Getting a taste is about to get easier. Two new Juicy Burgers locations are scheduled to open this summer in Hillcrest and the College Area. Rose launched Juicy Burgers in Santee in 1978, eventually expanding to 28 locations nationwide. But when the pandemic hit, “we lost them during Covid,” he explains, saying they had to close every location nationwide.

But they were never really gone gone. The first new location post-pandemic ended up in North Park, which opened in 2023. Rose says once these following two storefronts are up and running, he’ll turn his sights to expanding the franchise once more, specifically in markets where Juicy Burgers previously operated. He plans to start with Las Vegas and eventually move to cities like Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Miami, Orlando, and Tampa. But he says there’s more to come in San Diego.

“We want to be in more of the tourist areas as well,” he says. “We’d [also] like to get inside stadiums and sports arenas, get more exposure to share our products with the public.”

Both the Hillcrest and College Area locations will feature the same menu as North Park, with create-your-own burgers and signature options, but Hillcrest will also offer something a little extra: breakfast. 

“It’ll be a traditional breakfast,” explains Rose, saying they’ll have items like omelets, eggs, pancakes, french toast, and coffee available from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m., at which point service would switch to the typical burger menu. Since that particular storefront used to be home to Breakfast Bitch, Rose hopes locals used to getting breakfast there will come to try it out. And if it’s just burgers you want, he says expect to be wowed.

“There’s a lot of people out there looking for the best burger,” he says. “Come try it out. Once they taste it… people just love it.”

San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events

Weathered Souls and NPBC Collaboration on May 16

San Antonio–based Weathered Souls Brewing Company is perhaps best known for launching the Black is Beautiful initiative in response to the murders of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd by police. Still, they also happen to brew some damn tasty beer as well. On Thursday, May 16, at 6 p.m., Weathered Souls co-founder and head brewer Marcus Baskerville is heading to North Park Beer Company in Bankers Hill for a five-course beer pairing dinner with NPBC co-owner and head brewer Kelsey McNair and chef Sam Navarro. Tickets are available for purchase here.

Beth’s Bites

• After seven years in East Village, You & Yours Distilling Company is closing shop this Sunday, May 5. Best of luck to Laura, the Y&Y team, and all your future endeavors!
• Also, on Sunday, Esquina Wine Shop will be popping up with Angkorian Pikestaff at White Rice Morena from noon to 4 p.m. I strongly advise you to get there early—these gatherings tend to get busy and sell out quickly.
• Alex Morgan, Charlie Day, Travis Swikard, and Tara Monsod—I could go on (literally) all day, but I’ll just let you salivate over the Del Mar Wine + Food Festival lineup. How is this just the second year? It feels iconic already, IMHO. Get your tickets here. 

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 2 New Juicy Burgers Locations Opening appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

I realize this is a pretty apocalyptic way to introduce our annual celebration of San Diego’s food and drink culture—our bible of the restaurant scene, with its attendant bao bun psalms and birria haikus.

But that lurking doomery only underscores the heights San Diego’s restaurant culture has finally reached. It’s never been harder to operate a restaurant, and yet our food and drink people made national headlines and hype reels again. It has not always been this way. After eras of deep-fried pain, we’re in a far better place.

Why? Because our seafood’s right there. Because our produce is among the best on the planet—and any cook will tell ya that using the world’s best ingredients is like running a 100-yard dash and starting at the 40-yard line. That’s why the top chefs have come. Plus, moms and pops who started cooking furiously four years ago (due to The Terrible Thing) are opening kitchens. The proximity to Mexico’s fire and ash and stew culture never hurts. So many reasons.

This list is a citywide tradition we’re honored to keep. You guys picked your favorites (with 41,000-plus votes, a new record), and I picked mine.

I switched it up a bit. I left out a few that have become institutional and duh-of-course. Once Addison landed three Michelin stars, no one needed to be told to go there. Same with Jeune et Jolie, a pinnacle of Frenchishness. I politely placed them over on Mt. Olympus and made room for other places that deserve that spotlight.

