The Best Restaurants in San Diego

Kitchen 1540: Homemade cheeses and cured meats

Kitchen 1540 is the signature restaurant of the L’Auberge Hotel, a breezy but refined luxury hotel located along the Pacific coast. It’s a prime example of contemporary Californian cooking, with local, fresh ingredients and a commitment to farm-to-table ethos. 

The food at Kitchen 1540 is as simple as it is sophisticated, with menu items like fennel crusted albacore and natural beef tenderloin in a tomato-cabernet reduction showcasing the chef’s dedication to wholesome cooking. If for nothing else, Kitchen 1540 deserves to be ranked amongst the best restaurants in San Diego for its cheeses and cured meats, which are made in-house. 

NINE-TEN: Local fish, global taste

La Jolla’s Grande Colonial Hotel is home to NINE-TEN, which another top example of Californian cuisine, and one of the best restaurants in San Diego. NINE-TEN’s award-winning chefs are dedicated to using only the finest local produce from artisan farmers, and to utilizing local fish and seafood. 

For lunch, try the NINE-TEN burger with Angus beef and house made pickles, or try the smoked salmon BLT. If you’ve come or dinner, order the excellent roasted California lamb loin or a prime steak. NINE-TEN is all about execution, and its dedication to excellence earns it a spot amongst the best restaurants in San Diego.

Truluck’s:  Stone crabs you’ll gargoyle over

For seafood, the best restaurant in San Diego is La Jolla’s Truluck’s. This seafood and crab house is best known for its fresh stone crabs, which are delivered from fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico to your plate in less than 24 hours. A revolving menu of fish can include Hawaiian tuna, redfish, mahi-mahi, and other fresh- and saltwater selections, which are prepared to your specifications and served with your choice of signature side dishes. Truluck’s is also famous for its cocktail hour, with half-priced cocktails and appetizers.

Sushi Ota: Transcendent sashimi in a strip mall

Fact #1: Sushi Ota has the best sushi around, and it is undeniably one of the best restaurants in San Diego. 

Fact #2: It’s located in a strip mall, next to a convenience store. 

Sushi Ota may not be much to look at from the outside, but locals and sushi connoisseurs from all over know that this is the place to go for the finest, freshest sushi available. Reservations are strongly recommended, and you might even want to call ahead to ask when their next shipment is arriving, to assure that you’ll have the absolutely freshest menu items. 

Sushi Ota’s sashimi is almost transcendent, and its salmon belly, toro, uni, and tuna are all top notch. Order a Diego roll, whose spiciness and signature namesake make it a must.

The Mission

When it comes to breakfast, the Mission in Mission Beach is widely regarded as the best restaurant in San Diego. The food here is simple, fresh, and affordable, and an emphasis is placed on healthy food choices. It is famous for its plate-sized pancakes, with fresh seasonal fruit or fruit purees in the batter. 

Try the strawberry granola pancakes for a fruity, whole grain start to your day. If pancakes aren’t your thing, try a Latino breakfast plate or chorizo and eggs platter. Arrive early to beat the rush, and relax with a cup of coffee while you start another day in sunny California.

San Diego has a terrific, varied food world to offer visitors. For obvious reasons, one of the most popular food styles in San Diego is sushi, and there are several San Diego sushi restaurants here that can’t be missed.