San Diego, it’s time to welcome New York inspired music and cuisine to Little Italy. Anthology, the three story supper club located on India St. is an unassuming Mecca of jazz, blues, classic rock, latin, world, and r&b. This San Diego music and entertainment venue is one of its kind with minimalist décor and an inviting, spacious setting.

Although the new American cuisine’s gourmet flair and pricey nature draws in an older crowd for duet of dinner and a show (read: over 30 in bedazzled belts), Anthology does showcase many young, vibrant bands with upstairs bar-n-tunes-only access prices for a hip twenty-something crowd.

Music is in the air:

June stars:

Jessie Colin Young, 6/23

Ignacio Berroa, 6/24

Tierney Sutton, 6/26 and 6/27

July stars:

The Steely Damned, 7/3

Royal Crown Revue, 7/11

Larry Coryell, 7/13 and 7/14

Jazz Fusion Superstars, 7/27

Anthology is not just another LA-wannabe San Diego restaurant and lounge, this supper club radiates with style, class, and charisma. Check it out.

Did you just wake up and realize it’s mid-June and Father’s Day is right around the corner? (Me too…) But not to worry, skip the lame ties and “#1 Dad” shirts this year and give your dad the gift of experience. As kids grow up, gifts do too.

Check out this Father’s Day roundup for the perfect event and entertainment gift. No matter how sporty or crafty your dad is, there is a San Diego event and/or entertainment option for you.

Food

Taste of Gaslamp is a weekend-long San Diego event featuring tastes from Gaslamp’s finest restaurants.

Music

Bring your dad to Little Italy’s new three-story supper club, Anthology, for great live music, a chic vibrant atmosphere, and gourmet food.

Art

Between SDMA and Maritime S.D., there is an art exhibit for every art fan. Bring dad to the Pre-Raphaelite exhibit “Waking Dreams” at SDMA, the unique display of trash-turned-treasure “Mi Corazón Escondido” at SDMA, or the high seas fine art show at Maritime S.D.

Pads

The Padres may be away, but you and your padre can still enjoy the three-day sports game series, beginning June 15, from the comfort of your own home or at any of San Diego’s sports bars.

Give the gift of experience this Father’s Day in San Diego. There are endless event and entertainment options… resist ties & mugs at all costs.

The Downtown San Diego dining scene and entertainment scene meet this June for a great San Diego event: the Taste of Gaslamp. There are so many restaurants in the Gaslamp, it’s nearly impossible to try them all. But this event solves that dilemma by giving the public a taste of everything, well everything worth tasting that is.

This delicious event is spread over two days. June 16^th from 1pm to 4:30pm, you get to try tid bits from Bondi Bar, Jsix, Soleil @ K, Stingaree, Acqua Al 2, Mister Tiki Mai Tai Lounge, and many more. June 17^th also from 1pm to 4:30 pm guests will taste offerings from Blue Ginger, RA Sushi, The Lime Tequila Bar, Dussini Mediterranean Bistro, Dakota Grill, and many more.

Full? Head over to the Samuel Adams beer garden or the Cane Rum Mojitio Bar to escape your food coma. And guess what—drinks are included in the one-time event entrance fee.

A Taste of Gaslamp is by far the best annual summertime event in San Diego. At the end of each event, the top restaurants are awarded at the Lamplighter Awards. Last year in 06, Lou & Mickey’s won “Best Cuisine” and Stingaree won “Best Ambiance.” With so many new restaurants and bars opening Downtown—I wonder who will win this year?

Wine connoisseurs in San Diego— prepare to indulge. Wine Australia is bringing a week-long celebratory Australian wine festival to San Diego, called A Great Blend, June 6 through June 12. This is no mere wine tasting event; Wine Australia is embracing the San Diego dining and nightlife scene to feature an innovative, multi-tiered wine tasting and entertainment series.

Together with some of San Diego’s best restaurants, bars, and wine bars such as Bondi Bar and Kitchen, San Diego Wine and Culinary Center, and The Wine Encounter—Wine Australia serves a titillating taste for every palate.

Care for a sip?

Wine Australia events range from Aussie barbeques, a blind wine tasting “shoot out” contest, live jazz happy hour, intimate wine dinners, and a canine & wine happy hour. Whether you love to enjoy vino with a best friend, a loved one, or your pup—the week-long Wine Australia series has something for you.

