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When three nations and 16 cities come together to host the FIFA World Cup 2026, the scale stops feeling like a tournament and starts feeling like geography. A continent becomes the stage as borders soften into corridors. And Southern California—shaped by migration, sport, entertainment, and constant movement—sits inside that landscape with all eyes on it.

San Diego and Los Angeles have always felt connected. Hop on the Pacific Surfliner, and the trip unfolds in one continuous stretch of coastline, passing beach towns, neighborhoods, and city centers.

Traveling from San Diego, everything still feels slightly suspended as the Pacific Surfliner follows the coast north with ocean on one side and a slow suburban blur on the other. San Diego stays in exhale. Los Angeles is already building toward something louder.

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This summer, Los Angeles will host eight matches of the FIFA World Cup at Los Angeles Stadium, including the US Men’s National Team opener on June 11, while the region stretches into 39 days of programming across stadiums, parks, transit hubs, beaches, and neighborhoods. Instead of one massive fan hub, Los Angeles is embracing a citywide celebration, with fan zones spread across its entirety.

But this pattern has been rehearsed here for decades. In 1994, Southern California became one of the defining stages of the World Cup, when matches at the Rose Bowl placed global attention on the region and turned local stadiums into international landmarks, confirming its ability to hold the world at scale.

What distinguishes Southern California is not just infrastructure, but cultural permeability. Fashion, music, film, art, and sport constantly overlap here, creating an environment where identity is flexible and always in motion. From the Venice boardwalk, where skate culture shaped modern street style, to global soccer stars rubbing shoulders with Hollywood celebs, to authentic Spanish cuisine moving up and down the I-5 corridor, everything circulates.

The World Cup is not introducing anything new here, it’s showing up for the summer and showing out, revealing what this city has always known about itself. What follows is a look at the fan zones and how Los Angeles turns itself into a city-wide stage for the tournament, one neighborhood at a time.

Los Angeles Union Station

As the heart of Los Angeles, Union Station is an official Fan Zone June 25-28 during the World Cup, but in practice it never really stops being one.

It is the city’s circulation point, its meeting ground, its pressure valve. Commuters, travelers, match-day crowds, and everyday Angelenos all move through the same space, and everything mixes, overlaps, and scales in real time. In a way, this is where the World Cup stops arriving in Los Angeles and starts moving through it.

The Pacific Surfliner from San Diego to Los Angeles makes that shift feel almost too easy. No stress or  gridlock anxiety, just a straight line up the coastline with ocean on one side and everything slowly becoming more built on the other. It’s one of the rare ways into LA that doesn’t feel like arrival as friction. You can sit with a laptop, watch the Pacific drift past, grab coffee from the café car, and let the city come to you in pieces.

That’s the beauty of arriving at Union Station. Instead of feeling like you’re on the edge of the city, you’re immediately surrounded by it. And, inside, the station already reads like a World Cup nerve center: banners, movement, multilingual energy, the sense that something global is about to funnel through this exact point. The Heart of the City Fan Zone only sharpens that feeling, with simultaneous match screens, DJ sets, meet and greets, and immersive activations built around marquee games like USA vs. Türkiye.

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From there, the city splits outward.

ROW DTLA feels like the first exhale after arrival. A converted industrial campus turned creative district where restaurants, retail, and open-air courtyards form a self-contained ecosystem. If you’re looking for the perfect first meal in LA, make it lunch at Pizzeria Bianco. The thin-crust pizza is reason enough to go, but the space leaves just as much of an impression.

What I liked most about ROW DTLA is how quickly it resets you after the train. One minute you are stepping off at Union Station, and the next you are in a space that feels like its own version of LA, a city inside a city with some of the most curated shopping I’ve ever seen.

Bodega hides itself behind a convenience-store front, a sneaker and streetwear space disguised as something ordinary, like LA refusing to make anything feel too obvious. The whole campus moves like that, part retail, part gallery, part neighborhood you are only temporarily inside.

Is there any food more quintessentially San Diegan than the California burrito? That was a rhetorical question since the French fry-stuffed, flour tortilla-wrapped torpedo of carne asada bliss came into being in the 80s (either invented by Lolita’s or Santana’s, depending on who you ask). But now, Vietnamese-Mexican pop-up Một Bánh Mì may be giving the longtime champ a run for its money.

