There once was a team from SD
That devoured great dishes with glee.
Pâté, paninis, a pastry—
They sampled all that is tasty
To bring the best nibbles to… thee?
Tocino Fried Rice
ARLO
If you order scrambled eggs at brunch, you have accidentally breakfasted. Go have a long but kind talk with yourself, and try again. Brunch is for foods not normally associated with pre-work routines—like the fried rice at Arlo’s new DJ brunch in Mission Valley, crowned with the Filipino specialty tocino (sweet, garlicky, peppery pork) and a fried egg. Addictive, vague late-night dinner vibes. —TJ
Casa De Olla
Casa De Otay
When your hipster prima tells you that the best café de olla is at a cute new all-natural coffee shop and not at your favorite menuderia, you can’t help but gasp a little. Casa De Otay in Otay Ranch’s Millennia housing development pairs housemade syrups with boiled-down piloncillo to make a top-notch version of this coffee classic from your mom’s kitchen. —AD
Dole Whip
Homestyle Hawaiian
Get the Disnevland Tiki Room experience without the never-ending lines and talking parrots at this Hawaiian spot in Claremont Mesa. This tropical treat is a little bit of sunshine to beat back the marine layer, topped with soft-serve ice cream. Pair it with a plate of lava chicken or spam musubi, and you’ll forget why you even wanted to visit Disney in the first place. —CN
Croissant Aux Amandes
Il Giardino Di Lilli
Back when we were all trying out DIY solutions for Covid, we should’ve tried croissants. A good one can cure a lot of things. With sweet croissants, au amandes (almond) are the apex. Where most go wrong, though, is shorting on the addictive frangipane (almond cream). Lilli’s in La Jolla has a payload. —TJ
Cinnamon Bacon Pancakes
Stratford at the Harbor
The earliest historical reference to pancakes dates back to Greece in the 5th century BC, but p-cakes probably began with our neolithic relatives, who ground plants, added water, and cooked the flattened batter on coals. If I could give those hairy cousins one pancake to show them how far we’ve developed as a species, this flapjack from this Oceanside gem might be the one. —MH
Reserva
Los Cuernos Wine
Some days, I just want one glass of wine—not an entire bottle that I’ll never finish. But single-pour wines are rarely ever tasty. I recently stumbled across Los Cuernos, a local canned winemaker whose four offerings (a chardonnay, a bubbly rose, a red blend, and another mix of reds dubbed “Reserva”) are actually good. The latter—made with petite sirah, cabernet sauvignon, and alicante bouchet—is my current go-to after work. No bottles required. —NM
Cioppino Liguria
Osteria Cotto E Mangiato
Though it’s been open only eight months, Osteria Cotto e Mangiato in Cortez Hill feels like an old-school Italian establishment from the moment you walk in. Everyone seems to speak Italian, including owner and Sicilian Andrea Provino, adding to its allure. Try the coppino: shrimp, clams, mussels, and a tomato sauce served over pasta. There’s also a tableside cheese wheel pasta that you should probably order as a shared app. —NM
Bagels
Desperado Bagels
The bagel deities have smiled on OB. At this Sunday morning popup, it’s all or nothing (plain or everything flavors). The bagels are made and sold with love out of a small bungalow kitchen on Niagara Avenue. Hand-rolled, cold-proofed for 36 hours, boiled, then baked on cedar boards, Desperado’s breakfast treats are fat, fluffy, crispy, chewy works of dough art. Pro tip: BYOCC (cream cheese) and eat your goodies still warm while sitting on the curb. —MH
Tuscan Chicken Panini
Sunny Side Kitchen
If you don’t love this Escondido icon, hold a funeral for your heart. Kathy and Bob Carpenter made cookies; people liked ’em (the lemon ones are gold). They opened this tiny, friendly-as-hell panini shop a decade ago. Get the Tuscan chicken panini: rosemary-citrus roasted chicken, shredded (a lost art, so you don’t have to gnaw through a whole bird); sun-dried tomatoes; fresh spinach; roasted tomato aioli; and three cheeses (havarti, muenster, parm) on pressed and browned sourdough. —TJ
Thompson Heritage Chicken Liver Pate
Cellar Hand
There are moments in life when one’s opinion on a certain food is changed forever—the first time you eat a perfectly ripe tomato off the vine, bite into an apricot moments after it’s plucked from the branch, or are presented with pâté topped with… Jell-O shots made from orange wine? It makes no sense in the brain, but perfect sense in the mouth. Get thee to Hillcrest. —BD
Ube Cheesecake
Muse Cheesecake
Burnt Basque cheesecakes—creamy, thick, OMG good. Local bakers Muse Cheesecakes make this Spanish treat in seven flavors, several of which are gluten-free. The ube is just-the-right-amount-of-sweet, melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness. Currently orders can only be made via the company’s Instagram page, with delivery upon request. Next up: the almond white chocolate cheesecake. —NM
Grilled Octopus
Top Of The Market
l’ve been revisiting iconic rooms and finding the best tables. The city’s “wow” perches. At Top of the Market, it’s the northwest corner, where you’re eating over the San Diego Bay, staring at the incredibly massive belly of the USS Midway. Order this octopus, rubbed with ras al hanout and laid in a bed of housemade hummus and cilantro pistou. (Locals’ tip: Do it on a Tuesday, when they offer 30 different bottles of wine for $30.) —TJ
Kampachi Crudo
Animalón
Thad the pleasure of tasting chef Oscar Torres’ new menu at Valle de Guadalupe’s Animalón, and what a delight it was seeing truly seasonal ingredients, like strawberries, used creatively. Sure, there were strawberry desserts and cocktails, which is to be expected, but a kampachi crudo drenched in strawberry aguachile? With green strawberries for astringency, a blue corn tostada, and salsa macha to boot? It’s a tastebud-popping revelation that validates the restaurant’s recent award of its first Michelin star. —JB
Mushroom Flan
Ciccia Osteria
Eat this and thank and/or apologize to chosen gods. This is sin incarnate. Six people can eat this petite thing because it’s so rich, two bites is enough. Chef-owner Mario Cassineri soaks porcini mushrooms in milk for 24 hours to make a mornay sauce, then gives them a pecorino-butter crust, bakes ’em to order, and lays them in a gorgonzola cheese fonduta with a single mint leaf. A revelation in the dairy arts. —TJ
Chocolate Chip Cookie with Walnuts
Pop Pie Co.
Make no mistake: The pies, both sweet and savory, rock. The sleeper hit, though, is the CCC. If Pop Pie‘s flaky, melty crusts are a testament to the power of butter, this cookie is the brown butter gospel, crowned in flaky salt. Nuts in desserts may be controversial, but the enlightened among us will appreciate how their toasty earthiness plays off the sweet choc chips. —AR
