UTC adding another restaurant - Seasons 52

[RB Hound]

Sounds like UTC is moving to be a place to go get healthier food, especially lunch:

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/a...

[daantaat]

Went there for dinner. Ok food but nothing to write home about, except that roasted beets and wasabi dip do not go together. Wasabi completely overwhelms the beets. All I could hear in my head was Tom Colicchio saying, "these don't go together."

Flatbread w/ roasted veggies and feta was what one would expect, no "wow" or "interesting" factor.

For their price point and style of food, I'd rather go to Tender Greens, which is cheaper.

[royaljester]

Tender Greens also has Professor Cane. ^^

[mikec]

Just tried this for lunch and thought it was very solid, not great. Nice ambience, good service. We split a garlic flatbread that was a bit cracker-ish for my taste. Wife had the shrimp and penne pasta with a side of slaw, I had the steak tacos, all good. And two of their mini-desserts which were also good.

Not awesomely great, but solid with decent atmosphere and service. Much, much better than Tru Food in Mission Valley.

[phee]

I've eaten at Seasons 52 at South Coast Plaza, and really liked it. Very fresh, local fare, nice ambiance and service. With the addition of Arclight Cinema, this makes UTC a viable option for much more than just shopping. I've never been that fond of the restaurants in the area.

[jayporter]

Phee: Can you share any information about the "local" aspect of what they're doing at South Coast -- I looked on the website for Session 52 national and couldn't find any hint that they were buying local stuff, and given that they are a national chain operated by the Olive Garden/Red Lobster people it would be a fairly notable development if they have locations that are sourcing local produce. Did they give any details about their local sourcing? Thanks - J

[phee]

We were told by our server that the chef and manager at each Seasons 52 have free reign to shop locally for produce, mostly, and some proteins. It's one of the reasons their menu changes frequently. My concern is usually in the area of seafood - I'm fussy as to whether it's farmed or wild - so we stuck to the salad/veggie options. We're due for a South Coast Plaza trip this summer, so I'll definitely ask about the proteins when we go.

On a completely other note, their "mini indulgences" desserts are delicious. :)

[jayporter]

Thanks for the info. I hope their local chefs and managers take advantage of that free rein in this location, our local producers could use the support.

[littlestevie]

Being owned by Darden isn't a complete death knell. Eddie V's got bought out by them and they still have a lot of control over their food. I suppose it matters if they were developed by Darden or they bought them out.

[bizzwriter]

In related news, UTC is also adding an upscale Arclight Cinema where you can make advance reservations for actual seats. Arclights also include a cafe where you can buy bistro-ish food (salads, "gourmet" olives, cheese plates, etc.) plus a bar that hawks wine, beer, and Arclight's "signature" martinis, among other alcohol-laden concoctions.

[daantaat]

I am quite happy for the addition, along w/ Tender Greens.

[Josh]

That's one heck of a nice press release.

[RB Hound]

A more subtle Wolfgang article.

I'm sort of curious how many mall shoppers they catch with this and Tender Greens. Probably more of a UTC business crowd type of draw.