I’ve been lucky enough to document, study, and tell stories about food and drink for almost two decades. I did the math recently and realized I’d been to thousands of restaurants, tried tens of thousands of dishes. It’s been an obscenely obsessive career without complaints.

I know food better than I know myself. That said, I’ll never pretend my list is somehow the only valid take. It’s just mine. It’s the list I keep in my pocket and constantly update as I eat my way through the city and send to friends when they come to town and ask, “What should I eat in San Diego?”

I urge you to make your own. –Troy Johnson

And Now the 2024 Best San Diego Restaurants Winners List…

You voted. Food critic Troy Johnson picked his favorites. We chose the must-try dishes at some of the winning joints and unpacked the people and trends changing SD’s dining scene for the better. Hope you’re hungry, because it’s time to dig in.

The post San Diego’s Best Restaurants of 2024 appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

But at the end of the 2024 baseball season, Basic Pizza will vacate its longtime home at 410 Tenth Avenue. The mashed potato pizza-loving masses need not fret too much—Mangini plans to reopen Basic as part of the Park 12 development in time for next baseball season, if not slightly earlier. 

“We’re done after this baseball season, and then I just want to be open before next baseball season,” he says. “If I had to guess, it’s probably going to be in the December-ish area… if there’s any way possible to get it built, we will.” (In the in-between time after closing and reopening the new space, he invites pizza lovers to visit one of the locations of his other pizza project, URBN Pizza.)

Even though the space at 100 Park Plaza is just on the other side of Petco, it’s a bittersweet move. Basic had been in the same spot for 18 years, and Mangini had no notions of leaving. When he heard his landlord would not renew his lease, he knew he wanted to stay in the immediate area.

“That was the big thing—we really did lay down roots there, and we don’t want to leave,” he says. But once open, he hopes to replicate the same revitalization on the “sleepier side” of East Village and bring their loyal fans with them. 

The new space will have the same menu and team but slightly new look by Avent Design, construction by CLTVT (who also designed the One Paseo location of URBN), and the deal was facilitated by Michael Burton, founder of Urban Strategies Group, division of Flocke & Avoyer.

At just under 5,000 square feet, the Park 12 space is similar to Basic’s current location, but Mangini says he plans to lean into more concrete and steel rather than try to recreate the same industrial brick aesthetic.

Thanks to a sublease agreement with the new tenants, Basic Pizza will remain at its current location until the end of this year’s Padres season (Mangini hopes for a long one). “As long as the Padres are playing, we’re going to be staying,” he says. “We’re rooting for the Padres to go all the way so we can stay as long as we possibly can.”

San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events

8 Courses, 2 Chefs, 4-Hands, 1 Night

When two Michelin-starred chefs cook together, culinary magic tends to follow. On Tuesday, April 30, at Ambrogio by Acquerello, chef Silvio Salmoraghi of Acquerello (Milan, Italy) and chef Fabio Ugoletti of Mar’Sel at Terranea Resort (Rancho Palos Verdes, California) will serve eight courses of Italian-inspired seasonal cuisine. Two seatings are available—one at 5 p.m. and one at 8 p.m.—and reservations are available here. Part of the proceeds will benefit Labs and More Dog Rescue.

But the magic doesn’t stop there. The next day, Wednesday, May 1, Kinme Omakase (2505 5th Avenue, Banker’s Hill) will host the Ambrogio by Acquerello team for another 4-hands dinner to spotlight the best of Italian and Japanese Kaiseki. Like the night before, two seatings at 5 pm and 8 pm are available, and you can make reservations at Kinme’s website.

Beth’s Bites

Two Ducks co-founder Dante Romero is now the executive chef at The Lion’s Share and is expanding the Two Ducks pop-up residency within the space. A dozen years of moving up has paid off for the industry, darling!

Happy first birthday to Majorette! Please never take the burger off the menu again. 

