Slowly but surely, quality food and drink is infiltrating Mission and Pacific Beaches. When I lived in the area 10 years ago, the food quality seemed to assume every taste bud within two square miles had been rendered comatized by Jaegermeister.
Over in Mission Beach, The Patio Restaurant Group (PRG) has struck again. This time they’ve acquired one of San Diego’s best, sustainable coffee outposts, Swell Café. In September they to launch in-house roasting of different blends with partners James Coffee Company. Some of those custom roasts, of course, will go to the Patio’s existing and planned locations—which now includes Pacific Beach, Mission Hills and Liberty Station. With PRG’s help, Swell plans to open more outlets and launch a large-scale roasting facility for a wholesale operation. “[I plan to] travel directly to coffee origins,” says Swell founder John Vallas, “bringing dollars directly to farmers and villages in parts of the world that don’t know what it’s like to spend $4 on a coffee, or even have shoes or running water for that matter. We are in the midst of creating our opportunity to change the world through coffee, and I like that idea.”
In Pacific Beach, Twisted Manzanita Ale Company (formerly Manzanita Brewing) will open a tasting room between Duck Dive and Dirty Birds (4652 Mission Blvd., the former Surf Indian shop). Aiming for a Labor Day opening, head of marketing NinaIzadi says the spot will showcase “our more experimental beers and casks—getting back to the real definition of a tasting room. Not just our core six beers, which you can get anywhere.” They’ll do pints, flights, kegs, bottles and growlers to go.
Hospitality-centric businesses are starting to work smarter, not harder. Some are leaning into experiential concepts, like Harland Brewing’s golf course taproom. Some are joining up with other businesses to share space and costs, like Scoopy Scoopy. Then there’s the multi-hyphenate approach, using food and drink as a jumping-off point for bigger aspirations—like Infusion Lab, a specialty dessert and coffee shop opening in Pacific Beach this summer.
The name is strategically vague, explains co-founder and finance director Baran Aydin. Initially, the space will offer a menu of specialty coffee—traditional espresso-based drinks, plus matcha and signature ube beverages alongside breakfast, lunch sammies and desserts like cookies made in-house and European-inspired desserts.
Aydin and co-founder/coffee director Aselin Bay plan to expand into a lifestyle brand with streetwear-inspired merch—shirts, hats, bags, socks, and more that are “designed to reflect the lifestyle and culture behind Infusion Lab,” he explains.
“The goal is to create a space where people can work, socialize, create content, and become part of a growing community,” says Aydin.
Infusion Labs’ design is elemental white-and-maroon, with line drawing art. Their space, next to the now-closed Copper Top Coffee & Donuts, will feature some Chesterfield-style seating (deep button sofas) and a dedicated social media area.
Sungold Point Family Diner Soft Opens in Bird Rock
The owners behind Hermosa Surf in Bird Rock soft-launched their new cafe, Sungold Point—right next door at 5632 La Jolla Blvd. It’s a modern take on an old-school diner, explains Stirling, with seating for around 35 people and lots of pink, burgundy, turquoise, checkerboard, and terrazzo to feast your eyes on. Owners Stirling and Benny Walter designed the breakfast and lunch menu to use organic ingredients whenever possible and make everything from scratch, including breakfast sandwiches, salads, bowls, and a full espresso menu.
Courtesy of La Valencia
Beth’s Bites
San Diego classic La Valencia Hotel is hitting 100 years. Dubbed the Pink Lady for her antacid-colored blush exterior, the hotel kicks off centennial celebrations on May 28 with the launch of 1926 Social Club, a Roaring Twenties-themed weekly event on the Med Patio each Thursday from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Expect Prohibition-era cocktails (always felt like an oxymoron to me, but I guess cocktails were being sipped behind well-placed walls), plus a limited-time Centennial prix-fixe menu for two by executive chef Ernest Lopez.
When does Chef Aidan Owens sleep? On top of being the culinary director for Herb & Wood and Herb & Sea, he appears on the new Survivor-meets-Iron Chef series Chopped: Castaways, which premiered on the Food Networkon May 12. Owens is competing for a $100,000 prize through physical and cooking challenges against 11 other chefs on a remote island, and with judges Marcus Samuelsson, Gabe Bertaccini, and Maneet Chauhan at the head of the table. This might be the show that actually gets me to watch reality TV.
