The Craving: San Diego Food + Drink News – Week of June 15, 2026
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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.
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This Week’s Feature
Make Plans to Treat Dad on Father’s Day
Skip the last-minute gift scramble and celebrate Dad with great food, drinks, and unforgettable experiences. From prime rib dinners and whiskey specials to waterfront brunches and BBQ feasts, this roundup highlights the best Father’s Day dining deals and events happening across San Diego.
Check out these fantastic ways to celebrate Dad around San Diego.
Insider Move
Do Good, Eat Ice Cream at Scoop SD
Grab your tickets to North Park’s sweetest day of the year before they sell out. The 8th Annual Scoop San Diego Ice Cream Festival takes over North Park on Sunday, June 28, with 30-plus local ice cream, gelato, and paleta vendors.
Best part: every dollar of net proceeds goes to Feeding San Diego, which provided over 31 million meals last year. General Admission is $45 for ten shareable samples, or the First Scoop Experience at $90 gets you early entry, priority access, and exclusive small-batch flavors.
Celebrity judges include Sam the Cooking Guy and Top Chef alum Zuliya Khawaja, on hand to crown the Best Flavor Award. A good afternoon for a great cause.
ℹ️ Read the full story and get your tickets
New This Week
North County, Meet Coffee Dose
Coffee Dose is opening a new Encinitas location with cult-favorite lattes, all-day brunch, cocktails, and a playful diner-inspired space with patio seating.
The colorful North County outpost is part café, part brunch club, with a personality all its own. If you’ve been waiting to try their famous Anti-Bitch Serum, now’s your chance.
North County, this one’s for you.
📆 Opening Friday, June 12
📍 162 S Rancho Santa Fe Rd, Encinitas
Le Petit Chef Brings 3D Dining Theater to the Gaslamp
Le Petit Chef at Hilton San Diego Gaslamp Quarter is the kind of experience that’s genuinely hard to describe until you’ve seen it.
The two-hour dinner turns your table into a theatrical stage, with 3D projection mapping bringing an animated story to life before each course – following a tiny French chef and his international companions as they compete for a golden chef’s hat across Spain, Italy, and Japan.
The four-course menu comes in Classic ($169), Vegetarian ($139), and Junior ($89) options, with standout dishes like truffle ravioli with freshly shaved truffle, grilled beef fillet with béarnaise sauce, and a Japanese Mont Blanc with white chocolate and matcha cream.
The kind of dinner that works for a date night, a family celebration, or anyone who’s been meaning to try something genuinely different.
📆 Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays at 6:30 PM | Fridays and Saturdays at 5:30 PM and 8 PM
📍 401 K St, San Diego
🎟️ Book your table
Brunch Just Got a Balboa Park View at The Nat
The San Diego Natural History Museum is adding rooftop brunch to the Sunday experience this summer, in partnership with Johnny Rivera – the local restaurateur behind Hash House a Go Go, Great Maple, and the viral BLT Bloody Mary.
Three pop-up dates rotate between Wolfish by Wolf in the Woods and Hash House a Go Go, with mocktails, mimosas, and bloody marys from the Nat’s own bartenders, all with sweeping views of Balboa Park. Seating is first-come, first-served, and museum admission is required.
📆 June 14, July 12, and August 9 | 10 AM – 2:30 PM
📍 1788 El Prado, Balboa Park
🎟️ Secure your museum admission
ℹ️ Check out additional details
Vin de Syrah is Throwing One Final Party and You’re Invited
The iconic Rouge Cabaret takes the stage one last time, bringing the performances that have been a cornerstone of Vin de Syrah’s identity for years.
Swish handles the final soundtrack on the decks, keeping the energy going until the very end. And throughout the night, Nick Ivory performs the close-up magic that has left Syrah guests speechless for years – the perfect way to spend the last hours of a place that has always had a little magic to it.
No RSVP needed, no dress code to stress over. Just show up, find your people, raise a glass, and be part of one last night with the community that made Vin de Syrah what it was. Seventeen years of memories deserves a proper goodbye – and this is it.
📆 Saturday, June 27, 2026 | 9 PM – 11 PM
📍901 Fifth Ave, San Diego
Two New Openings Are Adding Fresh Energy to East Village
East Village keeps evolving, and two recent openings reflect just how wide-ranging that growth has become.
