FishPublic’s executive chef Jordan Davis has been lured away to… Herringbone La Jolla. Davis is a talent who worked at L.A.’s famed tip-to-tail spot Animal as well as the James Beard winner Boulevard (San Francisco) before joining Tracy Borkum’s restaurant group. It’s a good hire for exec chef Brian Malarkey, who parted ways with his original chef Amanda Baumgarten last year (Baumgarten’s now cooking well at Waypoint Public).
In January, restaurant and nightclub giant Hakkasan Ltd. bought a controlling stake in Enlightened Hospitality Group, which includes restaurants Searsucker and Herringbone, plus Downtown nightclub Stingaree. Now, Stingaree chef Antonio Friscia has signed on with RMD Group (Fluxx, Side Bar) and Ken Lovi (Knotty Barrel) to be chef-partner of their new project up the street at the former Fred’s Mexican Café and Marble Room. The first phase of the project will be called Don Chido, a “sophisticated cantina-style Mexican food” joint slated for a tentative May open. “Chefs aren’t really known for Mexican food,” says Friscia, “but we cook it for our staffs and eat it all the time.” They’re going to have carne asada cooked on a Santa Maria-style grill over wood or charcoal. A taco bar will serve the late-night crowd with housemade tortillas. And Friscia says he’ll use local, sustainable ingredients as much as possible. The bar will also have a huge tequila list and craft cocktails. The designer on the project is Davis Ink Ltd., who handled Stingaree and Side Bar. Friscia’s regarded as one of the more talented chefs and quality human beings in San Diego, and “his day” always seems just around the corner. Let’s hope this is it. His own project, Gaijin Noodle + Sake House, shuttered last year, of which he says: “The issue there really was everyone came there to eat and they didn’t drink. I’d sell a ton of food and no alcohol. You’ve got to sell alcohol to survive as a restaurant. It was a heartbreaker. I put my heart and soul in that place.”
Rancho Bernardo Inn spared no cost renovating their signature dining room, turning the classic El Bizcocho into the modern Avant. They hired Charlie Trotter alum James Kozak as the chef de cuisine, working under executive chef Nicolas Bour. But Kozak ended up leaving a few months after the opening, and now Bour been hired away to become the executive chef of Loews Coronado. Looks like Loews will be doing a major revamp in the near future with Bour as the lead dog.
We’re also hearing that Leroy’s Kitchen & Lounge chef JC Colón has left the building. For now, Tim Kolanko—exec chef for parent company Blue Bridge Hospitality—will step in and take over the line. Kolanko can cook, even if he’s got bigger concerns (including Blue Bridge’s forthcoming Coronado steakhouse, Stake).
Chef Claudette Zepeda has launched an online cooking club.
Want to learn how to make a new dish at home? Here are five cooking classes you can take online, all led by local chefs
Mexican Cuisine 101
Cook alongside a Top Chef alum while learning the art of Mexican cuisine. Claudette Zepeda launched a cooking club and has a lineup of classes on her website, where she’s teaching how to make everything from pan dulce (July 18) to carnitas estilo Michoacan (July 22) on Zoom in an approachable way. Two days before the class, you’ll receive a shopping list and a note of what equipment you’ll need. If you want to just have a glass of wine and watch, that’s fine too—classes are recorded, and you’ll be sent a link afterward. A portion of the $30 ticket price is donated to No Kid Hungry.
Cook as a Group
Jodi Abel is a self-taught chef, and for the past 12 years she has been teaching group cooking and team-building classes through her company LaJollaCooks4U. Her group classes are now virtual on Zoom: pick either a 60-minute or 90-minute session, and you’ll be given a selection of two or three dishes to make. Contact them for a quote.
Bring a Celebrity Chef Into Your Kitchen
Brian Malarkey has been hosting virtual cooking classes focusing on dishes with Baja and Asian influences, and teaching how to grill meats. During a one-hour class, you learn how to make one entrée and one side dish along with general cooking tips. After you’ve plated your dish, you can show it to him for feedback. Classes are interactive, and you can ask questions through Zoom’s chat feature—he also shares behind-the-scenes info about what it’s like to be on Top Chef. Proceeds from the classes have been going to the PMC Relief Fund. His site has a library of short videos on basic cooking techniques, and he regularly invites guest chefs to cook (virtually) alongside him. On Monday, August 10, the special guest chef is Rocco DiSpirito, who will be showing how to make an authentic Milanese risotto.
Cross-Border Cooking
Chef Alma Fernanda is a San Diego local who has cooked in restaurants in LA, Mexico City, and Madrid, and she offers virtual cooking classes every Thursday evening that have become popular on both sides of the border. Classes cover a wide variety of cuisines, from traditional Mexican seafood to Mediterranean and Italian, or are focused on specific ingredients. She saves a recording of each class for five days after the live stream so attendees have time to look back for reference. Fernanda conducts her classes predominantly in Spanish. Classes are $25 US per session; email her at [email protected] or direct message her on Instagram to sign up.
