The Pacific Beach Fish Shop, Pacific Beach, San Diego

Grateful is the only word that can describe my feelings toward this gem of a restaurant we found just a few blocks from our house.  There was constantly a line out the door and the indoor/outdoor atmosphere looked more than inviting.  Our first trip to the fish shop was made by foot and took us no longer than ten minutes.  Our second time back was by bike and only took a few minutes with the help of the downhill slope.  There is a convenient (& free!) parking lot outside where we locked up our bikes and could easily glance over from the restaurant whenever we wanted to check on them.

After multiple failed taco shop attempts at this very location many were worried about the next food joint getting ready to open.  The Pacific Beach Fish Shop opened it's doors in November of 2009 as a tide-to-table themed restaurant.  Since it's opening it has been become the new hotspot on the east end of Garnet Ave.  The idea behind the process is "fresh fish made your way" in three easy steps.  

First your pick your fish, second pick your marinade, third pick your style.  As you walk in you are greeted with an excited line of people standing in front of a glass case filled with fresh fish.  You can choose from ahi, halibut, mahi-mahi, red snapper, salmon, swordfish and more.  

Next you choose a marinade for your fresh fish: blackened seasoning, chipotle glaze, fish chop seasoning, garlic butter, lemon butter, salt & pepper, teriyaki, or plain.  

Finally you decide wether you want all of this made into a taco, salad, sandwich, or platter.  It is definitely not cheap, but the quality and flavor is worth the money and worth the line.  

One of the restaurants "rules" that seems to be followed by most, is that you are not allowed to reserve a table while someone is waiting to order in line.  The entire party must order before they sit to wait for their meal.  The system seems to work and no complaints were made during my visits.

I have tried to fish and chips and also had a salmon and local halibut taco.  Both were fantastic.  I was lucky enough to be able to also try the swordfish, mahi-mahi, and red snapper.  They have 8 primary craft beers on tap as well as 50 different bottle choices from nine of the best local San Diego breweries.  Don't hesitate to bring your own wine, because there is no corkage fee!  If oysters are your thing you can get them for a buck on Thursdays after 4pm until they run out.  Did I mention this restaurant is dog-friendly?!  All in all this place is a ten out of ten.  After two visits in two weeks I have nothing to complain about and can't wait to return to my favorite local fish shop.

The Pacific Beach Fish Shop

1775 Garnet Ave, San Diego, CA 92109

(858) 483-4746

www.thefishshoppb.com

open Monday-Sunday 11am - 10pm

The Broken Yolk Cafe, Pacific Beach, San Diego

When I saw this breakfast & lunch spot just a few blocks from our house I quickly got excited.  The second floor consisted of a glassed in patio with a view down Garnet Ave, the main strip in Pacific Beach.  Right off the bat I felt a strange familiarity to this local spot and after a little research I figured out why.  Adam Richman from the Travel Channel's "Man vs. Food" came to the Broken Yolk's downtown location and successfully finished the Ironman Challenge.  The challenge is a 12-egg omelet with sautéed onions and mushrooms, a half a pound of shredded cheese with chili on top, accompanied by homefries and two large biscuits...all served on a 15-inch pizza pan.

We didn't take the challenge.  Instead we ordered a round of mimosas to start off our Saturday on the patio of the original Broken Yolk.  Next we ordered french toast, eggs Benedict, and an original breakfast plate.  I thoroughly enjoyed my french toast and Jordan loved her eggs benedict.  Andy's verdict of his eggs with bacon and toast was "average, nothing to write home about".  The food gets a 2/3 and the atmosphere of the second floor glassed in patio make me excited to come back for more!

Broken Yolk Cafe

1851 Garnet Ave, San Diego, CA 92109

(858) 270-9655

www.thebrokenyolkcafe.com

open Monday-Sunday 6am - 3pm

Phil's BBQ, Seaworld Area, San Diego

Phil's BBQ was recently named one of San Diego's top ten restaurants of 2013 by San Diego Magazine, it also happened to be right across the street from our hotel.  Everyday the line started wrapping around the building by 11am and continued until the doors were closed.  There was even a designated spot in line to tweet at when you had arrived.

After reading extremely high reviews we decided to order a family style meal to eat at the hotel.  Our wait was half the time, and we got to walk right past all the hungry customers waiting to be seated.  We ordered ribs, chicken, coleslaw, potato salad, buns, extra BBQ sauce, and some whoopie pies.  The chicken was out of this world moist and the meat fell right off the ribs.

