As we enter 2013, Buzz thought it would be worth a look back at the various issues that caught her attention while dining in San Diego during the year.  You too can add to this list.  Please feel free to comment.

**Demographics matter: Pushing 40 years old, Brian Malarkey is all over the map, literally.  He and partner James Brennan open fabric named restaurants faster than you can sharpen your kitchen knives.  So how good are they?  Well, Gabardine in Point Loma opened early in 2012 without much thought to the neighborhood and as Buzz wrote in June, the place needs focus.  These restaurateurs assumed diners–with an average age of roughly 35 to 45–would brave traffic and come to the nearly dead end of Rosecrans Street to dine.  We wish it would be so, but not in Point Loma.

**$20 and under menus:  This tag line for restaurants has had its day says Amy T. Granite at San Diego City Beat. Think about it, two items at $15 each makes a $30 tab for one and you’re just drinking tap water.  Restaurants, price your menus fairly and diners won’t wonder if they’re getting a deal, or not.

**Happy Hour:  What’s so happy about a $45 bill (with tip $53) for two that included happy hour prices for fish and chips ($10), shrimp and grits ($9), roasted Brussels sprouts ($4), Laird Pinot Grigio ($10) and Gingham Syrah ($9).   Portions  were large enough for dinner…so why call it happy hour Gabardine?  Instead, go to   where you can enjoy a swell view, lounge appetizers at $7 or at their sister restaurant , $6 plates.  Or try another Buzz favorite, The 3rd Corner for a $10 bowl of Prince Edward Island mussels with a pile of frites and a $3 draft beer.

**Noise: How about those restaurants with noise so great we can’t even hear the person next to you?  Here’s a clip from the Today Show that looks at restaurants and their noise levels.  Not everyone is 30 years old and high noise levels in restaurants such as Brooklyn Girl Eater or Searsucker, and others you may add, may have decent food, but if can’t hear the person sitting next to you, what’s the point?

**Wine: Restaurants take note:  Sparkling wine poured into a carafe at the bar, then poured into glasses at the table and called a on the menu just sucks.  So does serving red wine too warm–room temperature as many places do–either by the glass or bottle.  Don’t believe me? Ask America’s first master sommelier, Eddie Osterland.

**Ambiance comes in many forms at a restaurant: low light, music bass heavy and loud (as well as unknown composers). Other issues abound when it comes to menus.  If you can’t read the menu because of a meager table candle, print so small or a font so precious even the best eyes can’t decipher it, the meal could be off to a difficult start.

**Location and Name:  Yes, it matters, just ask the people at Location Matters who help restaurateurs expand, buy, sell or lease venues.  Restaurant names we don’t understand:  Sora (Japanese for Sky) with an Italian/Japanese menu in a tough downtown location that includes validated parking.

**Websites: Things we find unhelpful to the dining public:  Websites that are not current, in other words, show what you’re serving now, not last summer. That includes places like Buzz favorite La Villa. This restaurant, with the innovative and creative chef Chris O’Donnell at the helm, needs to post its menu not the website’s current one of their sister restaurant Buon Appetito.

**Photos: And what about diners constantly taking pictures, all the time, of every dish? Watch Eat it Don’t Tweet it  a video moment for levity and amusement from L.A. Chefs Column . As Barbarella (Diary of a Diva) notes here, we’re done with the food paparazzi.

**Service (or lack thereof) ought to be a bigger deal than it is in laid back San Diego. You’ll find extraordinary service at La Villa as happened on a wet cold night when we arrived without a reservation.  Quick thinking from GM, Derry Van Nortwick pulled a table from the patio into the warm packed room–where there was room for two of us as well as the 20 at the next table.  Other restaurants would have turned us away saying “sorry we’re full tonight”.

Miscellaneous musings for 2013:

**Tired yet of bacon in and on everything?  And you’d think craft beer was the only beverage in the city.  We’re happy to see San Diego as a top spot for beer; we hope food will follow.

**A reader wonders why salt and pepper shakers no longer appear on many dining tables…who says the kitchen knows best for a diner’s taste buds?  But then there’s this that lets you know who’s in charge!

**Speaking of tables…Do you dine with the smart phone strategically placed next to your plate?  Time to let that go and enjoy the reason you came to the restaurant…the food, the ambience and, hopefully, the company at your table.