A Taste of Tuscany
Chef Giacomo Lenzi moved to San Diego from his native Tuscany, Italy, and launched catering company A Casa Mia. Just before the pandemic he had secured a new event space, but shortly afterward he needed to come up with a new business plan. He launched a virtual cooking school that hosts a class every week, and the price of admission includes an ingredient kit that will be delivered to you the day before the online session. The next class, which covers how to make a pizza from scratch ($40), is on August 7.
It’s March 21st. I am sitting in my car outside of Tribute Pizza in North Park. I’m a little nervous. I have never been nervous to order a pizza. The restaurant is closed. All restaurants have been ordered closed by the state of California, only allowed to do takeout and delivery. Boxes and boxes of […]
By Troy Johnson
It’s March 21st. I am sitting in my car outside of Tribute Pizza in North Park. I’m a little nervous. I have never been nervous to order a pizza. The restaurant is closed. All restaurants have been ordered closed by the state of California, only allowed to do takeout and delivery. Boxes and boxes of food and relief goods and sanitation supplies are packed against Tribute’s windows. Construction zone barricades on the sidewalk designate pickup zones. I park my CRV. As instructed, I use my cell phone to call them and let them know I’ve arrived. New signs are posted on the windows explaining how to do this. People have to relearn how to order pizza in a pandemic.
A woman emerges. She wears gloves and carries our pizza and a CSA box of veggies from local farmers. We are careful to give her six feet of space. Anyone working serving the public right now is at risk. She gives us two options. She will put our pizza on top of our hood, or in our trunk. She will not hand us the food, and we do not want the food handed to us. We opt for the trunk, though afterward I feel the hood would’ve been safer.
On the drive home, the car smells of hand sanitizer and pizza. Once home, I place everything outside of our front door. I remove all the food from the to-go bag. I won’t allow it in the house where my eight year old is. I take a tube of Clorox wipes, and wipe down all of the containers of food on our porch.
“Is this crazy?” I ask my wife.
Sanitizing the pizza boxes before bringing it into the house.
Photo Credit: Claire Johnson
Italy and Spain and China are on lockdown. California and New York are on lockdown. A third of the country is on lockdown. “Death toll” is a number well wake up to, hospitals are getting crushed with the flood of sick people, healthcare workers are working to the point of exhaustion while exposing themselves to coronavirus every minute of their lifesaving work. For the first time in my life I know what a ventilator is, how many are available in the U.S., and that it’s not enough.
It is definitely crazy. Everything is crazy. Nothing is normal.
Hand sanitizer at the to-go station inside Tribute Pizza.
Photo Credit: Claire Johnson
I carry the food containers into the house, making sure not to put them down on our kitchen counters. I sanitize one free hand, use that hand to grab a clean plate from the cupboard, and dump the contents of the meatballs onto the plate. I do the same with the pizza.
Once all the food is safely on clean plates, I discard the containers. I go to the sink and wash my hands thoroughly for two birthday songs. Finally, we sit down to eat. It is delicious. And yet I’m not totally comfortable doing this. Maybe there is no comfortable way to eat in the pandemic.
Let’s back up to how we got here.
It’s March 8th. I’m at a crowded Mexican restaurant in San Diego taking notes on ceviche. This is my job. I take it very seriously. I’m unaware how wildly luxurious it will be a week from now to think about ceviche. I’m unaware how wildly free it was to be in a crowded restaurant and not worry about endangering a healthcare worker or a grandparent or humanity. Beyond washing our hands every hour or so, life is relatively normal. There are many birthday parties happening around us.
It’s March 9th. In four days, I’m scheduled to fly to the Midwest to film a TV show about restaurants. But the country’s starting to quiver a little bit. My wife and I decide to keep our two-day trip to the mountains. It’s important. I’m going to be gone for weeks. I need her to remember who I am.
It’s March 10th. I wake up in Big Bear to a text from my co-host: “I’m a little nervous.” She’s not a nervous type. Five days earlier I had asked her if she was concerned and she said she would kick coronavirus’s ass. I believed her. We laughed it off, a tad uneasily.
I get on a call with our producers to gauge their concern. They just don’t know. Nobody knows. We’re not epidemiologists. Just average people binging on the news cycle, trying to not be on the wrong side of history. At that point it was still valid to ask, “Is it bad enough to cancel things and ruin people’s lives economically?” Our TV show helps restaurants by telling their stories. At this point they are struggling because the virus has reduced customers to a trickle, and their people—dishwashers, cooks, servers, bussers, bartenders, owners, suppliers—need help. Four hours after that call, the WHO declares coronavirus a pandemic. We cancel our flights, postpone the show. It feels terrible and right, but even then we’re not sure.
Construction cones denote where to park for curbside pickup.
I expected way more neon. Explosive Tokyo neon, the kind that looks really cool in the rain and causes migraines. I expected the highly stylized melodrama of Japanese cartoons. I expected gaudy fantasies, definitely a sense of prolonged adolescence, maybe even a little cosplay. And all I got was an elegant, beautiful restaurant with high-quality drapery and excellently weird food.
