And here it is. Our biggest restaurant issue of the year, San Diego Magazine’s Best Restaurants. Every year, I eat out at a few hundred different restaurants. And every year, people ask me the same question: “How are you not dead yet?” The answer to that is that my midsection has begun making a canopy for my feet, yes. But I also have a “two bite rule,” meaning I am merely a taster of food. Two bites, and I’m done. Any more than that and I would grow so large that the gravity on earth would be thrown out of whack, and the rest of you would just be flung off into space.
When this issue is released, my inbox starts to swell with people’s opinions on it. They range from “THANK YOU!” to “YOU’RE AN IDIOT!” to “AMAZING!” to “IT’S RIGGED!” to “YOU’RE AN IDIOT!”
So this year, I figured I would answer a few of the questions I usually get, to hopefully clarify things ahead of time.
Q: Do advertisers pay to win categories? Is it rigged?
A: No. Absolutely not. Nyet. The Best Restaurants list is divided into two sections: Readers’ Pick and Critic’s Pick. The readers make their votes, and those votes are tabulated using a non-subjective tool called math. We do not insert advertisers in there, or give them extra votes, or help them in any way. This list is as pure as we can make it. The only thing that could change the readers’ pick is bad math or if it looks like a restaurant stuffed the ballot box (see below).
The Critic’s Choice is simply me and the hamster in my brain. I keep a list throughout the year of the best things I’ve been lucky enough to put in my mouth. It’s my little black book of San Diego’s most amazing food. In seven years as San Diego Magazine’s food critic, I have never, ever been asked by someone from the magazine to include an advertiser. I just fill out my ballot like the readers, based on my personal experience. A few restaurants have, however, offered upwards of a couple thousand dollars to name them a winner. I declined, which may explain my current living situation.
Q: Are Readers’ Picks a popularity contest? Can’t restaurants stuff the ballot box?
A: They can, and they do. But we have ways of sniffing out shenanigans. One way is that we can look at IP addresses and see if one was used hundreds of times. We also notice when a voter names the same restaurant in every category, e.g. an Indian restaurant wins every field, including “Best Mexican” and “Best Restaurant That’s Anything But Indian.” We don’t allow spam, and we account for that, but restaurants are allowed to promote and campaign.
Q: How the hell did readers pick XX Restaurant as Best XX?
A: The readers like what they like. I learned a while ago that my aesthetic tastes are not universal. My palate was not dipped in the River Styx. And therefore I will not begrudge the readers their favorites. After all, I named William Bradley my favorite chef in town, but I’ve been known to crush a rotisserie chicken in my car on the way home from Sprouts. And Thomas Keller, a very fine world-famous French chef, famously purchased In N Out for a staff party.
Q: Why isn’t my restaurant included?
A: To be honest, I don’t like naming restaurants “best.” Restaurant culture isn’t a tennis match. And because, with any category, there are usually a handful of restaurants that could “win” a category for me. For instance, with “Best New Restaurant,” I was hemming and hawing between Trust in Hillcrest and Herb & Wood in Little Italy. The ultimate deciding factor for me was that the team at Trust didn’t have the “name” going into this project that chef Brian Malarkey does at Herb & Wood. Malarkey’s restaurant is excellent, and beautiful, and deserving. But he also had more resources and momentum. The fact that Trust pulled off what they did with fewer resources inspired me. They MacGyvered a really great restaurant.
Also, every year I forget restaurants, or fail to get restaurants into the list. Last year, I completely spaced on Kindred, winner of this year’s “Best Vegetarian/Vegan.” This year, I’m ticked off that Flying Pig (Oceanside and Vista) and Land & Water Co. (Carlsbad) aren’t included in my picks. Those are two of my favorite restaurants in town that somehow didn’t fit the puzzle. And that’s what a list like this is—a puzzle.
Q: How is Sushi Ota not your Best Sushi Restaurant? Is your mouth injured? Everyone knows Master Ota is untouchable!
A: For those of you who still don’t know about Master Ota, do yourself a favor and find his restaurant. It’s in Pacific Beach, next to a 7/11 and a freeway. Ota has, and will be during his time on earth, the apex of sushi in San Diego. Local fishermen literally make all other restaurants wait at the docks until Master Ota has had his pick of the day’s very best catch.
That said, our sushi scene has evolved, and there are very excellent sushi chefs who deserve a nod. For me as a critic, sustainability plays a huge part. Our oceans have been looted, and they’re in danger of collapsing. Sushi is a major contributor to that plundering. That’s why, last year, I gave the award to Land & Water Co.—whose chef-owner, Rob Ruiz, is now one of the country’s top sustainable seafood experts, and runs his restaurant as such.
