Top 5 Can’t Miss
Savor Wagyu beef and other prime meats in sumptuous surroundings at Animae, an upscale pan-Asian steakhouse near the bay.Calabrian brothers offer a contemporary take on seasonal Southern Italian cuisine at Civico 1845, including a full vegan menu.For a truly memorable dining experience, reserve the 10-course, regionally focused tasting menu at Addison, SoCal’s only three-Michelin-star restaurant.Taco fans will find everything from traditional carnitas to versions stuffed with filet mignon or lobster at award-winning Mexican spot Puesto.At Fort Oak, a converted vintage car showroom sets the stage for seafood “towers” and Brad Wise’s wood-fired-focused cuisine.
Tucked between the Pacific Ocean and the southern border, San Diego offers standout seafood and Mexican fare, but that’s just the starting point for exploring the varied food scene. You’ll also find robust Italian and Asian influences (among others), plus breweries and wineries that have become destinations in themselves.
Whatever you’re craving, from transcendent tacos to Michelin-starred haute cuisine, the SoCal city has it in abundance. Pair that with a famously mild Mediterranean climate and you’ve got alfresco dining heaven. Read on for our neighborhood-by-neighborhood guide to the best restaurants in San Diego.
Kimberly Motos/Courtesy of Animae
Downtown and the Gaslamp Quarter
Animae, which beckons foodies to the Marina section of downtown San Diego, has made executive chef Tara Monsod a James Beard award finalist for the second time—and landed a Michelin recommendation as well. A Wagyu steakhouse with pan-Asian influences, the restaurant serves up such delicacies as short rib kare kare with green beans, eggplant, peanut sauce, and an oil infused with Filipino shrimp paste.
Grant Grill, which opened at the historic U.S. Grant hotel in 1951, is in many ways a midcentury throwback. Indeed, from a banquette inside the mahogany-paneled dining room, you can still enjoy the mock turtle soup recipe that debuted with the restaurant itself. But you’ll also find plenty of modern touches—especially on the craft cocktail menu—at this beloved institution.
Rustic Root reimagines American comfort foods as fresher, punchier iterations of the classics. Fried chicken, for example, is brined and crispy, served with a sea salt biscuit, jalapeño butter, and house-made hot sauce, for starters. The perfect pairing? The skyline views from the rooftop.
Provisional Kitchen Cafe & Mercantile at the Pendry San Diego is a casual eatery with largely Italian influences—think house-made pastas and wood-fired pizzas—but with a signature seasonal brunch dish you’re unlikely to find in, say, Naples: a shareable sunny-side-up ostrich egg surrounded by sides.
Lionfish, also at the Pendry, is helmed by chef JoJo Ruiz, a nationally recognized leader in sustainable seafood. So if you’re looking for an ethically sourced, innovatively prepared catch of the day, this is a top spot, with signature dishes such as the Mariscos al Fuego—scallops and shrimp in togarashi butter.
Lumi by Michelin-starred chef Akira Back would be reason enough to visit the Gaslamp Quarter. Though Back’s menu defies easy categorization, the Japanese-Peruvian offerings—such as the salmon leche de tigre with Okinawa potato chips and sweet potato cinnamon mousse—are always a standout. But there’s a whole other restaurant sharing this dual-concept space by the RMD Group: Huntress, home to a dry-aged porterhouse, among other famous steaks, and a global selection of whiskies.
Arlene Ibarra/Courtesy of Herb & Wood
Little Italy
Civico 1845 specializes in traditional Calabrian dishes—think Calabrian sausage-stuffed lasagna—but also offers a surprisingly extensive vegan menu, with the likes of caponata-stuffed zucchini blossoms, for starters. Whatever you order, the patio is the best place to enjoy it.
Herb & Wood, as the name might suggest, focuses on the wood-fired cooking method with everything from pizza to sourdough shrimp toast with tomato broth and herb butter. The dessert menu is a standout, too, starring the likes of strawberry soufflé with mascarpone cream, rhubarb ice cream, and black pepper oat crunch.