Sure, there’s a 20-foot mural of a giant cartoon robot above the bar. He appears to be attempting flotation therapy, doing a lazy backstroke among naval ships and 400-foot koi fish. There are also a few colorful toys in a trophy case at the host’s station. But when you name your restaurant “Animae”—in honor of the wildly inventive and occasionally disturbing tradition of Japanese animation—I don’t think it’s unreasonable to demand that I be overstimulated, amused, and terrified. Instead, I just felt sexy.
Well, at least the pork tomahawk is terrifying and phenomenal.
Animae is the new $5.5 million project from Puffer Malarkey, the partnership of operations man and designer Chris Puffer and chef Brian Malarkey, the latter known nationally for his recurring role on Top Chef. After Malarkey’s breakthrough restaurant Searsucker was sold to Hakkasan, he and Puffer put everything they had into the massive Herb & Wood in Little Italy and, well, it jackpotted. It’s an excellent, grand thing, and continues to spit out coins for everyone involved. That spawned Farmer & the Seahorse, Herb & Sea, and now this.
Success draws talented people who also enjoy doing well in life. So longtime Cucina Urbana chef Joe Magnanelli defected to Animae, as did accomplished drinks man and GM Lucien Conner (formerly of Puesto). They’re partners, not just employees. Everyone has a stake in this game, is incentivized to excel. You can feel it.
Your search for reasonable parking will be mocked by this corner of Broadway and Pacific Highway. A night’s budget for dinner at Animae will not be small and will most likely include $12–$15 to the Ace Parking valet (before tip).
The restaurant is the ground-floor attraction of Pacific Gate by Bosa, the ultra-luxury condo development on the embarcadero. This part of downtown is where all the new pretty things are being built (including a $2 billion redevelopment of the waterfront), but much of it is still a ways off. Animae is an early adopter, with a well-known brand but little to no foot traffic. Judging by the jampacked Friday night crowd—all in advanced stages of wealth accumulation—Animae doesn’t need it.
Animae’s spin on a dirty martini
James Tran and Olivia Beall
Animae is fully self-aware, intentionally inauthentic Asian food. Before you think that’s a bad thing, let me suggest that authenticity is one of the food world’s dumber demands. The idea that two accomplished chefs named Joe and Brian shouldn’t cook tom yum mushrooms (the major flavors of the Thai soup—lemongrass, lime leaf, onion, and garlic—sautéed and deliciously absorbed into hoji, king, and maitake mushrooms) is about as low-rent and insulting as suggesting a great Thai chef should not cook cioppino. One of the best cheeseburgers I’ve ever eaten was made by a Korean chef who’d never cooked a cheeseburger before.
So, at Animae you get creations like “butter dumplings,” traditional Asian soup dumplings (xiao long bao) filled with escargot and browned butter over a Wagyu carpaccio and a frico (cheese crisp). It’s French food in a Chinese handbag. Browned butter—cooked low and slow until the milk solids caramelize and develop an intoxicating nuttiness—would make mossy river rocks taste delicious. The dumpling is thicker and tougher than traditional bao (it eats like al dente pasta), and that’s probably not their ideal result. But the flavors, abnormal bedfellows though they may be, really sing. You get elotes (Mexican street corn) tossed with housemade kimchi that’s been pureed in aioli, using Japanese togarashi seasoning (chiles, orange peel, sesame seeds, ginger, seaweed) with pickled jicama and Cotija cheese. Be sure to mix it all up. We used to call this kind of thing “fusion,” but in today’s modern, globalized food culture we just call it food.
Xiao long bao filled with escargot and served atop Wagyu beef carpaccio
James Tran and Olivia Beall
Every detail in Animae seems obsessed over. Maybe it’s because the restaurant was delayed so long. (Getting a restaurant finished on time has become a cliché joke, and I’m not going to point fingers… but it’s the city’s fault.) The dirty martini, for instance: Instead of plain old olive juice, they start with dry vermouth and add koji (fermented rice), miso, furikake, dried mushrooms, black pepper, soy sauce, and a touch of Laphroaig scotch for smokiness. The result is a more interesting and delicious cocktail, even if it’s not a dirty martini.
The crab hand rolls are very good, tossed with Madras curry and Kewpie mayo (Japanese mayo, the chef’s mayo, amazing, partially because of MSG), topped with uni, shiso leaves, radish, and crunchy garlic. But it’s the chili garlic ponzu sauce that’s real wizardry. Pour it everywhere, drink it, write it poems. Then order the roasted duck bao buns. You know these by now. The Chinese figured out how to make bread clouds, because they’re Chinese and they’ve been baking bread longer than anyone. The buns are whiter than brand-new veneers. Eating them is a form of ASMR, and Animae makes theirs using duck fat, then adds maple-miso sauce, blue cheese, and persimmon.
