Local Wally's Guide to San Diego
The original locals guide to San Diego...since 1996
You Don't Need a Ton of Cash to Eat Good!
Look around and you'll see tons of happy people living in San Diego. You know the slogan, Happy Happens. Maybe it's the near year round sunshine, maybe it's the beaches, but maybe, just maybe it's the cheap and plentiful good food like 3 Rolled Tacos for $3 or Drive-thru Burgers from the place that invented the drive thru.
Locals know that the best Mexican food comes from taco shops, and San Diego has plenty of them. Tamales and enchiladas, fresh salsa and street tacos, find out for yourself what the locals already know. And don't even think about leaving town without trying a fish taco from Rubio's, the guy who "invented" the after his trips to Baja as a college kid.
Remember this when you're in town and you're hungry. No fast food chains, no microwaved generic food, you're in San Diego and that means good eats at any budget!
3695 India St, San Diego, CA 92103 / 619 299-0333
You gotta love the restaurant that invented the "rolled taco", aka the taquito. Long before Costco put the taquito in a box this hole in the wall Mexican restaurant started serving these rolled bites of deliciousness as a way to keep the factory workers at nearby Convair happy. Since then the rolled taco has become a staple of every taco shop, a testiment to their deliciousness. El Indio still serves up some of the best rolled tacos in town, a crispy corn tortilla rolled around tender beef, fried and then smothered in guacamole, salsa, lettuce and cheese. Big little tacos, you have to try them for yourself to see just how good they can be. Locals also love the tamales here, topped with chili beans, it's San Diego comfort food for anyone who grew up here. Place your order at the counter and grab a table in either the restaurant or the outside tables in the middle of the intersection - I know, it's odd but we San Diegans wouldn't have it any other way.
THE LOWDOWN: Since 1940 El Indio has been serving up some of San Diego's favorite Mexican food. Super casual, top quality.
LOCATION: Close to the airport
LOCAL TIP: They have a free parking lot but don't even think about parking there and not eating at El Indio unless you want to pick your car up at a tow lot later.
WALLY SAYS: Hungry after a long flight? Head straight to El Indio Taco shop for a crunchy welcome to San Diego!
Multiple Southern California Locations
We love cars in Southern California so it was only time before someone invented the Drive-Through-Window. It was 1948 when In-N-Out pioneered the idea and while others have copied the concept, no one has matched In-N-Out flavor and quality in a fast food burger. Everything here is fresh, nothing frozen. Peek into the kitchen and you'll see mounds of potatoes being cut into fries and burgers simmering on a grill. The basic burger includes the usual but step up to a Double-Double for double meat, double cheese, and up the ante by ordering off the secret menu and getting it "animal style" where the patty is cooked with mustard and served with pickle, more sauce, and grilled onions - it's the only way to go! Is this the best burger in town? Maybe not, but it's certainly the best fast food burger in the country. Discover what fresh fries actually taste like again, and pick up a free bumper sticker or inexpensive T-shirt as a souvenir to show off when you get back home. Happy staff, something you rarely find in a fast food setting.
THE LOWDOWN: The original drive thru restaurant, the menu hasn't changed since the day they opened.
LOCATION: Various Southern California locations
LOCAL TIP: You can go low calorie with a "protein burger" (no bun, wrapped in lettuce) or the opposite with as many patties and slices of cheese you want - 3X3, 4X4, one kid on the internet got a 25X25 and ate the whole thing - not recommended. Got a vegetarian teen with you? Get the Wish Burger which included everything but the meat (wish it had some!)
WALLY SAYS: Fresh burgers, fresh fries real shakes, drive thru and get a bag of burgers and put that Beach Boy CD on as you cruise to the beach!
Multiple San Diego Locations
San Diego loves taco shops. Just look around and you'll see them on nearly every street corner with names like Alberto's, Gilberto's Adalberto's, Filiberto's, Hilberto's, Ediberto's, Royberto's, heck, is a Wallyberto's far behind? This taco shop name game might sound like lunacy to you but the real story is much more logical. Two brothers inherited their father's taco shops and split them, one calling his share Alberto's and the other keeping the Roberto's name. They expanded faster than Starbucks and decided to sell off some of the lessor restaurants. The new owners, hoping to cash in on the name, changed a few letters and before you knew it the taco shop name game had established itself as a San Diego tradition. Roberto's still remains my favorite for the best tourist friendly taco shop. Oh sure, I know there are some San Diegan's who think a taco shop isn't a taco shop unless there's at least some health risk involved, but I know what I like - and what you will like, too. Stop in for breakfast for perhaps the best deal in town, a cheese omelette smothered in sauce with rice and beans and a giant fresh flour tortilla for less than $5. Other favorites include the carne asada (grilled steak, sort of) burrito with guacamole, or the insanely good (and good for you) carne asada fries, topped with cheese, guac, salsa and sour cream - it must be about 1,200 calories but man is it good! Wrap it to go in a flour tortilla and you have yourself a California Burrito, seriously delicious.
