Brooklyn girl (mission hills) had hockey on last night without sound at the bar. Food can be excellent or meh, but drinks are tasty.

Piacere mio is now open in south park at the corner of grape and fern - directly across the street from the abbey and the IGA. Those of you who have been to buona forchetta will recognize one of the owners (stefano) with his handlebar mustache. Coffee, salads (look very similar to buona's tasty salads), sandwiches, Italian pastries (including cannolis) - will be a good addition to south park which lacks a good lunch salad option. Open 7 to 7.

while you wait for the awesome buona forchetta to open at 5pm, there's also Eclipse, which recently moved/opened in south park on 30th/fern. It is serving breakfast every day from 9am until 2pm and also has lunch and wine. Very tasty - just polished off a goat cheese panini myself.

Good question because I love Bruno's pizza. I personally like Bruno's pizza slightly better because of their toppings, but granted, I have only had Buona's pizza once on their opening weekend so I need to give them some more time to develop and improve. I like Buona's atmosphere much better than Bruno's (which always feels a bit "unfinished" to me for some reason) and I appreciate the wider range of italian food at Buona's (salads, appetizers and it looks like they might have a special nightly hand cut pasta) than at Brunos. As for the crust, Bruno's is slightly heftier, which some people like/dislike depending on taste (I actually prefer Buona's slightly thinner pizza crust).

buona forchetta (pizza) is now open in South Park. It is on Beech & 30th (directly across the street from Alchemy). After almost two years of planning and build-out, hey opened last weekend to tons of happy south parkers.

We went on Sunday. There was an hour wait for a table inside (it's pretty small) so my hubby and I decided to take advantage of the pretty patio and outdoor heaters. It did not disappoint. The staff was already well organize so the service was on-point and the food was very promising. We split the arachini, the sardine insalata (arugula and white anchovies), and a pizza with rapini and sausage. The salad was great and the pizza crust was very tasty (nice and with a little chew and char). The sausage could have used some more fennel for kick, but it was a good start. Matteo (the owner/chef) also gave us a free slice of italian cheesecake for kicks. It was very tasty (it has a much more even ratio of crust to cheese and lots more fruit preserves on top than the american version). With two glasses of wine, our meal came to about $55. A steal! We'll be back for sure and are so happy they finally opened!

Update - we had a lovely christmas lunch at Chef Chin's. I am no expert on chinese food, but I'd say it was on the high end of what we've eaten in San Diego. We ordered WAY too much food for two people, namely:
- homemade potstickers
- spicy green beans with pork
- soft noodles (no protein)
- lamb with cumin (very tasty).
It was enough to cover christmas dinner as well.

With two soft drinks, the bill was $50. Service was very pleasant. We'll go back again for sure.

I called Chef Chin and they will be open on Christmas.

sadly, they will be closed. great idea though!

Speaking of brunches, anyone know if any tasty brunch place that will be open on Christmas? Don't want to break the bank (so no fancy hotel buffet brunches or brunches $20+ pp please).

Thanks for the suggestions - We had a lovely lunch at Terra. The teen was grossed out by the "not ketchup ketchup" but enjoyed the ginger lemongrass lemonades. A successful outing with a 17 yr old for sure!

I'm taking a family friend on college tours tomorrow at SDSU and Grossmont. Is there anywhere near either school that's good for a basic lunch (salads, sammies, burgers, etc) a 17-yr old won't shun?

The Daily Scoop in South Park usually hits the spot.
3004 Juniper St
(between 30th St & Fern St)

Remember, it's cash only!

Bayu's Ethiopian appears to be closed.

Welcome!

Since you are downtown and like the raw bar, don't miss Oceanaire's Happy Hour (5-6pm) where they have tons of different oysters on the half shell for a dollar each. The oysters change daily. If you like briny little guys, try some of the Baja kinds - they are very tasty (and local)! But remember to get there right at 5pm - most seats are taken by about 5:15.

Seafood city in national city had smelt when I was there a few weeks ago. They'll fry it up for you behind the counter to take home.

Old family friends from Germany are visiting this weekend and have requested "Mexican" for dinner on Saturday night. I plan on taking them for a hike at Torrey Pines and then drinks at George's before dinner so I'm looking for Mexican in the La Jolla area. Any suggestions?