Phil's BBQ

3750 Sports Arena Blvd, San Diego, CA 92110

(619) 226-6333

www.philsbbq.net

open Tuesday-Sunday 11am - 10pm

The Fish Market, Downtown, San Diego

For a last family dinner, our group of 12 headed to The Fish Market in downtown San Diego, literally hanging off the water.  The views were pretty amazing from inside, but there were also some pretty neat things to look at around the restaurant.  

On the pier outside of the restaurant is the famous "The Kiss" statue along with a "national salute" to Bob Hope and the military.  The somewhat private "salute" consists of a group of soldier statues all circled around a statue of Bob Hope.  This statue was no ordinary statue though, there was continuous audio playing all of Bob Hope's treasured jokes.  Across the dock, behind the Bob Hope salute and "The Kiss" statue, is a huge USN active naval ship.

To start the meal we ordered shrimp ceviche, ahi poke, and oysters.  For our entrees we ordered a caesar salad with salmon on top and a delicious crab/seafood cioppino.  The fish was fresh and cooked perfectly in everybody's dish.  If you want good quality seafood in San Diego this is the place to go.

The Fish Market

750 N Harbor Dr, San Diego, CA 92101

(619) 232-3474

www.thefishmarket.com

open Sunday-Thursday 11am - 930pm

open Friday & Saturday 11am - 10pm

Dirty Birds, Pacific Beach, San Diego

This fantastic find on the beach boasts THE best wings I have every tried.  As I sat down I was a little intimidated by their menu and my picky palate was skeptical of some of the flavor pairings.  First we got an order of the Dirty Blue which was their secret hot sauce combined with their home-made blue cheese dressing.  Out of this world!  I have wanted to return every day since our last visit just for these dirty blues.  Next we ordered the Diablo, their secret hot sauce with three types of chilies and the Maple Chipotle BBQ.  Each and every wing and drumstick were meaty and licked to the bone.  They have great happy hour deals, worth taking advantage of during a random wing craving.

DAILY SPECIALS (more drink specials every day)

Mondays: 3pm - 6pm 1/2 off wings

Mondays: 6pm - 12am all you can eat wings ($13.99)

Tuesday: 11am - 12am 1/2 off wings ALL DAY

Wednesday: 3pm - 6pm 1/2 off wings

Thursday: 3pm - 6pm 1/2 off wings

Thursday: 6pm - 12am 1/2 rack baby ribs w/ french fries and coleslaw ($9.99)

Friday: 3pm - 6pm 1/2 off wings

Saturday & Sunday: 11am - 1:30am $2 Mimosas/ $4 Bloody Mary's / $10 Bottles of Champagne / $15 Bucket of Coors Light and Miller Lite

Dirty Birds

4656 Mission Blvd, San Diego, Ca 92109

(858) 274-2473

www.dirtybirdspb.com

open Sunday-Wednesday 11am - 12am

open Thursday-Saturday 11am - 2am

South Beach Bar and Grille, Ocean Beach, San Diego

South Beach Bar and Grille is located right on the water in the Ocean Beach area of San Diego.  They are "home of the world's best fish tacos", so it was where we ventured for our first dinner.  As we all looked at our menus we agreed that $3.50 a taco seemed a little expensive, but didn't let that hold us back.  I ordered one Mahi taco and the Carne Asada option which was two mini street tacos served with onion, cilantro, cheese, and tomatillo sauce (for the price of one fish taco).  Other options on the taco menu included shark ($4.25), lobster ($6.95), and shrimp ($3.95).

Some oysters and ceviche were ordered as appetizers and as soon as the tacos arrived our loud table got a little quieter.  The fish in the tacos can only be described as 'generous hunks' covered in cheese, red cabbage, salsa fresca and white sauce.  The amount of fish we all received in our tacos exceeded the prices we all thought were high earlier.  After dinner we walked across the parking lot onto Ocean Beach and listened to the waves as our stomachs worked.  The food, drinks, and location of South Beach Bar and Grille are top notch and we cannot wait to come back and check out the rest of the menu, hopefully during the day!

South Beach Bar & Grille

5059 Newport Ave #104, San Diego, CA 92107

(619) 226-4577

www.southbeachob.com

open 7 days/week 11am - 2am