By Frank Sabatini Jr. | SDUN Reporter
The culinary scene is as fickle as fashion. What’s trending today can suddenly become an old hat stuffed with bacon tomorrow. San Diego is fortunately brimming with chefs and mixologists committed to feeding us innovation while recognizing fads that sometimes stick to our plates a little too long.
As 2014 promises a local bumper crop of new restaurants and bars, we quizzed industry experts from several existing Uptown establishments about trends they’re eager to leave behind and those they see emerging.
Karrie Hills, executive chef at Red Door and Wellington Steak & Martini Lounge
741 W. Washington St.; 729 W. Washington St., Mission Hills
Outgoing: “I would love to see pretzel buns get buried. They’re just absurd — bad calorie content, flavorless, hokey and chewy. And they’re manufactured mostly by the big guys. I want handcrafted French or artisan rolls, something that someone made with love.”
Incoming: “I see a lot of nutrient-dense foods appearing on menus and in grocery stores, like kale chips instead of potato chips. Also, San Diego chefs have now gained farming education from local farmers when sourcing, so I think we’ll see a lot of them growing their own herbs and vegetables onsite or nearby. We’ll also see a lot of gourmet tacos come around and new types of pork dishes using different parts of the pig, like maybe the backstrap instead of just the belly.”
Erick Castro, co-owner and head bartender at Polite Provisions
4696 30th St., Normal Heights
Outgoing: “Repetitive drinks on the same cocktail list, where half the drinks contain the same ingredients such as St. Germain or ginger beer. When the cocktail scene started spreading, we wanted to make drinks that were approachable, but we overshot the mark by making them too elementary.”
Incoming: “This year we’ll see an increase in hospitality because for a long time, mixologists were seen as cranky gatekeepers to the world of cocktails — snooty if you ordered a vodka and soda. But I’m already seeing across town bartenders that are really friendly and making drinks with zero pretension.”
Abe Botello, executive chef at West Coast Tavern
2895 University Ave., North Park
Outgoing: “I’m really over the farm-to-table concept as a selling point because we all source from local vendors now. I’m also not a fan of communal table settings since I like to be personal with whoever I’m dining with.”
Incoming: “I see a lot of chefs uniting ingredients from different types of cuisines into familiar American dishes, using Asian or South American twists. The shrimp and grits that I have on my menu, for example, have a Latin influence with chorizo, jalapenos and limes.”
Jason O’Bryan, head bartender at URBN Coal Fired Pizza
3085 University Ave., North Park
Outgoing: “Cocktails on tap. Owners love them because they eliminate waste. Bartenders love them because they’re incredibly easy. And customers love them because they get their drinks fast. But as everyone rushes to put their cocktails on tap, people are finding that it’s hard to do well. And we’ve hopefully seen the last of bartenders trying to impress with the sheer weirdness of ingredients. It’s not impossible that a Himalayan gooseberry and quinoa tincture would taste delicious in tequila infused with charred baby octopus, but I’m inclined to doubt it.”
Incoming: “We’re starting to see nostalgic or children’s flavors used in inventive grown-up ways like in Karl Strauss’s peanut butter cup Porter, root beer-flavored bitters and cocktails garnished with marshmallow fluff.”
Jojo Rossi, corporate chef for Whiskenladle Hospitality, including Prepkitchens
1660 India St., (Prepkitchen Little Italy)
Outgoing: “I would personally like to see the cronut disappear. Otherwise, as long as the food is delicious, we don’t care if it’s trendy because we have to be relevant.”
Incoming: “Southeast Asian cuisine is hot because it’s lighter and has fresher vegetables and raw herbs that taste brighter. At our Prepkitchen in Little Italy we have house-made kymchee a few times a week. And at all locations, we have Vietnamese-style chicken wings. Gluten-free and vegan options will continue to rise in restaurants, although I would also like to see more pastry departments come into neighborhood restaurants.”
Matt Gordon, chef/owner of Urban Solace; Solace and the Moonlight Lounge; and Sea & Smoke
Respective addresses: 3823 30th St., North Park; 25 East E St., Encinitas; 2690 Via De La Valle, Del Mar
Outgoing: “For our third restaurant (Sea & Smoke), we’ve moved back to a minimalist feel and away from reclaimed-everything décor, which has become an easy way out in restaurant designs.”
Incoming: “The amount of restricted diets seems to be more and more, so chefs are experimenting further with dishes that have no nuts, no honey and no flour. Being knowledgeable about the ramifications of food on some people is important, whether it’s perceived or real.”
Alberto Morreale, co-owner and executive chef of Fig Tree Cafés
416 University Ave., Hillcrest; additional locations in Pacific Beach and Liberty Station
Outgoing: “Upscale restaurant concepts are going away. People are no longer interested in spending a lot of money on places just for their names. They’re looking for affordable old-fashion recipes reinvented.”
Incoming: “Less expensive meats and seafood like flat iron steak instead of filet mignon and tilapia instead of lobster. With pizza, we’ll keep seeing more authentic Neapolitan style cooked in wood-fired ovens. Ours is a stone oven but similar because it reaches 800 degrees.”
Amanda Baumgarten, executive chef at Waypoint Public
3794 30th St., North Park
Outgoing: “The flatbread thing has run its course. Not that they’re not delicious, but I think we’ve all been there, done that.”
Incoming: “Chefs will be refocusing their efforts on classical techniques: French cooking, sausage making, pates, and working with their hands more. I also think that gluten-free cooking is going to become effortless as gluten naturally goes to the wayside. We’ll stop leaning on breads and pasta and look more toward grains and potatoes.”
