Work trip, 3 meals, am I wrong?

[brokegradstudent]

Hi everyone-

I'm making a quick trip to San Diego for work. I'm staying in La Jolla, have a car, and know my way around a bit from living there as a kid. I've been reading your board and this is what I've come up with.

2 dinners, 1 lunch.

The lunch (the only meal I'm 100% on my own for) I'm thinking Super Cocina, then maybe a snack/drink at Bahia Don Bravo as I wind my leisurely way up to where I'm staying. I'm looking for good Mexican and a fish taco with a cold beer, likely in that order.

The dinners are both work but I have some input. I'm thinking of pushing for the Linkery and Whisknladle. My priority is super-fresh, identifiably sourced food. Also, if I'm telling locals where to eat, I want it to be great so I don't look silly.

Can I do better on either count? Should I be doing something else instead?

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Linkery
3794 30th St, San Diego, CA 92104

Super Cocina
3627 University Ave., San Diego, CA 92104

Bahia Don Bravo
5504 La Jolla Blvd, La Jolla, CA 92037

Whisknladle
1044 Wall Street, La Jolla, CA 92037

[brokegradstudent]

Thanks for the advice folks! I ate at Linkery ($8 half-beer and a sausage special, perfect) and Super Cocina this afternoon (double lunch!!).
Trying to figure out dinner tomorrow.

[Josh]

Definite yes for Super Cocina.

If your concern re: ingredient sourcing and freshness is particularly strong, then I can't think of a place in San Diego that is more stringent about that than The Linkery (or their sister restaurant, El Take It Easy). Jay is very particular about ingredient sourcing, and they work with very small meat producers, identifying them all on their menu.

If you are less strict about your requirements in this regard, then there's a second tier of places in town that offer non-industrial food sourcing, and that list is fairly long. Starlite, Alchemy, Tiger! Tiger!, Blind Lady Ale House, etc. all fall under this category. The main difference on the sourcing question is that the chef at Blind Lady/Tiger Tiger will use grain-fed beef, as will Starlite, and Alchemy, while being 100% grass-fed beef, gets beef from Argentina vs. locally.

is all about the ingredient sourcing and freshness, I don't know of a better option than Linkery. Starlite is good, but their sourcing isn't quite as persnickety as Linkery (i.e. they will use grain-fed beef, and work with larger meat suppliers like Jidori and Brandt vs. smaller, independent farmers like Linkery does).

To put it

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Linkery
3794 30th St, San Diego, CA 92104

Super Cocina
3627 University Ave., San Diego, CA 92104

Blind Lady Ale House
3416 Adams Ave, San Diego, CA

Starlite
3175 India Street, San Diego, CA 92103

El Take It Easy
3926 30th St, San Diego, CA 92104

[honkman]

Looks like a good plan. Whisknladle is not bad but I found it a bit overpriced for what you get and would go to Starlite instead. Another excellent option is JSix, yes it is s hotel but Chef Graves is doing outstanding but yet simple dishes with local ingredients. Go for the chef's mercy menu to get a good selection.