San Diego, CA

Posts from San Diego, California on The Joy of Food blog.

The Smoking Goat - french onion soup

The Smoking Goat

San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — Across the street from trendy ramen joint Underbelly and next door to a degenerate day-drinking bar sits the Smoking Goat, possibly San Diego’s very best French restaurant, and certainly my favorite of the bunch. Of course, when you say “French restaurant” in […]

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8th and B Poke - miso salmon and shoyu ahi

8th and B Poke

San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — 8th and B Poke is a tidy storefront in that part of National City where old meets new, a shiny up-and-coming area sprinkled like pixie dust through Victorian houses and quaint storefronts that have been there forever. Once upon a time you […]

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Sushi Ota - chirashi bowl

Sushi Ota

San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — Sushi Ota often ranks as San Diego’s best sushi joint. Simple, casual, and straightforward, it has made national ‘best-of’ lists since opening in 1990, when sushi master chef Yukita Ota moved to San Diego from Japan after finding the local uni here […]

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Cesarina - paccheri con pomodoro fresco

Cesarina

San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — I have come to expect the worst from Italian dining in this region, but Cesarina, owned by a trio of southern Italians, has become that rare beacon of hope, a place I am hanging onto for dear life, one that makes serious […]

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Qin West Noodle - liangpi noodle

Qin West Noodle

San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — The namesake noodles at Qin West Noodle have an ethereal, perfect, almost sinful thing about them, nearly as weightless as they are springy, bouncy, slippery, and soft. You will find yourself still eating more of them long after you are full. Qin […]

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Punjabi Tandoor - chicken tikka masala/saag lunch combo

Punjabi Tandoor

San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — Eating out is often about finding a bargain. The desire (or need) to eat cheaply often trumps the desire to eat well. Rare is the place that allows you to do both. This is not one of those places.  As you’d guess […]

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Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburgers - cheeseburger

Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — Freddy’s is a mid-western burger chain that arrived to town and planted its flag right across the street from National City’s branch of In-N-Out, a place that hasn’t seen a lapse in its drive-thru ever. San Diego may be better known for […]

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La Central - birria tacos

La Central Birrieria & Menuderia

San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — The undisputed king of birria goodness in San Diego has long been Ed Fernandez, a place I have visited many times for their life-changing meaty consomé and for my personal favorite, their quesataco, which for me amounts to a magical pot of […]

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Pizzeria Luigi - assorted slices

Pizzeria Luigi

San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — Once a small neighborhood place, Pizzeria Luigi came to be known by a wider audience thanks to a segment on the Food Network by that spiky-haired bleached blond dude, the self-proclaimed Mayor of Flavortown who says things like ‘donkey sauce’ and ‘bomb-dot-com […]

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