Food & Beverages of San Diego

Mr. Heid took a trip with me and my family to San Diego to watch my baby bro graduate! We had a blast and I’m finally sharing the food and beverage side of our trip with you here!

THE PURPOSE | The foremost purpose of heading to San Diego was to watch my Baby Bro graduate and it was my absolute favorite moment of the trip! He looked so excited and proud, as he should be and as we all are! Congrats, Baby Bro — the best is yet to come! The second reason was to explore the City that he’s called home for the past two years.

THE DRINKS | On our first day, Baby Bro took us to a few breweries and a winery. The sours at Sourworx were sooo delicious — they had a few dark sours, which are my favorite. I really wanted one of everything there, but alas… pacing. Bolt Brewery had a super chill atmosphere and apparently Pizza Fridays! We weren’t there on Friday, though...

We hit La Mesa Wine Works next, which is actually a pour room for two wineries. They were doing a BOGO on flights, so our table looked ridiculous and we got a liiiittle goofy. One of our last stops in San Diego was Border X Brewing in Barrio Logan. They boast Mexican craft beer, and their beverages are as unique as their atmosphere! Their walls are covered in doodles by a once-local artist (I think I’m remembering that correctly), and their Blood Saison was on point with its hibiscus and agave flavors.

THE FOOD | Three words. The. Taco. Stand. Baby Bro took us here for our first meal and it was insta-love. You guys know my passion for tacos. I could eat them morning, noon, and night — every meal. Throughout the trip, everyone kept saying, “The taco stand was so good,” “We should go back to the taco stand,” “Remember the churros at the taco stand?” We decided that this restaurant earned a second visit despite our being in a new place with many untried options. So as we were walking down the street, I said, “What is the name of this place anyway?” And everyone simultaneously says, “The Taco Stand!” The whole time we’d been talking about it on the trip, I thought they were just referring to it as a taco stand, not realizing that they were calling it by its actual name.

Their North Park location is so tiny, but everything about it is awesome — corrugated metal menu, the fading painted words on the wall over a line of hot sauce bottles, the little window where you can watch tortillas being made and pork turn on a spit… The food comes out so hot and fresh. And the churros?! They’re melt-in-your-mouth good. UGH! I need a location close to me STAT!

For our first dinner we stopped at Cross Street Chicken & Beer because the reviews were great and the photos were mouth-watering, but we were all a little disappointed. It’s probably my bad for ordering on the assumption that the spice would be spicy-hot versus spicy-literal (meaning the chicken was just covered in some spices of sorts). The good news is that we also stopped into Bing Haus for something to stay warm while we waited to be seated. I got a beautiful Chai tea, while Baby Bro got a Mexican hot chocolate.

The next morning, Mr. Heid and I got up super early to try Rose Donuts and were quite pleased. The donuts were airy, but full of sugary flavor… they reminded me of a little place in my hometown called Daylight Donuts that we frequented when I was a kid. Once everyone else greeted the day, we met up with our parents at Breakfast Republic. I honestly can’t remember what all we ate because everyone took a nibble of what everyone else was having, but I can say that it was all on point! I do remember that my parents ordered a pancake flight and I sipped on a margarita with blanco tequila, ancho verde, lime juice, and some grapefruit Stiegl Radler. It was incredibly refreshing and I should definitely attempt to make my own on our next taco night.

Before Baby Bro’s graduation, the fam went to Cafe 222 where I enjoyed their huevos rancheros. Their restaurant is tiny, so we were lucky to get a seat and not have to wait. After graduation, we celebrated in Little Italy at Buon Appetito Restaurant. The owner seemed to be living his best life, and their food was decadent; thinking about it now has me craving some really good Italian. That same evening, we had a dinner at Cafe Coyote in Old Town San Diego to celebrate my birthday — the food was really flavorful, the carnitas were crispy, the taco was covered in melted cheese, the tamale was legit, the prickly pear margarita was perfect, and the venue was huge, like a colorful maze of classic Mexican decor.

And last, but not least, we hit 85C Bakery Cafe. Serving up Asian and European pastries, their options were different than what I’m used to, but they’re each between $1 and $3, making our visit there an affordable exploration of new things.

NEXT TIME | I’d love to check out Little Italy Food Hall next time I’m in San Diego. Food halls are always fun because you can try a nibble here and there or get a full meal. I’m also willing to eat all of the tacos anyone will give me, and I wouldn’t mind checking out a few more seafood places.

Stay tuned for my next post where I detail our sights and scenes from San Diego!

xoxo,
K