The post The Jetty To Open in Former Voltaire Beach House Location appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>“We want to be a place for people in town,” says Jaworski. “Ocean Beach is a very unique community, and a unique market where it’s important that you cater to the locals.”
Jaworski says The Jetty is not a gastropub but is reluctant to define exactly what it will be. He calls it a beach pub-meets-lounge with an “eclectic menu” that will draw a lot from Widman’s craft beer and cocktail experience and dishes they feel OB currently lacks. “But I don’t want to give away too much about our menu ideas yet because it’s still a work in progress,” he laughs.
But he knows one thing for sure—they’re committed to contributing to the local OB community. Jaworski estimates he worked for the NZ Eats Group (Raglan Public House, Queenstown Public House) for around 14 years and has been on the Board of Directors of Ocean Beach Main Street Association for nearly nine years. Widman is part-owner of Ocelot Brewing Company in Virginia, was the sales manager for Amplified Ale Works for years, and was the bar manager at local OB spots The Joint and The Bowl. All this is to say that one, they have the industry chops, and two, Ocean Beach has become home to both over the years. They feel ready to create a gathering space that fits with the, shall we say, particular OB flavor.
Part of that means renovating the former Voltaire Beach House, both physically and psychically. Voltaire Beach House first opened in January 2017 and unceremoniously closed this September amid allegations of theft, assault, and other accusations from both managers and employees, according to Fox 5 San Diego.
“There were some bad vibes, bad blood,” he says. “Just not a good feeling about the place from the community… [but] we really feel that with our connections to the community, we can make this an anchor for his side of town.” Renovations will be primarily aesthetic, but Jaworski says they plan to rebuild the outdoor patio and update some paint and finishes to spruce up the place. They’ll also work on community events with adjacent businesses and subtenants, such as The Artist Outpost.
It’ll take a lot of work, probably some luck, definitely some money, and heaps of resolve. But Jaworski says getting the opportunity to leave their mark, especially in that area of OB, is worth it. “To be able to actually own a business in town is an awesome, awesome feeling.”
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
New Updates On That Brewpub on Adams Avenue
Well, it didn’t open this fall, out Collin Corrigan, founder of Cerveceria Transpeninsular in Ensenada and former partner in El Cruce in Chula Vista, says he and his wife are the new managers of what will be known as Una Mas, opening in March 2025.
The mixed-use space at 2611 Adams Avenue will still be beer-focused, with a heavy emphasis on San Diego local beer from places like AleSmith, Karl Strauss, Coronado, Ballast Point, and Pizza Port, as well as Baja breweries like Insurgente, Transpeninsular, Wendlandt, Baja Brewing, and more. Corrigan says there will also be wines, kombuchas, and NA offerings as well, with Mexican-inspired street food and pub favorites on the menu. The indoor/outdoor concept will be kid- and pet-friendly. “Myself and the partners are all born and raised here in San Diego, so that makes us very proud to do this,” he says.
Beth’s Bites
- Roseacre is coming to La Jolla in the spring 2025 from owners Paul Basile (Basile Studio) and Jules Wilson (Jules Wilson Design Studio). The duo will also be behind the design of the restaurant set to replace Adelaide’s flower shop at 7766 Girard Avenue, with chef Erik Anderson tapped to head the kitchen. Anderson has a star-studded past, working in kitchens like Coi in San Francisco and earning two Michelin stars as executive chef. His resume is glitteringly impressive—The French Laundry, Noma. We already had eyes on La Jolla, so now I’ll spare another one because that area just can’t stop, won’t stop.
- A grab-and-go concept called Quick Bites opens in Little Italy in January, promising high-quality convenience for us tornado people on the go. As a working parent, I have basically zero time to screw around on any given day, so I say hallelujah! Did I mention there will be cold brew, too?
- The Midway District is on the precipice of massive change but it’s not immune from the typical restaurant turnover. At 3145 Sports Arena Boulevard, Round Table Pizza is out (buh-bye!), and Kiiro Sushi Izakaya is in. I’m not sure yet when this swap will happen, but hey, there’s always an In-N-Out across the street while you wait.
- The sister businesses Tablespoon and Collins & Coupe are hosting The Twelve Tastes of Christmas this month, with a different local vendor on hand every day for you to meet, greet, and shop with directly. Check their Instagram for upcoming vendors’ schedules, including a mobile knife sharpener and a few local bitters companies.
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].
The post The Jetty To Open in Former Voltaire Beach House Location appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>The post Sneak Peek: Chef Brad Wise’s A’L’ouest Coming to North Park appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>And now chef Brad Wise—the stocky mensa chef who first woodsmoked his way into North Park hearts with his debut restaurant Trust—is opening his dream French spot. It’s going into the iconic corner of 30th and University Ave in May, 2025 (gods willing).
It’s going to be named A’L’ouest, which sounds like a spendy cologne and means “to the west.” It’ll seat 200, with a massive patio. It’ll be open and airy with Bill Walton-sized windows. He wants every damn seat to have a view of the North Park sign. It’ll serve riffs on all-day French classics that smell like the good part of camping.
“This corner is special,” says Wise. “It’s where I wanted to put my first restaurant.”
But he couldn’t because he hadn’t earned it yet. When he opened Trust in 2016, no one knew what to make of this chef nicknamed Panda (he’s apparently real good at MMA, nearly pro or something, and would often show up to the kitchen with a shiner). Trust was SDM’s “New Restaurant of the Year” back then and it only kept spawning good things—Fort Oak, Rare Society (steakhouse), Wise Ox (a marinated meatery and un-vegan sandwich spot), Cardellino, and Wild Child (an ice cream experience). He’s opened a handful of Rare Societys across California and, soon, Vegas.