Anyone of a certain age who grew up in San Diego has probably spent at least an afternoon or two in El Cajon’s Parkway Bowl, sucking down soda and crushing nachos between gutter balls. The dated destination finally got a long-overdue facelift and reopened earlier this week—with 68 redone bowling lanes and the new Parkway Social restaurant which boasts a full bar, axe throwing, and golf simulators. Twenty more refreshed bowling lanes are on the way, plus pool tables—but based on the first pictures, it’s about to regain its title as the de facto destination for kid’s birthdays and Friday night family fun.
Beth Demmon is an award-winning writer and podcaster whose work regularly appears in national outlets and San Diego Magazine. Her first book, The Beer Lover's Guide to Cider, is now available. Find out more on bethdemmon.com.
It’s never taken so much green to eat red meat. The price of beef has doubled since 2020, and once you add a few drinks (the cost of wine rose 11 percent in 2025) and tack on the rising price of labor (up 23 percent in 2025 and 33 percent in 2024 and 2023), before you know it, a night out at the steakhouse costs as much as the monthly payment for a brand-new Mercedes G-Wagon.
At Grandson Steaks, Roger Cañez wants to change that. He only serves USDA Prime and Choice Brandt Beef from the family-owned ranch in the Imperial Valley, known for its high-quality, hormone-free, vegetarian-raised Holstein cattle with signature marbling and top-notch taste. But as the Brandt Beef distributor in Mexico, Cañez gets wholesale volume pricing that other smaller restaurateurs can’t access.
Those savings get passed to the consumer: At Grandson, a 12-oz. house-cut (Choice) ribeye costs $34, while Prime goes up to $44. Comparatively, a 14-oz. Prime ribeye at a competing high-end local steakhouse runs around $66.
Courtesy of Grandson Steaks
“There are a lot of people in San Diego who really love steaks, but they can’t afford it—that’s reality,” says Cañez. “So we decided to kind of cut all the fine dining rules and put everything into the quality.”
Cañez has tried the “steak-for-less” model before. He opened Brasa Norte in Market on 8th in National City, offering plates like a Tomahawk steak with bone marrow, four quesadillas, and a side of beans for $44.99. He also operates Roger’s Mariscos inside the market, and he brought some of those stall’s best sellers (like the Baja shrimp cocktail and yellowfin tuna tostada) to Grandson Steaks for a surf n’ turf menu plus tacos, salads, and desserts meant for the family-friendly Liberty Station crowd.
Courtesy of Grandson Steaks
It’s the second concept for the fully built-out corner suite, which formerly housed the ambitious California deli concept Wildflour Delicatessen from chef Phillip Esteban, the mastermind behind White Rice and Base Kamp Meals. Not much changed design-wise, other than adding some more booths, moodier lighting, and a couple of guitars for that modern Mexican flair. Most of the 130 seats are outside (98, to be precise), with 20 seats inside and an additional 12 at the bar.
But after you choose where to sit, you’ll be able to also choose how much to spend. “If you want to have a casual afternoon with tacos and margaritas, or if you want to have a full steakhouse [experience] with bottles of wine, we can do both,” says Cañez.
Grandson Steaks is now open at 2690 Historic Decatur Road, Suite 102. Hours are Tuesday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.; and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. (closed Monday).
Courtesy of Zen Modern Asian Bistro
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Beth’s Bites
At the rate all the “Taste Of” festivals are proliferating, we’re going to have an event for every block in the county by 2035. (This is not a complaint!) The next one is coming up fast on Thursday, May 7, when the 16th annual Taste of Cardiff hits S. Coast Highway 101 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. And yes, before you ask, I’m sure there will be plenty of Cardiff Crack to chow down on from one of the 60+ vendors. Be sure to come hungry, though, because the food and beverage list is mega-stacked with goodies. Pro tip: This “Taste Of” is always especially hard to find parking, so I strongly recommend riding the Coaster in or grabbing a rideshare.
I’ve watched the movie Crazy Rich Asians a dozen times, but I’ve never tried my hand at mahjong (yet). But now that Zen Modern Asian Bistro is introducing a weekly Friday night mahjong game from 9 p.m. to midnight, it might be time for me to finally give the tile game a go.
Listen Now: The Latest in San Diego’s Food and Drink Scene
Have breaking news, exciting scoops, or great stories about new San Diego restaurants or the city’s food scene? Send your pitches to [email protected].