In addition to the fun-factor, the guest Australian winemakers are among the top up-and-coming makers in Australia, including the Yarra Valley in Victoria and Margaret River in Western Australia.

If you love to wine and dine in San Diego, you must attend this one-of-a-kind wine tasting event series.

Local San Diego entrepreneur and web marketer brings the heat! To the kitchen table that is. . . San Diego’s own Robert Burns recently launched a new gourmet hot sauce company, Scorpion Bay Hot Sauce. I was lucky enough to get a sample the premiere hot sauce flavors this week. I am an absolute flavor-fanatic, and my palette was more than satisfied.

Tabasco is out— Scorpion Bay Hot Sauce is what’s hot now. 3 main flavors introduce the Scorpion spice to San Diego: De Arbol Hot Sauce, Chipotle Hot Sauce, and Avocado Hot Sauce. The De Arbol Hot Sauce is a thick hole-in-the-wall taco-shop style sauce with the perfect fiery kick. It’s like your favorite taco shop’s sauce—but better. The Chipotle Hot Sauce a sweet and smoky blend with hints of chocolate and various other secret ingredients, creating a seductively smooth spice. The Hotacado Avocado Hot Sauce combines the two best of both worlds: mellow Avocados and spicy Serrano chili peppers. The combination is beyond words.

There’s no longer any need to double-dip spice to spice and shop around—all the best ingredients unite in Scorpion Bay Hot Sauce flavors.
If you live a spicy lifestyle and enjoy a kick with each meal, you must take a walk on the wild side and try this new hot sauce company. You won’t want to share this gourmet hot sauce—but not to worry; Scorpion Bay Hot Sauce comes in large, wide-mouth bottles, so there’s always enough to go around. Stalk up on my personal favorite Hotcado Avocado Hot Sauce for tostada salads, steak marinades—and of course Taco Tuesday fish tacos.
I take spice seriously when I eat in San Diego—any other hot sauce addicts out there? Show some love for Scorpion Bay.

.

Tastes just like chicken!

WHAT? Gator By The Bay  festival ($15). The ultimate San Diego Blues and Zydeco and Crawfish celebration
WHEN? This weekend. (That’s May 12-13, 2007)

WHERE? Spanish Landing Park (across from the airport)

25 Bands and 6000 pounds of crawfish.  What more could you ask for?

Tourists from all over the world choose California as a vacation destination. But many tourists differ when it comes to what city to visit in California. San Diego and San Francisco are both regarded as great cities to spend a vacation, but all San Diego travel accommodations are better than anything San Francisco has to offer. I will show you the top 10 reasons why San Diego is a better tourist city than San Francisco.

Sightseeing & Tours

1. Take a tour of the San Diego Harbor. The Harbor Cruise is a great family attraction.
2. Old Town is San Diego’s most ancient neighborhood. Enjoy an abundance of authentic Mexican restaurants, shops, and street fairs. Take the trolley tour to soak it all in.
3. Tijuana is just around the corner. Hop on the trolley and zip across the border for tacos and sightseeing.

Entertainment

4. Balboa Park boasts more than 25 attractions and museums. Bring the family by day for California history and Aerospace adventures; and friends by night for the “Culture and Cocktails” art exhibits.
5. San Diego is home to three famous parks: Sea World, San Diego Zoo, and the Wild Animal Park.

Beauty & Shopping

6. Couture fashion is taking this beach town by storm, inside and out. First pamper yourself at one of San Diego’s spas and salons, and then give your wardrobe a makeover shopping at San Diego’s finest mall stores and boutiques.

Nightlife

7. Downtown San Diego is booming with hot nightlife spots from dive bars, to posh lounges, and dance clubs.
8. From fresh sushi with friends to romantic gourmet cuisine, San Diego restaurants offer it all.

Beach & Bay

9. Pacific Beach, La Jolla, and Del Mar showcase the best sand and surf in California
10. Mission Bay offers an unmatched acquatic park- smooth sailing for water sports.

I admit eating a bowl of clam chowder and gazing out at the Golden Gate Bridge is a great experience, but I’d still rather be riding my bike down the Pacific Beach boardwalk in 75 degree weather any day. Sorry San Francisco, San Diego is the best tourist city in California.