Now that we got the details out of the way, let’s riff.
Finally. This corner was sad and particle-boarded for too long, front and center at North Park’s pearly gates like a protest against negronis and social facilitation. I’m sure the asking price wasn’t small. North Park is the next food-scene promised land; Little Italy east with more facial hair-based irony. A marquee spot like this often requires out-of-town money, nice people but not people who know the neighborhood. Instead, it got Brad, who’s been dreaming of this spot for eight years.
“The restaurant’s a nod to my journey out this way,” says Wise, who started cooking in Jersey as a kid. “I started in a French kitchen. Not a high end fancy one—a blue-collar New York-style kitchen where everyone was classically trained.”
It’ll be designed by San Diego’s GTC Design, the same people who’ve built all of Wise’s places, including Fort Oak’s 50s-era Ford dealership that has pretty incredible car-salesmen-and-veneers vibes. Vegetation everywhere.
“When we went to Paris, they do such a great job of balancing city life with nature—soil and minerals and natural stone,” he says.
We’re both afraid to stereotype, but if it’s ok, it seems like he’d like a traditionally feminine vibe to it. I’m thinking Jeune et Jolie when he says it, but maybe I’m wrong.
The space is basically square, with a big wraparound patio that stretches down 30th street, and the main seating part along University. For food, think unpretentious, wood-smoked brasserie classics, like tartare, steak frites with au poivre, coq au vin, pastas, and some brunch ideas.
“How do you bridge duck a l’orange with scrambled eggs and toast?” he asks. “The most important thing for me is consistency. Something you can count on. I wanna have a beef tartare so good and consistent that it’s the same for 25 years.”
Beverage director Jess Stewart will do cocktails (“delicate, effervescent” say her people), French and California wines from wine director Ben Zuba.
The post Sneak Peek: Chef Brad Wise’s A’L’ouest Coming to North Park appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>The post New York-Style Bagel Shop Opening in North Park appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>“It’s one percent good water, 99 percent good technique and quality ingredients,” explains Mike Rabinowitz, owner of Marigold Bagels. He gets that question all the time. So, as a former chemist who worked in pharmaceuticals for 30-plus years, he decided to test the pervasive theory scientifically.
He brought back some water from New York and made two batches of bagels—one using the New York water and one using San Diego tap water. “I blind taste-tested with some food experts I know, and no one could identify the New York bagel,” he laughed. “There are a lot of good bagels you can have in this country. It’s just making them with care.”
Since launching Marigold Bagels in 2022 as a cottage food operation (what he calls Phase 1), Rabinowitz has expanded quickly, moving to a virtual kitchen (Phase 2) as demand grew. Next summer, he’ll launch Phase 3: his first brick-and-mortar bagel shop at 2850 El Cajon Boulevard, Suite C.
He says it was always the long-term plan to open his own place. “This is a passion project for me,” he says. Born in Brooklyn and raised in Long Island, Rabinowitz says bagels were a part of every major life event, from births to deaths and everything in between. He wanted to bring it to San Diego, where he’s lived since 2001, minus a brief stint in Boston. “Bagels are a part of my culture.”
He methodically tested recipes and ingredients before settling on his process, which he says is meant to be chewy on the inside, thanks to hand-rolling and high-gluten flour. “That’s one thing we add to it, and the other is a highly blistered, somewhat crispy crust. That is unusual, but those are more like the bagels I used to have as a kid,” he explains. “The product just comes out differently.”
Currently, Rabinowitz only sells his bagels and housemade cream cheese spread varieties at the Mission Valley Farmers Market on Saturdays, with pre-order pickups in Point Loma on Sundays. Since he’s pretty much a one-person operation for now, minus a business consultant-slash-social media manager, he says he’ll have to pause doing the market starting December 28 to focus on the buildout and renovation, but he’ll be back to satisfy loyal regulars as well as attract new customers.
In the meantime, he says he’s looking at different designers to help him transform the space in North Park into a brighter, airier one with more windows and a larger, open kitchen. Permits permitting, he hopes to be open next June. “I can’t commit to that,” he says half-jokingly. “[But] I’m hoping to get everything done within six months.”
When Marigold does open, he’ll start with five days a week for breakfast and lunch, with the possibility of opening seven days a week in the future. He’ll offer the same bagel and cream cheese flavors as he does now, including his best-selling everything bagels, salt bagels made with Maldon salt, and za’atar bagels. He’ll also add a full coffee and tea menu, traditional Jewish deli items like whitefish salad, cured and smoked salmon, bagel sandwiches like a classic bacon-egg-cheese, and new cream cheese spreads and other toppings.
Eventually, he hopes to implement an online ordering system for grab-and-go catering options and says he’s open to adding beer and wine for evening events. However, Rabinowitz says his method of starting small and assessing success to avoid growing too quickly has worked well, and he’s in no rush.
“It’s part of the fabric of life in New York,” he says. “I wanted to have it in a community like North Park to really integrate that type of space and that type of comfort food in the community, and have people think of it as maybe a little bit of home—especially for East Coast transplants.”
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Tour de Tapas Takes Former Papalo Space in La Mesa
The City Tacos/Papalo partnership may have ended before it even began, but the 8323 La Mesa Boulevard space wasn’t empty for long. City Tacos founder Gerry Torres opened Tour de Tapas this week with a menu focused on small plates and affordability. Almost every dish on the menu costs less than $20, and the remaining three don’t exceed $24. Dishes include pulpo a la Gallega, filet mignon, crêpes Suzette, calamari ripieni, and plenty of wine from France, Italy, and Spain.