And this year, I picked another sustainable sushi chef who’s got major chops: Davin Waite of Wrench & Rodent in Oceanside. First of all, Davin’s a punk and has built a little skate-zen place that’s fun to hang out in. Second, he’s a really good, respectful, obsessive sushi chef. Third, he’s as sustainable as it gets. Ota will always be the yoda of the scene, but younger jedis deserve credit for helping in saving the universe.
Q: Hey, Critic! You chose Kettner Exchange as “Best of the Best, Casual”? That’s a fancy restaurant whose chef has cooked at the James Beard House!
A: You’re right. That’s odd. And not quite right on my part. Here’s what happened. There was no ignoring George’s California Modern this year as “Best of the Best, Fancy.” Trey Foshee has been one of the country’s top chefs for decades. This year they underwent a massive renovation of their bar area, and bartender Stephen Kurpinsky has become a real inspiration and innovator for the city’s cocktail scene. It was the year to honor one of the country’s best restaurants.
I had actually considered Kettner Exchange for that award, since it’s a beautifully designed spot and Brian Redzikowski’s food absolutely blew me away over the last year. So, I reasoned—Kettner has two very active bars, which makes it a social scene as much as a dining one, and aren’t bar areas, even nicer ones like theirs, casual? It may be flawed reasoning, but it was mine. And I wanted to shine as much light on KEX and Redzikowski and bartender Steven Tuttle as possible.
If you have any other questions, please feel free to leave them in the comments section below and I will answer as many as possible. Thanks, guys. Hope you enjoy the issue.
Behind the Best Restaurants Issue
Critic’s Pick for Best Caterer 2017: Miho. | Photo: Sam Wells
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.
Mike and AJ Aubuchon share one very important trait: Patience. The Aubuchons are the husband-and-wife team behind Koakai Brewing Company, a brewery that’s been in the works for roughly two years. Like many other food and drink businesses, they’ve faced delay after delay after delay. Lesser people would have given up—or at least seemed a lot more annoyed about it. I wouldn’t blame them one bit.
But the excitement in AJ’s voice is palpable. It’s like the night before Christmas for the duo, whose patience is about to pay off. Koakai is finally slated to open in Oceanside in mid- to late-April next to the Aubuchons’ other business, Kyoto Japanese Market.
Courtesy of Koakai Brewing
A North County native, Mike started his beer career in the bottle shop at Pizza Port Carlsbad before becoming a cellarman, then assistant brewer at the chain’s Ocean Beach shop. When the Carlsbad brewhouse needed a head brewer, he went back to his hometown and started racking up hardware at competitions like The Great American Beer Festival, where he won bronze in 2015, silver in 2017, and gold in 2020. He stayed for a little over 10 years before helping launch brewing operations at Heritage BBQ & Beer Co., now Hill Street Brewing.
Originally from Kyoto, Japan, AJ worked in restaurants from her teens until she moved to Oceanside to attend MiraCosta College. She also worked alongside Mike at Pizza Port, bartending, learning about craft beer, and making connections with other people in the industry—relationships they plan to bring into their operations through collaborative brews.
“Koakai” has a double meaning: “warrior for the sea” in Hawaiian and “a little red” in Japanese. “My maiden name in Japanese is Kaiho and that means ‘saving the ocean,’” AJ explains, adding that when she first met Mike, a lifelong ocean lover, he was working as a professional surfboard shaper. “Also, my husband has a lot of Irish in his heritage, so our kids—we have four children—they all have a kind of reddish tint in their hair… so it kind of means heritage and family.”
Courtesy of Koakai Brewing
Koakai’s inaugural lineup will feature a flagship Japanese lager, German schwarzbier, West Coast IPA, hoppy pilsner, Mexican lager, XPA, and a few collaborations like a West Coast IPA with RahrBSG, a craft malt supplier, and yet another IPA made with specialty hops, this one a collab with Cannonball Creek Brewing Company from Colorado. They’ll likely add more drinks later, such as a house seltzer, and dry Irish stouts on nitro, and even feature some imported Japanese sake.