Mushrooms cooked with the flavors of tom yum soup and topped with burrata
James Tran and Olivia Beall
The menu has high-end cuisine and dishes that taste like some of the best Asian takeout you’ve had. On the high end, the pork tomahawk is obscene. Juicy marinated pork cubes (loin and belly) are sliced, winding, serpentine, around the plate like some carnivorous hieroglyph. It’s marinated in koji (which gives proteins a sweet, funky umami), drizzled with Madras curry sauce, and sprinkled with fennel pollen. Do not order this massive plate for yourself, unless you are struggling emotionally and need to put those feelings somewhere, or are an offensive lineman. It’s a gaudy retort (really, enough meat for four people) to any plant-based resolutions you may have made in the new year. And it’s worth it.
For more Asian takeout vibes, try the pork belly and calamari. The belly is cured and slow roasted, the calamari is both sautéed clean and deep fried, and it’s rested on egg noodles with yuzu (Japanese citrus) in the dough. Or the fried rice, a Niigata meets Baton Rouge idea, loaded with ham hocks and mustard greens, the rice seasoned with tare (a thick Japanese sauce with miso, mirin, koji, ginger, soy), topped with a fried egg and crispy fried rice tossed with tender rice for texture.
Animae’s entrance on Pacific Highway
Photo Credit: James Tran and Olivia Beall
The only dish we don’t truly enjoy is the one that’s generated the most buzz: the brothless ramen. Chef Magnanelli spent the last decade helming a successful Italian restaurant and this is ramen as a spartan pasta dish. The broth is reduced until there’s nothing left, all the flavor absorbed into the noodles. The problem is the nori (seaweed). While jammed with umami, seaweed is, at the end of the day, ocean weed. If you truly love the taste of nori snacks (they sell them at Costco now, so many of us do), you may enjoy it. I personally love nori, but without a broth to spread its umami gospel (and tone it down), it bullies the other ingredients.
But honestly, that’s the only real miss of our 15 dishes over two nights. And even if you don’t enjoy eating it, anyone can be excited by the idea of a brothless ramen. And a major reason we dine at restaurants like Animae is to taste new ideas. We don’t pay $15 to a restaurant valet to have our expectations met. We pay it to develop new ones.
Malasadas, Portuguese donuts, are served with green curry ice cream.
Photo Credit: James Tran and Olivia Beall
Oh, and for dessert, order the malasadas, soft doughy donuts filled with coconut cream, tossed in a mixture of coffee grounds, sugar, and sea salt, and paired with green curry ice cream (yes, ice cream with lemongrass, lime leaf, galangal, and Thai chile—amazing).
I still want more neon and stunted adolescent weirdness in a restaurant named Animae, but it’s a hell of a restaurant.
Troy Johnson is the magazine’s award-winning food writer and humorist, and a long-standing expert on Food Network. His work has been featured on NatGeo, Travel Channel, NPR, and in Food Matters, a textbook of the best American food writing.
For Executive Chef Emily Brubaker, Omni La Costa Resort & Spa feels like home. She grew up just a mile-and-a-half away from the 400-acre property and fondly recalls walking the golf course perimeter as a kid. Though her ambitions led her away from San Diego for nearly two decades in which she honed her craft in some of the highest of high-profile Las Vegas restaurants—including triple Michelin-starred Joël Robuchon at MGM Grand—they ultimately brought her back to North County.
Courtesy of Omni La Costa
Today, the classically French-trained chef, who’s fresh off a victory on NBC’s Yes, Chef!, judged by Martha Stewart and José Andrés, oversees Omni La Costa Resort & Spa’s seven distinct dining concepts. Her goal is to elevate the resort’s culinary program with her creative, hyperlocal ingredient-driven approach while maintaining the Spanish- inspired flavors and fresh California coastal cuisine that are the bedrock of its culinary identity.
“The San Diego food scene is really growing, and in North County alone, it’s really exploded in the last five years,” Brubaker says. “There are Michelin stars, beautiful tasting menus, craft bakers, and all this food—when I was growing up in La Costa, it was fish tacos. Now there are really cool things popping up, and I’m so happy to be here to see where it’s going to go.”
Brubaker gives chefs de cuisine at each individual restaurant autonomy, however, her influence is evident across the resort.
For example, lobby restaurant Bar Traza serves as Omni La Costa’s culinary centerpiece and features bold Spanish flavors in a lively, social atmosphere. Brubaker overhauled the menu to be more consistent and centered on casual bites with that signature vibe. Think smoky paprika, vibrant citrus, and Spanish meats and cheeses.
At VUE, the focus is on seasonal offerings, California coastal cuisine, and Baja-inspired dishes. She and Chef de Cuisine Cameron Dixon change the menu biannually, which heading into summer, will highlight farm-fresh produce and hyperlocal ingredients—the resort even has its own herb garden and honeybee hives.
Courtesy of Omni La Costa
Poolside dining options are leaning into the country’s 250th this summer with a selection of classic American dishes with an Omni La Costa twist. And Bob’s Steak & Chop House (Brubaker is a trained butcher) offers a classic steakhouse experience with elevated service.
The chef and company also plan menus for special events at the resort where her creativity can really shine. For an upcoming National Ski Association dinner, the banquet hall will be transformed into an Alpine-themed winter wonderland complete with a snow machine, savory sausages, and melty, decadent raclette. A recent dinner was built around the Carlsbad Flower Fields and each course was matched to a color of ranunculus (Did you know pink dragonfruit are grown in North County? You do now.).