Beth’s Bites
- The newly revamped and re-loved Hotel La Jolla has tapped a new exec chef—Ernest Lopez will oversee the whole property, including the top-floor, massive-window showpiece, Sea & Sky. Lopez has a pretty hefty pedigree: part of the opening team for the Grand Del Mar, serving as exec chef at the original Malibu Farms location (plus helping open five more locations across the state), and running the kitchen at Auberge’s Mauna Lani.
- Speaking of beverages, I would like to try one of the seasonal cocktails at George’s at the Cove, specifically the South Pole. Made with Santa Teresa coffee cask rum, cacao rum, egg white, garam masala bitters, and cinnamon, it sounds precisely like the type of winter warmer I’m into.
- There is not enough lasagna in the world, and I would like to see much more of it regularly. Tribute Pizza must have heard my plea to the universe, and they will offer their wonderfully colorful, deliciously layered lasagna this month. I literally could not be happier about this fortuitous turn of culinary events.
- Live Más this holiday season at Taco Bell’s first Live Más café, which opened at 1548 E. H Street in Chula Vista. The concept spotlights the chain’s beverages rather than food, featuring specialty coffees, agua frescas, and other one-of-a-kind drinks. Christmas came early this year.
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].
The post New York-Style Bagel Shop Opening in North Park appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>The post Moniker General Outpost Soft Opens in North Park appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>The shop, which will be part coffee shop and part retail space, sits on the ground floor of the new mixed-use building, The Waldorf, on the corner of Iowa Street and University Avenue. Ryan Sisson, Moniker’s CEO, says that despite the plethora of existing coffee shops closer to 30th Street, he views the eastern end of University as up-and-coming. “We’re kind of on the fringe, but there are still a lot of neighbors over there,” he explains.
Plus, the opportunity to completely redesign a 2,000-square-foot space with outdoor seating in a bustling neighborhood doesn’t come around that often. Sisson initially launched Moniker General with Nathan Cadieux, who now owns Purpose, the real estate development company behind The Waldorf. The chance to collaborate on the space was too good to pass up, and Sisson says if Moniker’s investment in the building proves successful, it could be the start of a bigger expansion plan for the business.
As a smaller “outpost” of Moniker General in Liberty Station, they will offer the same coffee and food menus and a curated selection of Moniker-designed and approved retail items like gifts, home goods, and home-based coffee equipment. There won’t be a bar element, but the other retail suite will eventually be home to a high-end Mexican restaurant from Chantelle and Crystal Godinez, the sisters behind Sunday Breakfast Society in Chula Vista. But at the heart of the project, Sisson says Moniker’s ultimate goal is to add to North Park’s already stellar reputation as a destination for coffee connoisseurs.
“There are a lot of people who enjoy good coffee experiences in that part of town, and we want to be a part of that,” he says. “We just want to be that community hub, where you come and feel comfortable and welcome and greeted with a smile… that’s what we’re here for.”
Moniker General Outpost is scheduled to soft open in December 2024, with a grand opening in January 2025.
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
San Diego Celebrates the Feast of Seven Fishes
Despite the Emmys’ inexplicable insistence that the FX show, The Bear is a comedy, at least one episode firmly rejects that notion. I’m talking about “Fishes,” Season 2, episode 6, depicts the traditional Italian-American Christmas Eve celebration where the host serves at least seven different types of seafood. Fans of the show will remember that it didn’t go so well for the fictional family. Still, San Diegans are in luck—several restaurants are hosting their versions this year, including Mabel’s Gone Fishing (on December 23) and Cori (December 18-23). Want to brave making the feast yourself? Check your local fish market, like The Fish Shop’s locations or Nico’s Fish Market’s new spot in Pacific Beach, to peruse their fresh selection. I hope it ends better for you than for Jamie Lee Curtis.
Bread & Cie’s 30th Anniversary Weekend Celebration
Bread & Cie was one of the first to realize that designer gluten is the cornerstone of a life well-lived. It’s got a hell of a story, founded in 1994 by Charles Kauffman—who wrote and directed b-movies, including the disturbingly iconic cult classic, Mother’s Day. This weekend, December 14-15, Charles and his generations of breadren (sorry) celebrate their 30th anniversary at their Hillcrest location. They’ll have a baguette eating competition on Saturday, a Bread & Pie confessional booth where people can share memories, and 50 percent of proceeds will be donated to the Voices of Our City Choir.
Lou Lou’s Jungle Room
Beth’s Bites
- What would the end of 2024 be without one more blow? After eight years in business, Rouleur Brewing announced they are closing their doors on New Year’s Eve. Best of luck to Rawley Macias and the rest of the Rouleur team.
- In better news, Pizzeria El Jefe has officially opened at 560 Broadway in Chula Vista, serving Mexican-inspired pizzas that I have to imagine will taste significantly better than the alternative. (Although, I’m game for a side-by-side tasting. For science.)
- As someone raised in Virginia with plenty of family still there, no holiday is complete without at least one Virginia ham. For a more local option, I suggest stopping by Iowa Meat Farms for one of their double-smoked hams, which are sure to be less salt, but still delicious in their own right.
- I’ve always been an early riser and rarely a night owl, which means 364 nights out of the year, I’m in bed at or before 10 p.m. However, I (occasionally) stay out past twilight, and NYE at Lou Lou’s Jungle Room does sound pretty enticing. Will my circadian rhythm cooperate? Only time will tell.
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].
