around for a lot longer the the …
Belching Beaver migrating south
Belching Beaver Brewery using tasting rooms, bottles to reach consumers
Despite my best efforts to be clear in my communications, the messages in my articles get misconstrued from time to time. Of everything I’ve written concerning local beer, perhaps none of my opinions have been as misunderstood as those concerning …
PB: Drink your greens!
Greenfix is the pause for your pores at all the farmers' markets
“Filler up.” Matt plonks his growler on the counter. Phil grabs it, goes back to the tap, and starts pouring the thick green stuff in. Joe grabs his $27. http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/mar/08/41439/ “It’s $29 if you don’t have your own jar," he …
Taking salt and pepper off The Counter
Fried avocado and olive spread are fun, but salt and pepper are burger essentials
I just have to ask: what’s the deal with burgers these days? In a day and age where the “gourmet” burger is clearly here to stay and any topping one can imagine seems to be making its way onto patties …
Fiji Yogurt and Ferran Adria
Finding molecular gastronomy at a Hillcrest fro-yo parlor.
I remember watching videos of Ferran Adria explaining spherification and how elBulli’s kitchen could make any kind of liquid into a kind of caviar. The reaction between sodium alginate and calcium compounds, naturally occurring in the food or otherwise, would …
Just for the halibut: Chip's Beach Eatz makes PB fish delish
Locally sourced, locally sauced! This halibut was trawled 100 yards offshore. Now Chip works his saucy magic
You know those trawlers you see drifting up and down off the coast, from IB to La Jolla? They’re catching halibut. And I’ve got me one of them. Standing here at the PB farmers’ market, at Chip McCarty’s orange truck, …
First look at Great Maple
Hillcrest's new eatery has red light specials and a sprawling menu, but does it work?
I had to be the first to eat at Great Maple because there is no restaurant in San Diego that’s closer to my house. I did a little snooping around when it was under construction in early February, and I …
Eureka! I've found a Grade F veggie burger!
A disappointing experience at UTC’s posh new burger and beverage den
Typically, I plan out where I’m going to eat and what I’m going to write about in advance, but every now and then, a dining experience is such that it merits a write-up even if it wasn’t premeditated. In the …
Mission Beach’s Better Buzz: But from oatmeal?
While Mad Scientists from The Lab make your coffee, ask about their jar of oatmeal.
Huh. Wandering up Mission Boulevard when I pass by a bunch of laptoppers sitting right next to me at a plank counter that’s open to the sidewalk. http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/mar/06/41279/ http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/mar/06/41281/ http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/mar/06/41282/ Then the Big Question: “Did you know? The lighter the …
Amaya's chance to shine in The Jewel
The Grand Del Mar’s hidden gem stepping out of Addison’s shadow
Despite being sequestered far beyond the guarded gates of luxury property, The Grand Del Mar, any local foodie worth their NaCl knows of the fine dining temple widely regarded as the best restaurant in San Diego County. Yes, I’m talking …
Shattered prejudices against OB Noodle House
This is me admitting to being wrong about a restaurant based solely on not wanting to believe the hype. I stand corrected.
Sometimes, I like to think that I know better than everybody else. Sometimes, I do. Sometimes, as with the OB Noodle House (2218 Cable Street, 619-450-6868), I’m wrong. Everybody--from yelping idiots to Reader critics to my vegan ex-girlfriend who shopped …
Reading the coffee grounds: Breakfast in Mission Beach
Olive Café has all-day breakfasts, and Turkish coffee, so you can read your future…
I’m looking deep into my Turkish coffee cup. The grounds have about three bumps up the left side, and a loose column way up to the lip on the right. http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/mar/06/41206/ “Huh,” I’m saying to Jesús and Sarah. “What does …
A Late Saturday Afternoon Lunch at Mikko in Carlsbad
http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/mar/05/41168/ Mikko, an “authentic sushi and Japanese cuisine” restaurant, sits just off the 5-freeway, at Carlsbad Village Drive (Elm Avenue to older locals). Many Carlsbad residents and others have been offering their patronage to the establishment quietly occupying a space …