Beth Demmon is an award-winning writer and podcaster whose work regularly appears in national outlets and San Diego Magazine. Her first book, The Beer Lover's Guide to Cider, is now available. Find out more on bethdemmon.com.
There’s a certain strangely yellow-tinted lightbulb in a certain bathroom in a certain bar on Main Street in Richmond, Virginia that I used to frequent when I was in college. (IYKYK) To locals, we knew that if you wanted to look super hot, or at least feel super hot, it was the lightbulb-mirror combo worth waiting in line for. That tiny one-stall room became the perfect place for selfies, surreptitious makeout sessions—pretty much anything but actually going to the bathroom.
Color theory is science, not magic. Yellow light is less harsh on the eyes than white or blue, and can promote a feeling of relaxation and happiness. A little color can go a long way to change a mood—and that’s exactly what visual artist Ben Guerrette hopes to accomplish when he drenches Chapel at Liberty Station with an immersive light installation synchronized to pair with chef Flor Franco’s four-course menu exploring the four elements of earth, fire, air, and water from March 20 through 22 for the latest An Artist @ the Table dinner series.
The series is part of local nonprofit Vanguard Culture’s 10th anniversary programming, marking a decade of advancing San Diego’s creative industries through professional development opportunities, events, collaborations, and other resources. Executive director Susanna Peredo Swap says previous An Artist @ the Table dinner series have featured artwork from a variety of artists ranging from the estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat to British fashion icon Zandra Rhodes, and chefs like Ron Oliver (former chef de cuisine of Marine Room) and Carlos SanMartano (Salt & Cleaver, Herb & Wood).
Photo Credit: Ben Guerrette
“[But] this is the first time that we’ve done something so large-scale and so immersive,” she says. Over three nights with room for 30 guests each night, each dinner begins with an hour-long silent auction to raise money for Vanguard Culture’s nonprofit support of the local arts, after which Swap will introduce Guerrette, Franco, and explain the run of the show. “Then the experience will happen, which is about a three-to-five minute immersive sound and light experience, and then the food will come out, and then we’ll repeat that three more times after that,” Swap says, at which point the space will open for time for guests to unwind and absorb the experience.
That time to unwind with one another, she stresses, is crucial. “I think that’s part of why the arts—and the culinary arts in particular—are so important now. It’s that ability to just remember our humanity and come back to the joy of living, the joy of this moment, the joy of art, the joy of sound, the joy of food, the joy of gathering,” says Swap. “And so even though big things are happening, we get to kind of disconnect for just one moment and sit together in community and find joy and share together.”
During the conversation with Franco, Swap, Guerrette, and myself, I wondered: If eating together is an inherently communal act, but emotional reaction to art is a personal experience, how do the two coexist?
Courtesy of Chef Flor Franco
Franco believes they go hand-in-hand. “I think in this particular dinner, people are going to take home both the experience of community, but also it’s going to be very personal for every single one,” she says. She could be watching a play with friends and find herself crying, but the person sitting next to her will be dry-eyed. “The senses are different for each person.”
The meal itself, inspired by the four elements, will remain a surprise for the guests, but Franco did provide a few hints of the framework. “There will be plenty of seafood, you know, for the water part,” she promises, as well as a red meat entree for land and a few other tricks up her sleeve. But to coincide with the artistic vision, “the plating is going to have to do a lot,” she says. Despite her long experience as a chef in Baja California and San Diego (as well as the first female chef inducted to the prestigious gastronomic society Disciples Escoffier International in 2018), it’s her first time working in tandem with light design.
For Guerrette, he hopes people leave both feeling moved and inspired. “I’m hoping that this becomes something that maybe inspires more people, other artists to maybe make big, grandiose ideas like this,” he says. “If you have big ideas, go for it.” (Pro tip: be sure to turn on some blue or green light to help boost your creative process. Like I said, it’s science.)
Tickets to An Artist @ the Table with artist Ben Guerrette and chef Flor Franco on March 20 through 22 are now available.
Listen Now: The Latest in San Diego’s Food and Drink Scene
Have breaking news, exciting scoops, or great stories about new San Diego restaurants or the city’s food scene? Send your pitches to [email protected].
Beth Demmon is an award-winning writer and podcaster whose work regularly appears in national outlets and San Diego Magazine. Her first book, The Beer Lover's Guide to Cider, is now available. Find out more on bethdemmon.com.
Finding a gift that feels truly personal can be surprisingly difficult. In a sea of generic options — flowers, gift cards, candles, and the like — Xplosion Box offers something more lasting: a customized keepsake built around the photos, messages, and memories that matter most.