The post Moniker General Outpost Soft Opens in North Park appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>The post New Low- & No-Alcohol Drink Brand Launches in San Diego appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>He, like many others, isn’t completely sober. Instead, he says he’s more mindful about his habits—sometimes imbibing, sometimes not. “I still love beer; I love cocktails and stuff like that,” he explains. But he found that when he didn’t have a drink in his hand, he faced questions and judgment from those around him. He looked at the current non-alcoholic drinks landscape, and while he found options, he felt there was another aspect missing that falls somewhere between zero alcohol and the full-strength stuff.
That’s why he built Nunya this year, a San Diego-based low- and no-alcohol brand with products ranging from zero to four percent ABV. The name is a play on “none of your business,” which Bollman says he found himself saying repeatedly during sobriety. “What we wanted to do was provide a beverage and a range of drinks for anyone,” he explains. “Whether you drink, you don’t drink, or you’re in between, you can do it in a way that limits any sort of judgment.”
I have to agree with Bollman here. I’m a longtime craft beer fan and have found myself leaning more toward products in the five percent range or below much more often than I did in my twenties or early thirties—when I could see them. The divide between non-alcoholic beer and anything less than seven percent ABV feels ripe for product development, and he says since launching, his two percent products are the first to go at his pop-ups.
Nunya zero-proof sparkling water products are currently available in small retailers around La Jolla, with distribution out of Pacific Beach. Two- and four-percent ABV products include flavors like blood orange mango, strawberry lemon, and watermelon, and they will roll out later this month during the full brand launch.
With San Diego’s predilection toward health and wellness and the cultural shift away from alcohol consumption, Bollman says he thinks San Diego could become a hub for the sort-of sober movement. He wants to be at the forefront. “I like to dream big,” he says, adding that he’d love to have tasting room (or rooms) starting in San Diego and Los Angeles, then hopefully expanding to places like San Francisco, the Southeast, New York, and more.
But as he begins his endeavor, he mostly wants people to remember one thing: “In San Diego… [people] just really go for it. They just live life the way that they want to… so whatever you’re doing professionally, if you’re an entrepreneur, a chef, an artist, a creative, or you’re just being yourself, that’s really all that matters. Just drink whatever you want, too.”
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Rising Sun Collective Ascends in North Park
North Park’s newest collective has risen at 3914 30th Street. Rising Sun Collective contains spaces for Salt & Butter Japanese Bakery by Okayama Kobo, Embolden Beer Company and New Motion Beverages, Matcha Cafe Maiko, Sipz Vegetarian Kitchen, and a collaboration-within-collaboration with Shogun, a line of Japanese-inspired beers from Embolden and Matcha Cafe Maiko. The space is open Tuesday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Shogun’s launch party will be on Sunday, December 15, at Embolden’s tasting room at 8655 Production Avenue, Suite A in Miramar, from noon to 6 p.m.
Beth’s Bites
- Stop me if you’ve heard this one before—in Japan, for Christmas, apparently, it’s been a tradition since the 1970s to serve KFC and strawberry shortcake. I’m not knocking it (this sounds great), and Matsu in Oceanside is running with it during their Fried Chicken Christmas dinner on Monday, December 23. $135 gets you six courses with sake pairings, and reservations are available here.
- Collaborations keep popping up everywhere—did I call it, or did I call it? The next one to hit North Park combines two super duper vegan powers into one when Donna Jean and Evolution Fast Food join forces in February 2025 at 2611 El Cajon Boulevard.
- Is it me, or does eating out right now feel wildly expensive? I know food and drink costs are up, but 2024 has definitely taken a chunk out of my wallet. Still, a couple of sub-hundred-dollar dinners are coming up, including La Clochette’s three-course prix fixe dinner on Monday, December 23. Tickets cost $60 a seat. Reservations available by calling (858) 412-5558 or reserving in-person.
- Barring any unforeseen issues, The Taco Stand is slated to open its sixth San Diego location in Oceanside on Monday, January 13, at 1,722 South Coast Highway. Owner Julian Hakim promises an outdoor patio, plenty of parking, and lots of tacos. “We’re excited about this one,” he says. “Oceanside has come a long way!”
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].
The post New Low- & No-Alcohol Drink Brand Launches in San Diego appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>The post First Look: Wildland in Carlsbad appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>But partners John Resnick and Eric Bost have confidence in their methods. After all, it’s what’s gotten them accolades in the Michelin Guide, why food editor Troy Johnson placed Jeune et Jolie somewhere among the stars, and why he called Campfire “one of the most anticipated openings of 2016.”
I spoke with Bost and Resnick together about their third venture together, and occasionally got the sense they might be sharing a mind. At the very least, they share an idyllic vision.
“The start of any concept, I think, is trying to think about ‘What do we wish was here? What are we excited about?’” says Resnick. “For us, we felt really excited about the idea of creating an all-day restaurant that was really delicious, that had energy and vibrancy and was fun, but a place that was also convenient.”
They’re hopeful for a place where people can do grab-and-go foods just as easily as linger for hours, and have the same quality of service, food, and experience. “Choose your own adventure,” he jokes. However, he adds there will be one big difference between Wildland and their previous restaurants. “Wildland is a walk-in restaurant, so there are no reservations.”
As executive chef, Bost is the man in the kitchen, so naturally, his vision starts in fields and pastures. Wildland, as well as Campfire and Jeune et Jolie, could all be considered California cuisine in that they use local ingredients seasonally. But for Wildland, he wanted to take the menu further by redefining the very idea of comfort food.
