I love going out to try new restaurants with friends, it’s sort of like a hobby! I get so excited when I find one with an amazing ambiance and food to die for especially since there really aren’t that many amazing eateries in San Diego. I went to college in Santa Barbara and lived in New York for a year and I visit my sister up in Los Angeles all the time and let me tell you those three destinations are filled with the most amazing restaurants I’ve ever been to. While I was living in Santa Barbara I don’t think I ever stumbled upon a bad restaurant, it was amazing everywhere I went, and I know my mother would agree since she always talks about taking the 3 hour drive up there to eat at out favorites like Cava, Jeannines Bakery and this teeny tiny Italian restaurant thats name escapes me right now! But within the last year I have stumbled upon some of my now all time favorite restaurants in California right here in San Diego and here they are:
Kitchen 4140
4140 Morena Blvd
San Diego CA 92117
I just found this place located in a very random area and dragged my mom their on sunday for brunch. The ambience is amazing it’s modern with a little bit of eccentric quirk to it with things like cows that pour cream out of their mouth into your cup of coffee! My mom ordered the braised short rib sandwich and I ordered the blackened steak sandwich, as soon as they got to the table we each tried the others and decided to switch since for some odd reason we each liked the others sandwich better!! Both sandwiches were to die for and I’ve never really even liked short rib, but it was soooooo good!! I also had the best arnold palmer I’ve ever had before, and thats saying a lot since I get one at every restaurant I go to! And how could I forget the amazing french fries they are a must try when you go. They also have their own blog where they post their recipes so that you can go home and make your favorites to share with family and friends. And they sell their granola and tea which I haven’t tried yet but it looks really good. And while there we discovered that they have pop up dinners twice a month, which is where they randomly announce that they are going to have a dinner with a fixed menu (they are not open for dinner on a nightly basis). A few of the items on their menu that look amazing are:
Red Velvet Pancakes: two stack with chocolate chips topped with cream cheese frosting
Short Rid Sandwich: beer braised beef short ribs,pickled onion, mango chutney& asian slaw on roasted pepper bread
Blackened Steak Sandwich: grilled hanger steak, roasted tomatoes, caramelized onions & havarti cheese finished with avocado creme fraiche served on a french roll
Braised Short Rib Gnocchi: house made potato gnocchi,beer braised short ribs,wild mushrooms and heirloom tomatoes
Urban Solace
3823 30th Street
San Diego 92104
Urban solace is really fun on sundays when you go for Bluegrass Brunch! They have a bluegrass band playing outside on the patio which creates a fun atmosphere. If I had to describe the food I would say its a modern take on southern home comfort foods. If you go you must try their famous cheese biscuits they are the best thing ever and you wont be disappointed. It’s located in North Park next to a bunch of excellent restaurants but yet I still always choose to go there since I’m simply addicted! My favorite dishes are:
Warm Cheese biscuits: with orange honey butter
Burger: Niman Ranch Chuck, aged white cheddar, smoked tomato jam, house sauce, bibb lettuce, egg bun
Grilled Four Cheese Sandwich: with fresh basil and tomato, and creamy tomato-fennel soup
Mac n’ Cheese: smoked tomato, bacon, carmelized onion, fresh mozzarella, and bacon bread crumbs
Kensington Grill
4055 Adams Ave
San Diego 92116
I had driven by Kensington Grill for years on the way to my friends house and had always wanted to try it but it took me a few years to actually go. I went with a close friend and we ordered a few of the small plates that looked to amazing to pass up! Each small plate was filled with so many different flavors and combinations to try, it was a lot of fun. The decor reminds me of a modernized Anthropologie it has clean cut lines but still throws in some eclectic charm! My favorites on the menu:
Bruschetta Board: select three of the following: smoked salmon+herb creme cheese+shaved cucumber/ grilled portabello+marinated red bell pepper+gorgonzola/bacon+havarti+marinated tomato+frisee/brie+mango and red chili+scallion/shrimp ceviche+avocado+manchengo/spicy baba ganoush+basil pesto+tomato jam
Grilled Avocado: ancho orange vinaigrette +lime +toast
Artichoke + Blue Cheese Jar: carmelized shallot+grilled pita
Creek Stone Ribeye: balsamic sweet onion+baby spring squash+marble potato+bordelaise
Whisknladle
1044 Wall Street
La Jolla, CA 92037
This is one of the first restaurants to open up in La Jolla that I thought was actually worthy of their location. It is amazingly good, they have the worlds best chocolate ice cream that they make right there in their restaurant. I kid you not if you wind up going you must order the chocolate ice cream not the vanilla or whatever other flavor they may have at the time! They also have the most amazing mouth watering burger I’ve ever had, I could eat that thing on a daily basis, note this though the lunch burger is better than the dinner one. On another note I could sit in their outside patio all day and people watch, they have managed to create the most comfortable and welcoming restaurant patio I’ve ever been to, and every time you walk by you will not fail to notice all the people lingering in their relaxing! My favorites on the menu are:
WNL Burger: Artisan Cheeses, house cured bacon, caramelized onion and fried egg (ask for french fries instead of chips during lunch)
Roasted Chicken: roasted artichokes, savoy spinach & madeira sauce
House Churned Ice Cream & Sorbets: get the chocolate!!!
Restaurants Still On My Dying To Try List:
Craft & Commerce
675 West Beech Street
San Diego, CA 92101
Cucina Urbana
505 Laurel Street
San Diego,CA 92101
The Linkery
3794 30th Street
San Diego,CA 92104