Một Bánh Mì’s original California banh mi takes cues from both cultures, using traditional Vietnamese baguettes from Paris Bakery filled with carne asada and garnished with cilantro-jalapeno crema, Vietnamese mayonnaise, pickled vegetables, cilantro, cucumber, jalapenos, and of course, French fries.

“It’s so San Diego—it’s so us,” says Desmond Bui, pop-up founder and owner with partner Marisol Santiago. “It really encapsulates the Vietnamese-American and Mexican-American journey and identity here.”

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Both grew up in San Diego. Bui is Vietnamese. Santiago is Mexican-American. The sandwich makes utter personal sense.

Neither of them cooked professionally before launching Một Bánh Mì earlier this year, when they popped up for the first time at Convoy Rising for Lunar New Year. But after seeing the rise of the local Vietnamese coffee scene with shops like Saigon Coffee, Chance’s Coffee, and Em Coffee House, Bui knew there was an opportunity for a new generation to put a fresh spin on Vietnamese food in San Diego.

While there are plenty of places to grab a banh mi around town (K Sandwiches, Ba Le French Sandwich Shop, Lee’s Sandwiches, and so on), we’ve yet to hear of a California banh mi. Firsts are being firsted. 

“Banh mi is regarded by top chefs as the best sandwich in the world,” says Bui. (Side note: I concur.) And after discovering overlap between Mexican and Vietnamese cuisines through common ingredients like cilantro, lime, jalapeno, white onion, and pickled vegetables, they began planning a menu. 

Một Bánh Mì also serves Bánh Mì Đặc Biệt (Vietnamese cold cuts), Bánh Mì Thịt Nướng (grilled lemongrass pork banh mi), and Bánh Mì carnitas de hongos (mushroom pâté banh mi), along with some specials like Thịt Nướng tacos (grilled lemongrass pork) and hopefully soon, al pastor trompo banh mi (marinated pork shaved off a spit) and charcoal-grilled adobada.

Other banh mi shops Americanize names for English-speaking audiences—for example, listing “grilled chicken sandwich” instead of Bánh Mì Gà Nướng. Not Một Bánh Mì. If you’re not sure how to pronounce something, Bui says they’re happy to help. It’s an educational opportunity, he explains, as well as a chance for them to be “unapologetically Vietnamese and Mexican.” 

Part of the immersive experience is playing Vietnamese tunes from the ‘60s and ‘70s. 

“When you think of universal languages, what are ways when you travel or meet a different group of people that you can still find common ground and connect and feel like we’re a lot more alike than we are different?” Bui asks. “Food and music.” 

The musical element is part of Một Bánh Mì’s greater vision. They’d like to evolve into a lifestyle brand and media company, with merch, jars of pickled vegetables, you name it. Eventually, they’d like to open a brick-and-mortar somewhere in Mid-City. In the meantime, they’ll continue to pop up at places like Mixed Grounds and Chance’s Coffee, or wherever they can. (Bui called Provecho Coffee their “dream collab,” hint hint.) 

San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events

Beth’s Bites

• San Diego bartenders have been making serious waves over the past few years, and it looks like 2026 is carrying on that momentum. Dominique Muñoz, bar lead at Polite Provisions, just nabbed a top spot on Punch’s Best New Bartenders 2026 list. She’s hardly new to the game, having been behind the stick for nearly a decade and founding the Sirens and Spirits collective to elevate women and nonbinary bartenders in the industry, but it’s fabulous to see some (well-deserved) San Diego representation on the short list. Congrats to Muñoz—we can’t wait to see what you do next.
• Speaking of awards, Tribute Pizza just earned a prize of its own. The North Park pizza palace hit #38 on the 50 Top Pizza list this year (for the fourth year) right before its 10th anniversary on June 2. Here’s to another decade of delightful pies, ridiculously good Caesar salads, and the weird-to-have, but delicious-to-eat Sichuan spicy noodles.  
• But the recognition doesn’t stop there. San Diego’s only three-Michelin-starred restaurant Addison by William Bradley (which is freshly re-open after a thorough renovation) just made San Diego history by being the first restaurant in the city to make it on North America’s 50 Best Restaurants 2026 list at #31. Considering there are something around 70,000 restaurants in North America (if not more)—I’d say landing in the top 50 is pretty monumental. 
• San Diego has one of the highest concentrations of people in the African diaspora, including one of the nation’s largest East African populations behind Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota. To celebrate the huge diversity of cuisines from countries like Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and beyond, head to the annual San Diego Soul Food Fest on August 1 at the North Park Mini Park from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Soul food’s roots come from the American South, where generations of enslaved people made do with what resources they had; today, it’s a celebration of culture, cooking, and community. I, for one, am salivating at the thought of getting some legit collard greens and fried catfish.  
• In lieu of catfish, I just might pop over to Bica in Normal Heights on June 20 for the Tuna Takedown, where chefs from Kingfisher, Mabel’s Gone Fishing, Ironside, À L’ouest, Fish Guts (plus a few more) will go full nose-to-tail on a 150-pound bluefin tuna. That’s about as fresh as it gets, and with beer, wine, and a DJ on top of that, I’m hard-pressed to make any other plans that night.