It’s tea time at La Valencia Hotel’s Mediterranean Room—at least every Friday through May 11. Make your reservation for the award-winning tea service right here, and remember your complimentary glass of bubbles before the fun begins.

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 Basic Pizza Closing in East Village appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

Luckily, we’ll get plenty more once he moves a block away to the former Krakatoa spot at 1128 25th Street in Golden Hill this summer.

“I think in three months, it should be ready,” he says during our conversation this month, adding they’re just waiting for final permits and the ABC license. He pauses for a moment and reflects on what that means. “I started selling birria only on Sundays with only a small pot of birria. In three years, I have my restaurant almost ready.”

Vazquez formally trained at Culinary Art School in Tijuana before working around San Diego at places like Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina. Once the pandemic hit, however, he found himself unemployed and ready to try something new. He decided to launch a birria pop-up in Golden Hill on Sundays despite hospitality coming to a screeching halt early in 2020.

“I wasn’t getting any income, so I said, ‘This is my time to try to do something,’” he says. He calls that period of uncertainty scary, but a chance to do what he always wanted to do—open his own restaurant and stop working for someone else. “If I hadn’t lost my job, I wouldn’t have done anything,” he says. But his bet paid off—fast.

“People started to like the birria, so I decided to do it on Saturday,” explains Vazquez. “Then people seemed to like it a lot. So I decided to open from Tuesday to Sunday.” He’s been selling his food as fast as he could make it ever since and had been looking for a place to expand his burgeoning birria empire. When Krakatoa ceased operations in 2022, he knew it was the right spot to develop while maintaining close ties with the Golden Hill community. 

The new spot will have the same favorites, plus a few more. Vasquez says he will add menudo and more proteins to the menu, like beef and chicken, as well as beer and lots more seating. “I’m gonna have some more space to create more things with birria,” he promises. Once he can open, daily hours will run from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. (The original location at 1015 25th Street is still open.)

But Vasquez is looking ahead even further. “I want to go further north to open up more birria places,” he says. But in the future, I want to open a breakfast restaurant. That’s my dream after I open a couple more restaurants with birria.” 

Breakfast? I wonder. Why?

“I love breakfast,” he says with a laugh. If you eat a good breakfast in the morning, the rest of the day will be good.”

San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events

Golden Coast Mead Joins Cardiff Farmers Market

It wasn’t until 2016 that California beverage alcohol makers with Type 84 permits were allowed to “offer instructional tasting events to consumers” at farmers’ markets under Assembly Bill 774. Golden Coast Mead immediately seized the opportunity, pouring at markets in Otay Ranch, North Park, Vista, Poway, and Hillcrest. Now, they’ve added Cardiff Farmers Market to their rotation every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the MiraCosta San Elijo Campus at 3333 Manchester Avenue.

“We’ll be able to pour customers three one-ounce educational tasters, and sell bottles to-go of our organic honey-based, regenerative, Southern California-style, refreshing, sometimes tart, enlivening, all-natural, no preservatives or artificial ingredient added meads,” says Golden Coast founder Frank Golbeck. Mead is much more complex than its “just honey wine” reputation, he adds. “The bees have to visit over two million flowers to make one pound of honey, [and] our bottles have a half pound of honey in each one. That means there are over one million flower visits in each bottle. If there are one hundred sips in a bottle, that’s 10,000 flower visits in one sip,” he explains. “Pretty inspiring, beautiful stuff if you ask me.”

Beth’s Bites

Goodbye Starbucks, hello Amoré Caffe! The corner of Robinson and Fifth Avenue in Hillcrest’s busy thoroughfare is keeping coffee on the menu but kicking corporate chains to the curb. Husband-and-wife-owned Amoré is slated to open sometime in late summer or fall 2024.

(Cue Cookie Monster voice) COOKIES ARE COMING! Schmackary’s, the New York City-based cookie franchise with ties to Broadway, will open its first San Diego location sometime this year. We don’t know much, but we know there will be cookies.

