{"id":243977,"date":"2010-11-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2010-11-01T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/fat-cats-is-the-spot-for-a-great-tummy-rub\/"},"modified":"2010-11-01T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2010-11-01T07:00:00","slug":"fat-cats-is-the-spot-for-a-great-tummy-rub","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/fat-cats-is-the-spot-for-a-great-tummy-rub\/","title":{"rendered":"Fat Cat's es el lugar para un gran masaje en la barriga"},"content":{"rendered":"

Por Dr. Ink<\/p>\n

\"Fat<\/a>
All day happy hour on Sunday at Fat Cat's Bar & Grill.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Fat Cat\u2019s Bar & Grill<\/p>\n

1263 University Ave., San Diego CA 92103<\/p>\n

619-487-9383<\/p>\n

Happy Hour: 5 to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday; 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sundays<\/p>\n

The previously forsaken Ruby Kitchen is now Fat Cat\u2019s Bar & Grill, which received a much-needed energy transfusion by new leaseholder Vic Rivas. In an attempt to warm up the challenging, high-ceiling space, he\u2019s added neon beer signs, flat screen TVs and colorfully printed menus that speak of wickedly tempting bar food.<\/p>\n

Rivas says he\u2019s intent on giving customers \u201ca little pop for their hard-earned bucks,\u201d referring to an all-week happy hour that extends to the entire day on Sundays. A chalk board perched above a large gas grill on the front patio explains some of the food and booze deals: A pint of Rolling Rock with a hot dog costs $4 on Mondays; a taco and Corona light are paired for the same price on Tuesdays; half-off wings come into play on Wednesdays; sliders sell for $1.50 apiece on Thursdays; and a pint of Shock Top Ale with a fish taco is priced at $4 on Fridays.<\/p>\n

Cooler weather turns Saturdays at Fat Cat\u2019s into a warm sanctuary, when five bucks lands you all the chili you can eat. And on Sundays, the focus is on football, kicking off with a late-morning buffet that we missed by a few hours. Yet on any day during happy hour, domestic and light beers are $3 apiece; bottled imports are $4; and Stella, Shock Top and Rolling Rock drafts cost $5. Coincidentally, wines from a producer named Fat Cat Cellars in Napa are included in the program for $4 a glass.<\/p>\n

Rivas chose the simplest of formulas for potentially snagging imbibers from the street, using visuals that cue consumption and a friendly wait staff that greets you with fast hospitality. The Ruby Kitchen generally failed on both counts; thus its chronic emptiness that Fat Cat\u2019s is determined to overcome.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe space just needed a big hug,\u201d says Rivas, as he and a roomful of jersey-clad customers fervently reacted to a near-touchdown by the San Diego Chargers on Sunday. It turned out they lost to the New England Patriots. \u201cI\u2019ve been a Chargers fan for 32 years. This year hurts a little,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Dr. Ink and friend channeled our attention to the $4 bottled imports: a Dos Equis XX Lager boasting the signature pith of toasted malts, and Hoegaarden wheat ale laced with hints of coriander and orange peel. Both brews tasted custom-made for the \u201cblue chips,\u201d which are thinly sliced potatoes cooked in canola oil and crowned with robust bleu cheese sauce and green onions. So beer-friendly were these quasi-potato chips that we ordered them in the form of Irish nachos as well, topped this time with spicy cheddar sauce and diced corned beef. They\u2019re priced at $8.50 and $9 respectively.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf they put out these potatoes for free, just plain, or marked them down for happy hour, people would probably order twice as many drinks,\u201d I said to my companion as we chewed, slugged and swallowed repeatedly. \u201cThey\u2019re veritable money makers!\u201d<\/p>\n

The regular menu, overseen by Executive Chef Anthony Vallone (formerly of the Town & Country Resort and Tommy\u2019s in El Cajon), is stocked with appetizers, sandwiches, entr\u00e9es, Mexican specialties and barbecue items\u2014much of it naughty stuff but less greasy and a tad more creative than what you\u2019d find in other casual bars.<\/p>\n

Fat Cat\u2019s is a different animal compared to the rowdy jock houses seen in neighborhoods like Pacific Beach, for example. This is Hillcrest, after all, where patrons are afforded a relaxed experience with a lot more levity no matter what team shirt they\u2019re wearing.<\/p>\n

CALIFICACIONES:<\/p>\n

Bebidas: 3<\/p>\n

A growing beer list includes domestics, imports and drafts that so far cover most bases to keep the average beer drinker contented. Wines include a few varietals by Fat Cat Cellars from Napa (no relation to this business).<\/p>\n

Comida: 4<\/p>\n

The made-to-order potato \u201cchips\u201d are winners, despite the fact they\u2019re not marked down during happy hour. But discounted items throughout the week on wings, dogs, tacos and chili prove deserving after a midday jog on the Stairmaster.<\/p>\n

Valor: 4<\/p>\n

We very much like the beer-n-food combo deals that occur a few days of the week! And the daily beer and wine discounts are fair and obliging, all kept at $5 and under.<\/p>\n

Servicio: 5<\/p>\n

On a busy Sunday afternoon we were greeted promptly by a smiling waiter who was able to rattle off the complete beer selection while keeping a sharp eye on our empties.<\/p>\n

Duration: 5<\/p>\n

Three hours six days a week plus 12 hours on Sundays demonstrates compassion to those on crimped budgets in a bad economy. And it makes good business sense, too<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Dr. Ink Fat Cat\u2019s Bar & Grill 1263 University Ave., San Diego CA 92103 619-487-9383 Happy Hour: 5 to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday; 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sundays The previously forsaken Ruby Kitchen is now Fat Cat\u2019s Bar & Grill, which received a much-needed energy transfusion by new leaseholder Vic Rivas. In […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":912,"featured_media":243978,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11555","_seopress_titles_title":"Fat Cat\u2019s is the spot for a great tummy rub","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11551,11555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-243977","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-uptown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243977","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/912"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=243977"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243977\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/243978"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=243977"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=243977"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=243977"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}