Listen Now: The Latest in San Diego’s Food and Drink Scene

Have breaking news, exciting scoops, or great stories about new San Diego restaurants or the city’s food scene? Send your pitches to [email protected].

Just as seasons for the Clippers and Sockers come to a close with Fan Appreciation Nights, a new set of 162 games will begin for the Padres on Opening Day. The return of Padres baseball also means the Friar faithful can check out Margaritaville Hotel’s Padres’ Kickoff Rooftop Party and the celebratory East Village Block Party. Those who prefer an outing at the theater over a day at the ballpark can see local productions of The Lehman Trilogy and Matt & Ben or the debut of works by women+ playwrights at the Lamoise New Works Festival. Plus, fans of live music can see Lang Lang, Digable Planets and fifteen San Diego County choirs in concert this week.

Food & Drink | Concerts & Festivals | Theater & Art Exhibits | More Fun Things to Do

Food & Drink Events in San Diego This Weekend

Padres’ Kickoff Rooftop Party at 5 o’Clock Somewhere Bar

March 26

A few blocks from the Padres’ home opener at Petco Park, fans can say cheers to the new season during the free Padres’ Kickoff Rooftop Party at Margaritaville Hotel. This Thursday from 3-7 p.m. at the hotel’s 5 o’Clock Somewhere Bar, patrons can catch a set from DJ Chino of iHeart Radio Channel 93.3, plus enjoy photo ops, lawn games, mini golf and Padres merch for sale from The Finnish Long Drink. There will also be a themed game day menu, featuring items like the Grand Slam Philly Fries and the dragon fruit-infused Ballpark Paloma. RSVP here.

435 Sixth Avenue, Gaslamp

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Tour de France Wine Dinner at Little Frenchie

March 29

Take a gastronomic trek around France with Little Frenchie this Sunday at 6 p.m. during the Tour de France Wine Dinner. This four-course prix fixe meal will feature complimentary wine pairings and emphasize the unique culinary strengths of four French regions: Lyon, Provence, Burgundy and Normandy. Guests will be guided through the significance and history of the evening’s pairings by Rafael Peterson of H. Mercer Imports. Reservations are $150 per person. 

1166 Orange Avenue, Coronado

Concerts & Festivals in San Diego This Weekend

Lang Lang at Jacobs Music Center

March 26

Chinese pianist Lang Lang is among the world’s most well-known classical musicians, with his talents taking him everywhere from the Grammy Awards, to private shows for heads of state, to multiple Olympic opening ceremonies. His mastery of the keys, done with wonderful enthusiasm and dexterity, leaves no awe-inspiring detail behind. This Thursday (7:30 p.m.), Lang Lang will play a selection of recognizable pieces from Mozart, Liszt and Beethoven in concert at Jacobs Music Center. Tickets start at $95 for this concert.  

1245 Seventh Avenue, Downtown

Digable Planets at Belly Up

March 27 & 28

The melding of jazz and hip-hop has rarely sounded sweeter than on Digable Planets’ second album Blowout Comb. Though it proved to be their final project, it eternally cemented the group as one of the forebears of jazz rap, alongside acts from the Native Tongues movement like A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul. In celebration of Blowout Comb’s 30th anniversary, Digable Planets will perform back-to-back nights at Belly Up, where they’ll be joined by San Diego artists Ric Scales (Friday) and Blame One (Saturday). Tickets start at $60 for both concerts. 