On Sunday, April 28, the first Cocktail Championship Block Party kicks off at 1 p.m. with 21 bars in the mix, including Rustic Root, Union Kitchen & Tap, The Deck at Moonshine Flats, Lumi, and more. Plan to rideshare and drink plenty of water—tickets include 21 mini cocktails (Egad!)

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 Birria El Rey Opening Brick & Mortar in Golden Hill appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

Unfortunately, I never became a rocket scientist. But Katie Speck is one of those rare folks who knew what she wanted to do early on, and actually did the damn thing. 

“When I was about eight years old, I said I wanted to open what I would call ‘Rose Cafe,’” she says. “I’d make my family sit down and play Rose Cafe with me.” Her mom even kept one of the menus she drew, complete with a hand-drawn picture of a rose. 

As of March 31, that childhood dream is a reality. Rose Cafe opened its doors on Easter, a historically busy day for cafes like Specks. “Go big or go home!” she laughs. 

Speck was born and raised in Carlsbad before getting a bachelor’s degree from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. When she returned, she worked in the kitchen at Herringbone, Whisknladle, Park Commons, and Catania. After the pandemic began to release its grip on the world, Speck took stock of her career path and decided to make a change from fine dining. “Why do I keep doing this for other people?” she wondered. 

She decided to start looking around for her own spot, and found it in Oceanside. Building the business was a family affair, Speck explains. She’s the sole owner and chef, but her sister owns Veck Building Group, who handled the design and buildout, and her father was her main investor. “We all did it together,” says Speck. 

Rose Cafe’s menu will change seasonally, with as much produce sourced from local vendors as possible. Speck describes it as “sophistication meets comfort.” With hours that run from 7 a.m. through 3:30 p.m., it focuses on breakfast and lunch favorites like breakfast croissants, quiches, baguette sandwiches, grain bowls, fresh salads, and seasonal soups. 

The 1,100 -square-foot space seats around 30 guests, and those who prefer grab-and-go options can opt for pastries, smoothies, or something from the espresso coffee bar. Speck says she’s also in the process of applying for a beer and wine license, and hopes to launch a happy hour once approved. 

“I really just wanted to bring a place where people could come and really enjoy great quality food,” she says. “I want to bring my heart and soul and passion for this industry into the food and experience people have here. Service with a smile, sprinkled with love.”

Rose Cafe is now open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at 1902 South Coast Highway in Oceanside. 

San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events

Double Deckman Dinners in April and May 

Chef Drew Deckman is gearing up for one hell of a busy year. On Thursday, April 25, he’ll join Rancho Valencia’s executive chef Emiliano Safa and chef Christopher Gentile at Rancho Valencia Resort & Spa for the latest Baja meets San Diego wine dinner from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Then, he and his wife Paulina join former Food & Wine editor-in-chief Dana Cowin to launch Progressive Hedonist, Cowin’s dining series that spotlights “culinary and agricultural sustainability” and will give a portion of the proceeds to nonprofits ZeroFoodprint and Foodshed. The meal kicks off at Stehly Farms Organics on Saturday, May 4 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. with an optional shuttle to the farm, and will feature several women winemakers from Baja California.

Omni La Costa’s Test Kitchen Series

Starting on Monday, April 22, Omni La Costa Resort & Spa will launch its Test Kitchen Series at its onsite restaurant VUE in partnership with DAOU Vineyards. Limited to just 10 guests, the family-style meal will take place on select Mondays with a rotating menu with accompanying wine pairings. A full list of dates and tickets are available here. With six to eight courses per meal, come hungry. 

Beth’s Bites

Nutmeg Bakery & Cafe has closed its Scripps Ranch location, citing increasing labor and rent costs. But don’t panic just yet—they’re relocating to 13771 Danielson Street, with promises of the same beloved items and quality in a brand new space. 