**TV’s are everywhere and many times in the wrong place–fine dining isn’t a sports bar.

**Resolve for 2013 to try a new restaurant or a dish you’ve never experienced.

 

 

 

San Diego’s Restaurant Week runs for two weeks in September and January–two generally slow months for restaurants. Much is made of the event that began in 2004, sponsored by the San Diego County Chapter of the California Restaurant Association (SDCCRA) that organizes and provides the press for the restaurants that serve a prix fixe two-course lunch for $10, $15 or $20  or a three-course dinner for $20, $30 or $40, all depending on the restaurant.  More than 200 restaurants took part in week one (just ending today, September 21), and week two runs from September 23 until the 28th with more than 150 dining choices.

The idea of restaurant week began in 1992 when the late restaurateur Joe Baum and (yes, that Zagat) thought it would be a gesture of good will to the 15000 reporters in New York who were there to cover the Democratic convention. It was a four day affair–now counted in months rather than days–that grew to cities and towns around the country, many coordinated by , restaurant associations or local community organizations. The various reasons for such events include: increase tourist traffic, help restaurants through slow months and allow diners to try places they may have heard about and want to try and hopefully return for another meal.

In San Diego, as in some other places, it’s “pay to play” for the restaurants. First, to participate a restaurant must be a member in good standing of the SDCCRA. The approximate membership price for a 50-seat restaurant with mid-range prices is $590, based on annual revenue.  As a member there is a registration cost for the restaurant’s inclusion for press and other publicity that ranges from $400 to $1000.  Those early bird prices depend on whether a restaurant serves lunch, dinner or both, and wants to participate in one or two months. The Association also presents those Gold Medallion awards we hear about in May after their annual dinner.  And you can’t get a medallion if you’re not a member, so how important is the award when it’s insiders voting yearly for the same restaurants?  (Buzz wrote about this a few years back).

Second, while that special menu for dinner or lunch may be $10, $30 or $40, etc., remember that price does NOT include gratuity, tax or beverage.  Thus you may end up with bill closer to $20, $40 or $50 (or more).  Is it a bargain?  You can decide.  Is it a hassle? Perhaps.  Is the food as good during this special week?  Maybe, or maybe not, because the restaurant tends to be full, service may suffer, and so could the food. Jan Borkum (“proud mom” of Tracy Borkum) at the SDCCRA said they have stressed to restaurants to put their best food and service forward  after complaints in earlier years of skimpy portions and lousy service.  And based on the experience of one meal during a busy week, does that bring repeat business to the restaurant as many restaurateurs expect?

Third, note that many restaurants choose not to be an Association member, so they don’t participate.  In North Park, such places as Urban Solace‘s chef/owner Matt Gordon prides himself on serving terrific food all the time and years ago knew that joining the lobby group (the primary function of the California Restaurant Association), was not for him. Jayne’s Gastropub and  Finch’s Bistro and Wine Bar in La Jolla aren’t members either.  Instead, Gordon and many other restaurants around town serve their regular menus or their own their versions of a prix fixe menu during the week. Many times you may spend less and eat well, with good service at the non-member places.

Farmhouse Cafe however, decided this year to join the Association for the benefits and help it gives small business owners especially when it comes to understanding the constantly changing laws, rules and regulations affecting the industry. They, along with many other participants, have the prix fixe special menu along with  their regular menu during the two weeks.

A final observation:   San Diego’s restaurants depend on the support of us, the diners, whether we’re eating a fish taco or a filet mignon, during restaurant week or not.  Buzz wants to know your experiences during this restaurant week–whether a diner or a restaurateur.  Diners:  Did you try a new place?  If so, would you return?  Restaurateurs:  Was the week successful for you, staff and do you expect to see new faces once the hoopla dies down?  Oh, Yelpers take note:  Please don’t ding a restaurant you’re trying for the first time during restaurant week…it’s just not nice.

In Kensington, a “uber  fun, cool and eclectic” new wine bar , Village Vino, opens  (softly) June 28 at the corner of Adams Avenue and Kensington Drive in the same block as the Ken Theater and Kensington Grill.  Owner  Rita Pirkl will feature wines from around the world from small producers, many family run.  There will be classes too.  Buzz has seen the space and it offers all of the fun and none of the pretense of so many other wine bars in this town (no sofas either!).  4095 Adams Ave., 619-546-8466, open Sunday to Thursday 11am to 10pm, Friday and Saturday until midnight, closed Monday.

If you’re looking for a restaurant to buy, here are two you might be interested in:  Avenue 5 Restaurant and Bar in Bankers Hill is on the block as is City Deli in Hillcrest.  For additional information, 858-792-5521.