143 South Cedros Avenue, Solana Beach

San Diego Writers Festival

March 28 

Aspiring writers and readers ranging from casual to voracious can enjoy a day of literary panels, workshops and readings this Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the 7th annual San Diego Writers Festival. Held at the Coronado Public Library and Coronado Performing Arts Center, this year’s event will feature best-selling and emerging writers of romance, mystery, historical fiction and more. The lineup includes talks covering trauma, spirituality, and artistry in the age of AI, and a keynote discussion with novelist Jodi Picoult. RSVP for the free festival here.

640 Orange Avenue & 650 D Avenue, Coronado

San Diego Sings! Festival at The Conrad

March 28

Fifteen San Diego County choirs will fill The Conrad with vocal harmony during this Saturday’s San Diego Sings! Festival. Organized by the Choral Consortium of San Diego, audiences can catch performances by the San Diego Women’s Chorus, Encore Vocal Ensemble and the San Diego Children’s Choir. The performers will be split into three concert performances (11 a.m., 3 p.m., and 7 p.m.) inside Baker-Baum Concert Hall. Tickets are $23 for each of the three concerts.

7600 Fay Avenue, La Jolla

Theater & Art Exhibits in San Diego This Weekend

The Lehman Trilogy at Cygnet Theatre

March 25 – April 26

San Diegans can take advantage of this weekend’s mid-70s forecast by spending time outdoors, attending new plays and exploring cultural events. Admire the beauty of mother nature during the five-day San Diego Bird Festival and the seasonal opening of The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch. Watch new productions of contemporary and classic theatrical stories, including Beetlejuice at Civic Theatre and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? at Scripps Ranch Theatre. Plus, celebrate international food, cinema, and culture with Artifact at Mingei’s United by Grains dinner, the Oceanside International Film Festival and San Diego Chinese New Year Fair. 

Food & Drink | Concerts & Festivals | Theater & Art Exhibits | More Fun Things to Do

Food & Drink Events in San Diego This Weekend

Artifact at Night: United by Grains

February 27

Why settle for one cuisine when you can dine on a world of earthly treasures? For its next themed dinner, Artifact at Mingei has drawn inspiration from the museum’s new Farm to Craft exhibition to cultivate a menu with vast international influence. Artifact at Night: United by Grains will consist of a five-course dinner, with optional beverage pairings, featuring global essentials like North African freekeh, Eastern European oat kvass and Mexican red corn tamales. Reservations are $80 for Mingei members and $89 for non-members; seatings can be reserved online for this Friday between 5-8:30 p.m., with seven dining slots still available. 

1439 El Prado, Balboa Park

Calienté Latin Music and Spirits Fest

February 28

Spend your afternoon dancing to salsa tunes and trying top-shelf spirits during the biannual Calienté Latin Music and Spirits Fest, returning to The Sinclair on G Street this Saturday from 2-5:30 p.m. Hear banda, bachata, merengue and more, with performances by local Latin artists, while sampling a lineup of bites, mixed beverages and premium brands of tequila, mezcal, vodka and beer during this 21+ event. General admission is $39 and includes spirits sampling. 

643 G Street, Gaslamp

Concerts & Festivals in San Diego This Weekend

Oceanside International Film Festival at Star Theatre

February 25–February 28

Watch dozens of short films and a handful of independent features at the Star Theatre during the 15th annual Oceanside International Film Festival. The festivities begin Wednesday with a red carpet reception and screening of the documentary Desert Angel and conclude Saturday with an interview and Q&A featuring director Catherine Hardwicke, followed by the award show finale. Ticket options include single-day film screenings passes for Thursday-Saturday ($18 each), opening night ($25) and closing night ($30) admission, and the all-festival block pass ($86).

402 North Coast Highway, Oceanside

San Diego Bird Festival 

February 25–March 1

It’s a bird … it’s a plane … oh wait, it is a bird! This Wednesday-Sunday, spread your wings and soar during the San Diego Bird Festival. Taking place primarily at Marina Village Conference Center, attendees can join field trips, take expert-led workshops, shop the Red Bird Bookstore, and bid on silent auction items to support the San Diego Bird Alliance. Register online to build your festival schedule, with 145+ activities—many of which are free or low-priced—to choose from. Plus, Saturday (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.) and Sunday (10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) will be free community days, with a host of family-friendly programs and activities open to the public. 