Pokez, (and myspace) the venerable lefty hippy arty cool vegetarian-friendly Mexican restaurant downtown is practically an institution among the hipster set. I myself loved eating there back when I was working downtown.

Well, all is not well in Pokez-land. Here’s an allegation of an autistic customer being assaulted for not ordering fast enough: “Assaulted at dinnertime in SD”

via Kynn

Update: rousing discussion here.

A good steak is one of my favorite entrees. But although it’s not the most complicated plate, it’s amazing how often steaks can be cooked poorly at decent places. So, out of 15 or so restaurants these are my five favorite San Diego steakhouses.

1. Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse in Sorrento Valley / Del Mar
   I’ve always enjoyed great service and amazing food at this location. I’m sure the downtown location is great too. I love the side dishes such as the sweet potatoes with the candied walnuts.
2. Donovan’s Steakhouse in UTC / La Jolla
   Great cuts seared at 1800 degrees results in one of the best steaks in San Diego.
3. Morton’s of Chicago in Downtown San Diego / Gaslamp
   Great dark interior, wood accents, just make this place very relaxing and comfortable in my opinion. I like the “table-side” service and they’ve got a great happy hour.
4. Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar in Downtown San Diego
   An all around great steakhouse, with pretty impressive seafood as well. The fact that they have an extensive wine list (100 or so) that are all available by the glass is awesome.
5. Rainwater’s on Kettner
   With a growing lists of accolades this downtown staple of nearly 20 years continues to be a crowd-pleaser. Featuring over 1600 wines and deemed one of the “Top Steakhouses in America” by Gourmet Magazine, this makes the list with ease.

What would you add/remove from the list? Here’s a few other steakhouses in San Diego.

San Diego’s third annual Restaurant Week will delight food aficionados once again from Sunday, January 7 through Friday, January 12, 2007!

During these six days only, over 125 spectacular [San Diego] restaurants will offer a special fixed-price, three course dinner menu for just $30 or $40* per person (beverages, tax and gratuity not included). Even food lovers on a budget can indulge in fare from many of the city’s most well known chefs and award-winning, delectable restaurants

Sad.

Longtime San Diego brewer Karl Strauss died in Milwaukee on Thursday at the age of 94.

Strauss, who founded the Karl Strauss Brewing Co. in 1989, was born Oct. 5, 1912, at a brewery in Minden, Germany.

“He was a man who loved life and loved beer, he had a great passion for beer,” said the company’s brewmaster, Paul Segura.

Strauss moved from Germany to Milwaukee in 1939, where he began working for Pabst Brewing Co. In 1948, Strauss moved to Southern California, where he retired from Pabst in 1983.

The Karl Strauss home page says:

Dear Family and Friends of the Karl Strauss Brewing Company,

Our beloved Karl Martin Strauss has passed on. We are saddened by the loss of our innovator, leader, personal friend, mentor, and master of good cheer. As we mourn his passing, we also celebrate his legacy and 94 years fully lived.

For those of us who knew Karl intimately, his joy, zest, and dedication to the highest mastery of brewing beer burn brightly. We relish our time with him and honor the remarkable success and delicious beer we have enjoyed together. For those of you who knew Karl only by name, you can feel his presence in the “symphony of flavors” that his brewing mastery demonstrates. His legacy will endure, and the generous mentoring he offered our brewers and staff will continue to guide us as we move forward. Karl’s passion, values, and good cheer will be forever remembered one pint at a time in the amazing beers we enjoy so much.

via MAS, here.

There are just two left, and one of them is right here in San Diego County: here’s a nice review from last year of the one in San Diego, and the official site of the Santa Clarita one is at www.farrellsusa.com. The mmm-yoso site also has a link to this history of Farrell’s.

Anyone else remember Farrell’s? I loved the place as a kid, the way it disappeared is a classic example of killing the goose that laid the golden egg. I bet it’s one of the earliest examples of an “experience” type restaurant (e.g: Islands, Buca di Beppo — anything where you’re immersed in the brand of the restaurant). It’s hard to believe they thought they’d be more successful by de-differentiating the place.

The original founder of Farrell’s, Bob Farrell is now a motivational speaker. His website is at www.giveemthepickle.com

Andrew sent us: RestaurantPlace.com

If you ever need a San Diego restaurant menu to order from you can view about 600 San Diego menus on restaurantplace.com. Real helpful if you live in the neighborhoods that they cover and if you don’t want to keep a menu drawer.