San Diego craft beer fared well (as it always does) on the Brewers Association’s annual report for 2024. Craft ‘Ohana, who purchased Modern Times Beer in 2022, landed at #26 on the Top 50 craft breweries by production volume, followed by Kings & Convicts (#30), Pizza Port (#47), and Coronado Brewing (#48). In sort-of San Diego beer news, Athletic Brewing, which operates in Milford, Connecticut and San Diego, hit #10 and Tilray Beer Brands, who acquired Green Flash Brewing and Alpine Beer Company in 2022, made it all the way to #6. We aren’t called the Capital of Craft for nothing. 

I’m no Plant Lady, but I do appreciate a hella good price on sandwiches. On 4/20, get a Nug sub (4’ sandwiches) at Cheba Hut in College Area for $4.20 all day. There may or may not also be free frisbees involved. Bring a bud…dy.

The post Rose Cafe Blooms in South Oceanside appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

“He said, ‘Have you ever thought about doing a fast casual burger joint?’” recalls Brandt. “I’m like, ‘Brandon, you just got three Michelin stars. What are you thinking about a burger joint?’ And he’s like, ‘It would be the best burger joint in the world.’” 

The pair percolated over the idea and decided to try it, first as a concession concept at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert in 2021 and then at the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in 2023. But winning the Avocado Cup Culinary Competition at the inaugural Del Mar Wine + Food Festival last year convinced them to turn it into a full-fledged restaurant, with Brandt as owner/CEO and Rodgers as co-founder and chef.

“When we won that, it was kind of like, ‘All right, we probably better do a brick and mortar,” laughed Brandt.

Tanner’s Prime Burgers, a brick-and-mortar restaurant, officially opens this Friday, April 19 at the Freeman Collective in Oceanside. The 2,000-square-foot space will feature inside and outside seating and will use 100% USDA prime-grade beef supplied from Brandt Beef, Brandt’s family ranch, which has operated in the Imperial Valley since 1945. 

“This whole concept is about the beef,” explains Rodgers, adding that they will make every item on the menu with Brandt’s beef, from the bacon to the ice cream. But with burger in the name, it’s still definitely the star of the show. “We have one burger. You can get a single, or you can get that double,” he says. “We want to keep it simple and do it right.” 

But it will be the details that set them apart. The cheese is more than just cheese—it’s a unique aged cheddar that melts like American cheese, created especially for Tanner’s by Eric Greenspan from cheese company New School. Nearby, Artifex Brewing will brew the Tanner’s Lager and Tanner’s IPA. Honey for their sweet tea comes from Avery Girl Honey, another family-owned company near Brandt’s ranch. Even their Tanner’s Prime Hot Sauce is homemade, made with a 14-day fermented chile mash and blended with vinegar. 

Other menu items include options for kids, like a slider or all-beef hot dog, fries that come plain, cheesy, or “dirty” with beef tallow, a juicy, rich beef flavor rendered from beef fat. Yes, it’s decadent. But it’s outrageously delicious, and what Brandt says makes their ice cream extra creamy. 

“That creaminess from the beef tallow just holds—it can be a hot sunny afternoon, and it doesn’t melt all over you,” he laughs, pointing to their Fatty Patty, which is a scoop of the beef tallow ice cream sandwiched between two homemade chocolate chip cookies. “You can’t leave without trying a Fatty Patty.”

Rodgers and Brandt’s commitment to using as much of the animal as possible goes beyond the food. They also incorporated it into the design by Michael Francis, principal at SAINT (Studio for Architecture and Interiors), who used Brandt leather to create red leather barstools in the dining area. Rodgers says they took inspiration from fast-casual places like Chipotle and Shake Shack for a “functional, but simple” interior where people can get unpretentious food that will still knock their socks off. 

Rodgers says the potential to captivate even more people by elevating a classic dish was a huge reason he left a three-star kitchen. “As a Michelin-starred chef, you’re preparing the best 40 meals a night, max,” he says. “What an opportunity to be able to try to prepare a burger that someone’s had 1,000 times, and try to serve that to 1,000 people a day. If you could touch 1,000 people versus 40 people a night, for me, that’s a great feeling.”