More Malarkey for his minions:  The empire spreads   with a second Searsucker  for those hungry “zonies; waived c orkage Tuesdays and half off selected bottles at all five venues; and happy hour arrives at  from 4 to 6pm.  Growing pains at the three-month-old Gabardine where chef Chad White is out and Malarkey is in with a pared down menu (unfortunately not yet posted online) and appetizers that include mac n’ cheese, shishito peppers and fries (they were sides before).   Is  Malarkey trying too hard here with a new brunch hook at Gabardine? Disco? Kind of odd for this old Point Loma neighborhood.

Herringbone just opened in La Jolla, making it the fifth in the fabric named restaurants.  If you love noisy, be-there-be-seen places, you’ll be right at home here as you watch nimble wait staff juggle food and drinks around a packed bar and 100-year-old olive trees planted inside the huge ex-warehouse space.  Expect a pricey dinner meal with most mains in the high $20’s and starters in the high teens.

And a final thought on Malarkey:  Is the expansion too fast and furious given his turnover of chefs (Burlap and Gabardine)?  Gabardine certainly needed more thought when it opened (and still may) as the elements of decor, dark corners at the bar, noise and a mish mash of a menu were not cohesive for the four times I visited.  (The place is a mile from my home.)  Time will tell if he can get the locals hooked.

Fellow writer Brandon Hernandez just posted an that brings up some good points about menus and how they are written.  His issue:  Rather than list just the basic ingredients, he longs for a detailed explanation of each dish on the menu.  Brandon (he’s a pal) where’s your sense of adventure and excitement for an evening of good dining?  Risk adverse?  You’re probably not alone especially in San Diego where–as you note–“we’re still finding our way where cuisine is concerned”.

If, in fact, each dish read as you might wish, including ingredients and cooking technique, it would almost resemble a recipe and the menu would read like a book.  And consider that many ethnic restaurants don’t go deeply into specifics, but simply name a dish with a main ingredient (chicken quesadilla, sweet and sour pork, etc.).

Why not write the menu with just the main ingredients as many well-known restaurants do? Less is more in many places including Gramercy Tavern in New York or Scottsdale’s Posh where the diner is given a list of ingredients and asked to strike any that they wouldn’t want to eat.  Posh embodies improvisational cuisine at it’s very best (Buzz has eaten there twice) and shows what chef/owner Josh Hebert can do daily with seasonal ingredients.

Spago and Bouchon Bistro in Beverly Hills provide some idea of what to expect when you order.  Across the pond, the hotspot in Paris, Le Comptoir’s gives you the basics.  In San Francisco, the year-old Prospect writes a succinct menu with ingredients.  Here in San Diego, The Marine Room lists an expanded ingredient list while 1500 Ocean names just a few.

For many chefs writing the menu with few ingredients allows the kitchen latitude for presentation–sautéed snapper could be poached another night or Yukon potatoes could be mashed one night and steamed another.  Same ingredients, different preparation.  It’s up to the diner to let the server know about any allergies (if possible when making the reservation) and to ask the server about a particular dishIt’s not up to the diner to ask for a complete redo of a dish after it’s explained.

So on your next night out, take a chance with the chef, suspend imagining what a dish might be, ask a question or two if the ingredients sound intriguing, and may your taste buds tingle with an enlightened and inventive meal.

Change is part of life and on Fifth Avenue between Washington and University change is redefining life for some of Hillcrest’s locally owned restaurants.  Not long ago Kemosabe and Corvette Diner left the area and now, across the street in the complex that houses the Landmark Theater and 24 Hour Fitness, Pizza Nova closes at the end of August after 17 years (and a doubling of rent) while next door Banana Leaf that served southern Indian food (owned by Bombay formerly in the space and now across the street), just closed.

Apparently the owners/developers decided to up the rents to be more in line with the current going rates on the street–anyone interested in $3.50 a square foot for these spaces? Interested parties can check with Location Matters for more information.

The new leases for the expected winter opening of Colorado’s Snooze (breakfast and brunch) and  soon-to-open Texas transplant Freebirds World Burrito, (owned by the Tavisock Group out of Florida) are both just above $3, not $3.50.  But in this economy, one wonders if prospective tenants (locals or out-of-town franchises) are beating down the doors to get into spots like Banana Leaf or Pizza Nova.  Buzz hopes the area doesn’t discourage locals trying to compete with new franchises. Time will tell.