They have menus for a lot of cities, including of course San Diego. I asked Andrew how his site distinguishes itself from other restaurant and menu websites, and he said this:

I have not found another site that has the most comprehensive database of San Diego restaurant menus. San Diego Reader I believe only has 100 or so restaurant menus and it seems they charge restaurant owners to list their menu. SanDiegoRestaurants.com seems to be very high end restaurants in which they focus mainly on the reviews of these restaurants, which i admit are pretty good.

Our focus is simply all restaurnats high end, in the middle, and on the low end and we provide the menu which for many users is a good complement to having a “menu drawer”.

Further our services for both consumers and restaurants are free. Restaurant owners have a complete publishing system to upload everything from their menu to descriptions, to images etc.

So while I agree that the main feature as of now is only menus I don’t see any other site that has such a complete listing for San Diego. Another consideration is Discover San Diego’s Restaurants in San Diego section.

Thanks for the tip Andrew!

I used to live in Chicago where on a cold winter day the wind carried a waft of chocolate through the air, that would warm your very soul…. until the EPA got involved… (but that’s another story, another blog)

Now I work in Carlsbad, right near the factory for the newish and oh so hip and trendy (and yes, delicious) chocolatier, Chuao (pronounced “chu-WOW”).  I’ve yet to smell the sweet scent of cacao beans roasting in the wind, I did however, get wind of the chocolate making classes they are hosting:

Level I Roll them, Level II Dip Them, Level III Mold Them, Level IV Shape Them

The only thing missing is Eat Them!  but I guess anyone who knows anything about chocolate knows how to do that.  Buen provecho!

Tyler sent us: What We’re Eating

My girlfriend Amanda and I moved here from the deeeeep south a few months ago, and we brought our food blog with us. We post San Diego restaurant reviews, recipes, the standard food blog stuff. I think there are 2 things that really set us apart. One, our posts are conversations, not monologues. Two, we *really* care about taking the best food photos out there. Check us out!

Also just added to San Diego Bloggers.com

This is a great use of Google Maps to show San Diego brewpubs, breweries, beer bars, and beer stores.

Link

I have to give a plug for the San Diego Gourmet Club blog that I just found on the SanDiegoBlog list of new sites.

Already saw these 2 great posts:

A New Years Gift from the Cohn Restaurant Group

The four Cohn Group Restaurants are offering 3 course meals at a mere $20.06 per person. I’m so there!
You have a choice of:
Prado at Balboa Park - (619)557-9441
Mister Tiki Mai Tai Lounge/Gaslamp - (619)233-1183
Dakota Grill & Spirits/Gaslamp - (619)234-5554
Kemo Sabe/Hillcrest - (619)220-6802

You can go to one or you can visit all four!
To view the special menus visit http://www.cohnrestaurants.com/cohn/cohnrestaurants/20.06MenuSpecial.php

Restaurant Week

If there is a restaurant out there that you have been desperate to go to but lacked the funds or the timing was just off, in only 2 weeks time you will have your opportunity to try it out. The second annual San Diego Restaurant Week kicks off on the 15th and will sadly end on the 20th. Participating restaurants have a special three course menu for $30 per person. There are more than 125 participating restaurants. For a complete list, visit www.sandiegorestaurantweek.com.

Want to stay up to date on San Diego Dining? Consider the San Diego Restaurant Blog at http://www.discoversd.com/

Cheap eats and frugal fun?

America’s Finest City certainly isn’t America’s cheapest. If you live in San Diego with unpaid student debt, you’ve probably had to choose between spending money on a night out with friends or coughing up overdue rent. It’s not an easy decision, but with a few pointers to the city’s cheaper digs, you can enjoy your weekends without having to avoid your landlord’s stink-eye come Monday morning.

SDUT’s list, agree or disagree?

I just got an e-mail from the Kidrobot store (a GREAT source for unique figures, toys, and cool stuff) telling me about a promotion (happening on Saturday Oct 8 ONLY) where select ice cream shops are giving way Ice-Bots to the first 50 customers that ask for it.

In San Diego, the select ice cream shop is

Gelato Vero
3753 India Street
619-295-9269

A San Diego Classic. try the Buñuelos!

Posted to Flickr, by So Cal Metro