There San Diego Local Food Influencers to Follow
Courtesy of There San Diego
Remember when creating food content on Instagram involved snapping a pic of your desk lunch and captioning it #sandwich? Today’s standards for food posts are a little more rigorous—to earn a like, you have to be a veritable Stanley Kubrick of sushi shots and cheese pulls.And the creative folks scoping out local eateries and filming envy-inducing reels are more than just a great source for restaurant recs. Influencer attention can be integral to the health of small businesses, with viral videos helping alert hungry customers to otherwise-overlooked mom-and-pop establishments.So next time you’re torn on a dinner destination, look to the feeds of some of San Diego’s top food influencers. Here’s who to follow:
@SanDiegoFoodieFan
Darryl Gordon
Darryl immigrated to San Diego from Africa 27 years ago—and has been on the San Diego food scene ever since, amassing a platform of more than 30,000 Instagram followers. One swipe through Gordon’s account put my Uncrustable lunch to shame.@SanDiegoFoodieFan rapidly grew during Covid, when Darryl meticulously photographed food from plastic containers and to-go boxes. Watching the hardship his friends in the restaurant industry endured throughout the pandemic motivated him to continue showing off their hard work. His account now features mouth-watering Instagram Reels that receive thousands of views a day. “Being able to capture their passion on my Instagram account ignites my deep and authentic love of food and drink,” Gordon says.
@ThereSanDiego
Mike Cooch
A boon to visitors planning itineraries and locals seeking creative date ideas, @ThereSanDiego isn’t exclusively a food account, but you won’t have to scroll for long to find a must-try pastry or a restaurant with the best spicy marg in town. Account creator Mike Cooch’s mission is to promote small businesses to his 35,000-plus followers. An army kid and career chameleon, he spent a lifetime moving around, but once he settled in San Diego, he fell in love.“I wanted to throw myself into being as connected to the city as possible and share my enthusiasm for everything that makes San Diego great,” Cooch says. He is drawn to San Diego’s distinct neighborhoods, each with their own individual style, food, and culture—and his daily posts might just introduce you to your new favorite SoCal spot.
@CinfullyFoodie
Cindy Wang
By day, Cindy Wang is an optometrist with Kaiser Permanente. By night (and by weekend), she curates delectable food content on her Instagram @cinfullyfoodie. She launched her account three years ago, after becoming a double amputee, and it’s grown into a confidence-boosting creative outlet where she shares San Diego’s tastiest dishes for her 31,000 fans.Wang and her family originally immigrated to the US from China. “We faced a lot of financial hardships when we first moved here, but my parents worked very hard to make the American dream come true,” she says. As a result, Wang’s heart is firmly rooted in supporting family run businesses in San Diego, transforming her delicious posts into an ode to her family’s journey.
@SDFoodies
Chris & Ashley
With more than 400 thousand followers across TikTok and Instagram, Chris and Ashley have created one of San Diego’s most popular food-influencing platforms, @SDFoodies. The young fiancés began the account as a passion project, but it has snowballed into an engaged community of like-minded local food lovers from Imperial Beach up to Oceanside.Chris is the videographer, capturing aesthetically pleasing videos that accumulate more than 18 million monthly impressions, while Ashley focuses on the creative writing and ideation aspects of their social media accounts and blog.