Wildland’s menu revolves around the familiar, but with an elevated approach—bread baked in-house, wood-fired pizzas, housemade pastas, and a rotisserie oven for chicken, porchetta, and other meats. Bost says he took inspiration from the Mediterranean, south of France, and some Middle Eastern influence to create a coastal menu with “tons of rusticity,” especially through the bread program that they’ll then use at all three restaurants. “A bakery was something that I was super excited about,” he says. “It will help make the bread at Jeune better and the bread at Camp better.”
Design-wise, the space took shape with help from Barbara Rourke and Jason St. John from Bells & Whistles, the same design firm behind the previous two restaurants. TThe massive building, which once housed the Morey bodyboard factory, spans nearly 10,000-square-feet, with Wildland taking up around 8,000 of them. Think 30-foot ceilings, huge front windows, a sprawling front patio, an open kitchen, and a private dining room (the one area that will take reservations).
Around 50 of the estimated 200 seats are outside, and for the interior to avoid feeling cavernous, it’s divided into dedicated sections. To the left is the kitchen, and when guests first enter, the bakery invites them in, followed by the rotisserie, pizza oven, and then the rest of the line. The bar sits centrally in the space, but keeping in the theme of convenience and approachability, they decided to do something a little different and skip having bar seats altogether.
“Walk up to a bar that’s busy, when everyone’s sitting there, and you kind of have to elbow your way in,” Resnick explains. “So we wanted to create a stand-up bar where no one was sitting… we’re excited about the idea of what kind of social dynamic that encourages, which is what bars are all about and what we’re all about.”
The idea was to design a space that could “feel like it could have been here, in this condition, for the last 50 years or more, and that it will for that long forward,” according to Resnick. That meant using timeless materials like weathered tile, cinder block, and a lot of wood. And with the team they assembled, 50 years seems like an achievable goal. Jeune and Campfire’s beverage director Andrew Cordero continues his tenure at Wildland, along with wine director and sommelier Savannah Riedler (Juniper & Ivy and Vino Carta in San Diego; République in Los Angeles; most recently at Saison in San Francisco), head baker James Belisle (LaFayette and Per Se in NYC), and chef de cuisine Kaitlyn Jean Smith (M.B. Post in Manhattan Beach and previously worked with Bost at Auburn in Los Angeles). Expect a small, but well-curated wine list from Riedler, as well as plenty of low-alcohol options by Cordero with digestifs, aperitifs, amari, and other cocktails designed to complement the food program.
Once the restaurant-slash-bar-slash bakery is officially operational, Wildland will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day, but it won’t be the only concept in the building forever. The pair’s fourth restaurant, Lilo (pronounced lie-low) opens in early 2025 on the east side of the building, taking up the other 2,000-square-feet. They’ll have completely separate entrances and spaces, so “you could be a guest at Wildland and have absolutely no idea Lilo is there, and vice versa,” promises Resnick. In the meantime, he promises Wildland is “going to be absolutely f**king awesome.” Bost agrees, laughing. “I don’t know how to top that.”
Wildland opens at 2598 State Street on Saturday, December 14.
The post First Look: Wildland in Carlsbad appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>The post Beloved Bakery Pop-Up Set to Open in East Village appeared first on San Diego Magazine.
]]>If this is the first you’ve heard about it, here’s a quick catch-up: In 2020, Samantha Bird and Derek Hadden were both working in restaurants, which, of course, all closed for the pandemic. “I am the type of personality that can’t sit still,” laughs Bird, so she started baking at home for friends and family.
She had plenty of experience—she’d been the pastry chef at Mille Fleurs, lead baker at Herb & Wood, as well as at Juniper & Ivy, Meyers Bageri in Denmark, and Boulangerie Bio Pains et Merveilles in France. Her partner Hadden also had plenty of experience, working at esteemed kitchens like Juniper & Ivy, Addison, and Herb & Wood, where the two met.
Their products got so popular so fast that they started doing pop-ups and signed a wholesale agreement with Communal Coffee soon after. After around eight months, they realized they needed more space than their apartment kitchen and moved to Maker Kitchens in Miramar. From there, the wholesale business expanded to over a dozen accounts, plus they began hosting their ups every weekend to experiment and craft their voice.
TL;DR: This is a big deal.
Once Relic opens around May or June of next year, their menu will encompass plenty of pastries, bread, and sandwiches. Still, they will incorporate Hadden’s more savory-oriented kitchen experience with items like pâté and housemade sausages. “Not being a pastry chef coming into this, I think, is a good point of view because all of our savory pastries start like a dish—like a plated dish—and then you take away and figure out a proper way to put it on a pastry,” Hadden explains. “I think that’s a point of view that not many bakeries have.”
Bird believes another unique aspect of Relic will be some of her breads, including more dark, European-style rye breads and other items commonly found in Germany or Denmark but not often in the United States. She points to their Danish rugbrød as one example. “It’s a dark, dense rye loaf that we’ve been doing since day one… [and] the more people try it, the more people buy it.”
Much of the Nordic-inspired design comes from Bird’s experience working in Copenhagen, Denmark. (Even the name, Bageri, is Danish for bakery.) “We want to put a lot of effort into making it a really comfortable, warm, inviting space,” says Bird. “I think that’s what Derek and I have missed the most about this whole pop-up is just not being able to host people and have people come and stay.”
The interior will cover around 1,700-square-feet, plus a 500-square-foot outdoor patio with a working fireplace. To achieve what operations manager Jeff Murray calls a “neutral, natural” space, the team is working with Sarah Hirschman and Ann Worth, partners behind local design firm Object Projects, to bring the cozy concept to life. The remodel and permitting process means Relic won’t open until next year.