Ironside Fish & Oyster is famous for not only its namesake oysters (raw with house-made mignonette), but also for lobster rolls, octopus a la plancha, and the perfect cocktail accompaniments.
Juniper & Ivy’s offerings are based on seasonal local ingredients and the creativity of its chefs, whose lineup might include anything from pull-apart Wagyu butter biscuits with smoked chive to Kanpachi yellowtail with passionfruit fish sauce, serrano chili, mint, and radish.
Born & Raised is a carnivore’s dream—the steak sampler includes dry-aged, wet-aged, and both American and Japanese Wagyu—with a gleaming, deco-inspired dining room and views of Little Italy from a rooftop bar.
Kettner Exchange has a rooftop patio, among other vista-blessed spaces, from which to behold the harbor as you feast on imaginative American fare. Picture a duck meatball dish with grits, heirloom tomato, and Parmesan or the “Pig Mac” with pork belly, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onion, and special sauce.
Vino Carta is consistently ranked among the city’s best wine bars, with plenty of Italian offerings in the spirit of the neighborhood, but also bottles from small, family-run vineyards around the world. Choose one (or a couple), then open it out on the patio. Pair the vino with a limited selection of small bites, or visit on a Friday night for pizza from rotating pie purveyors.
Ballast Point brews an extensive selection of beers (the sculpins are particularly beloved) and offers dining on a patio, in private cabanas, or indoors, where you can watch brewers at work.
The Best Beaches in San Diego
Carmel Valley
Eric Wolfinger/Courtesy of Addison
Addison at The Fairmont Grand Del Mar is the only three-Michelin-star restaurant not just in San Diego, but in the whole of Southern California. Chef William Bradley has earned that distinction with a unique blend of global and Californian sensibilities, which—according to the Michelin Guide—are perfectly captured in such dishes as sesame-seasoned Koshihikari rice finished with applewood-smoked sabayon and Regiis Ova reserve caviar.
Ambrogio 15, a partnership between local restaurateurs and the Milan-based Michelin-starred chef Silvio Salmoiraghi, serves what many consider the best pizza in town. You can’t go wrong with the Margherita atop the signature paper-thin dough (one of three crusts you can choose from).
Mandie Geller/Courtesy of the San Diego Tourism Authority
La Jolla
Puesto serves award-winning tacos of all kinds, but no matter which ones you decide on, don’t overlook an order of their mini brethren: potato taquitos with queso fresco, guac, garlic jalapeño salsa, and chile oil. The perfect pairing? One of the countless agave-based cocktails on the menu such as the ginger margarita.
George’s at the Cove, the éminence grise of the downtown La Jolla dining scene, offers ocean views that rival even the most beloved menu items—say, local seared rare yellowtail with roasted artichoke, English peas, green garlic, basil pistou, and kumquat salad.
Sandpiper Wood Fired Grill & Oysters—George’s casual sibling restaurant—lets dogs enjoy the La Jolla alfresco experience alongside their humans on the patio. In addition to the namesake oysters, favorites include the Crispy Mary’s Chicken Cutlet with arugula, gigante beans, Parmesan, sunny-side-up egg, and grilled lemon.
A.R. Valentien is the vaunted, craftsman-style dining room at The Lodge at Torrey Pines, where locally sourced specialties such as chicken “under a brick” with sugar snap peas, garlic, pickled shallots, and labneh come with views of the stunning Torrey Pines Golf Course (and the ocean).
Cody’s serves breakfast all day on an ocean-view patio—a very good thing in light of such specialties as the griddled challah French toast with mascarpone honey butter, candied walnuts, and strawberries. Lunch is served all day, too, in case you’re more in the mood for, say, locally sourced ceviche with hand-cut onion rings.