Drums Beatstro Jawn brings authentic Philadelphia flavor to East Village, founded by West Philly native David “Drum” Curby. The pick-up-only concept specializes in cheesesteaks – the standout being the “Don’t Be a Jerk” Chicken Cheesesteak – and has already built a local following.
On the other end of the spectrum, The Polished Pigeon opens as a sober, community-centered gathering space designed around genuine human connection. Built for those in recovery, the sober-curious, and anyone looking for a social environment that doesn’t center around alcohol – it’s a welcome addition to the neighborhood.
Board & Brew Lands on the Waterfront
If you’ve lived in San Diego long enough, you know Board & Brew – the brand started right here in Del Mar back in 1979. Now it’s moved into the new RaDD Building in the Midway District, with patio seating along the pedestrian alleyway, bartop seats looking out over the waterfront, and 12 beers on draft.
The menu is the full lineup: the Turkado (turkey breast, jack cheese, and avocado on sourdough), the Left Coast Pastrami hot off the grill, a classic Italian Sub with Genoa salami and house-made Italian dressing, and fresh salads like the Cobb and Chopped for when you want to keep it lighter.
📆 Open daily | 10 AM – 9 PM
📍 825 N Harbor Dr, Suite 109, San Diego
ℹ️ Read the full story
The Marine Room’s High Tide Dinners are Back for Summer
One of La Jolla’s most spectacular dining traditions returns this summer. The Marine Room‘s High Tide Dinner Series is timed with the full moon and the highest tides of the year, putting waves crashing against the restaurant’s windows just feet from your table.
Two experiences are on offer: Rising Tide Dining starts at 4:30 PM as the tide begins to climb, with a three-course menu at $125 per person. High Tide Dining begins at 7 PM at peak tide with a four-course dinner and live music at $165 per person. A Chef’s Table upgrade at $250 adds curated wine pairings and a take-home gift. Three weekends this summer – book early.
📆 June 13 – 15, July 12 – 14, and August 9 – 11
🎟️ Lock in your spot
New Restaurants Opening in San Diego in 2026
16 new spots just landed on our 2026 Openings list: Drums Beatstro Jawn (East Village), Board & Brew (Midway District), The Polished Pigeon (East Village), Moniker General (Downtown), Coffee Dose (Encinitas), SunLife Organics (Coronado), Silver Hoof Creamery (Old Town), Sugarfish (Little Italy), Anigma (Encinitas), Verise (Carlsbad), Georgette’s (North Park), Queenstown (Del Mar), An’s Gelato Gate D5 (Oceanside), Telefèric Barcelona (UTC), The Heritage Steakhouse (Santee), and Black Mizu Café (Little Italy) all got added to the running tracker.
Bookmark the post – it’s the master list of every notable opening, organized by month, updated at the start of each month so you always know what’s new and what’s coming.
Quick Bites & Special Offers
Bacari in North Park just refreshed its Mediterranean small-plates menu with dishes like a Turkish egg with herbed labne and hazelnut-pistachio chili crisp, a sabich with roasted eggplant and beet tahini, and a hibiscus-infused watermelon with whipped feta and urfa chili – plus a few returning favorites for a limited time. Book your table.
International Sushi Day lands on June 18. Two San Diego spots are marking it with specials worth knowing about. Temaki Bar in Encinitas is rolling out a limited Pacific Sunset Roll with torched salmon, spicy blue crab, yuzu kosho aioli, and tobiko – each one comes with a complimentary sake bomb. Over in La Jolla, Roppongi Restaurant & Lounge is serving standout rolls like the Lobster & Steak Roll with anticucho sauce and crispy shiitakes, and the Spicy Toro Roll with togarashi and chili garlic crunch.