At the corner of Washington and Fifth, Brazen BBQ Smokehouse & Bar opened this week.  It’s a casual spot with patio tables, a wash sink for sticky hands in the dining room, a full bar and eager staff.  This is the soft opening so be patient if you try the place in the next few weeks as they work out the kinks and add menu items.  Buzz popped in to see the place.  Here you won’t find parboiled meat, just smoked.  While I was waiting for my to-go order (3 meats and 3 sides $20.99) a big basket of chicken wings waited its turn in the smoker that’s right behind the cashiers. 441 Washington at Fifth Ave., 619-816-1990, closed Tuesdays, open daily from 11am

Finally, heard on the street that City Deli on the corner of Sixth and University is up for sale.

The release of Beaujolais Nouveau is a big deal in November and a couple of places will be celebrating its arrival Thursday, November 18. The Gamay grape stars in this wine and it is meant to be drunk within six months of bottling.  Each year it’s released on the third Thursday of November – literally only weeks after it was still growing on the vine and because it is a light friendly wine, it’s a great reason to party!

At the Wine Vault & Bistro arrive anytime after 5:30 and enjoy a four-course Beaujolais Nouveau Family Style Menu for: $25 2010 Dupeuble Beaujolais Nouveau: $7 glass / $22 bottle. If you’re not on their mailing list, it’s worth it if you are interested in good wine dinners and tastings. For reservations:  (619) 295-3939.

Euro Food Depot will celebrate on November 18 from 6pm to 10pm with wine, cheese, charcuterie and macarons.  Four pours and food $30.  For information:  858-452-9200.

Downtown, Bacchus Wine Market presents Beaujolais Nouveau and other first releases on Friday, November 19th (4pm to 8:30pm) and Saturday. November 20th (2pm to 8:30pm). Cost is $15 each day.  For information: 619-236-0005.

LATE ADDITION: While we’re wining, The WineSellar & Brasserie, Paris Driggers is the new general manager and wine buyer.  He’s been in the business for 15 years selling wines to top notch venues and brings a wealth of experience to the shop.  Upstairs in  the Brasserie chef Kevin Smith (who has worked in many of California’s top kitchens, including Patina in Los Angeles) is updating the menu.  This gem of a store and restaurant is tucked away in an unlikely industrial park, just down the hill from Qualcomm and is worth a visit.  9550 Waples Street, (858) 450-9557.

Oh what a mess has been wrought with the Cosmopolitan Hotel & Restaurant, owner Joseph Melluso, chef Amy DiBiase and the Union-Tribune’s, Keli Dailey.  This is a sordid story about editors and a reporter looking to sensationalize a story with writing that gives all parties, most notably the readers, a bad taste and does not help the San Diego restaurant community.

For those of you who missed it, Buzz reported on November 5 that DiBiase (whom Buzz knows) had left Cosmopolitan.  Next came Dailey’s one-sided story (relying only on owner Joseph Melluso) that appeared online on November 10, then the next day, in edited form, printed in the Business section of the paper. Melluso said (among other things) that there were financial and creative issues that caused the split.  Missing in the story is any acknowledgement that he, as the owner, had anything to do with the problems.

As a seeming consequence of the many negative online comments about the U-T story, either Dailey or her editors must have thought it wise to connect and interview DiBiase, as the original Dailey “story” noted, “DiBiase could not be reached Wednesday evening for comment”.  When Dailey did catch up to DiBiase the “rest of the story” – that is, her side of it — can be found online (and so far not in print).

Why run a half-reported story?  And more important, it seems that lately the U-T has resorted to old-fashioned tabloid journalism to report on such restaurant matters.  Restaurants open and close, chefs come and go, and any major newspaper notes such things in just a few paragraphs.  But the U-T has recently evolved into gotcha journalism, with the snarky story about Roseville closing, then this mess.

Buzz checked to see if the paper ever ran anything when Jeff Thurston left the Cohn’s Prado where he had been for many, many years. Nothing. Why? By contrast, the recent change of chefs at the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego merits a mention in Dailey’s online column (which is at should be, a few sentences at best).

So what gives?  What purpose did Dailey’s story serve to the public, to the restaurant or to the chef or even to the owner?  No purpose at all except to harm the business and reputations of those involved.

Foodies that still get cooking magazines (Buzz loves Saveur among many), Bon Appetit just announced its new editor- in- chief, Adam Rapoport who is style editor at GQ.  One could expect a big change in design…some think the magazine is staid in its look.  It was redesigned in 2008 to the dismay of some Chowhound readers.

Kudos to Candice Woo who scored a food writing position at San Diego Magazine.  She’s reviewing restaurants and it’s nice to see a fresh voice for the magazine.