The Costco off of 94 always has some MX whites on hand. Just bought some 2011 chenin for 10.99 each - pretty tasty for the price.

thank you!

We're going to the Padres game but want to beat the heat for a few hours before first pitch. Any good Sunday brunch places near the ballpark with A/C? (Chloe always has the windows open so I crossed it off the list).

we've probably been there 1x per week since it opened (it's an easy place to take people for business dinners). Of all the things on the menu, the pizzas have been the least impressive to us. The crust is a little thin and bland - the ones we've gotten don't have any blister on them. The topping are tasty, but really, nothing special compared to the rest of their menu.

I'm a Chicago native returning to town after a few (sad) years away. I'm trying to find a bar in the Near North/River West/West Town area where many friends can meet to catch up a Saturday night catch up, so not too loud (or too formal or too crowded on a Saturday night). A few years ago, I would have simply said "Celtic Crossing" but the years have morphed me into a wine-drinking 30-something. Kitchen service is not necessary.

Any suggestions?

Rose Wine Bar in SouthPark always has great salads on the menu (they are always seasonal and change monthly). Last night I had a great salad with watermelon, feta, fresh pea shoots, sweet corn and a citrus dressing - perfect with a glass of white wine on a summer evening.

We went for dinner last night with another couple. The apps were ok - burrata was good but a little small and the grilled shrimp did not have quite the kick we thought they would. However the entrees were great - the shortribs were the true winners, with the shrimp and veggie papperdelle and duloc pork chop a close second/third. The place was packed for a Thursday night (we had reservations) but the tables seemed to turn over quickly. We were charged $8 corkage for our BYOWine. The service was also very good and our server was extremely knowledgable about each dish. Overall - two thumbs up - tasty food, with parking to boot.

I agree - I had lunch there today and thought it was pretty tasty (had the mushroom and ricotta pizza). The pizza had a great char, the crust was a good blend of chewy and salty and the ricotta was fresh. The decor was very "now" (grey tones, Edison bulbs, etc.) Plus I have half of the pizza left over for tonight - bonus! Brunos is still my favorite in San Diego but for a downtown lunch or Happy Hour ($5 Margarita pizzas), I'll be visiting Isola more often.

Hubby and I went on Saturday night. Was very very good (especially compared to San Diego resturants in our hometown). We started with the octopus app (was very good grilled - enjoyed the hummus better than the red pepper pairing) and the brussel sprouts side (which is the best dish of the night - do not miss! Is pretty big though for a side). Hubby had the petit filet which was perfectly done and I had the moroccan lamb. It was very good but having got the lamb at Tabu the night before (which was divine), we were a bit spoiled and nonplus. The cocktails were also very good. We were positively stuffed and had no room for dessert. The staff was really wonderful considering the very loud and crowded atmosphere. No place for someone with a hearing problem.

After looking at these menus, I am starving! You Seattle people are VERY lucky. For Ba-Bar v. Tamarind Tree, would anyone recommend one over the other?

Thanks for these fab suggestions. I can't wait to eat!

Bangkok Bay was a good recommendation - the food wasn't anything to write home about but it was super close to the fairgrounds and had large portions.

Thanks all - I think we're going to Atlas - it looks like exactly what we had in mind. And yes, I have encountered this problem of having a large group sans reservations unable to find a decent table after graduation many times in the past (and in many different cities). That is precisely why I started asking around so early this year.

The happy grad is my sister-in-in-law who will recent her PhD from Wash U. She deserves a great meal.

Thanks for your help!

Hi All-
We're attending a wedding at Washington Hall (153 14th Avenue) on an upcoming Sunday night. The happy couple is only serving "light snacks" and a cash bar, so we're going to eat/drink before the ceremony.

It is rare that I have the pleasure of eating in Seattle, so I want to make the most of it. Nothing uber fancy or super expensive - just plain ol' delicious and fresh Seattle food in walking distance (in heels!) to Washington Hall pretty please. Any cuisine will do.

Many thanks in advance!
Emma

Hi all!
I'm looking for a tasty place in walking distance of the Parkway Hotel (Central West End) for a family graduation dinner this May. Because there will be some older family members in attendence who have not yet sprung for hearing aids, we need somewhere not too loud. Great food and a good price is the ticket!

Many thanks in advance.