Patrons will be able to pick up food—items like onigiri, Japanese-style sandwiches, bento boxes, and sushi—from Kyoto Japanese Market next door. The brewery’s kitchen will offer fresh sushi as well as its signature blend of Japanese, Hawaiian, and Central Texas-style barbecue, similar to what the market currently serves on weekends (think sticky ribs, charcoal-grilled steaks, and yakitori-style chicken). Some of the dishes are based on AJ’s childhood favorites, like hambagu, a Japanese hamburger steak.
“It’s almost like a hamburger patty, but it’s more like meatloaf,” she explains. “It has a lot of different ingredients, caramelized onions, ginger, garlic, bread crumbs, and eggs.”
A lot—and I mean a lot—has changed in the craft beer world since the Aubuchons entered the scene, and they know it’s not an easy landscape for them right now. But they’ve both been around the beer block a time or two. They’re ready. “It’s our time to show people what we’ve learned and what we can do,” says AJ.
Koakai Brewing Company opens at 559 Greenbrier Drive, Suite B, in Oceanside in mid- to late April 2026.
Photo Credit: Elodie Bost
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Beth’s Bites
Lilo made huge headlines when the Carlsbad restaurant by John Resnick and chef Eric Bost earned a Michelin star less than two months after opening, but its next milestone takes place on Friday, April 17. To celebrate the first anniversary of opening its doors, chefs Travis Swikard (Callie, Fleurette), Tara Monsod (Animae, Le Coq), and Jason McLeod (Ironside Fish & Oyster) will join Bost for a one- night-only collaborative dinner with courses from each chef (the menu will be announced later, but I feel pretty safe predicting it’ll be world-class). Reservations are open now and will likely go quickly.
In Tagalog, “kain tayo!” means “let’s eat!” That’s exactly what I plan to do on Saturday, April 11, at Fall Brewing’s Miramar location during the Kain Tayo Fiesta, a Filipino festival with food vendors like Luna’s Lunpias, Snoice, All Things Ube, and more. Diners will also enjoy artists, live music, DJs, retail vendors, dance exhibitions, and even live tattooing. The free and family-friendly event starts at noon, and if you happen to have some new or gently used skate gear hanging around your house, bring it along. The festival coordinators are putting together a box to send to skaters in the Philippines so they can keep shredding.
The Busalacchi family has been a San Diego institution since Joe Busalacchi opened Casanova’s Pizza in La Mesa in 1984. Since then, the Sicilian dynasty has only expanded its reach across the city’s dining scene, operating joints like Café Zucchero, Barbusa, Nonna, and Lala. This year, the family’s restaurant group will celebrate 40 years of pizza, pasta, and Peronis. The family that cooks together stays together, so it seems, so congrats to the whole Busalacchi fam—and here’s to another 40 years.
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.
Givino Rossini knows there are already a lot of great specialty coffee shops in San Diego. He likes to think he runs two of them already: Kettle On Grand in Escondido and Kettle On Main in Fallbrook. But rather than open another conventional coffee shop—with a few fun pastries and community events like DJ nights—he decided to kick it up a notch for his third location in Oceanside, Kettle On Coast.
“This is going to lean a lot more restaurant than fast-casual coffee shop,” he explains. The space, which housed Petite Madeline Bakery until March 15, comes with a full kitchen—something the first two Kettle Ons don’t have. And the menu won’t be typical coastal California avocado toasts and acai bowls. Chef David Lay, who’s worked at restaurants like the Michelin Bib Gourmand Kettner Exchange as chef de cuisine and at Juniper & Ivy as chef de partie, is spearheading the kitchen, developing to-go breakfast and lunch menu along with a pastry and coffee program.
Photo Credit: @mmmunchies.sandiego
“I describe the food as rooted in African diasporic flavors and traditions, with influences from the Mediterranean and the Levant [the land bridge between Africa and Eurasia]. The opening menu is really meant to be an introduction to some of those ingredients, spices, and techniques in a way that feels approachable,” Lay explains. “But the long term vision is to continue exploring African culinary traditions more deeply as the menu evolves.”
The opening menu includes items like French toast with a cinnamon sugar crust, Moroccan tres leches, and crème fraîche; miso cheddar grits with a sunny-side-up egg, berbere (an Egyptian spice blend), and chives; Aleppo fried chicken with chermoula (a North African sauce and marinade somewhat similar to chimichurri), tahini, preserved lemon relish, and herbs; and a grilled mochi with honey, berbere, and crème fraîche for dessert. Guests will order at the counter and either take their food to go or have it delivered to their table.