“It’s my zen to be in the kitchen playing with food,” Brubaker says.
Omni La Costa’s culinary program is a key part of the resort experience. And with Brubaker’s leadership, it’s becoming a draw for visitors and locals alike.
“These aren’t just hotel restaurants, these are restaurants that you should go to. They’re destinations, and I’m really hoping for the future that’s where we’re going,” Brubaker says.
Courtesy of Omni La Costa
Brubaker is also channeling her experience on Yes, Chef! into the culture at Omni La Costa—more emphasis on teamwork and collaboration, empowering her staff to share constructive critiques, and embracing different perspectives. Alongside her leadership role, Brubaker has become an advocate for mental health in the hospitality industry, serving as chief ambassador for the Burnt Chef Project and serves on the Board of Advisors for the Apex Culinary Program, where she mentors and develops future talent.
When chef Brian Malarkey and partner Chris Puffer opened the massive Little Italy restaurant, their name had taken a bit of a hit. Malarkey had risen to prominence through Top Chef and the “fabric” restaurants, Searsucker and Herringbone. Then those were sold to Hakkasan, and the duo found themselves adrift. Herb & Wood was the first major project of their own (with plenty of investors), and Malarkey’s not shy about saying it was a redemption project.
“The fabric restaurants were good but not that good,” Malarkey says. “It took a bit for us to resolidify and attract talent after that.”
With chef Shane McIntyre (who recently left), cocktail man Willem Van Leuven and pastry chef Adrian Mendoza, Herb & Woodbecame one of those runaway successes restaurateurs dream about. A successful chef once told me, “There is no money in restaurants unless you do a simple concept and do 20 of them, or do a multimillion-dollar place like Malarkey.”
“I never thought I was the most talented chef in the kitchen,” says Malarkey. “The other day I looked around and it was like a chef university, a culinary think tank. We had Joe Magnanelli [formerly the longtime chef of Cucina Urbana], Carlos Anthony [Herb & Wood chef], Mike Ground [former exec chef at Patio Group], Sara [ex-Searsucker], Adrian Mendoza, and a couple guys Joe brought over from Nobu. We’re to look back on this as one of the greatest moments of our lives.”
Animae is a coal-fired pan-Asian concept, which may seem a stretch for Magnanelli, who for a decade was known for his Italian food at Urban Kitchen Group. But we no longer call it “fusion,” because everything has been fused. Chef pantries look like excessively stamped passports, with everything from thyme to za’atar to furikake. Even mom and pop shops are using fish sauce these days.
If you build a fancy restaurant and you don’t pay your people, you’re going to fail. – Brian Malarkey
Plus, Malarkey says of Magninelli, “I could walk into any restaurant in Urban Kitchen Group, order one of his dishes, and it would taste exactly the same. He’s not just good, he’s consistently good. I wish I could walk into my own restaurants and say the same thing.”
Animae will fit between 170-190 people. Craft cocktails will be handled by Adam Ono (ex-Yeast of Eden, Bourbon & Branch). Like Herb & Wood, it will have an adjacent coffee shop with to-go food from the Animae kitchen. At night, they’ll transform the area into an event space.
I asked Malarkey a few tough questions on the eve of his open:
You’re running marathons. You look kind of ripped. Helping with the stress?
Whenever I do a new opening, I get really intense and in shape. When you’re playing with a lot of money you gotta be real responsible and focused. To the investors, but also to your wife and kids. You’ve got to have clarity. Thank god for the Peloton and the healthy eating. I’ve been able to get on the line cooking with Joe and these guys. I’m like Rocky Balboa chasing the chicken.
Embarcadero Marina is in flux. Huge projects in the work, but they’re still a ways off. It’s not a dining destination like Little Italy. Why there, why now?
Really came around with meeting Nat Bosa. He doesn’t have restaurants in his other buildings. He’d eaten dinner at Herb & Wood, came in here casually and said, “I want a premium restaurant, and I don’t want to have problems with the group who runs it, so I’m going to make you a sweetheart deal.” He’s so straightforward and honest, so we felt we could be, too. He asked if Animae would do really well there. Puffer and I looked at each other and said, “We have no idea, Nat. We’re either going to kill it, or we’re going to close.”
Plus, there’s no foot traffic in the area. Where’d you go to business school? Help me understand.
Herb & Wood and Juniper & Ivy [Richard Blais’ restaurant next door] aren’t in the heart of Little Italy where people walk by and think “Oh, this place is cute.” I’d put the number of walk-ins at about 10 a night. The other 300 people are ride-sharing or valeting. Uber and Lyft have has changed our entire industry. Everyone just wants to go out and not worry about having to drive. You don’t need parking, and you can be off the beaten path. Look at Major Domo in L.A. Granted, that’s David Chang. But, still, it’s changed.
Animae is carpeted. Restaurant carpet is gross. Please explain yourself.
