Stanley and I recently went on a trip to San Diego, CA and went to some fantastic restaurants. With my new Samsung S9 in hand (just made the switch from iPhone to Android), I took some pictures of the good eats in San Diego, and thought I’d share some of them with you. I absolutely love good food! It is one of the many blessings of this life, and reminds me of God’s goodness and provision. When I eat good food, I feel just like this happy panda eating bamboo that we saw at the San Diego Zoo.
For breakfast/brunch, the maple bacon doughnuts at The Great Maple in Hillcrest are the best doughnuts I have ever eaten! These gourmet doughnuts are huge! They are more dense than normal doughnuts, so the texture is more like a cake doughnut, soft on the inside with a crispy outside. The doughnuts are topped with their signature maple bacon glaze and hearty chunks of smoked applewood bacon. Indeed, bacon makes everything better! The sweet and savory combination on this doughnut makes for a fantastic feast for your taste buds.
With all of the hype surrounding Shake Shack from New York, I tried a burger for the first time from Shake Shack at the UTC near UC San Diego. While the burger was good, it was actually smaller than I expected, so it was a bit expensive for what it was. Stan tried the Shake Stack burger (below), which is a unique twist on a shroom burger with a beef patty and a fried stuffed portobello mushroom stacked together. There are many textures and layers in this burger, which adds depth and flavor. The cheese fries pictured next to the burger were also a good addition to the meal. The cheese is best described as something in between In-N-Out’s steamed cheese and queso. While this meal was good, I still have to admit that I am still a die-hard In-N-Out fan at heart, and would still prefer In-N-Out to Shake Shack. What can I say? I am a true Californian, and you really can’t beat the value of an In-N-Out burger.
One of my favorite places in San Diego, (if not my favorite) is Phil’s BBQ. Everything they have is good – the baby back ribs, chicken, tri-tip, pulled pork, sandwiches, but my all time favorite is their beef ribs (below). Their barbecue sauce is more tangy, so I actually like eating the beef ribs with the sauce on the side, since the seasoning on the ribs is very flavorful. The meat is very tender and falls right off the bone. We waited over an hour in the line that wrapped around the restaurant, but it was worth the wait for these amazing barbecue ribs!
Another must-go place is Vallarta Express, which is open 24 hours, and has huge burritos for a really good price! Unfortunately, I don’t have a picture of the awesome Mexican food from this drive-thru. This place is the ultimate late night college student’s go-to place, or a great stop on the drive back to Orange County or LA to enjoy the burrito on the go!
Check these places out the next time you are in San Diego! And for those of you going to the ETS or SBL annual meeting in 2019, here are some food places you can look forward to trying! I also love checking out recommendations. What are some of your favorite places to eat in San Diego?
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