Fan-made burger on the menu at barleymash. The Gaslamp spot ran a Burger Brawl competition in May, and the winning Compadre Burger just landed on the menu. Built by fan Brayden Bastoni with Executive Chef Kevin Templeton, it’s loaded with pepper jack, street corn spread, tortilla chips, crispy chorizo crumble, and cotija – all on a beef patty. Only around through June 30. View the full menu
Urban Plates just added six permanent organic refreshers made with real fruit and zero artificial anything. Think Watermelon Pineapple Mint Basil, Dragon Fruit & Strawberry, and Pineapple Coconut Lime, all at $4.50. New this summer: a BBQ Jalapeño Cheeseburger ($13.99) and returning favorites like Grilled BBQ Pork Ribs ($25.99) and housemade Strawberry Shortcake ($8.50). See the full menu.
Vincenzo in Little Italy just launched a fresh pasta program. You can now watch through a glass window as pasta is pulled from the new in-house machine, twisted by hand, and hung to dry just feet from the dining room. The fresh pasta is available across select lunch and dinner menu items. Make your reservations now.
Old Town is getting a new ice cream stand. Owner Daria Kim is opening Silver Hoof Creamery, a woman-owned soft serve parlor built around a childhood fairytale and sourcing 100% all-natural California dairy milk from a family-owned dairy dating back to 1913. Flavors run from Vanilla and Chocolate to Ube, Matcha, and dairy-free options, served in cups, waffle cones, waffle bowls, or waffle tacos. Opens Thursday, June 19. Read the full story.
Tour de Tapas in La Mesa Village is running a Filet Mignon Terre et Mer special for June. A 4-oz filet alongside a golden panko-crusted shrimp cutlet with sautéed bell peppers, onion, and a mushroom and red wine reduction. Tour de Tapas is open for dinner service Tuesday to Sunday beginning at 4 PM. Book your table.
Quiero Restaurants has new menu items at its Mike Hess Brewing locations. The additions include Peel and Eat Spicy Crispy Shrimp, the Big Papa Taco with golden mashed potatoes and cotija, a Creamy Mahi Tostada with raw mahi in garlic avocado aioli, a Baja Protein Bowl, and Esquites with grilled corn, cheddar, cotija, and tajin.
Puesto is marking the World Cup with Tacos del Mundo. Globally-inspired tacos made with local culinary friends: a wagyu smash burger taco, a grilled octopus taco with caramelized manchego and piri piri sauce, and a pork belly taco with kimchi and furikake tortilla. A portion of proceeds goes to Surf Soccer, supporting youth soccer programs in California. View the full menu.
t post-Prohibition brewery back in 1989, and the perfect pairing for whatever’s hitting your grill this summer. Discounted six packs are also available at Albertsons, Ralphs, Total Wine & More, and Vons.
Mark Your Calendar & Make Reservations Now
5 Years of Agave, and Estancia is Not Playing Around
Three hours of unlimited pours from a lineup that spans Patrón and Cazadores on the familiar end to craft bottles like Cazcanes and Fosforo Mezcal worth actually knowing.
Distillery reps are on the floor to walk you through what you’re drinking, and the food runs Baja-inspired – street tacos, ceviche, the kind of stuff that holds up against good tequila.
If you want to make a night of it, Estancia has a room package bundling two tickets with accommodations and an agave-themed amenity. $95 per person, 21+.
📆 Friday, June 19 | 6 PM – 9 PM
📍9700 N Torrey Pines Rd, La Jolla
ℹ️ Read the full story
Watch NASCAR’s San Diego Debut at barleymash
barleymash in the Gaslamp is hosting a watch party for NASCAR’s inaugural San Diego weekend at Naval Base Coronado. Pull up for the race with cocktail specials built for the occasion – the Va Va Vroom with Cuervo Tradicional Blanco, basil, peach, and Red Bull White Peach, and the Watermelon Sugar with Cuervo Tradicional Blanco, fresh watermelon, and Watermelon Red Bull.
📆 Friday, June 19 | 4 PM
📍 600 Fifth Ave #6916, Gaslamp Quarter
Two San Diego Originals Team Up for a Beer and Cheese Tasting in Cardiff
Seaside Market and Karl Strauss Brewing Company – two San Diego institutions with a combined 77-plus years in the game – are pairing up for a tasting event in The Loft at the Cardiff-by-the-Sea store.
Nine Karl Strauss craft beers, including Red Trolley Ale, Boat Shoes Hazy IPA, Hard Cherry Cola, and Follow the Sun Lager, paired with a selection of cheeses and Seaside Market sausages. Free giveaways and exclusive swag included. $35 per person.
