Tag: Dining in San Diego

Brian’s 24

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I was invited to check out Brian’s 24 in Downtown San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter for brunch. I had heard good things about Brian’s 24, so I was more than happy to accept the invitation. Brian’s 24 is a family owned business located off the lobby of the historic St. James Hotel. They are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Brian’s 24 is a true diner, serving up breakfast 24/7 in addition to sandwiches, pizza, burgers, dessert, drinks, late night grub, and so much more.

Brian’s 24, Downtown San Diego Gaslamp Quarter

We were greeted by Andrea, Brian’s sister, who was the most gracious and helpful host. Andrea gave us some background on her family’s restaurant and showed us around their redecorated dining room and bar. There is definitely a fun diner vibe happening!

Brian’s 24 Dining Room and Bar

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BASIC Bar/Pizza

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I was invited to a pizza party hosted by Kirbie of Kirbie’s Cravings at BASIC urban kitchen + bar in Downtown’s East Village. Kirbie put together an intimate party of foodie friends. I happily attended because 1.) pizza and 2.) it gave me a chance to meet some online friends in person.

BASIC Pizza

BASIC Pizza

BASIC is located in a converted old warehouse dating back to the early 1900s with the coolest industrial garage doors. What I think is really neat about BASIC is the original brick walls are still intact. BASIC is a massive space that is divided with one side being the restaurant and the other half a lounge.

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Asado Grill

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I received in invite to check out Hotel Karlan, a DoubleTree by Hilton located in North San Diego, which recently went through a re-imaging. The invite was specifically to check out their flagship restaurant, Asado Grill and enjoy a family-friendly movie on the lawn after dinner. This sounded like the perfect night for my family!

Asado Grill offers sustainable seafood, gourmet culinary creations, cocktails, local craft beers, and wine. They had a spacious indoor dining area located off of the hotel lobby and an outdoor seating area. We opted to sit outside and enjoy the nice late-Summer night.

Asado Grill, Outdoor Seating

Outdoor Seating at Asado Grill

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Mom’s Pies in Julian

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Every year we make at least one trip to Julian in the Fall to experience the leaves changing, cold crisp air, and grab some warm apple pie. There is an abundance of pie to be found in Julian, but one of my favorite spots is Mom’s Pies.  Mom’s Pies have been around since 1984. All of their pies and baked goods are made fresh daily.

Mom's Pies

Mom’s Pies

Outside of Mom’s you are wafted with the scent of apples baking. On the weekends, I have always found the line out the door. While you wait, you can catch some pies being made from the front window. The line moves pretty swiftly so don’t get too comfortable. Continue reading →

Soda & Swine at Liberty Station

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Soda & Swine is a creative meatball eatery with lots of small to medium sized bites. We visited the Liberty Station location. It has a gold bar, old-fashioned looking baking area with pies on display, sunroofs adding lots of natural light, wood covered walls, a 20-foot foosball table that works as a community table, plenty of seating, and an outdoor patio with more seating.

You order your food upon entering Soda & Swine, then seat yourself and your food is brought to you. You can also order from their wide selection of sodas. On the other side of the registers are the pies, they have a couple different types of apple pies, seasonal treats and soft serve ice cream. The next stop is the bar, it is a full bar where you can order a cocktail, wine, beer (lots of local crafts), and if you are feeling funky, a champagne slushy.

We got some suggestions on what to order for lunch from the employee at the register. You can check out their menu here for yourself. Soda & Swine has several meatballs to choose from, such as, smoked pork, chorizo, chicken, beef and quinoa meatballs. You can order your meatball as a slider, submarine, spaghetti, or 3 meatballs in a skillet with sauce and cheese.  Once we picked our meatballs, we ordered some sides as well and set off for a table. The food started to arrive quickly, but not everything came out at once. We liked this system since we ordered a bunch of different items to give a try so it was like having appetizers, entrees and dessert.

Fried Pizza Knots

Fried Pizza Knots

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