New restaurants open and reopen from San Diego to Oceanside
Restaurants include Social Tap, High/Low, Little Cakes, Lolita’s and Sally’s Fish House
Social Tap San Diego, a former high-end sports bar in East Village with a patio view of Petco Park, has undergone a rebranding effort to re-emerge this spring as a speakeasy-themed cocktail bar with elevated service and a new, expanded menu.
The 6,000-square-foot, indoor/outdoor venue at 815 G St. opened in October 2015, offering live sports broadcasts and a made-from-scratch menu. For the rebrand, the interior was redecorated to honor San Diego’s speakeasy history of the 1920s.
Founding chef Jake Snyder has created a new menu that includes the Brontosaurus Beef Rib, a Brandt Beef Prime bone-in rib entree, the Seoul Food fried chicken sandwich, the Duck Duck Goat charcuterie board and a deconstructed lobster roll called the Gucci Maine. Social Tap’s cocktail menu includes classics like the Woodford Reserve Old Fashioned, the Navy Grog tiki drink and the grand reopening special, El Nino.
The restaurant/bar will still serve as a game day spot for Padres game-goers, with game-day deals on its Trifecta Wings and Double Royale burger.
Social Tap in East Village is one of three locations, including outlets in Ventura and Scottsdale, Ariz. The restaurant is open from 3 to 10 p.m. daily. Visit socialtapeaterysandiego.com.
High/Low opens in Oceanside
High/Low, one of two restaurants in Oceanside’s just-opened Mission Pacific Hotel, opened on May 24.
High/Low serves breakfast and lunch in a glass-walled restaurant with an unobstructed view of beach and Oceanside pier. The restaurant is owned by F10 Creative, the hospitality company behind Cheeky’s and Mr. Lyons Steakhouse in Palm Springs.
F10 chef Tara Lazar’s menu will be highly seasonal and will feature produce and proteins from local farms and ranches, as well as coffee from Oceanside’s Revolution Roasters. Some of the dishes include squash blossom breakfast enchiladas, buttermilk and Indio corn pancakes and a zesty fried chicken sandwich.
High/Low hours are 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Developed by Hyatt Hotels and developer S.D. Malkin Properties, the Mission Pacific Hotel has 161 rooms. It opened May 19 at 201 N. Myers St. in Oceanside. Visit highlowoside.com.
Little Cakes opens in P.B.
Little Cakes Kitchen, the Vista-based cupcake bakery that is a two-time winner on Food Network’s “Cupcake Wars” series, has opened its third Little Cakes Kitchen bakery shop inside a Gelson’s supermarket, this time in Pacific Beach. Over the past two years, Little Cakes booths have also opened at the Gelson’s markets in Carlsbad and Del Mar.
The Gelson’s Little Cakes shops sell cupcakes as well as full-size cakes, cheesecakes, pies, cookies, sweet rolls and other items. The new location is at 730 Turquoise St. in San Diego. Visit littlecakesgelsons.com.
Lolita’s reopens after renovation
Lolita’s Mexican Food restaurant at 7305 Clairemont Mesa Blvd. in Kearny Mesa reopened May 18 after an extensive renovation.
The revamp involved an indoor/outdoor refresh, a kitchen rebuild, new artwork on the walls by Sake One and new fire pits on the patio. The location can also now sell beer and wine for the first time.
Founded in 1984 as Lolita’s Taco Shop by Joaquin and Lolita Farfan, the Lolita’s chain has expanded to eight locations. The family-run business is now run by the Farfans’ six children. Youngest son Juan Farfan said the Kearny Mesa store is the chain’s busiest location, so the renovation will help it speed up service to customers. For locations, visit lolitasmexicanfood.com.
Sally’s Fish House reopens
Sally’s Fish House & Bar has reopened for breakfast and lunch service at the Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel on the San Diego Marina. Dinner service will return later this month.
The waterfront restaurant on San Diego Bay has returned with its regular menu of fresh seafood, including locally caught fish, crab cakes, lobster rolls and clam chowder. All orders will now be done via counter service. Sally’s is open from 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily at 1 Market Place, San Diego. Visit sallyssandiego.com.
Kragen writes about restaurants and food products for the San Diego Union-Tribune. Email her at pam.kragen@sduniontribune.com.
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