The Craving: San Diego Food + Drink – Week of May 18, 2026

The Craving is ThereSanDiego's weekly guide to what's worth eating and drinking in San Diego right now. Every Tuesday, we surface new restaurant openings, standout happy hours, limited-time menu specials, and upcoming food events across the city - so you know what's happening before everyone else does.
La Valencia Hotel celebrating 100 years in La Jolla
La Valencia Hotel is Turning 100 and La Jolla’s Pink Lady is Celebrating All Year Long
La Valencia Hotel – La Jolla’s beloved Pink Lady – is turning 100 in 2026, and the centennial celebration is already underway. A full calendar...
Weaving Nets installation arts district liberty station
A World Cup-Inspired Installation is Coming to Liberty Station
Arts District Liberty Station is bringing one of the most visually striking public art moments of the year to the North Promenade. Tejiendo Redes –...
Stella Jean's Ice Cream x Summer Fridays Collaboration
Stella Jean’s Ice Cream and Summer Fridays Just Dropped a Collab Worth Knowing About
Stella Jean’s Ice Cream is teaming up with Summer Fridays for a three-day collaboration that turns the beauty brand’s new Sweet Summer Minis collection into...
Families Enjoying Shark Summer at Birch Aquarium
Shark Summer is Back at Birch Aquarium and it’s Worth the Trip to La Jolla
Shark Summer is back at Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, running from early July through early August. The month-long program dives into the...
Moonshine Flats Cassie B
All Summer Long: Live Music at Moonshine Flats and Moonshine Beach
Check out the exciting moonshine flats moonshine beach summer lineup featuring diverse live music and entertainment throughout the season.
Community Gathering at the Switchfoot Bro-Am Beach Fest
Switchfoot Bro-Am is Back and Bigger Than Ever
Twenty-two years in, the Switchfoot Bro-Am has earned its place as one of Southern California’s most meaningful annual traditions. What started as a grassroots local...
Taste of Eastlake
Upcoming
Eat, Drink, and Give Back at Taste of EastLake 2026
If you’re looking for a summer night out that actually means something, this one’s worth circling. The EastLake Educational Foundation is hosting its annual Taste...
Organica: Flora to Fauna Opens at the Granger Hotel
The Granger Hotel has a new exhibition worth seeking out. Organica: Flora to Fauna brings together fourteen regional artists from Southern California and across the...
Pear Plum is Bringing Specialty Coffee and a Serious Wine Bar to Downtown San Diego
Downtown San Diego is getting exactly the kind of neighborhood spot it deserves. Pear Plum is an all-day café, specialty coffee shop, and wine bar...
Queenstown Hospitality Group Opens a New Del Mar Location – and it’s a Good One
San Diego’s dining scene just got a new addition, and this one’s up north in Del Mar. Queenstown Hospitality Group – the collective behind some...
arcana cocktail bar encinitas
Find Your Way Into Arcana, Encinitas’s New Hidden Cocktail Den
Something genuinely intriguing is about to open along the 101 in Encinitas, and it’s not giving much away. Arcana is a new hidden cocktail bar...
Harvest for Heroes community fundraiser at Fox Point Farms
Upcoming
Harvest for Heroes Brings Together Great Food and a Great Cause at Fox Point Farms
Shelter to Soldier is teaming up with Fox Point Farms and Dija Mara for Harvest for Heroes, a community fundraising event in Encinitas that brings...
Saya Woolfalk installation new children's museum
Step Inside Saya Woolfalk’s Whimsical World at The New Children’s Museum
The New Children’s Museum is about to open something really special. Woodswoman: Earthseed is a large-scale immersive installation by New York-based multidisciplinary artist Saya Woolfalk,...
Sugarfish Little Italy
Nozawa-Style Sushi Has Landed in Little Italy
Explore SUGARFISH San Diego for a unique sushi experience. Enjoy the simplicity and quality in every dish served.
Taste Of Little Italy and Taste Passport
Upcoming
Little Italy is Your Dinner Table for the Night – and it’s One You Won’t Want to Leave
  • Piazza della Famiglia
Prepare you tastebuds and Taste Passport for a day full of fresh, authentic Italian cuisine at the annual Taste of Little Italy.