📆 Saturday, June 20 | 6 PM – 8 PM
🎟️ Grab your tickets
The Blank Table’s 2026 Season is Underway
The Blank Table returns for its seventh season in San Diego, kicking off a new chapter of immersive dining.
Designed as a secret dinner experience, this evening brings together 60 curated guests for a multi-sensory night of cuisine, cocktails, and culture. The secret location, revealed only 24 hours before, is transformed into a thoughtfully designed environment where every detail is intentional.
A five-course pre-fixed menu is paired with bespoke cocktails, sound, design, and storytelling crafted by some of San Diego’s most innovative culinary, beverage, and entertainment talent.
📆 Second dinner of the season is June 25
🎟️ Get your tickets here
OB’s Best Free Day of the Summer
Newport Avenue shuts down for six blocks for the 46th OB Street Fair & Chili Cook-Off, presented by Buzz Cannabis. Free admission, two live music stages pulling from rock, reggae, blues, funk, and surf rock, local art, food vendors, and a Community Mural Project rounding out the day.
The Chili Cook-Off is the main event. Grab tasting tickets and work your way through amateur and restaurant entries competing for People’s Choice and Judges’ Awards. Then settle into the 21+ Ocean Beergarden near the waterfront with a craft beer in hand when they announce the winners.
📆 Saturday, June 27 | 10 AM – 8 PM
ℹ️ Read the full story
Love is a Drag: Pride Brunch at PB AleHouse
Pacific Beach AleHouse is hosting a Love Island-inspired drag brunch in the Beer Garden for Pride, with performances from Whorchata, Angel Eclipse, Cassian Azriel Valour, KiKi Funkshun, and Queen Billyanna, plus DJ Pur Flo on the decks.
Each ticket includes admission, a welcome shot, and access to performer-inspired cocktails like the Whorchata Espress-Hoe Martini and Funk Around & Find Out, with the full brunch menu available throughout. A portion of proceeds benefits T4T Empowerment, a local nonprofit supporting Trans and Gender Expansive and migrant communities.
📆 Saturday, June 27 | 12 PM – 2 PM
ℹ️ Read the full story
25 Years of Taste of Adams
Adams Avenue does a lot of things well on a regular Sunday – but once a year, it does everything at once. The Taste of Adams Avenue is back for its 25th edition, with 45 spots across University Heights, Normal Heights, and Kensington serving up everything from ramen and cheesecake to craft beer and tapas.
Advance tickets are $55 (day-of is $65) and this one sells out every year – 24 times straight – so don’t wait. Grab them at tasteofadams.com or at participating Taste locations starting in early June.
📆 Sunday, June 28 | 11 AM – 3 PM
📍 4649 Hawley Blvd., San Diego
ℹ️ Read the full story
North Park’s Sweetest Day is Back With the Scoop San Diego Ice Cream Festival
The 8th Annual Scoop San Diego Ice Cream Festival takes over North Park with 30-plus local ice cream, gelato, paleta, and frozen treat vendors.
Every dollar of net proceeds goes to Feeding San Diego, which provided over 31 million meals last year.
General Admission is $45 and includes ten shareable two-ounce samples to work through the vendor lineup.
The First Scoop Experience at $90 gets you early entry, priority vendor access, exclusive small-batch flavors, ice cream-filled Korean cream puffs, and a live-printed custom tote.
Celebrity judges include Sam the Cooking Guy, Top Chef alum Zuliya Khawaja, and Bachelor Nation’s Becca Kufrin and Thomas Jacobs – all on hand to crown the Best Flavor Award. A good afternoon for a great cause.
📆 Sunday, June 28 | 12 PM – 4 PM
ℹ️ Read the full story
San Diego’s Best Chefs, One Afternoon, All on Fire
Heritage Fire is a walk-around tasting event where top chefs cook over live flame and you eat everything. No assigned seats, no formal courses – just great food, curated drinks, and the energy of watching talented people work over fire in real time.
The lineup includes Brian Redzikowski of Kettner Exchange, Chris Hutten of STK Steakhouse, Mark Kropczynski of Grant Grill, Ethan Yang of Glass Box, and a handful of other heavy hitters from across the San Diego culinary scene.
