Quickie Restaurant Review - Phil's

Waynok has a short restaurant review of Phil's as part of a birthday post for mew2ds over at Project Scatterbrain. We had a great time; I must say I favor the beef ribs over the pork baby backs, but they were both delicious. What Waynok didn't mention was the nice selection of local craft brew on tap at Phil's, making it the perfect place for ribs. It is darn close to Rendezvous in Memphis, where the section of the menu for chicken and other non-rib items says "Hard as it is to believe, not everyone eats ribs every chance they get."

Restaurant Review - Offshore Tavern & Grill

Mrs. B-Daddy here, otherwise known as Tiger Lily, if I ever start a blog. Seems like I should give it a go since every other member of my family has their own blog. I am reviewing the Offshore Tavern and Grill on Morena Blvd. B-Daddy and I went tonight to try out this neighborhood place and liked it quite a bit. It helped that the Lakers were playing on the numerous flat screen televisions placed on every square inch of wall in the tavern. It was also nice that the Lakers were coming back from a dismal first half that my husband informed me was a sure sign they would lose. My comment was, “hey it’s half time, they can, they have and they will come back strong.” Even though they eventually lost, they did come back and take the lead in the third quarter. I was pleased to see this happen as I know what this team is capable of. I do not watch basketball as much as I used to, but should, as I love the sport.

Anyway, the Offshore Tavern and Grill is a place my handsome brother-in-law Dean would like. It has a good assortment of local brews on tap (we had the Ballast Point Yellowtail Pale Ale) pretty waitresses that are efficient and pleasant, a nice looking wood bar, a pleasant view and the aforementioned flat screens all over every wall. The food was decent, with very generous portions and the price was right. It is near another place on Morena Blvd. that Dean likes, The High Dive. I give this place a thumbs up and hope to have some good times here with family and friends.

Restaurant Review - Blue Water Seafood

The whole B-Daddy family had a late lunch at Blue Water Seafood on India St. today. It is located a little north of Little Italy in an area of San Diego that I do not much frequent, even though it is fairly close to home. It was very crowded on a Sunday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. speaking well of its word of mouth reputation. It compared very favorably to my long time San Diego seafood favorite, Point Loma Seafoods on the Shelter Island waterfront on Scott and Emerson.

I don't know if they were consciously emulating the Point Loma style, but there were many similarities, from the very casual indoor/outdoor/patio dining style, to the display of fish on ice as one enters to order. They offer all of their fresh fish in three styles, Sandwich, Salad or Plate. Mrs. Daddy and I opted for the plates, with our halibut and red snapper, respectively, prepared in a style they called bronzed. It was the most lightly breaded manner I have ever seen fish prepared, and was perfect for keeping the fish moist and flavorful. From the taste, the fish was obviously fresh, as well.

In the beer department, they had a small but reasonable variety of bottled beers, and no PBR. But where they excel, is in the full line of Ballast Point brews on tap. Unfortunately, they were out of the Yellowtail Pale Ale, so we opted for a pitcher of Wahoo Wheat. It was perfect with the fish plate. Another way I prefer them over Point Loma is in the salad. They offer a nice mixed garden salad with fresh greens, much better than cole slaw. Also, the jasmine rice is a nice alternative to fries.

The youngsters were very please with their fish and chips and clam chowder. I should also mention that they offer a number of chilled shrimp and fish cocktails, ceviches, etc.

I have to rate this a bit above Point Loma, a place I have been loyal to since 1984.

Restaurant Review - Old Trieste

Thursday evening, Mrs. Daddy and I got decked out on a whim and visited a neighborhood restaurant, Old Trieste. Mrs. Daddy also wore her faux fur and high heels, which turned out to be very apropos. Old Trieste pretty much defines what you would expect from an "old school" Italian restaurant. One should certainly dress up a bit to enter this establishment. They have plush vinyl booths, although white has replaced red. You are served by mature gentlemen waiters in tuxedos who are exceedingly polite and made me feel well treated. The menu is not extensive, they stick to what they know, veal, seafood, Italian pastas and Fillet Mignon. I actually like the fewer choices on the menu, it usually means the chef knows what he is doing with those dishes through greater familiarity.

We were one of only three parties that evening as the weather in San Diego that night was uncharacteristically windy, rainy and cold. The service was leisurely but attentive. We ordered wine right away, no wine menu; we just discussed it with the waiters. We had excellent lightly breaded zucchini brought out right away as an appetizer. It was very close to the highlight of the evening. They kept the breading to the perfect minimum to retain the moisture of the vegetable and lock in its flavor. For dinner, I had the Veal Marsala and Mrs. Daddy had the Veal Parmigiana. We were also served spaghetti with marinara sauce and a spoon to help twirl the noodles as the side dish. This spaghetti on the side is another characteristic of old school Italian. The veal was tender and the Marsala sauce creditable. I thought Mrs. Daddy's veal had a little more mozzarella than necessary, but was still tender and good. All in all the main courses were very good. For desert we split a nicely done tiramisu.

Even though we had an enjoyable evening with very good food, I am not sure we will visit again very soon. The prices are just a tad high for the quality of the meal and you have to be in the mood for a certain restaurant experience to go there.