We found this place on our last visit to San Diego, and liked it so much it was our first stop last weekend when we went back to SD. The Ivy Hotel is very contemporary and stylish, but it's in a part of town that you don't really want to walk through at night (San Diego has a lot of transients, and unfortunately they are not all pleasant human beings) so we will probably never stay there, but we'll certainly visit during the day and eat lunch at their restaurant!
The same guy took care of us both times we've been there - he is the bartender. Very nice guy. We always get there too late for the regular lunch hour, so we end up in the bar section, but that's OK because it's totally empty during the day and pretty cool to hang out in (we sit outside in the covered courtyard). And the bartender is so attentive and helpful and just makes the visit all the more pleasant. It's the whole package.
We sat at a table right near the kitchen window.
You can see into the kitchen from the courtyard. Very pretty kitchen. I could sit here all day and just watch them work. I'm not kidding.
At night, on the weekends, it's more of a hot spot hangout for SD's young & hip crowd, but on Saturday afternoons we get the whole place to ourselves.
This was my Caesar salad. I love the poached egg addition, rather than just making the yolk dressing. You get to break the yolk yourself, then mix the egg through the greens. Very French. It also had the freshest anchovies - which I gave to Theo and he loved - that I have ever seen. Very simple and just fresh and delicious! This is so my kind of food.
This was a really good Kobe burger/wiener combo that Theo had. Definitely not the healthier and low-fat dog that I buy in the grocery... these were the real thing baby, and SO delicious! :)
Popcorn shrimp..... pretty standard. The dipping sauces were excellent, a ponzu, a honey sauce and a spicy creamy sauce.
These are the dipping sauces for the shrimp, and the chili fixin's for the dogs.
How cute is this highchair! It really fit in with their contemporary decor. And I think the baby liked it too! Fashion is always better when it's functional too.
Some more pics from around the Hotel...