It took Puffer a while to talk me into it. We’re getting old. Our hearing’s going. I want to be able to sit across from people and have a great conversation. Plus, it’s the funkiest carpet ever. The whole place is so soft and has giant curtains. We used to be the ones cleaning up warehouses and making super-loud restaurants. Now I think we’re at the forefront of restaurateurs getting back to places you can talk to people.
Why has Herb & Wood done so damn well, and how will that translate to Animae?
Puffer and I were never allowed to have this much talent in the olden days. We no longer have people who tell us what our budgets are. Plus, all of our new GMs and chefs are our business partners. We gave them ownership stake. Ask any young chef or old chef what they want in life and they’re going to say, “I want my own restaurant.” Well, now you got it. We’d much rather make less money and sleep at night. That’s helping us get the best talent. We give them budgets that are reasonable, and beautiful venues to work with. If you build a fancy restaurant, and you don’t pay your people, you’re going to fail.
Wrap up the food concept for me in a neat little bow.
Coal-fired, Asian inspired. We’re not doing authentic Asian. There are no rules. So much fun to break them together. Almost every single dish is a mashup of Asian and Mediterranean. It’s incredible steaks, seafood, Asian crudo. Joe has taken his pasta skills and he’s making brothless ramen noodles. Whole roasted duck. Udon lobster dish with shaved parmesan. Whole fried chicken. We’re making our own bao buns.
What’s your contribution to Joe’s menu?
Joe got more into Chinese flavors that are rich and bold. All I wanted was Thai and Japanese, super light with acid and spice. So I’m the guy who runs around putting a bunch of herbs and salt on everything.
Troy Johnson is the magazine’s award-winning food writer and humorist, and a long-standing expert on Food Network. His work has been featured on NatGeo, Travel Channel, NPR, and in Food Matters, a textbook of the best American food writing.
San Diego’s Best Restaurant of 2018: The Finalists
San Diego Magazine's Best Restaurants issue comes out in June. Here are food critic Troy Johnson's finalists for the best of the best.
By Troy Johnson
The restaurant business didn’t get any easier this year. Costs went up across the board. Operating a restaurant is like trying to tame a wild animal that feeds on your life savings. With our annual Best Restaurants issue coming up, I have to pick the “Best of the Best” category. Meaning the best dang dining option in town. We have established chefs and restaurants who’re always in consideration. But new blood must be recognized if new blood is good. My finalists for this year are a mix of new and old. The winner, along with our readers’ picks, will come out in the June issue. And for me it came down to these:
Addison at the Grand Del Mar will always be in play. Under the technical mastery of chef William Bradley, it’s simply one of the best restaurants on the planet, let alone San Diego. The fact that it’s not won a James Beard Award yet is a product of bias, not value. It’s a special occasion restaurant, for sure, based in the Fairmont Grand Del Mar resort. It’s not cheap. It’s very, very formal. And it’s pretty spell-binding.
Although the headlines have been taken by the Crack Shack, their casual fried chicken offshoot, Richard Blais’ marquee fine-dining warehouse has continued to exceed expectations since opening in 2014. Blais lives locally, takes a very active role for someone with a TV and book career, and his team is one of the best in town, especially Executive Chef Anthony Wells, who spent a year at Thomas Keller’s Per Se and was the opening-day butcher at Jonathan Benno’s Lincoln Ristorante.
First off, it’s the most beautiful restaurant in town. Chef Brian Malarkey and his partner/GM Chris Puffer captured some Victorian magic in the old Mixture art warehouse. Malarkey and chef de cuisine Shane McIntyre have never been short on talent. It’s always just been a question of, “How involved will Malarkey be?” When he left Searsucker, quality suffered. But H&W is his baby, and it’s arguably the best restaurant he’s ever done.
Chef Trey Foshee is one of the best in the country. To boot, he’s also one of the most sustainable, ethical chefs around, meaning that his kitchen cooks for the head and the mouth. Doesn’t hurt that he’s perched over La Jolla Cove. But what really pushed the George’s empire up in recent years is the bar program, which, under Stephen Kurpinsky, has finally reached the same level as the kitchen.
Chef Brad Wise seemed to come out of nowhere. His tenure at JRDN in Pacific Beach wasn’t buzzed about. But when he partnered with GM Stephen Schwob (ex-Addison) to open this hip, minimalist restaurant in Hillcrest, they’ve both consistently blown minds of anyone I’ve sent there. That oxtail raviolini, the vinegar whipped-cream potatoes, the whole damn thing, is excellent.
Carl Schroeder seems to get overlooked, possibly because of Market’s quirky location between Del Mar and Rancho Santa Fe. It’s not a road traveled much unless you own a horse and an Aston Martin. But Schroeder’s a perfectionist and incredibly talented chef, and his staff totally buys in and knows the food and wine down to the smallest detail.
3702 Via de la Valle, Del Mar
Pick up San Diego Magazine‘s June issue later this month to see who wins.