Founded by Southern California entrepreneur Jay Vijay, Xplosion Box LLC creates fully customized explosion gift boxes that arrive professionally designed, printed, assembled, and ready to gift. Each box opens layer by layer to reveal personal photos, heartfelt messages, pull-out albums, origami-style photo pockets, and hidden notes, turning a simple gift into an emotional reveal.
The brand was built for people who want to give something meaningful without spending hours printing photos, cutting paper, folding cardstock, or assembling a DIY project. Customers simply choose a box, upload their favorite photos, add personal messages, and the Xplosion Box team transforms those details into a polished keepsake that feels thoughtful, personal, and beautifully made.
Xplosion Box offers personalized gift boxes for birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, graduations, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Christmas, proposals, bridesmaid gifts, long-distance relationships, and thoughtful “just because” moments.
Customers can choose from flexible customization options starting at $27. The Mini Surprise Box includes 10 photos, three message cards, and one hidden secret note, while the Mega Surprise Box offers a fuller keepsake experience with 40 photos, three message cards, and one hidden secret note.
What sets Xplosion Box apart is its high level of customization combined with convenience. Filled with personal photos, custom text, decorative details, and layered surprises, each box gives customers the freedom to create a gift that feels one-of-a-kind — without having to make it themselves.
At its core, Xplosion Box helps people turn favorite photos, stories, and words into something tangible: a keepsake that can be opened, revisited, and remembered long after the occasion has passed. asion has passed.
Americans often have our own regional cuisine preferences—for instance, I tend to go for Carolina-style whole hog barbecue over Texas brisket (but certainly wouldn’t kick a Kansas City burnt end out of bed, either). So why is it when it comes to Mexican food, we’re occasionally guilty of lumping the entire country’s cuisine under one broad brush?
There’s far more to Mexican cuisine than tamales, pozole, and chilaquiles—Oaxaca is as famous for its seven moles as Baja California is for the Ensenada-style fish taco. And when it comes to Sonora, the northwestern Mexican state bordering Arizona and New Mexico features plenty of cattle ranches and wheat fields, giving the region its signature ranchero grilling culture and paper-thin flour tortillas. San Diego is about to get a taste of the fire-grilled flavors, when TacoNora opens in Pacific Beach on Saturday, March 7.
Renata Vázquez, founder of Tyche Food & Beverage Consulting and cofounder of TacoNora, says it’s the first location for the family-owned brand (although the ownership group operates four other taquerías in Sonora under a different name), and they are already actively looking to open more locations in North County and Arizona. But Pacific Beach felt like a good place to start for the grill-forward, fast-casual concept.
Courtesy of TacoNora
“Guests start by choosing their protein,” she explains, pointing to options like asada, pork belly, chicken made with a house seasoning mix, trompo-style ribeye or sirloin steak, or grilled Anaheim chiles. Then they can choose if they want it as a regular taco, lorenza (an open-faced, crispy taco), caramelo (a Sonoran specialty where carne asada and melted cheese are sandwiched between two crispy flour tortillas), costra (a “crust” of caramelized cheese wrapped around the chosen filling), a Sonoran-style burrito, or TacoNora’s signature taco pizza.
“Each format highlights the tortilla and the grill differently, but the meat remains the focus,” Vázquez explains.
TacoNora will also offer housemade guacamole, beans slow-cooked with pork fat and red chile, and a salsa bar with 10 different housemade salsas. The entire experience is meant to be interactive, customizable, and something new, but still unfussy. “We wanted to create a concept where the quality of the meat speaks first, the tortilla supports it, and everything else enhances it—without overcomplicating the experience,” she says. “Sonoran food deserves a voice in San Diego.”
TacoNora opens Saturday, March 7 at 956 Garnet Avenue.
Courtesy of Tip Top Meats
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Tip Top Meats Is Back In Biz
Tip Top Meats, the iconic European deli and market that closed in 2024, officially soft re-opened at 6118 Paseo Del Norte in Carlsbad, bringing back its famous meats and Old World sundries. While the team and family may have decades of experience under their belts, it’s still a new era, so give ‘em some grace during the soft opening as they get their feet (and meat) under them once more. Open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
Courtesy of Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa
Beth’s Bites
‘Tis the season for Irish whiskey. The Library at Fairmont Grand Del Mar is certainly one of the toniest spots in town to imbibe some high-end options. On March 10 at 6 p.m., the speakeasy will host a guided tasting of Jameson, Redbreast, and Midleton whiskeys, explaining the nuances and history of the spirit. (And yes, you should practice your pronunciation of “Sláinte!” ahead of time.)
