With a sprawling mix-and-match menu that allows for over 6.7 million different combinations, Gretchen LeMiere promises there’s definitely something for everyone at Taste Craft Eatery, the restaurant she opened in San Luis Obispo with her husband Scott in 2013.
“You can come in with your 90-year-old grandma and your 5-year-old son and know that everybody’s going to find something that they want to eat,” she says.
Taste’s schtick is their choose-your-meal approach, where guests can go for a Duo (pick any two items for $17), a Trio (pick any three items for $22), or a Quartet, where you can (you guessed it) pick any four items for $32. The menu ranges from sliders to sandwiches to salads, customizable mac and cheese, seasonal soups, and weekend brunch where yes, you can mix and match different eggs Benedict with French toast croissant bowls or chilaquiles. Did I mention there are over 6.7 million possible combinations?
The couple currently run two Taste locations—the original SLO spot and the second one they opened in Paso Robles in 2020. LeMiere says they’ve had their eyes open for number three for quite some time, looking everywhere from the Bay Area to Santa Barbara. But San Diego always stayed on their radar—her first chef job was in La Jolla, Scott went to SDSU, and both of their kids were born at Scripps Memorial.
“Yeah, it holds some nostalgia for us,” she laughs.
So when they took a look at a restaurant space in Carlsbad, it felt right. And as a family business, you end up spending more time at the restaurant than your actual home—so it better feel good.
Taste Carlsbad opens this summer in The Square at Bressi Ranch. The nearly 4,000-square-foot space will have a large front patio and interior that LeMiere calls classy, but casual. “I want people to come in and feel like they’re coming into a really nice spot, but it’s approachable,” she says. You can come get a burger and fries with a beer, or a kale salad topped with ahi and a zero-proof cocktail with agave and bubbly cranberry juice. Really, anything goes.
While coming to Carlsbad feels like a homecoming, she says it’s also exciting to be a part of the new North County dining scene. “The growth in Carlsbad is insane,” she says. “We’re having so much fun getting reintroduced to an area that we love so much.”
Taste Carlsbad is located at 2668 Gateway Road, Suite 170 in The Square at Bressi Ranch and opens in late summer 2026. Initial opening hours will be 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week.
Courtesy of Todo Pa’ La Cruda
San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events
Todo Pa’ La Cruda Opens Third Location February 20
Some restaurants expand excruciatingly slowly, if at all. Others don’t pass an opportunity up. Todo Pa’ La Cruda seems to fall into that second camp, and is set to open a third location in Hillcrest at 406 University Avenue, Suite B on February 20. Originally, the space was going to be Los Cardonas Mexican Restaurant, according to Todo Pa’ La Cruda owner Elizabeth Ruiz. But after a (very) short stint, Ruiz says the landlord approached her to take it over.
She was already primed to open a third location after lease negotiations failed in Pacific Beach, so setting her sights to Hillcrest was an easy switch. She says it’s a good spot for her style of homestyle cooking, since most of the Mexican restaurants in the area are fast-casual taco shops rather than comfort food. She’ll open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day to start, with the same menu as her Grant Hill and Barrio Logan locations. But this will probably be the last expansion—for a while, at least. “My hands are full,” Ruiz laughs.
24 Suns is throwing a 15-day Lunar New Year Festival to commemorate the Year of the Fire Horse, with a seven course tasting menu of dishes that represent different intentions to bring into the new year (things like abundance, balance, and prosperity). Look for collaborations throughout the festival, including nights with Paru tea pairings and a collaboration menu with Fox Point Farms.
They’re not the only ones getting in on the Lunar New Year fun. From February 23-28, Kingfisher chef David Sim will team up with Animae executive chef and James Beard semi-finalist Tara Monsod for a limited-time menu featuring special dishes like egg salad with youtiao, bơ, maggi, tomato and satay; steamed mussels with herb butter, rau răm, thai chili and a baguette; and chả cá with turmeric dill beurre monte, green onion, dill and fried rice noodles.
If looking to save rather than splurge, there are plenty of deals around town where you can still gobble some good grub without sacrificing your whole stack. Cellar Hand in Hillcrest just launched a bar dinner on Wednesdays and Thursdays, where $50 gets you three courses with an optional $10 wine add-on; The Crack Shack in Pacific Beach is doing an everyday $45 rotisserie chicken family meal that comes with a 3 ½ lb. Jidori rotisserie, Baja chop salad, and six mini biscuits; and Rustic Root in Gaslamp is keeping up the Girl Dinner trend with a Friday night special that comes with a Caesar salad, fries, pasta, and a martini for $29. There are still deals to be had, so keep an eye out and let me know if you find any particularly good ones by dropping me a line at [email protected].
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Beth Demmon is an award-winning writer and podcaster whose work regularly appears in national outlets and San Diego Magazine. Her first book, The Beer Lover's Guide to Cider, is now available. Find out more on bethdemmon.com.