San Diego’s Best Restaurant of 2018: The Finalists
Trust Restaurant in Hillcrest is one of the finalists for top restaurant of the year in San Diego. | Photo: Sam Wells
The iconic 1,200-acre preserve’s history dates back more than 150 years, evolving from a scrub-filled plot atop a mesa overlooking what’s now Downtown to an urban oasis—the largest of its kind in the country—filled with an array of museums, attractions, gardens, trails, restaurants, and more. Balboa Park is an epic playground where San Diegans and visitors alike can experience the great outdoors just as easily as they can enjoy a world-class performance or explore groundbreaking discoveries.
Tucked away in the Spanish Colonial Revival-style architecture are 18 diverse museums that allow visitors to spend the day learning about, well, anything. A great place to start is the San Diego History Center. Located in the Casa del Balboa building, the museum tells the story of the city’s past, present, and future through photographs and art, clothing and textiles, and interviews with people who witnessed history-making events firsthand. The San Diego Natural History Museum takes visitors even farther back with interactive exhibitions that show what the region was like up to 75 million years ago.
Blast off on a simulated trip to space at the San Diego Air & Space Museum, then check out artifacts from aviation legends, including the Wright brothers, Amelia Earhart, and Buzz Aldrin. Discover new perspectives revolutionizing the science world, learn about an often overlooked but overutilized utility, and exercise your creativity at the Fleet Science Center.
Calling all theater-lovers, Balboa Park has something for you, too. The San Diego Junior Theatre will present their musical take on beloved children’s book A Bad Case of the Stripes from June 26 through July 12. And laugh, cry, and marvel in awe as the pros of The Old Globe perform Kim’s Convenience, the award-winning comedy that inspired the popular series, from May 15 to June 14.
There’s nowhere else in Balboa Park quite like WorldBeat Cultural Center. The institution celebrates African diaspora and indigenous cultures around the world using art, music, dance, and education. The building, a renovated water tower covered in colorful murals, houses a performing arts center, museum, gift shop, cafe, and outdoor classroom.
If you’d like a side of nature with your culture, Balboa Park has you covered there, too. Stroll through the gardens of the Japanese Friendship Garden & Museum, a monument to the relationship between San Diego and its sister city, Yokohama, Japan. Inspired by traditional Japanese design dating back centuries, the 10-acre respite features a living exhibition that showcases plants native to both cities.
If there seems like a lot going on in Balboa Park, it’s because there is. Let theBalboa Park Cultural Partnership be your guide. The organization is the umbrella for 24 of the park’s institutions and offers an Explorer Pass that allows visitors to access multiple museums for one affordable price. The hardest part is picking where to start.
16 Museums, One Pass
Save on admission to San Diego’s top museums with the Balboa Park Explorer Pass. Explore 16 museums of art, science, history and culture across Balboa Park — all with one affordable pass. Choose the option that fits your pace: the Limited Pass (one day for up to four museums), the Parkwide Pass (seven consecutive days of access to all 16 museums) or the Annual Pass (365 days of unlimited exploring).
Looking for an experience-driven gift? Let the museum lover in your life enjoy their favorite museums all year with a Balboa Park Explorer Annual Pass gift voucher.
Bigger experiments, brighter ideas, and boundless curiosity await at the newly reimagined Fleet Science Center. This summer, the Fleet debuts Element 8 Cafe, an expanded theater queuing and concessions space, two new gallery spaces, and, for the first time, a free entrance gallery exploring science in and around San Diego. The transformation marks a new chapter for the Fleet, keeping it a vital, innovative, and accessible science hub for the region. Visitors are invited to explore the experience this summer and connect with the power of science like never before.
Address: 1875 El Prado, San Diego, CA 92101 Website:FleetScience.org Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily Phone: 619-238-1233
Japanese Friendship Garden & Museum
An accredited cultural gem, the Japanese Friendship Garden & Museum brings traditional Japanese garden design to life with koi ponds, curving walkways and layers of greenery. Guests explore bonsai trees, streams and peaceful nooks while taking part in exhibits, educational programs and festivals that illuminate Japanese culture. Situated in the heart of Balboa Park, the garden doubles as a meditative retreat and a dynamic gathering place, welcoming visitors to slow their pace and connect more deeply.
Address: 2215 Pan American Road E, San Diego, CA 92101 Website:Niwa.org Hours: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily; last admission at 6 p.m. Phone: 619-232-2721
The Old Globe
A San Diego summer favorite, The Old Globe invites audiences to experience a beloved local tradition in its outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre.
This summer, the 2026 Shakespeare Festival presents two thrilling tales of power, passion and romance. Measure for Measure, running June 14 through July 12, 2026, is a riveting story of justice and hypocrisy that asks who holds power, who is punished and what it truly means to be virtuous. Much Ado About Nothing, playing Aug. 2–30, 2026, is a classic rom-com packed with schemes, sparks and laughter as opposites attract. Audiences can enjoy both shows for $44.
Address: 1363 Old Globe Way, San Diego, CA 92101 Website:TheOldGlobe.org Hours: Box office open Tuesday–Sunday, 1 p.m. to final curtain Phone: Box office, 619-234-5623
San Diego Air & Space Museum
Aviation and space exploration come to life at the San Diego Air & Space Museum. See an airworthy replica of the Spirit of St. Louis, a Gee Bee racer and historic aircraft from World War I, World War II and the Korean and Vietnam eras. Get up close to the Apollo 9 command module — one of only 11 of its kind in the world — along with Mercury and Gemini capsules, Mission Control and space shuttle simulators, and a selfie spot beside a lunar lander on the moon. Running through 2026, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! brings oddities from around the world to Balboa Park.