Courtesy of Fox Point Farms
Kettle On Coast will soft-open in early April, initially rolling out between nine and 15 of Lay’s menu items and ramping it up from there. Rossini expects to have everything in place for a grand opening in early summer and hopes to introduce the same sort of community-specific events to Oceanside as he has in Escondido and Fallbrook.
“Each location has its own unique kind of concept and energy around that space,” he says. “We kind of tailor each space to what we feel is missing or what’s needed in that community.” In Escondido, it’s been events like skate competitions, while Fallbrook has put on poetry readings. But in Oceanside, the future is yet to be written.
Kettle On Coast will soft-open at 223 N. Coast Hwy. in Oceanside in April 2026. Initial operating hours will be Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Courtesy of Boba Religion
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
First-Gen Boba Shop Celebrates One Year in Kearny Mesa
I only got really into boba tea in the last couple of years, but once you go full “QQ,” you never go back. For those unfamiliar with the concept, QQ is a Taiwanese term referring to the springy, chewy texture of elastic-y foods that seem to bounce against your teeth—things like fish balls, tendon, or boba pearls. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea (pun intended), but if it’s yours, tons of tea shops have sprung up around San Diego to satisfy a wide range of flavor cravings, from classic milk tea to out-there options like matcha-mango with cheese foam and popping pearls.
If you’re not sure where to start, Boba Religion in Convoy District is celebrating its one-year anniversary on March 21-22, giving patrons a chance to try the shop’s Vietnamese-sourced tea, coffee, matcha, and other specialty drinks with a buy-one, get-one-free promotion on Saturday and buy-one, get-one-half-off on Sunday. So, whether you’re a QQ fan already or QQ-curious, this weekend might be a good time to give the squishy, fun to chew pearls a try.
Courtesy of Garibaldi
Beth’s Bites
In all my travels, I haven’t yet made it to the Adriatic shores of Croatia. So when I saw Garibaldi at the InterContinental San Diego is highlighting the Land of a Thousand Islands for its next monthly Mediterranean dinner series, I decided to take a peek at the menu. From Friday, March 20, through Sunday, March 22, executive chef Franck Tasic and his team have put together a menu of interesting coastal items like salata od rajčice (a Croatian tomato salad), fuži s tartufima (homemade Istrian fuži pasta), and knedle sa šljivama (plum dumplings) for dessert, with an optional Croatian wine pairing available. Sign me up for a sail through the Adriatic!
An’s Gelato has ranked No.1 on national and local ice cream lists since USA Today named it the best ice cream shop in the United States two years in a row—something we San Diegans already knew, of course. The creative creamery now operates locations in North Park on Adams Avenue (I don’t dare say Normal Heights, lest angry readers correct me in a huff), Del Mar, Ocean Beach, and Petco Park. This summer, An’s will come to Oceanside at the Top Gun house. The iconic Queen Anne cottage—at the Mission Pacific Beach Resort next to Valle—housed the hand-pie shop High Pie from 2022 through 2025, and if I had to guess, the high-traffic location will be home to the popular scoop shop for quite a few years to come.
Padres opening day is right around the corner—Thursday, March 26, to be exact—and there’s no shortage of parties around town to kick off the season. Close to the ballpark, the rooftop at Margaritaville Hotel San Diego Gaslamp Quarter will start rocking at 3 p.m. with a DJ and drink specials, or fans can grab a $18 beer and a shot at The Blind Burro just northwest of Petco. And for a little pre-season excitement, stop by Harland Brewing in Scripps Ranch on Tuesday, March 24, for a free meet-and-greet with the Padres’ Jake Cronenworth from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. While you’re waiting in line—because you know there will be a line to meet #9—try the Crone Zone, Harland’s collaborative brew with the popular infielder. I’ve had it (more than once…), and it gets my drinks expert stamp of approval.
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.
After 13 years of serving only-in-San Diego favorites like a Cardiff Crack sando and cocktails like a bacon-cheddar vodka-infused Bloody Mary mixed with housemade tomato juice—Bier Garden Encinitas is ready to take their show on the road. They’ll open a second location in downtown Oceanside on Monday, March 16.
Owner David Creviston is hardly the first to eyeball the coastal North County city as a food and drink destination. Key & Cleaver, Odie’s Pizza, Merenda, and 24 Suns have all either recently opened or are on the cusp of opening in Oceanside, and Bier Garden’s location just steps from local institutions like one Michelin-starred Valle and Craft Coast (who, hilariously, is reverse-migrating to open their own new location in Encinitas).
