I’d like to ask a weather and clothing question. I can’t recall who it is on CC that moved there.
@Marilyn and @coralbrook live in San Diego.
@conmama - I do as well. Ask away!
@conmama - I live in San Diego too.
Oh great, hey thanks guys! You are SO lucky! I’ll be there in a few days for just 3 nights. Accuwesther had it 70 high all 3 days with 76% humidity.
I’m figuring out what to take. For the days, will I be ok with shorts or a dress, no sweater or jacket needed? Or is it too chilly for summer wear (meaning no layers needed).
I think I’m ok at night with clothing, although one evening I will be wearing a camisole. I’m assuming it will get chillier.
We are staying in Pacific Beach, can’t wait to get to JRDN that first night for happy hour. As far as dinner, is that the nicest restaurant in the area. I want a little more than flip flop place, but where we can see the ocean…
We are considering just staying at JRDN or Ubering over to La Jolla and going to Dukes after happy hour.
What do you think of Altitude Sky Lounge? I was thinking one night it might be fun to see SD from a rooftop, and it sounded like a hopping place. Although DH said he’d rather stay close to the beach, since we live in the Midwest. But if it’s a great place, I might be able to talk him into going for drinks.
Thanks for your help.
@conmama - It’s supposed to be in the low 70’s near the beach after tomorrow. We may get some rain from the tropical storm on Wednesday. I am still wearing summer dresses and jeans with summer tops and sandals. You will want a light jacket, sweater or wrap for the night especially near the beach.
We’ve been to JRDN for brunch before. The new Waterbar in PB is nice where Joe’s Crab Shack used to be. We don’t go to dinner much in PB as it is usually a younger crowd and where our daughters hang out. I like the bar on top of Eddie V’s better than Dukes in La Jolla and it also has a great happy hour. George’s in La Jolla has a nice ocean view and the food on the outside patio is good.
I hope it gets a bit more sunny for your visit. We didn’t have any sun today at my office in Mission Valley. It was a bit warm and muggy when I went for a short walk at lunch.
We have always enjoyed the Gaslamp area of San Diego, as it was near the convention center and had lots of great restaurants. We enjoyed walking along the boardwalk as well. The harbor cruise at sunset was nice too. Haven’t been to marine world or the SD zoo in a decade or so, but those were nice too. Balboa park is lovely and has a lot to see there.
I have never lived in SD but have enjoyed my many visits there. A car is handy, as some of the attractions are pretty far apart, but Uber, Lyft, taxis, & trolleys can get you around nicely too. There are also bikes and scooters for rent everywhere, by the minute or longer increments.
I’m wearing sleeveless and short sleeves right now, also shorts, during the day. Maybe long pants at night (not really necessary though) and a light coverup.
Never been to JRDN or Altitude but the best high restaurant view imo is Mr. A’s; they have a weekday happy hour. It’s close to Balboa Park which I highly recommend; no need to visit museums as just walking around is delightful. There’s also a group of restaurants at the east end of Harbor Island with great views of the downtown over the bay - Island Prime, C Level, and Coastera. Good happy hours.
A good breakfast lunch spot in PB is World Famous, right on the boardwalk. And for dessert try Baked Bear, ice cream sandwiches inside cookies and/or brownies.
Also note that we have four different weather zones - coastal, inland, mountain, and desert. You might have clouds and 70 right along the water but a mile inland it’s sunny and in the mid-70’s.
I also live in San Diego. It’s mostly cloudy and humid right now and supposed to possibly rain tomorrow (for the first time in about 5 months) due to hurricane Rosa that will mostly pass to the south and east of us. It should be cleared up by about Thursday.
For fine dining with a spectacular view of the ocean I recommend the Marine Room in La Jolla. It’s right on the beach.
Still thinking - there are a lot of very good restaurants in Little Italy, more so I think than the Gaslamp, but it’s not along the water. Keep in mind that the ocean view at night is not very exciting!
It wasn’t luck getting me here - it was 10 years of planning and nagging!
If you want excellent Italian food with an ocean view (from the patio), I recommend Il Fornaio in Del Mar.
Roy’s at Marriott Marquis downtown next to the convention center has great views and food.
Sorry, I’m blanking on most of the other restaurants.
Roy’s, like many Gaslamp restaurants, is part of a chain. @conmama, are you interested in finding additional restaurants outside PB? If so, what kinds of food and price points interest you and how important is a view vs local San Diego places? Do you want nice casual or finer dining?
Thank you all for your great recommendations and suggestions. @showmom858, waterbar sounds like where we would want to go that first night…it’s right by our hotel, also, and a short walk from JRDN. FYI, Just called for reservations, they don’t take them on the weekends.
I really didn’t want to go into La Jolla that first night, as I’d rather go the next day to visit, stop and have lunch.
I’ll che k out the gas lamp restaurants for another night,
Hope the mugginess is gone by the weekend, I’ve had enough of that this summer.
Take a look at Little Italy too; it’s much much more than Italian, becoming the foodie area of San Diego. Crack Shack is fun for fried chicken and next door Juniper & Ivy upscale interesting dining including small plates from Top Chef’s Richard Blaise. Also Bencotta and Davanti Enoteca for Italian.
There’s good restaurants in Gaslamp but it does cater to conventioneers and tourists (and lots of bars/clubs).
If you do make it to Little Italy, Born and Raised is worth a visit. I’ve been dying to go there for awhile. My friends have said the atmosphere is very cool; steaks, cocktails and desserts are excellent. They a have a rooftop seating area too.
If you want Italian in La Jolla go to Piatti’s or Barbarella’s in La Jolla Shore. Buena Forchetta in South Park or Liberty Station is also good.
If your trip is for leisure, I highly recommend hiking Torrey Pines State reserve. Beautiful, easy, scenic hike along the beach (and down to it). Really, a must do!