After April 19, Tanner’s will be open seven days a week from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. The duo says they’ll see how it goes, but future locations are not off the table. “I’m focused on one, [but] Eric is focused on 21,” Rodgers jokes. Brandt agrees but says getting this off the ground has been an incredible journey already.

“I get chills thinking about the fact that we’re actually opening our first brick-and-mortar,” he says, recalling that prescient phone call from years ago. “This is a toast and a cheers to that call.”

The post First Look: Tanner’s Prime Burgers appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

Simpson, who worked as the beverage director at Jeune et Jolie and Campfire from 2021 to 2022, says expanding from their retail-only shop in Encinitas to a natural wine bar has been part of the pair’s vision since they launched their brand in September 2022. “It happened a little bit faster than we expected,” Potenza adds, laughing.

According to Simpson, they hope to appeal both to natural wine lovers and those not quite familiar with the style by creating an easy, approachable space where guests can ask questions and explore different sips. Little Victory will also offer small plates that emphasize local ingredients and shareable items, like cheese, charcuterie, pickled goods, salads, and tinned fish. They don’t yet have a chef lined up, but they will announce as soon as one is confirmed. 

“It’s going to be sort of Copenhagen- [and] Paris-inspired natural wine bar as far as aesthetics and small plates go,” Simpson explains, adding that Potenza is designing the space to echo the vibes of the retail store, which will remain open. 

The wines, too, will have “the same focus we have at the shop—totally natural, organic, biodynamically farmed farms, with minimal intervention throughout, [from] some really, really small producers,” he continues. He estimates they’ll have 50 or 60 wines on hand at the bar, ranging from skin contact orange wines to pét-nats and more. “All the fun stuff,” he laughs. “ We’re gonna just try to emphasize wines that are just a little different.”

Little Victory will also share the 1,100 square foot space with Always Hungry Grocery + Goods, a small batch and locally supplied curated grocery store by Katie Jayne Sprenkle. “Being able to walk in and get specialty, locally sourced grocery items and goods, and then peeking through to the other side and enjoying a glass of natural wine that you can’t find most places … is pretty unique,” Potenza says.

Little Victory Wine Bar and Always Hungry Grocery + Goods will open in early September 2024 at 505 Oak Avenue, Suite B in Carlsbad. The wine bar’s initial operating hours will be Wednesday through Sunday, from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m., with weekend brunch hours added later.

San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events

New Restaurant Vincenzo Opens Tomorrow in Little Italy

Cheese lovers, rejoice! Italian restaurant Vincenzo opens Wednesday, April 17, in Little Italy in the former Farmer’s Table location (550 West Date Street, Suite A). Vincenzo’s cheese wheel bar offers a curated selection of six different cheese wheels that guests can choose from to pair with one of six types of housemade pasta. Say the word, and the chef will whip up a creamy, cheesy plate of ooey-gooey goodness made to order. Get your iPhones ready, because this sounds like a food Instagrammer’s heaven. 

Beth’s Bites

Vistal, the seafood-centric restaurant inside the Smart Safe-certified InterContinental San Diego, is partnering with The Fishmonger’s Tommy Gomes, Positively Groundfish, and Chula Seafood to launch a new initiative to showcase more local fish on their menu. Expect to see sustainable species like red widow rockfish (sometimes called bank perch), vermillion rockfish, and California sheephead, as well as new cocktails inspired by the San Diego Bay. 

On April 21, Buona Forchetta‘s nonprofit, BF For A Cause, will host the South Park Spring Fest to raise funds for Golden Hill UTK-8. The event runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Meraki (1648 30th Street) and includes music, pizza, gelato, and plenty of activities for kids. Tickets are available here or at the door. 

Starting tomorrow, you can finally go to Marisi for lunch! The La Jolla Italian spot will be open for midday meals Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The drinks menu features the usual suspects in both full-strength and NA formulations (depending on how responsible you’re feeling in the middle of the day).

