I'm sure this has been done, but I'm lazy.

Headed to San Diego for long weekend early November for 3 nights. Staying in Gaslamp, I'll be going to a concert at Petco Park one night.

Not getting a car so will be walking/uber

What are some good restaurants and craft beer options in the area? Never been to the whales vagina before but looking to have fun & stay classy enough.

I can't think of any good breweries in Gaslamp. About a mile or so walk will get you to Little Italy, which has Stone and Burgeon tasting rooms, and Bottlecraft, which has a great tap list and sells cans/bottles to go.

You can sit on their patio and watch the planes fly right over you as they land. Then walk a few blocks to Crack Shack for outdoor fried chicken and more beers. They always have Societe The Pupil on tap. Ballast Point is right there too if you want a Sculpin, or to spit on them for selling out.

Gaslamp restaurants - Hodad's burgers, Puesto for tacos and mezcal margs, The Lion's Share for fancy cocktails and game meat for dinner. Craft & Commerce is solid for food and drinking.

I just realized Lost Abbey has a tasting room near Petco, called The Church, if you want barrel aged or sour beers. I go to The Confessional up by my house all the time. They have 3-4 IPAs, but that isn't their specialty. Before they split from Port Brewing, their IPA selection was much better.

I knew you'd be on the beer game, thanks!

Societe would be about a 20-30 minute Uber to the main brewery on Claremont. Best IPAs in town for my money. Decent outdoor setup too. They have a taco truck onsite all the time. Lots of cool Asian restaurants nearby that will DoorDash there. Jasmine dim sum is my go to for that.

Bine & Vine would then be halfway back on the way to Gaslamp. Blind Lady Alehouse is a block up from there.

Brewery X - from Anaheim - just opened a tasting room at a hotel next to the airport. Probably a 5-10 minute Uber. Weird vibe, but good IPAs and you can sit outside looking down at the bay.

Sushi Tadokoro is excellent and a short Uber away near old town. Michelin starred the last few years, requires a reservation.

Good Italian options walkable from gaslamp in Little Italy.

Ballast Point is there too if you like their beer.

USS Midway is cool if you like military history.

North Park Brewing is only about a 10 min drive from Petco and has awesome ipas.

My wife and I stayed in Gaslamp earlier this year. Our favorite dinner place around there was tapas and sangria at cafe Sevilla. We also enjoyed the Latitude rooftop bar on top of the Marriott we stayed at.

Half Door brewing was great for beers and apps before we went to a game at Petco.

Outside of gaslamp, George's at the Cove in La Jolla was awesome for dinner with a sunset view, and we had some solid fish tacos at Mitch's seafood which is a bit of a dive on the water where the fishing boats come in.

Rustic Root for brunch

https://maps.app.goo.gl/p2krxcBPGbB71GA9A?g_st=com.google.maps.preview.copy

We enjoy staying at the Del. I'd say it's worth a ferry ride to hang out on Coronado for a few hours. Quick Uber from the ferry landing to the hotel if you want to check it out.

Ended up renting a car just to have on hand as my wife has some things in Oceanside she wants to go up for. Figure we'll do some driving around up to La Jolla and other spots too

If you have some extra time when going from La Jolla to Oceanside, take N Torrey Pines Road and stay on that instead of the 5. It will turn into the coast highway and you'll get tons of great ocean views as you cruise through all the beach towns on the way up. Adds about 40 minutes to the drive, but is worth it. I take the 101 every chance I get, even though it is slower than the 5.

I think Noble Experiment speakeasy is in the Gaslamp district if I am not mistaken


Great speakeasy that requires reservations I believe...attached to the Neighborhood resturant I believe

Cool thanks, good suggestions

If you're up and about on a Saturday morning, you ought to go by the Farmers Market downtown. You can find some pretty good food there at some vendors, and the fresh fruit is awesome.

Just bumping this as this trip is coming up soon - need to start getting some reservations down

Figured I'd chime in for my fellow H-Tineian.

Great recommendations so far. I'll add:

Herb and Wood (a Brian Malarkey restaurant): good spot for a nice date night in Little Italy. A few standout items: Sicilian crudo, roasted baby carrots, Iberico pork, filet, gnocchi, and strawberry souffl. Yes - I gained 7lbs during dinner.

Animae (Tara Monsod and Malarkey): great Asian fusion concept for which Tara was a James Beard finalist this year.

The Red Door (Hillcrest) for delicious and authentic Italian. Smaller, cozy restaurant with a sometimes lively bar next door (live music some nights). The chef/owner, Luciano, is from Milan and quite the character. He usually makes the rounds in the restaurant to check in with everyone.

Las Cuatro Milpas - SD's Irma's. Simple, traditional Mexican fare. Easy to get in Houston and Texas, so might want to go other places, but the food tastes like you crossed into TJ to eat.

If you're up in Oceanside and want a fast/simple/casual lunch, then Board and Brew will be perfect. Craft beers and good sandwiches in a place the size of a Subway. I haven't been to the one in Oceanside, but I've been to the Carlsbad location a couple of times.

Not too far from Oceanside (30 minutes) is Stone's west coast brewery/tap room/pub in Escondido. I'd skip eating there, but they have a nice outdoor area to sit out and enjoy a beer.

La Jolla / Torrey Pines - I agree to drive up the coast starting in La Jolla with a stop at the Gliderport. I always enjoy watching people run off of the cliff while hoping their glider works. Truly amazing to watch them up close. You can also wave to Alicia and Swizz.

My man

had a great time - short trip, but cant wait to go back

Coronado, La Jolla, Ocean Beach and driving up through Del Mar etc was great

Just found out I have a work trip to Point Loma in Feb. They usually try to keep us busy with mandatory fun in the evenings but I'll probably still try to get out and roam in the evenings. Have a good buddy at Pendleton that I'll probably try and catch up with.