1936 Quivira Way, Mission Valley

Brahms Festival at Jacobs Music Center 

February 27–March 7 

Conductor Rafael Payare and the San Diego Symphony Orchestra will dissect the brilliance of German composer Johannes Brahms through its Brahms Festival, beginning Friday at Jacobs Music Center. Over five concerts, audiences will hear several spellbinding pieces from this Romantic Era innovator, including A German Requiem (Friday at 7:30 p.m. & Sunday at 2 p.m.), plus Symphonies No. 1 & 2 (Saturday at 7:30 p.m.), No. 3 (March 7) and No. 4 (March 6). Each performance will be introduced through pre-concert talks led by the Symphony’s Creative Consultant Gerard McBurney. Tickets range from $42 to $125 for each concert. 

1245 Seventh Avenue, Downtown

Fido Fest

February 28

Dog parents, enthusiasts and prospective owners can spend their Saturday afternoon roaming Santee’s free annual Fido Fest at Town Center Community Park East. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., there will be dog agility courses, pet costume contests, a wellness zone, a donation drive and a vendor village with an array of pet-friendly items, services, and most importantly, treats. Attendees can also observe demonstrations, enjoy arts and crafts, snap a photo with the Oscar Mayer Weinermobile and peruse an adoption alley with over 20 local shelters.

550 Park Center Drive, Santee

Jordan Ward at House of Blues San Diego

February 28

Despite some preemptive eulogizing, the latest Brewers Association statistics estimate that though craft beer’s national volume is down 5 percent, it’s still a $72.5 billion industry. It ain’t going anywhere; just normalizing. 

In San Diego, it seems like the ones who are chugging mightily along are the ones who offer more than just beer. Craft Coast, for instance. The brewery and taco stand opened its first brewpub in Oceanside in August 2020 and its second in San Marcos in April 2024. Both locations feature their own beer and Baja-style tacos, mulitas, and bowls. 

Blake Masoner, one of the three co-founders with Lars Erickson and Brian Gillen, says he and his partners built a business plan on the premise of caring equally about the quality of the beer as the tacos. Food is no longer an option for a fledgling brewery’s survival. It’s essential.

“The days of business park breweries are limited, I think,” he says, noting they intentionally keep it simple.“In-N-Out doesn’t give everything to everybody for a reason, because they’re good at what they’re good at.”

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His time at Pizza Port’s brewery was inspiration—a business model that survived on craft beer and pizza since the ’80s. 

Craft Coast has had a successful five years in North County, where all three founders are lifelong locals. After one failed attempt to snag a spot in Encinitas in 2021 (followed by a successful bid in late 2023), they’ll open its first spot in the neighborhood this summer at 476 S. Coast Highway 101 in the former Filiberto’s space where the owners spent many late nights filling up on tacos.  

The roughly 3,000-square-foot indoor and outdoor space (located directly underneath the Encinitas arch) will open seven days a week for lunch and dinner, with possible late-night hours on weekends. The dozen or so taps will include Craft Coast’s five core beers (Agua Baja Mexican lager, Shootz Mahalo hazy IPA, Old West American IPA, XPA extra pale ale, and Sunset Market prickly pear sour with a rotating fruit) along with other collaborations and seasonals, plus canned and bottled non-alcoholic options and a selection of recently released to-go cans. 

Expect the same food menu as the first two locations, plus a fully built-in salsa bar (my literal dream) designed by Ralitsa Kombakis of Studio Rallou. If the name sounds familiar, she also designed the soon-to-open À L’ouest French brasserie by chef Brad Wise (Trust Restaurant Group) in North Park. 

Masoner says while the team likes to grow slowly, they’re committed to prioritizing their home zone of North County. If (and when) they open another brewpub, this is where they hope to stay.

“We’ve spent a lot of time living in Encinitas,” he says. “We always said if this building ever comes up, we should get it and do something. Then we established Craft Coast and here we are, five-and-a-half years later.”

Craft Coast opens this summer at 476 S. Coast Highway 101 in Encinitas.

San Diego Restaurant News & Food Events

Something Bedda is Coming to South Park

When Matteo (somewhat suddenly) closed in South Park in December, it already had a succession plan in place. Angela Catania, who owns nearby Carbon Angela’s Kitchen, took the keys and announced Bedda in January. Bedda, which means “beautiful” in Sicilian, will not be an Italian restaurant—so don’t expect pizza or pasta, but do expect all-day dining, plus a deli and market and nighttime bar with cocktails and wine. Personally, I’m always glad when an uber-visible corner restaurant doesn’t stay empty for too long. I’m already counting down to its opening in mid-February.  

Beth’s Bites