Pure Project is the sole San Diego brewery selected to partner with Patagonia Provisions to brew an organic lager using Kernza grain. Kernza is a regenerative organic grain known for its ability to improve soil structure and thrive with minimal watering. Check out the new release on draft at any of Pure Project’s five taprooms across the county. 

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 Little Victory Wine Bar Coming to Carlsbad appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

Whisknladle Hospitality knew this when the group designed and opened Gravity Heights’ 12,000-square-foot brewpub in Sorrento Valley five years ago. Investing in the beer from day one, Whisknladle managing partner Arturo Kassel partnered with brewmaster Skip Virgilio of AleSmith fame to develop a world-class beer program.

Kassel also built an elevated food program with culinary director and business partner Ryan Johnson, crafting a menu that far outshines the bowls of dry pretzels and microwaved hot dogs ubiquitous with the bars of yesteryears. Gravity Heights has pops of color and natural light. It has sleek wood and iron patio furniture. There are ferns in macrame hangers and quippy sayings spelled in neon lights. It has kale on the menu, for Pete’s sake. It’s nice. 

That investment is paying dividends. On Wednesday, April 17, Gravity Heights will open its second location at in Mission Valley. Kassel says the expansion has always been the goal, despite the three years it took to find the right next space. Opening three, four, or five locations may one day be in the cards. “No question, we have long-term aspirations of filling that void of the small, independent, Southern California brewpub,” he adds.

Gravity Heights Mission Valley sprawls over 9,000 square feet with seating for 260 guests. Half of the space is the outside patio—an intentional choice. “That’s where the magic happens,” Kassel says. Unlike in Sorrento Valley, there’s no brewhouse at the new location. However, Whisknladle worked with architecture firm PGAL for the seventh time to create a space from the ground up and hone in on every detail. “Wherever you are, the energy will be great. It’s just really well-laid-out,” he promises.

The menu is largely the same at both locations, but executive chef Jordan Beall (Whiskladle, PrepKitchen) heads up the kitchen in Mission Valley. Kassel says they plan to tweak the offerings over time as they get a feel for what the neighborhood wants. One big difference, he notes, is the move from a wood-fired pizza oven in Sorrento Valley to a gas-powered one in Mission Valley.

“That’s kind of forced us to change the style of pizza, so we’re doing more of a New Haven–style, and we’re really happy with the results,” he explains. Expect the same craft beers, too, especially the Hazy IPA June Gloom, which Kassel says is a best-seller. “At this point, Gravity Heights is synonymous with June Gloom,” he laughs. “It’s definitely a standout.” 

He hopes the new location provides an oasis in a sea of primarily corporate chain restaurants. “We’re just happy to add to the conversation regarding independent restaurant hospitality groups in the area,” he says. Reservations are not required, but they are now available for both locations. 

Gravity Heights Mission Valley opens Wednesday, April 17, at 525 Camino de la Reina, Suite 101.

The post First Look: Gravity Heights’ Newest Location Opens appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

To make it so, the Lakehouse tapped Jarrod Moiles, former executive chef of renowned high-end, food-obsessed resort Rancho Valencia.

“The idea was to have a chef-driven restaurant on the golf course versus just having the generic grill golfer’s restaurant,” says Moiles, who’s both exec chef and director of F&B at the San Marcos resort. To build the menu, he took inspiration from his childhood in the Massachusetts countryside, where farm-to-table was just the way things were done, not a marketing cliché.

Grilled salmon picatta, beet and goat cheese salad, birria tacos, loaded potato skins—a lot of dishes on Moiles’ first menu are a tribute to San Diego and SoCal farms and ranches like third-generation, family-run Brandt Beef. For kicks, he also does cheddar cheese-dusted onion rings, an ode to a culinary icon of the cellophane bag movement: Funions.

The restaurant got a full remodel and remake and still sits at the heart of the Lake San Marcos. Moiles says they recreated it with locals in mind. “We realized we need to focus on who’s coming and living here, and who’s moving into San Marcos right now,” he says. In other words: Keep the quality high and the tendency to resort-gouge away from the prices.