Address: 2001 Pan American Plaza, San Diego, CA 92101 Website:SanDiegoAirAndSpace.org Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Phone: 619-234-8291
San Diego History Center
History belongs to everyone. At the San Diego History Center, two experiences bring that history to life this summer: America at 250 and the Center for Women’s History. America at 250 traces San Diego’s place in 250 years of U.S. history, while summer programs invite children to learn and explore. The Center for Women’s History amplifies the voices of women whose leadership and creativity have shaped our region.
By understanding our past, we build a more vibrant and inclusive community together. These vital educational experiences are only possible through generous community support. Discover your roots, spark meaningful dialogue, and help keep San Diego’s stories alive for future generations.
Address: 1649 El Prado, Suite 3, San Diego, CA 92101 Website: SanDiegoHistory.org Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday–Sunday Phone: 619-232-6203
San Diego Junior Theatre
Junior Theatre is San Diego’s longest-running youth theatre program, empowering students ages 4 to 18 to explore storytelling, performance, and collaboration in a supportive environment. Through classes, camps, and productions, young artists build confidence, creativity, and lifelong skills onstage and off. Each season features a wide range of opportunities, from introductory experiences to advanced training in acting and musical theatre.
Looking for a summer adventure? Junior Theatre’s Summer Camps deliver dynamic programs for grades K–12, including musical theater intensives, acting academies and immersive JT Studio experiences. It’s a place where imagination truly takes center stage.
Address: 1650 El Prado, Suite 208, San Diego, CA 92101 Website:JuniorTheatre.com Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Phone: 619-239-1311
San Diego Natural History Museum (The Nat)
This summer, The Nat is talking trash—literally. Their newest exhibition, Washed Ashore: Art to Save the Sea, features larger‑than‑life marine sculptures made of ocean debris collected from beaches. It invites visitors to explore the impact of plastic pollution and discover ways to take action.
But the experience doesn’t stop at the gallery doors. Friday nights, the exhibition transforms into an ocean-themed “dive bar” during Nat at Night. Select Sundays bring something brand new: a rooftop brunch with sweeping Balboa Park views. Add two new giant-screen films and five floors of nature to explore, and The Nat is shaping up to be one of the season’s must-visit destinations.
Address: 1788 El Prado, San Diego, CA 92101 Website: SDNat.org Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays in summer Phone: 619-232-3821
WorldBeat Cultural Center
The WorldBeat Cultural Center is a nonprofit multidisciplinary cultural organization dedicated to promoting, presenting and preserving Indigenous cultures worldwide through music, art, dance, education, sustainability and community programs. WorldBeat elevates multicultural artists, expands opportunities for cultural enrichment and fosters deeper understanding across traditions. WorldBeat offers a holistic cultural experience that inspires pride, unity, connection and belonging for all ages.
Address: 2100 Park Blvd., San Diego, CA 92101 Website:WorldBeatCenter.org Hours: Classes: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, 6–9 p.m. Exhibits and café: Friday–Sunday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m. Phone: 619-230-1190
Event Calendar
Throughout 2026: Ripley’s Believe It Or Not!
Step into a world of the weird and wonderful at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! at the San Diego Air & Space Museum in Balboa Park. Explore hundreds of bizarre artifacts, interactive displays and unbelievable stories that celebrate the curious and the extraordinary.
Presented in partnership with the San Diego Museum of African American Fine Arts, San Diego’s Lost Neighborhoods uses augmented reality, oral histories, and archival materials to explore communities and residents displaced by redlining, freeway construction, and other discriminatory policies.
Spend a summer night at The Old Globe. The Lowell Davies Festival Theatre stages Measure for Measure (June 14–July 12) and Much Ado About Nothing (Aug. 2–30), offering two unforgettable Shakespeare productions for just $44.
The Old Globe | 1363 Old Globe Way, San Diego, CA 92101
June 8–Aug. 7: Theatre Summer Camps
Summer camps at Junior Theatre spark creativity for grades K–12 with hands-on training, musical theatre intensives, acting academies, and JT Studio experiences.
A museum visit turns into a Sunday Funday with the addition of rooftop brunch, featuring mimosas, bloody Marys, and brunch bites from Wolfish by Wolf in the Woods (June 14, August 9) and Hash House a Go Go (July 12).
Nagashi at the Japanese Friendship Garden & Museum by floating a lantern to honor loved ones who have passed. Stroll merchant booths, enjoy cultural performances in the Inamori Pavilion, and sample food vendors plus a beer and sake garden in the lower garden.
Explore arts, science, history, and culture in the Balboa Park Cultural District with one convenient, affordable Pass. The Balboa Park Explorer Pass is your ticket to up to 16 museums and endless fun! Purchase your pass at BuyMyExplorer.com.