As far as chef collabs go, Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa’s Chef Series dinners are some of the best of the best. On Thursday, March 19, chef Roberto Alcocer of Michelin-starred Valle in Oceanside is heading to the culinary garden for a four-course prix fixe meal. Before dinner, guests will enjoy a welcome hour starting at 6 p.m., where they can sip on signature Valle cocktails and curated wine offerings.
Liberty Public Market is turning double-digits this March, and yes, that makes me feel a little old. But the Point Loma market has plenty of events for the young at heart lined up for the 10th anniversary weekend, including tons of live music, beer tastings, food specials, and more. It all takes off March 21 and 22, so strap on your party shoes and boogie on down to grab a bite or two for the big 1-0.
Listen Now: The Latest in San Diego’s Food and Drink Scene
Have breaking news, exciting scoops, or great stories about new San Diego restaurants or the city’s food scene? Send your pitches to [email protected].
Beth Demmon is an award-winning writer and podcaster whose work regularly appears in national outlets and San Diego Magazine. Her first book, The Beer Lover's Guide to Cider, is now available. Find out more on bethdemmon.com.
For more than 80 years, the North Chapel has been one of Liberty Station’s defining silhouettes. Opened in 1942, the multi-faith chapel has hosted Navy services, weddings, memorials, and countless community milestones during wartime years. Its story stretches from religious services for military men and women to cultural anchor.
Then came a stalemate. In 2018, a new tenant, 828 Events, proposed a modernization of the building’s interior, sparking fierce pushback from preservationists and neighbors. The San DiegoUnion Tribune reported that the online leasing opportunity boasted the chapel would be “perfect for a restaurant or retail tenant.” The suggestion that the historic chapel may become a restaurant caused uproar from local community members. According to Congressman Scott Peters’ official website, his office requested an investigation by the City Attorney. The plan was halted, but what remained was a structure in limbo.
In the years following, Liberty Station reshaped itself; breweries opened, restaurants buzzed with crowds, and gelato melted on children’s hands in sunny courtyards. The chapel remained unopened in a district otherwise reborn—until now, when Snake Oil Venue Company became its new stewards.
Photo Credit: Theshukans Film & Photo
If you’re wondering why a company known for cocktails is reopening a historic chapel, the answer is simple: they’re no longer just a cocktail company. In 2019, after a decade crafting cocktails, Snake Oil launched its first venue, Julep, and pivoted into full-service events. Growth snowballed from there. This April, it opened Bramble Bay in Imperial Beach, followed quickly by Vesper at Liberty Station. In just one year, its footprint jumped from 32,000 square feet of event space to more than half a million.
But, even as experienced venue operators, the chapel was a unique endeavor. “This wasn’t acquisition; it was responsibility,” says Snake Oil’s CEO Michael Esposito.
Photo Credit: Theshukans Film & Photo
The first time he walked inside, the neglect was unmistakable. “Here was a sacred San Diego landmark sitting quietly in a deteriorated state,” he recalls. Curtains were stained, corners layered with dust, and the once-ornate woodwork was overshadowed by a red carpet that “smelled like damp newspapers.”
The chapel had sat unoccupied since 2019, according to Joe Haeussler, executive vice president of Pendulum Properties Partners, which acquired the leasehold to the chapel and several other Liberty Station properties in 2018. After considering several proposals for the dormant space, Pendulum brought Snake Oil on in 2023 to reopen and steward the building. “We felt their plans were the most respectful of the historic asset and would open the building to the public in the right way,” Haeussler explained.
Photo Credit: Theshukans Film & Photo
Rather than impose a new vision, Snake Oil chose preservation. While it’s now an events space, it has retained its original intent as a gathering place for the community. Restoration, in this case, meant listening to the building. When the team began pulling up the carpeting, they uncovered exquisite, period-specific 1940s Douglas Fir flooring. They refinished the planks rather than replace them, breathing life back into the chapel’s historic foundation. Even the stained glass windows, which were not part of the original Navy design, remained. The earlier plans featured frosted panes that brought in soft, controlled daylight, but the stained glass had become part of the chapel’s collective memory. The restoration cost nearly $1.2 million.