In the meantime, customers can still place preorders Wednesday through Saturday on their website, with pickup locations at Necessity Coffee in Encinitas, Home Ec in Kensington, and Relic’s existing location in Miramar. You can also check their Instagram for special drops and events over the holiday season.
Even with big, significant changes on the horizon for the team, Bird says one thing will remain the same. “Things are becoming automated, but I think we’ll always be very artisanal, making things from scratch,” she promises. “Doing things the old way—that will always make the best product.”
Place preorders for pickup on Relic’s website here.
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Las Cuatro Milpas Collaborates On “Roses To Remember” Event on December 14
Local artist Natalia Ventura and Beatriz Estudillo of the Estudillo family behind Las Cuatros Milpas are hosting Roses to Remember on December 14 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the iconic Barrio Logan restaurant (which, again, is not imminently closing or selling their property). The collaborative event spotlights memory workers in San Diego and will feature multiple DJs, artists, and an interactive mural for the community to create in real-time. Bring cash for tacos, drinks, and new Las Cuatros Milpas merchandise.
Cellar Hand Hosts New “Hand Made” Series
Cellar Hand may only be a few months old. Still, the Hillcrest restaurant operated by the Pali Wine Co. family has already turned heads with their innovative use of hyper-local ingredients, like Thompson Heritage Ranch’s sustainably-raised pork and pâté topped with orange wine Jell-O shots. Now, they’re launching a new series called Hand Made, the first of which kicks off on Thursday, December 12 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. with a Winemaker Night featuring Aaron Walker, winemaker at Pali Wine Co. Wine tastings come in at $45, with food pairings by chef Logan Kendall costing another $45. Reservations are available here.
Beth’s Bites
- Local brewery Pure Project is making… wine? Sure, why not? Its taprooms now carry two California-made wines: a 2020 Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon and a 2023 Santa Barbara Sauvignon Blanc. I’m a fan of their beers, so I’m game to give these new beverages a whirl.
- Speaking of changes, we have an update on the very anticipated, significantly delayed Chick & Hawk restaurant by skateboarding icon Tony Hawk and chef Andrew Bachelier. It’s not much news—just that they’re starting construction—but at least it’s something!
- Santee residents probably won’t have to wait quite as long for American comfort food chain The Stand to open at 9355 Mission Gorge Road. And if you can’t wait, you can always visit their first San Diego location at Carmel Mountain Ranch.
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].
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]]>San Diego has always been a great place to be vegetarian or vegan. Plant Based News ranked us the fourth most vegan-friendly city in the U.S. after Portland, Oregon; Los Angeles, California; and Orlando, Florida. The sheer number of restaurants catering exclusively to both diets and those offering vegetarian options alongside meat means it seems easier than ever to accommodate diners of all dietary persuasions.
Still, despite our plethora of plant-forward plates, only four percent of Americans identify as vegetarian and only one percent call themselves vegan. But local chefs Katherine Pacheco and Ricardo Lona hope to keep changing hearts and minds through stomachs with their experiential pop-up and private dining series Pixán.
Pixán, which means “soul” in Mayan, was initially launched as Flavor Lab before rebranding in October 2024. “Pixán is a plant-based food concept born with Mexican and Central American roots,” explains Lona. “We specialize in traditional and nontraditional dishes hyper-focused on quality of ingredient[s], sustainability, and artistic expression.”
Pacheco and Lona are San Diego natives and have worked in kitchens for much of their lives, utilizing their families’ heritages to inform their techniques. Pacheco says through Pixán that they hope to broaden people’s perceptions of vegan and vegetarian cuisine and what it can be. “Plant-based food has a side to it that not many people know about,” she says. “It may take a bit more experimentation and creativity, but you can do some really amazing things with the abundance of ingredients available to us.”
Today, the specialized culinary pop-up series collaborates with chefs, farmers, artists, and other local businesses to help build the future of plant-based food through experiments with fermentation and local ingredients. Some of their most popular dishes include a “fysh and tripa” taco, tetelas de mole negro, and tostadas de tinga, as well as beverages like barrel-aged tepache and kombuchas.
While Pixán doesn’t have a permanent location (yet), Lona says popping up at places like Coffee & Tea Collective in North Park and Provecho Coffee in Barrio Logan helps introduce both small businesses to each other’s audiences. After all, collaboration is the word of the year for San Diego dining. Perhaps next year’s will be plant-based. We’ll all have to stay tuned.
Those interested in checking out Pixán can catch them at a few upcoming pop-ups this month, including Saturday, December 7, at Cafeina Cafe from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Saturday, December 14 at Pixley’s Oddities from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Wednesday, December 18 at Legacy Apartments from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Beth’s Bites
- I didn’t need another sign to say it was time to book a seat at Kinme Omakase in Bankers Hill, but Yelp has decreed it as the fourth-best restaurant in the country. Sometimes, Yelp gets it right!
- At long last, China Max is returning to Convoy this month! After being completely destroyed by a fire in 2020, the Cantonese restaurant has new owners, a completely renovated dining room and private event space, and plenty of dim sum on the way.
- The Philly-inspired ice cream and “water ice” chain Broady’s House of Flavors, which already has a location in Chula Vista, is opening at Seaport Village shortly. I have no idea what water ice is, but I’m intrigued to find out more…
- In what is possibly the cutest named expansion happening in San Diego, Sisters Pizza is opening not one, but two concepts in North Park called Little Sisters and Twin Sisters. Twice the pizza, twice the adorableness.
- MammaMia Sicilian Deli & Market opens on Friday, December 6 at 4231 Spring Street in La Mesa. Rumor has it there will be a special guest in attendance!