Which brings me to the unfortunate Union Tribune, aka U-T.  Whatever has happened to caring about food in this town?  Don’t expect to see it coming from the U-T.  People whose bylines were always there and who know food (Carolyn Dipping, Lori Weisberg, Peter Rowe, to name a few), have been relocated to writing about auto accidents, obituaries, and occasionally now a piece about a restaurant going bust.  When will the U-T care about its readers and the food scene here?  It seems management depends more on outside writers to fill the gap.  Sorry to say that the redesigned paper doesn’t inspire one to renew their subscription (that would be Buzz).  Sadly,  the U-T logo and design  look like something from a high school newspaper.

There is bread and then there is artisan bread.   There’s the baguette that’s just a soft mass of melt-in-your mouth dough.  Then there’s the baguette with texture, flavor and a crust with some crunch.

Nothing irritates Buzz more than to want to support a Point Loma newcomer (that would be Charlie’s Best Bread) only to find that the new place  can’t come up with their own unique menu of breads and various  sandwiches.  How does Buzz know this?  Well, the new guy occupies the space that the artisan bakery Con Pane Rustic Breads & Cafe had for ten years.  Charlie’s moved in and instead of creating their own menu items, decided to see if they, their bread and some of their menu items could emulate those of  Con Pane. They do not.

Many of Charlie’s breads are baked someplace else, as they are bagged in plastic and ready to take (just as they are at the Hillcrest Farmers Market).  They do have muffins and breakfast items, roast beef, pastrami and veggie Cobb sandwiches, paninis and daily breads ( listed in exactly the same order as Con Pane). They use organic flour in some of their breads, and their prices can be higher on some items than the former tenant’s.   Buzz bought challah and have had their turkey Cobb…same ingredients  vastly different outcome.  You’ll also find already wrapped cinnamon rolls  with walnuts and raisins that for many don’t hold a candle to the light and flavorful ones at Con Pane  that are never pre-wrapped.

Buzz would like to see Charlie’s find their own identity.  There are a zillion sandwich combos, why not create your own?  And don’t try to fool the customers who recently came in thinking it was  Con Pane redone and ordered a turkey Cobb sandwich.  Expectations were high–but dashed-when they tasted the wannabe Cobb (roasted turkey breast, bacon, avocado, blue cheese, roasted roma tomatoes mayonnaise and romaine lettuce). When the customer found out that Con Pane moved to Historic Decatur and Dewey Roads in Liberty Station, they rushed down and happily enjoyed the original Cobb (roasted turkey breast,  applewood smoked bacon, fresh avocado, crumbled Gorgonzola cheese, house roasted roma tomatoes, mayonnaise and romaine lettuce).

Certainly it is a matter of taste as to which bakery you’ll make yours.  Charlie’s also has an unfortunate parking situation as many spaces around the building are marked for the bank and other tenants.  Buzz wants to see the new guy on the block succeed, though not as a copycat.  If, dear reader, you’re up to it, try your own taste test with breads from each place.  Buzz wants to hear from you.


Some observations from readers and Buzz…feel free to comment.

If you experience issues with your meal or service, please don’t wait til you leave or, as happened at Farm House Cafe, write an anonymous two page scorching letter about the scallop dish they ate.  Had Olivier Bioteau, the chef/owner been aware at the time of the meal, he could have replaced the errant dish and could have dealt with the diner at the moment.  By not expressing (nicely, by the way) the problem when it happens, everyone loses.  And, restaurants and their owners always like to hear good comments also. (Side note:  Farm House Cafe will be closed Labor Day weekend from Sunday dinner to reopen for dinner on Wednesday, September 8).

Shishito peppers seem to be the current darling of local chefs.  The summer pepper is small and thin-skinned, not really hot and usually served in Japanese restaurants as an appetizer (peppers flash fried in a tiny bit of oil and cooked to just barely scorch the skin, then served with sea salt or topped with bonito flakes).  Buzz ate them at Searsucker (called so over cleverly “no shoshiito schoos”)  and heard from a reader about them at Bali Hai.

Trader Joe’s now carries coconut water, a good mix of electrolytes, with no additives that Buzz can attest, tastes good.  It comes from the water of green coconuts and is considered to be quite a healthy drink.  If you’d like to buy fresh green coconuts and coconut trees, check out Florida Coconuts, a company that grows and ships the coconuts nationwide.

The New York Times Op-Ed piece, Math Lessons for Locovores is worth the read and certain to provoke discussion.  If you’ve not encountered an interesting site called Grist, it has a good vitural roundtable discussion addressing this Op-Ed story.