Photo Credit: Theshukans Film & Photo
Beyond sentiment and preservation, the North Chapel’s renewed functionality includes a main hall which offers 4,000 square feet of flexible space and seats roughly 425 guests, with additional pew seating on a mezzanine. An adjacent side chapel adds another 600 square feet for more intimate gatherings. Outside, three connected exterior zones (over 3,000 square feet total) provide ample room for receptions, cocktail hours, or garden-style events.The venue will have a preferred-vendor list, with some flexibility for outside vendors. Beverage and cocktail service is handled exclusively by Snake Oil Cocktail Company.
“The building itself was the inspiration,” he says. Rather than dramatic alteration, the work focused on careful adjustment. “The building needed small, yet thoughtful, modifications to allow the building to be used for the new use. We worked through many options for how the building would function and at each stage thought through the potential historical ramifications.”
Photo Credit: Theshukans Film & Photo
As word spread of the restoration, the stories came streaming in, carried by people whose most meaningful life moments unfolded within its walls. “For some, it was a grandfather who found a moment of resolve here before leaving to serve in World War II,” says Esposito. “For others, a bride who walked down the aisle as a young woman, or the loved one of a first responder whose life was honored within these walls.” The stories varied, but the sentiment was shared: the chapel’s legacy matters.
Ingrid Yang, M.D., J.D. is a hospital-based physician in San Diego, CA, certified yoga therapist, and longevity specialist. She loves *double hearts* San Diego and spends her days helping people fully engage in long, healthy lives through evidence-based lifestyle medicine. Her books include Adaptive Yoga, Zen Mindfulness, and Hatha Yoga Asanas. When she’s not leading international wellness retreats, she is chasing sunsets, handstanding in nature, or geeking out over mitochondria.
If you’re anything like us, it can be easy to get so caught up in taking care of everyone else, that your own needs get lost in the ether. But while this may be a cliché, that doesn’t make it any less true: You can’t give your best self to other people unless you’re taking care of yourself.
Sometimes, that looks like stopping in for your regular acupuncture or chiropractic appointment. Other days, it means giving your body the fresh, organic fuel it needs to truly feel and function at its best. And some other times still, it involves leaving your responsibilities behind for a weekend to pamper yourself at an incredible resort and spa.
Only you can decide what your truly need. We’re just here to help you find the best ways to get it.
Tommy Bahama Miramonte Resort & Spa
Island living meets desert luxury at the Tommy Bahama Miramonte Resort & Spa in Indian Wells. When you step onto the 11-acre property, you’ll be surrounded by sweeping view of the Santa Rosa Mountains with olive trees and fragrant citrus groves decorating the grounds. In other words, everything about this relaxed but refined resort is primed to help you let go of the stress from home and enjoy easy sun-soaked days and gorgeous starry nights.
The rooms blend calming, woven textures with Tommy Bahama’s signature tropical prints and feature private lanais, making it easy unwind the moment you walk in the door. If you book one of the four Villa Suites, you’ll be treated to exclusive Tommy Bahama furniture and unique personal touches to further that feeling of instant ease.
At the award-winning Spa Rosa, the expert team will help reset and recharge your body and mind using methods and rituals inspired by the desert. The 12,000-square-foot retreat includes outdoor soaking pools, eucalyptus steam rooms, and outdoor cabanas, as well as massages, facials, and body masks—all aimed at creating a day dedicated to you. We’re particularly partial to the Day Long Escape, an indulgent all-day affair of CDBs soaks, renewing scrubs, life changing massages, and transformative facials.
Following your treatment, continue the experience with a meal on the patio at Grapefruit Basil. We love the Hamachi Crudo, a light, citrus-forward dish featuring premium yellowtail, house-made ponzu, creamy avocado, and fresh seasonal garnishes.
Whether you’re strolling the gardens, relaxing beside its saltwater pools, or indulging in a restorative treatment, you’ll be able to escape in style and relax in luxury at the Tommy Bahama Miramonte Resort & Spa.
Healcove Chiropractic
There’s no shortage of ways to stay active in San Diego—but if you really want to enjoy everything the city has to offer, you’ve got to make sure you’re giving your body its tune-ups. Enter: Healcove Chiropractic. The board-certified chiropractors and wellness professionals at Healcove are experts at addressing that stage where you’re not injured, exactly, but you’re not at 100%, either. Maybe you’re feeling a bit tense or stressed out. Or it could be that you’re not quite moving the way you want to. Sometimes, it’s just that the accumulation of days, weeks, or even years of daily strain is starting to take a toll. No matter what stage you find yourself at, the Healcove Chiropractic team can provide integrated, preventative care centered on long-term, science-backed approaches that ensure you can always stay active and live the life you want to live pain-free.