After tasting through the lineup, the crowd votes for their favorite. The winner takes home the Heritage Hero title, with top finishers advancing to a national Grand Finale.
📆 Sunday, June 28 | 3:30 PM – 7 PM
ℹ️ Read the full story
Tajima Ramen is Turning 25 and the Whole Month is a Celebration
San Diego’s own Tajima Ramen is marking 25 years with a full month of specials across all six locations – and the lineup gives everyone a reason to show up at least once.
Sam Morikizono opened the first location in 2001, and what started as a single ramen shop has grown into one of San Diego’s most recognized Japanese restaurant concepts, including the recently launched Noodle Room where fresh noodles are made from scratch daily.
The anniversary calendar runs all month with something different every week – a throwback menu, DJ nights, two ramens for $25 with free extra noodles, all-day happy hours, a 10lb ramen challenge, a giveaway week, and an anime-themed parfait party with Parfait Party SD to close things out.
📆 Anniversary Programming throughout June 2026
📍 Six locations across San Diego
ℹ️ Read the full story
Raise a Glass to Barbusa’s 10th Anniversary
Since opening in Little Italy in 2016, Barbusa has earned its place as one of San Diego’s most sought-after tables, and this July, the Busalacchi family is celebrating a full decade of handcrafted pastas, bold Sicilian flavors, and the kind of hospitality that feels personal rather than polished.
The family has been bringing Sicilian food to San Diego for more than 40 years, with Sicilian-born Joe Busalacchi Sr. founding the legacy and his sons now running four Little Italy concepts: Barbusa, Nonna, Lala, and Café Zucchero. Ten years in, it’s still one of the best reasons to make a reservation in this neighborhood.
📍 1917 India St, San Diego
ℹ️ Read the full story
Eat, Drink, and Give Back at This South Bay Summer Night
The EastLake Educational Foundation‘s Taste of EastLake is back at the Chula Vista Elite Training Center – the former Olympic Training Center – with 40+ local food and beverage purveyors, live entertainment, and a silent auction spread across a garden party-style evening.
It’s a 21+ event, and every dollar from ticket sales goes directly to technology and innovation programs for EastLake K-12 public schools. Tickets are limited and early pricing gives you a reason to act quick.
📆 Friday, July 24 | 6 PM – 9:30 PM
📍 2800 Olympic Pkwy, Chula Vista
ℹ️ Read the full story
San Diego Restaurant Week is Back – and It’s a Big One
San Diego Restaurant Week returns this fall with more than 120 restaurants across 30-plus neighborhoods offering exclusive two-course lunch and three-course dinner menus.
This year’s edition continues a collaboration with Specialty Produce to spotlight seasonal ingredients across select menus, and every reservation supports Restaurants Care – a nonprofit providing relief grants to California restaurant workers facing unexpected hardship. Reservations aren’t required, but book fast.
📆 Sunday, September 13 – Sunday, September 20
ℹ️ Read the full story
Looking Ahead
Telefèric Barcelona is Bringing Spanish Tapas to La Jolla
La Jolla is about to get a taste of Spain. Telefèric Barcelona is expanding to San Diego this spring with a new location at Westfield UTC, adding vibrant tapas and paella to one of the area’s go-to shopping and dining hubs.
Founded in Barcelona more than 30 years ago, the family-owned concept is led by the Padrosa family and a team of Spanish chefs. Known for colorful pintxos, signature paellas, and a curated Spanish wine list with more than 100 selections, Telefèric delivers a lively, communal dining experience that feels festive from the first bite to the last sip.
📆 Opening July, 2026
🎟️ Reservations coming soon
ℹ️ Follow here for updates
Cloak & Petal is Getting its Own Coffee Shop
We’ve got another reason to swing by Cloak & Petal. The Little Italy favorite is opening Black Mizu Café this summer, bringing a dedicated coffee concept right to the front of the restaurant.
The new spot will serve beans from Torque Coffee along with a simple menu that’s perfect for an easy morning stop or midday pick-me-up. Later this fall, Executive Chef Robert Cassidy will roll out a Japanese and Pacific Rim–inspired brunch, giving us yet another reason to linger.