“I think the culture of our new restaurant is going to fit incredibly well here,” he says. North County vibes tend to be chill, but still lean on a bit of a higher-end side. Creviston says he wants to offer a laid-back type of place where you can bring a date just as easily as your grandparents, but still get a great cocktail and food.
Courtesy of Bier Garden San Diego
The food and drink menus will look very similar to Encinitas—short rib nachos, Baja fish tacos, and the signature Cheeseburger 101, plus 24 taps of craft beer, craft cocktails, and a slightly bigger wine list. (“We have a bigger wine cabinet,” he explains.) They’ll also be able to try a few new specials like a bulgogi bowl and lake trout to see how they hit with guests.
With March Madness coming up quickly, Creviston says he hopes to be a destination for viewing parties and other future sporting events. “We’ve structured the bar to be an indoor-outdoor patio bar, similar to Encinitas,” he explains. The Oceanside spot will have a total of 16 TVs—not to become a dedicated sports bar, per se, but to at least be a destination for people who want to catch a game and some grub that goes beyond a pile of soggy tots.
Bier Garden Oceanside opens at 201 N. Cleveland Street, Oceanside on Monday, March 16. Hours will be Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Friday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Courtesy of Mike’s Red Tacos
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Mike’s Red Tacos Goes National
Who doesn’t love a San Diego success story? Rubio’s may have been the first local taco chain to make it big, but Mike’s Red Tacos has made a huge run in the hand-held taco land. Originally launched as a food truck only a few years ago (and quickly getting named one of the top places to eat by Yelp in 2023), the birria-based chain currently only has three locations in San Diego (Point Loma, Clairemont Mesa, and the newest in Mira Mesa). Now, it’s going the massive franchise route, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune, Mike’s fans can expect to see 200-plus new locations across the country over the next couple of years.
Photo Credit: Mandie Geller
Beth’s Bites
Lately, there have been a lot of changes with the Puesto group. We said goodbye to the awesome but poor-locationed Roma Norte, hello to Puesto Taco Bar, and are patiently awaiting Ikaria, a new Eastern Mediterranean concept coming later this year. Now there’s a new executive chef at the helm of Marisi. Kaitlyn Smith, most recently the chef de cuisine at Wildland in Carlsbad, is in command of the impeccably designed Italian eatery in the heart of downtown La Jolla. It sounds like the heart of the menu will remain the same (still making all the pasta from scratch, of course), but expect a few tweaks to the entrees and antipasti menu.
Pi Day is (nearly) upon us and I’d be remiss to avoid mentioning Pop Pie Co.’s 9th annual Pi Day celebration—this year with three different collaborative pies with local chefs. Chef Tara Monsod from Animae and Le Coq is bringing a pie inspired by tinola, a traditional Filipino chicken soup typically made with ginger, garlic, and fish sauce, with hers folded with Yukon potatoes, green papaya, spinach and green onion. The Friendly taps in next with Rob Striker’s take on the eatery’s signature dirty flat top cheeseburger with grilled beef, butter braised onions, American cheese, garlic aioli, and banana peppers wrapped in an all-butter crust. (As the first Pi Day without The Friendly founder Brandon Zanavich, this one feels particularly significant). Finally, Matt Lyons from Tribute Pizza brings it home with his You Knew This Was Coming Pizza Pie with mozzarella, Bianco DiNapoli crushed tomatoes, pickled jalapeños, red onion, smoked cheddar, and an everything bagel crust. All of these will be available at each Pop Pie location on Saturday, March 14 until sold out and yes, as is tradition, the first 20 guests at each location will also get a free slice of sweet pie.
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.
Whenever I write a “Best Of” roundup, it inevitably triggers an immediate onslaught of “yOu FoRgOt So AnD sO” comments (ransom note grammar intentional).
But I’m an adult. I can admit I may have made a teeny-tiny oversight when compiling last year’s list of great burgers in San Diego and neglecting to mention Copper Kings Burgers. You readers knew it when you voted them runners-up for “Best Burger” in 2025’s Best Restaurants issue. I humbly accept 10 seconds of well-deserved scorn… starting now.
Now that we’ve established Copper Kings Burgers does indeed slap, I have more good news. The North County–based burger joint that believes “life’s too short for crappy burgers” is opening a second location in Oceanside at the end of April.
Founders Jonathan Petr and Dermot Owens originally came up with Copper Kings with their partners Brittany Howlett (head of baking) and Korey Kaczur (catering sales manager), initially hoping to open a whiskey bar and burger joint. But when the pandemic hit, Petr realized no one in their right mind was going to invest in a new restaurant while the world was shut down.