Neighborhood Food Tour
Upcoming
Taste of Adams Avenue Returns for 25 Years of Neighborhood Food Excellence
  • Adams Avenue
The Taste of Adams Avenue is back for its 25th year, and the lineup of 45 local spots spread across one of San Diego's most characterful corridors makes a pretty strong case for blocking off your Sunday.
san diego museum of art centennial exhibition
San Diego Museum of Art is Celebrating 100 Years With its Most Ambitious Exhibition Yet
One hundred years in, and the San Diego Museum of Art is putting it all on the table. Forging a Legacy: 15 Years of Landmark...
Verbatim Books in the Park Til Dark
Showing
Verbatim Books is Taking Reading Outside – and it’s Free
One of North Park’s favorite community traditions is back for its third year, and it’s exactly the kind of evening San Diego was made for....
Tracy Borkum and Tim Kolanko of Urban Kitchen Group
Urban Kitchen Group is Bringing a New Restaurant to Bankers Hill
Tracy Borkum and chef-partner Tim Kolanko of Urban Kitchen Group are bringing a new all-day restaurant concept to Bankers Hill. The approximately 5,000-square-foot indoor-outdoor space...
Crowds enjoying the Scoop San Diego Ice Cream Festival in North Park
Upcoming
The Scoop San Diego Ice Cream Festival is Back in North Park
The 8th Annual Scoop San Diego Ice Cream Festival returns to North Park for an afternoon of frozen treats, community, and a genuinely good cause....
See What East Village Has in Store for This Summer
East Village is Having a Moment This Summer and Here’s Where to Be
East Village has always had good energy, but this summer the neighborhood’s best venues are bringing their A-game with a lineup of recurring events, themed...
MCASD EXPO Design Market
Upcoming
EXPO Design Market Returns to MCASD With a Full Weekend of Art, Design, and Music
  • Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego
Discover innovative ideas at the EXPO Design Market MCASD while enjoying special discounts on gallery admission all weekend.
Kura Revolving Sushi Bar
Kura Revolving Sushi Bar is Opening in Mission Valley – and it Comes With Robots
Discover Kura Revolving Sushi Bar's second location in San Diego! Join us for the grand opening and enjoy the revolving sushi experience.
The Craving: San Diego Food + Drink – Week of May 18, 2026
The Craving is ThereSanDiego's weekly guide to what's worth eating and drinking in San Diego right now. Every Tuesday, we surface new restaurant openings, standout happy hours, limited-time menu specials, and upcoming food events across the city - so you know what's happening before everyone else does.
Upcoming Events
Bird's Eye View of Mission Bayfest
Mission Bayfest Returns to Mariner’s Point Park With Rebelution, Kolohe Kai & The Offspring
October 16, 2026
3:00 pm
  • Mariners Point
Mission Bayfest is heading back to the waterfront this fall, bringing three days of reggae, rock, and SoCal vibes to Mariner’s Point Park along the...
Tori Amos San Diego
Tori Amos Brings the “In Times of Dragons” Tour to San Diego Civic Theatre
August 26, 2026
7:30 pm
  • San Diego Civic Theatre
There are artists who put on a show, and then there’s Tori Amos – a force of nature who turns every performance into something genuinely...
RESET Beach Wellness Event
RESET: A Full Day of Wellness and Big Gigantic at the Beach
August 2, 2026
8:00 am
  • Mission Beach Park
SSBD and Almost Nakey are joining forces for RESET, a brand-new beachside event happening at Fit Social Club. It’s a full day of movement, recovery,...
Taste of Eastlake
Eat, Drink, and Give Back at Taste of EastLake 2026
July 24, 2026
6:00 pm
If you’re looking for a summer night out that actually means something, this one’s worth circling. The EastLake Educational Foundation is hosting its annual Taste...
Cinbarella Il-Tabarrosite
Grand Opera Meets Neoclassical Ballet at the California Center for the Arts
July 19, 2026
3:00 pm
  • California Center for the Arts
If you’ve never seen an opera and a ballet tell the same story back to back – in the same afternoon – this is your...