This starts by providing truly individualized care. Every patient can expect a thorough 60-minute consultation session that includes a posture and movement screening. This allows the team to develop a completely personalized plan. That plan might include chiropractic care, acupuncture, or massage therapy, as well as functional fitness training, vibration and sound therapy, and Dynamic Neuromuscular Stabilization, a clinical rehabilitation method that retrains the body’s stabilization systems. Whatever the team recommends, you can be sure that it’s tailored to meeting your body’s needs today and the future.
There’s a reason that San Diego Magazine named Healcove the “Best Chiropractor in San Diego”—don’t wait until you’re struggling with an injury to find out why. Book an appointment today for holistic, integrated care that helps ground and heal your body before it reaches a crisis point.
Juice Holler
West Coast wellness culture meets the community feel of Southern Appalachia at Juice Holler. Juice Holler’s menu consists of made-to-order smoothies and smoothie bowls, as well as grab-and-go cold-pressed juices, wellness shots, salads, and more. It operates from the blissfully simple premise that fueling up with food and drink that’s guilt-free and good your body should be simple, accessible, and, above all else, delicious. And if you haven’t yet made it out to the Encinitas café, which opened just this year, let us be the first to tell you: Juice Holler delivers on each and every of these fronts.
We love the Supercharger smoothie, a mood-lifting and body-fueling option made with banana, almond butter, blue spirulina, maca, grass-fed whey protein, raw cacao nibs, medjool dates, and coconut milk. We’re also partial to the Thrive Alive smoothie bowl, where avocado, mango, sea moss, spirulina, mint, coconut milk, and agave are mixed and topped with coconut, chia seeds, strawberry, mango, and chocolate drizzle. The wellness shots include the Detoxifier, a cleansing blend of kale, cucumber, lemon and spirulina, plus a shot specially designed to fight inflammation (named, fittingly, Anti-Inflammation). Probiotic overnight oats, lemon turmeric bars, and strawberry shortcake chia pudding are other standouts on the grab-and-go menu.
Much of the vibe feels beachy North County chic—think green tile with orange and pink accents, grounded with greenery and natural wood—but Juice Holler founder Kelly Sergott, a longtime Encinitas local, has also enfused the space with her Kentucky roots. In Appalachia, a holler is small valley between hills and mountains, where nature reigns, community is king, and nourishment comes right from the land. At Juice Holler, Sergott has created a holler for the busy modern times, using local ingredients to create a spot for people to come together and enjoy fresh, fast, feel-good fuel for their day.
Everwell Acupuncture
We’ve all had that experience with a medical professional where we’ve felt rushed, ignored, or misunderstood—and ultimately, like we didn’t get the answers that we needed. But at Everwell, the holistic acupuncture practice located in Solana Beach, the care team wants to transform your understanding of what healthcare can look like.
Patients at Everwell experience care rooted in intentional listening and radical empathy—and trust us, those aren’t just corporate buzzwords. This place actually puts those ideas into practice. You will always be given the time you need to tell your story— initial in-take appointments are two hours long—and you can rest assured that your story will be believed. Every single question and concern will be addressed by a dedicated practitioner who wants to find the specific solutions that work best for you, and you’ll receive care that’s aimed at healing the body, mind, and spirit.
Everwell’s highly trained, doctorate-level practitioners blend evidence-based acupuncture with the practice of classical Chinese medicine. (If you’ve never tried acupuncture before or aren’t sure if the team will be a fit, we’d highly recommended Everwell’s complimentary 20-minute consultations.) Research shows that by stimulating specific points on the body, acupuncture activates a natural healing response in the body, helping to restore balance, regulate the nervous system, and improve overall wellbeing. This allows the practice to address an incredibly wide range of conditions from chronic pain and autoimmune disorders to digestive issues, from stress and burnout to headaches migraines, fertility and postpartum struggles, hormonal imbalances, sleep concerns and more.
At Everwell, you can expect to feel heard, trusted, respected, and cared for. This is a space that doesn’t want to be just another healthcare provider you visit; it wants to provide patients with dedicated partner who will be there for their entire health journey.