Golfers seeking classic culprits will still find burgers, beer-battered fish and chips, and the mandatory club sandwich. The lettuce will just be a whole lot greener. Aiolis will have chefy-ness. Bread will matter.

They also added more space for folks to gather, including a bright, modern lounge with dark wood accents. A full renovation of the dining room, bar, and patio is set to take place in the future, but with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Kermit-colored driving range, it’s not hell on the eyes.

After all, there are few things more satisfying than watching people exercise while spending quality time with quality beer and upgraded spuds.

Brickmans reopened April 1. The restaurant is located at 1750 San Pablo Drive, San Marcos, inside The Links at Lakehouse.

The post First Look: Brickmans at Lakehouse Resort appeared first on San Diego Magazine.

But Solana Beach goers need not lament for too long. A new concept called Lana is coming to the beachside location in February 2025. (Lana, So-LANA… get it?)

Mark Wheadon and Travis LeGrand are the partners behind Lana. Locally, LeGrand has worked at The Marine Room, Waypoint Public, Herringbone, and Oceanaire, while Wheadon (who also is a Level 2 Sommelier) has worked for Robert Redford, the Tree Room at Sundance Resort, The Avalon in Beverly Hills, Ruth’s Chris, The Riverhorse in Park City, and Crescent Heights in San Diego. LeGrand will serve as the restaurant’s general manager while Wheadon will oversee wine and beverage operations. 

The menu will focus on local and coastal cuisine, with influences from Southern California, Baja California, and Asia. “Lana will provide an upscale yet approachable dining experience for dinner and weekend brunch service,” says Wheadon, adding they’re still searching for a chef. 

Megan Power at Workind Studio (formerly of Basile Studio) is handling the design of the space, which Wheadon says will be “coastal vintage-luxe setting” utilizing clean lines and a “wow factor” that’s lively, but comfortable for guests to feel fully immersed in the space. Power is also behind the design for both the upcoming Puffer Malarkey Collective restaurant Le Coq, and 31Thirtyone by Drew Deckman. 

Having lived in Solana Beach for 10 years, Wheadon feels it’s the ideal location to open a “true neighborhood place.” But above all, he wants to provide a respite from the busyness of life. “Our goal is to make each guest feel consummately taken care of, so they can leave the stress of their day at the door,” he says. 

Lana will land at 437 South Highway 101 in February 2025.

San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events

Now Open: Trattoria Da Sofia in Kensington

Once home to Cucina Sorella and Kensington Grill, 4055 Adams Avenue is now Trattoria Da Sofia, an Italian eatery open daily from 3 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. The minds behind the trattoria come from Sicily, Mexico City, and San Diego, and have put together a menu that includes favorites like bruschetta, lasagna, beef carpaccio, spaghetti al pomodoro, and plenty of wine and cocktails. 

Coming Soon: Pizza by Aromi in La Mesa

Known for its tableside cheese wheel pasta, Aromi is expanding to the suite next door to add Pizza by Aromi sometime during summer 2024. Expect more Sicilian-inspired plates, wood-fired pizzas, and cheese imported straight from Italy. 

Beth’s Bites

First came Encinitas, then Gaslamp, and now Pacific Beach. Union Kitchen & Tap opened its third location on March 26 on Garnet Avenue, slinging the same faves like shrimp and grits, Molly’s homemade carrot cake, and, of course, brunch classics like chicken and waffles and their short rib breakfast burrito. 

Leonardo Landini of Landini’s Pizzeria also plans to bring another concept to PB at 1520 Garnet Avenue, tentatively named Chaparral, later this year.

North Park’s The Seventh House is closed for remodeling, a.k.a. transforming into Cacio e Pepe Trattoria Romana (yes, it’s the third Italian concept I mentioned today) and a new speakeasy. It’s opening tomorrow. Surprise!

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 Restaurant Lana Taking Over CPK in Solana Beach appeared first on San Diego Magazine.