Black Mizu will have its own entrance and large retractable doors that create an airy, patio-like feel. When the café isn’t open, the space will double as a private dining room – a smart move that keeps this Little Italy staple evolving.
📆 Opening summer 2026
ℹ️ Read the full story
An’s Gate D5 is Coming to Oceanside
An’s Gelato – two-time winner of USA Today’s 10 Best “Best Ice Cream Shop in America” – is opening its next concept inside the historic Top Gun House at Mission Pacific Beach Resort, right on the Oceanside waterfront.
Gate D5 transforms the 1888 cottage into a full airport terminal experience: walk through a “security” checkpoint, order at a flight-style counter, and choose between a “carry on” or “checked bag” serving size.
Seven rotating destination-inspired gelato flavors (think Milan pistachio) swap out every few weeks, alongside sorbetto, coffee drinks, and affogato. If you’ve been to any of their North Park, OB, Del Mar, or Petco Park locations, you already know this one’s going to be good.
📆 Opening summer 2026
📍 250 N Pacific St, Oceanside
ℹ️ Read the full story
A New White Tablecloth Steakhouse in East County
The Heritage Steakhouse is opening on the sixth floor of the Legacy Building at Lantern Crest this August, bringing hand-cut aged steaks and classic steakhouse dining to East County – accessible via glass elevator, with views to match.
Leading the kitchen is Executive Chef Meredith Manée, whose 25-year career spans Four Seasons, Hotel del Coronado, The Ritz-Carlton Maui, and The Bridges at Rancho Santa Fe. Her approach is refined and ingredient-driven – minimal, sophisticated, and focused on letting the quality of the product speak for itself.
The menu centers on USDA Prime, Certified Angus, and Wagyu steaks aged a minimum of 28 days, sourced from select ranches and finished in a high-temperature broiler for a perfect crust. One of the more exciting restaurant openings in San Diego this year.
📆 Opening August 2026
ℹ️ Read the full story
Moniker General is Opening Downtown
Moniker General – the coffee and cocktail concept that helped shape Liberty Station and North Park into the neighborhoods they are today – is opening its third location on the ground floor of WEST, a new 37-story mixed-use tower in downtown San Diego.
The 1,830-square-foot space pairs Moniker Coffee Co.’s specialty coffee and café offerings with craft cocktails, wine, and beer from The Bar at Moniker General, built to flex from morning coffee through after-work drinks. True to form, every inch is being handled in-house – design, construction, and operations all by the Moniker team that’s been at this since 2010.
📆 Opening late 2026
ℹ️ Read the full story
Pear Plum is Bringing a World-Class Wine Program to a Neighborhood Café
Downtown San Diego has a new all-day café, specialty coffee shop, and wine bar opening steps from the New Children’s Museum and the waterfront.
Pear Plum owners St. Elmo and Christina Crawford are bringing a bottle list that reflects a lifetime of serious collecting – Bordeaux, Burgundy, rare vintages from the ’60s and ’70s, and pours from producers like Kistler, Taittinger, and Château d’Yquem, with glasses starting at $10. St. Elmo is a member of the Court of Master Sommeliers, which explains a lot.
They’re also pouring their own house wines made in partnership with Violin Wines in Oregon, named for their daughters. The food menu comes from the team behind The Handmade Chef Meal Prep Co. One to watch.
📆 Opening January 2027
ℹ️ Read the full story
A New Restaurant in Bankers Hill From Urban Kitchen Group
Tracy Borkum and chef-partner Tim Kolanko of Urban Kitchen Group are bringing a new all-day concept to the corner of Fifth Avenue and Laurel Street in Bankers Hill, directly across from their Michelin Bib Gourmand-recognized CUCINA urbana.
The approximately 5,000-square-foot indoor-outdoor space has been vacant since the closures of Civico by the Park and Il Dandy. For Borkum, a longtime Bankers Hill resident, the project is personal – and the neighborhood is better for it.
Details on the name, concept, and design are still under wraps, with an opening anticipated in late 2027. The pedigree speaks for itself.
📆 Opening late 2027
📍 505 Laurel Street, San Diego
ℹ️ Read the full story
See you there, San Diego!