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].
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The Marine Room
Japanese A5 Wagyu Strip Steak
Most dishes at The Marine Room have my vote for some of the top bites in SD. But the Wagyu strip steak may take the cake. Offered with Oaxacan ancho creme, onion ash, arugula, bacon jam, and sweet drop pepper, the steak is best served rare for a buttery, melt-in-your-mouth experience with a hint of charred goodness on the outside. –NM
Échale Wine Bar & Kitchen
Elote
I feel lightly sedated here. I am a mellow vibe with flammable secrets. That feeling is why Échale is Encinitas’ low-lit, lowkey hidden gem. The menu, made partially of family recipes from co-owner Jon Rhinerson, is mostly share plates. The street corn doesn’t have any alien whoa ingredients—your usual chili powder, chipotle aioli, cotija cheese, and cilantro—but sometimes classic notes, played at right volumes, are everything you need. –TJ
Madison on Park
Watermelon Stack
Halloumi is God’s grilling cheese—so sturdy it’s almost the steak of dairy. And sweet, juicy watermelon loves a grill mark. This share plate at Madison in University Heights puts both those facts to fantastic use. With fresh watermelon; grilled halloumi; creamy fat from avocado; the good, light pain of jalapeño; radish; mint; lime; and Aleppo pepper oil, it’s one of the best salads in town. –TJ
Ki’s Restaurant
Harvest Cobb Salad
My response to the old “If you could eat only one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?” thought experiment is always salad—a cheater answer, as the dish is as transformational as Willem Defoe. At Ki’s, it looks like romaine, chicken, bacon, roasted butternut squash, avocado, egg, and spicy candied pecans with a creamy corn-poblano dressing. Bonus: ocean views (in idyllic Cardiff-by-the-Sea, no less) at Sweetgreen prices. –AR
Surf Me a Taco
The “Beef”
Sometimes, a delicious taco is the difference between a good day and a great one. Every week, a side street by SDM‘s homebase fills up with food trucks for us in-office 9-to-5ers. Recently, Surf Me A Taco pulled up with one of the best tacos I’ve had in a while. Made with steak, grilled cheese, grilled onion, cilantro, and a spicy guacamole cream sauce that steals the show, this mouth party had me forgetting that I was on deadline for just about everything. –NM
Selva Coffee House
Mothertrucker
Located inside Terra Bella Nursery (which itself is perched in the deadly Frogger-game-come-to-life area underneath where the 5 and 8 interstates meet), Selva is a refuge for those who prefer the company of plants. A giant fan succulent dominates the room, while walls of greenery surround. The place is alive with conversation and happy little pothos. The Mothertrucker is a blooming pistachio and white mocha flower, a caffeinated Middle Eastern dessert in a glass. Mulch for the mind. –MH
Soi OB Thai Street Food
Tom Yum Soup
There are two types of people in this world: hardcore soup fanatics and the rest of us. Because I’m in the latter camp, on the rare occasion that I do order a bowl, it has to be pretty damn good. Soi OB‘S tom yum does not disappoint. It’s full of lemongrass, cilantro, green onions, kaffir lime leaves, and pork belly. The only issue is that my spice-sensitive self couldn’t finish it (if you’re like me, medium spicy will make your nose and eyes water). –NM
Frosty Burger
Ortega Chile Cheeseburger
Recently, I stopped at this roadside burger shack in Pine Valley during an aimless road trip through East County. Founded in 1980, the retro-fabulous outpost with a killer classic rock playlist was bought by a mom-and-daughter duo a year ago. “You can make anything a smash burger,” Mom told me, but I opted for the piled-high Ortega chile burger with pepper jack cheese instead, and washed it down with a vanilla soft-serve cone. It’s a burger joint time machine. –JB
Pho Duyên Mai
Egg Rolls & Grilled Chicken Vermicelli Noodles
Just across the 163 from Convoy’s buzz is a Vietnamese joint giving the beloved district’s eateries a run for their money. While phö is the star here, there are plenty of options for the soup-averse, including toasted banh mi, fluffy buns, and noodle dishes galore. This vermicelli bowl is a favorite, loaded with grilled chicken, crunchy cucumbers, pickled carrots, bean sprouts, daikon, and egg rolls topped with a splash of tangy fish sauce. –CN
Il Cannoli Bar
Chocolate-Dipped Cannoli
Carbs and cheese are winners anytime, but they’re underrated as a dessert, especially since cheese plates made the leap to the appetizer section of menus. Enter the sylphlike cannoli, which is fully customizable at the Little Italy Food Hall’s II Cannoli Bar. I went with the classic ricotta-filled, dipped in crushed pistachios on one end and strawberry dust on the other. –AR
Las Cuatro Milpas
The Full Spread
The menu at Barrio Logan’s Las Cuatro Milpas, touted by many as the oldest continually running Mexican restaurant in San Diego, is simple. If you order five rolled tacos; a couple of crispy pork tacos with shredded lettuce and cotija; a steaming bowl of rice, beans, and eggs; a knotted plastic bag of freshly made flour tortillas; and an orange Fanta, you’ll get to try almost everything on offer, but you might not be able to move for several hours afterward. With all of the rumors swirling around about whether it will close soon, I’d say it’s worth going for the full haul, just in case. –JB
Meraki
Aguachile Steak
When it’s not hosting weddings and parties, newish South Park restaurant and event space Meraki (from the team behind Buona Forchetta) is laying down plates like the aguachile steak: tender, grilled meat tossed in a smoky burnt tortilla sauce with a bold blend of serrano chili, cilantro, lime, and olive oil, complemented by cool cucumber, crisp red onion, cilantro, and a touch of aji-mirin. When my plate was suddenly empty, I assumed my partner snuck a bite, only to realize I’d devoured it all myself in record time. –AN
Il Fornaio
Casarecce Al Pesto E Pollo