Petr operated a food truck before in Los Angeles around 2012, so he and Owens decided to first go mobile to get some brand recognition. Since bars and breweries had to serve food to stay open, “we became a hot commodity,” he says. In a few years, they got popular enough to need a bigger trailer, then a second trailer, and opened their flagship brick-and-mortar in San Marcos in 2023.
Courtesy of Copper Kings Burgers
Thanks to Owens’ Irish heritage and die-hard Arsenal fandom, the San Marcos spot has been a destination for football (soccer) fans—showing European Premier and Champion League games. He says they plan to do the same in Oceanside with Guinness game-day specials and early morning watch parties. With the new location’s bigger size (about twice the capacity of San Marcos, with a private dining space and outdoor patio), it’ll act as both a second restaurant location and central kitchen, cranking out baked goods like their signature Japanese milk buns for the burgers.
Oceanside’s menu will mirror San Marcos, but with a few more items thanks to the extra space, like a fried chicken plate and seasonal pasta. “We have so much more capabilities over there to do so many more fun things we were talking about doing,” says Petr, like new weekend pastries and breakfast sandwiches, a supper club, and more. “The sky’s the limit for what we’re trying to do. We’re just excited to do it.”
Even though Copper Kings #2 isn’t open yet, Petr says they’re always open to opportunities for new locations—maybe Cardiff, maybe somewhere else nearby, but most likely still in North County. “It’s the hope, the goal, the dream,” he says. “We’re always keeping our eye out.”
Copper Kings Burgers soft opens at 326 N. Horne Street in Oceanside at the end of April. Initial operating hours will be Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Friday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to midnight.
Courtesy of Ponzu Sushi
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Palm Springs Sushi Darling Ponzu Sushi Opening in Liberty Station
I don’t usually think of Palm Springs as a “sushi destination,” but based on Ponzu Sushi’s reputation, maybe I should. The cocktail bar and sushi spot first opened near the Forever Marilyn Monroe statue in July 2024, and things must have gone gangbusters since, because the team decided to open the next location right here in San Diego—Liberty Station, to be precise.
“We chose San Diego for our second location because we personally love the city and visit often,” says Ponzu founder, Nat Tangkitsombat. “It’s a place we’ve always enjoyed spending time in, and we felt it would be a great community to introduce our style of modern Japanese fusion—upscale but still approachable.”
That could also be the description of Liberty Station, so good fit. If all goes well with construction, permits, and luck, Ponzu should open in late summer, bringing along yellowtail carpaccio, seared salmon belly, and more tasty faves from the cold waters of the Pacific.
Photo Credit: Matt Furman
Beth’s Bites
Chef Accursio Lota (Dora, Cori Trattoria Pastificio) earned the rare Tre Forchette (Three Forks) distinction from Gambero Rosso this year (basically, Michelin for Italy). It’s a huge deal for the accomplished chef—only 34 restaurants outside of Italy (and just 11 in the United States) nabbed the honor. Cori also earned Due Bottiglie (Two Bottles) for its top-notch wine program. If you aren’t convinced yet that San Diego restaurants continue to be on the up and up, you need to open your eyes—or better yet, your mouth.
Even stars need facelifts sometimes—perhaps especially those who wish to keep shining brightly. Addison by William Bradley turns 20 this year. In restaurant years, that’s a pretty good time for a refresh. Starting April 1, the three Michelin-starred restaurant will close for seven weeks to bring in new tables and chairs, paint and lights, and even develop part of the bar into a champagne lounge. Afterwards, the team will celebrate the 20-year milestone with some yet-to-be-announced chef dinners.
Since its First Look, Fleurette has already caused a frenzy among foodies (say that 10 times fast) and is still racking up reservations faster than summer camp slots at the San Diego Zoo. (All you parents out there feel the pain, I know.) But chef Travis Swikard’s first baby, Callie, still might be the best restaurant in San Diego, and has a full slate of excellent events lined up for your palate pleasure. On Thursday, March 26, the ongoing chef series “Flavors of the Sun” welcomes chef José Luis Hinostroza of ARCA from Tulum, named in both the 50 Best Restaurants and the 50 Best Bars lists for 2025, as well as the 2026 Michelin Guide. It’ll be a five-course, seafood-centric family style feast (with an optional cocktail pairing), and $5 from every ticket will go directly to Feeding San Diego. Reservations are open now, but won’t last long.
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.
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.