Taste of the Himalayas pairs specialties from Nepal, Tibet, and India—you can’t go wrong with handmade steamed momos (dumplings) and perfectly spiced daal tadka—with views of the palm-fringed Pacific from the patio.
Westfield UTC is a shopping and dining destination, where favorites include Din Tai Fung’s signature Kurobuta Pork Xiao Long Bao and Javier’s remarkably fresh, flavorful aguachiles and ceviches.
Haley Hill/Courtesy of Smoking Goat
North Park and University Heights
Trattoria Cori Pastificio is celebrated for its house-made pastas, from spaghettoni seafood carbonara to busiate with fresh fava, foraged wild fennel, and sheep ricotta.
Louisiana Purchase serves Creole and Cajun favorites like jambalaya, chargrilled oysters, and crawfish—plus shareable punches.
The Smoking Goat is an intimate French bistro with cult favorite duck fat truffle fries—served on their own or with the steak frites. Other crowd favorites include the baked brie with pistachio, cranberry, honey, and toast.
Shank and Bone serves a great selection of pho and banh mi sandwiches, among other celebrated Vietnamese staples.
Bivouac Ciderworks is a taproom and restaurant that pairs its house ciders with excellent burgers, sandwiches, and snacks.
Soichi is an omakase restaurant with a Michelin star and some of the region’s best sushi, as you’ll discover over the course of the nigiri omakase experience, among others.
Courtesy of Farmer’s Bottega
Mission Hills and Middletown
Fort Oak, a Michelin-recommended spot in a converted art deco Ford dealership, serves up specialties from the house hearth, such as wood-grilled oysters with harissa butter, herb breadcrumbs, dry-aged beef fat, and lemon.
Farmer’s Bottega showcases classics from chef-owner Alberto Morreale’s Italian upbringing, with a focus on organic and locally sourced ingredients, whether the fennel sausage that flavors the paccheri or the tomato ragù and rosemary in the duck gnocchi.
Blue Water Seafood is the place for chilled seafood cocktails, classic cioppino, a bourbon butter scallop plate—or anything else that tastes best when it goes (almost) directly from sea to fork.
The Red Door’s handmade pastas include bucatini, pappardelle, and gnocchi, each served with the perfect sauce. And if you prefer your carbs in flatbread form, the basil pesto, house-made sausage, and Fontina won’t disappoint.
Harley Gray Kitchen & Bar is the kind of neighborhood haunt you hit for juicy burgers on brioche buns with blue cheese and bourbon bacon jam; fried calamari with house tartar and cocktail sauces; and other hearty comfort foods.
Starlite is beloved for its moody vibes—all dripping chandeliers and plush leather barstools—where you can now return for craft cocktails and dinner or bar bites (think grilled octopus or roasted bone marrow) after a stunning refurbishment.
James Tran/Courtesy of the San Diego Tourism Authority
The Convoy District
Shan’xi Magic Kitchen is one of several worthy contenders in any debate about the best noodles in the Asian food hot spot that is Convoy District. But in addition to its famously bouncy hand-ripped noodles, this restaurant boasts must-try soup dumplings.
Woomiok serves up some of San Diego’s most beloved seolleongtang, a Korean bone broth-based soup that you customize with add-ins such as brisket and short ribs (both popular choices). Good thing the delicacy is said to combat hangovers; you may well be in the market after an over-enthusiastic visit to Woomiok’s sibling speakeasy, Realm of the 52 Remedies, another Convoy District Favorite.
Courtesy of the San Diego Tourism Authority
Barrio Logan
Las Cuatro Milpas is a local breakfast and lunch institution that’s always likely to have a line. But anything you might order—say, the fabled chorizo con huevo inside a made-from-scratch flour tortilla—is well worth the wait.
Por Vida Café serves up some of San Diego’s tastiest coffee drinks, with flavorings that include Mexican chocolate, cinnamon and brown sugar, mazapán (a traditionally peanut-based relative of marzipan), and more.