Coronado isn’t typically a foodie hot spot, but Il Fornaio is a big exception—a gem amongst tourist traps, offering truly great food, speedy service, and a prime waterfront view that’s a steal for the price. This pasta stands out, featuring sundried tomatoes and a rich pesto. Pro tip: Enjoy dinner and wine here before catching the ferry to a concert at the Rady Shell for a traffic- and hassle-free evening. –CN
Shakespeare Pub
Bangers & Mash
Peas don’t get a lot of love these days—at least, not like in the early ’90s, when meals were served on top of wooden TV trays in the living room. Thankfully, this British pub in Old Town plates up a killer bangers and mash that’ll have you missing your daily helping of Nick at Nite. Be sure to load up your fork with a bite of sausage and grilled onions, a mountain of mash and gravy, and a sprinkling of those little green bulbs for the perfect helping of good ol’ days nostalgia. –NM
Lobby Lounge
Potato Croquette
Let’s call them what they are: tater tots, the great fried olive branch of humanity. Only these tots are light, crispy-fluffy wonders made by Roman Garcia, who was the chef de cuisine at Selby’s when it got its Michelin star and is currently leading the kitchen at the Fairmont Grand Del Mar’s Amaya. They’re topped with Iberico ham (think of it as the world’s greatest, silkiest bacon bits), garlic aioli, and chili thread and served at the Fairmont’s all-new Lobby Lounge. –TJ
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]]>“I never thought of food as an issue or sourcing your food as an issue,” Moss says. “But when she said it wasn’t about the scarcity—it was about people making decisions, and we weren’t a priority.”
Project New Village managing director N. Diane Ross
Nearly 800,000 people across San Diego—one in four residents—are considered food insecure. Many of these people live in Southeast San Diego, like Moss. She saw her community’s needs firsthand, day in and day out, including a lack of access to healthy foods, grocery stores, and community gardens. It was a catalyst to action. “It was an issue, just like any other social justice issue, in terms of disinvested or a marginalized community not getting the assets needed,” she explains. “An organizer’s role here would be to bring this awareness to folks that we can demand better.”
Now, she is the managing director of Project New Village, which started as a community hub in 1994. The group pivoted to focus on food equity in 2008 and formally incorporated as a 501(c) 3 nonprofit in 2010. The group prioritizes five zip codes, including neighborhoods like Southcrest, Logan Heights, Skyline, Paradise Hills, Chollas View, and Oak Park—all considered some of the most food-insecure areas across the county.
Moss says the group’s goals center around empowering residents to create change in their neighborhood, building self-reliance through access to nutritious food grown locally, teaching community members how to develop their food and cook it at home, decreasing the need for long-term reliance on food banks, and investing in where they live to keep dollars close to home. “Everything we do is in collaboration,” she says. “Our decision-making is with residents. Good solutions or effective solutions are usually driven or led by the most impacted people.”
Project New Village runs a mobile farmers market that goes to eight sites per week within the “Good Food District” and coordinates a network of 16 backyard growers who sell or donate their crops for distribution. The group also helps launch community gardens—Moss estimates they’ll have five garden sites by the end of the year at different schools and churches—and hope to open a commercial kitchen and food hub, dubbed The Village, for local entrepreneurs to rent and launch their food businesses in Mount Hope.
“We’ve assembled the construction, architect, engineer—all that’s ready to go,” explains Moss. “What we need at this point is to continue raising the capital to do the construction and then open the building.”
The group’s biggest fundraiser of the year, the 13th Annual Fannie Lou Hamer Legacy Celebration, takes place on Thursday, December 5, at Park & Market from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Proceeds will go directly to Project New Village’s initiatives, and Moss says even if people can’t attend, there are always plenty of ways to volunteer their time with the group.
But, she adds, come prepared to listen. “I work with others that come from other places and come to the community to fix a problem, but I live here,” she says. “The answers come from these conversations and people getting involved… to help. Not to guide or lead, but to help with strategies that can change communities like ours.”
Tickets for the fundraising celebration are available here.
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Valle to Host Multiple Holiday Gathering Options
There’s certainly no shortage of upscale holiday dining choices this year, and Valle is hosting quite a few of them. From Christmas Eve to Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and private dining options, this Michelin-starred beachside restaurant impresses your in-laws and keeps your kitchen clean. Make your reservations early, or get stuck at home.
Beth’s Bites
- I don’t know if sushi and kappo joint Chef Jun is relocating or opening a second location (they seemed very busy on the phone when I called), but it looks like they are coming in one form or another to Point Loma. I know I said La Jolla is the place to watch next year, but I also remain curious about the whole Midway District/Sports Arena redevelopment plans as well…
- I’ve been on a very good sandwich streak the past few weeks, the latest of which was the “Leftover Sandwich” at Ultreya Coffee & Tea. What sandwich in San Diego should I try next? Shoot me your recs at [email protected].
- On December 5, boxer Canelo Álvarez and his brother Ricardo are opening El Pastor Del Rica Taqueria, a Jalisco, Mexico-inspired taco shop in Chula Vista. I don’t know a ton about boxing—although I did, regrettably, tune in to the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight—but I do know a ton about tacos, so hopefully, these pack a nice punch. (Sorry, not sorry.)
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].
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