THE LOWDOWN: San Diego's first taco shop and home to authentic Mexican fast food
LOCATION: Multiple San Diego locations
LOCAL TIP: Great carne asada burritos and the California Burrito is a must-try-before-leaving essential.
WALLY SAYS: If El Torrito or On the Border is your reference point for Mexican food, prepared to have your taste buds blown away!
Multiple San Diego Locations
Breadsticks. Pat and Oscar's is a local chain of family friendly, reasonably priced restaurants that build their reputation on breadsticks. You stand in line to order and they come out with breadsticks. You order food and they come with breadsticks. You even somehow order more breadsticks so by the time you're finished eating you've consumed the equivilent of maybe five loaves of bread. I mean, seriously you'll eat a lot of breadsticks here! Thankfully they're good, nice and fresh and soft and delicious (I almost said Yummy, oh no, what's happening to me??)
And the food, if you ever get to it, is nearly as good. The lemon chicken, the chicken wings, the pocket bread sandwiches that taste like a giant breadstick, it's pretty fantastic stuff. Ribs and pizza as well, and if neither of them are as good as the best in town, you're not exactly going to complain once you take a bite. In fact, all the food here is way above average and decently priced, making it budget vacation perfect!
THE LOWDOWN: Order at the counter and they'll bring it to you, high quality food at decent prices.
LOCATION: Multiple San Diego locations
LOCAL TIP: Seriously, how many breadsticks can you eat? Before ordering another dozen, check to see how many come with the entrees or your abs of steel might look more like slabs of flab when you go home.
WALLY SAYS: Perfect for family dining, get a bunch of stuff and share it.
Multiple San Diego Locations
Ahhh, San Felipe. In my college days this was the ultimate Spring Break destination, a place where you drink so much you fall asleep on a beach chair until the high tide wakes you up. It's also the home of the original fish taco, a recipe given to Ralph Rubio and put to good use after his father told him to get off his surfboard and make something of his life. So this is it - the guy who introduced us to the fish taco, a crispy cod filet wrapped in a tortilla and smothered in white sauce, cabbage and salsa. Once a local's secret, Rubio's has expanded to over 100 restaurants. It's fast food, but this isn't some crummy McDonalds. Everything is fresh and cooked to order and while they have expanded their menu to include healthy Mex, of all things, the fried fish taco is still the one to get. Don't leave San Diego without trying a fish taco from Rubio's!
THE LOWDOWN: The guy who brought the Fish Taco to the US
LOCATION: Various locations
LOCAL TIP: Order anything a la carte and ask for it "in combo" to get a side of beans and chips to go with it for a nominal charge, perfect for smaller appetites.
WALLY SAYS: Others might make bigger fish tacos but you can't fault the original.
1111 Marine St, La Jolla, CA 92037 / 858 454-7196
For some serious good cheap eats, you need to make sure you visit the La Jolla Open Aire Market, aka The Farmer's Market. Now pay attention - It's only open on Sunday from 9am to 1pm. Got that? I don't want you showing up on a different day at a different time and finding an empty school playground. For those of you who do make it you'll find plenty of fresh produce (grab a basket of those fresh and locally grown strawberries) as well as a row of food stands making some of the most delicious and inexpensive foods in San Diego. You'll find everything from Turkish food grilled on skewers to modern Asian to authentic Mexican, and just about everything in-between. It's fun for the whole family, just order a few things from the various stands and have a picnic feast on the playground lawn. Local style, that's right.
Do yourself a favor and seek out the La Jolla Open Aire Market on Sundays. Sundays. Remember that. 9 to1pm only. Sundays.
THE LOWDOWN: A farmer's market with tons of produce, crafts, and lots of food stands serving up incredibly delicious foods at ridiculously low prices.
LOCATION: Sunday only, 9 to 1pm, at the La Jolla Elementary School
LOCAL TIP: Parking is tough during prime time lunch so either arrive before 11am or use their valet parking. That's right, valet parking at the Farmer's Market. This IS La Jolla, afterall!
WALLY SAYS: Locals flock to this place just to eat, it's that good. You should too.
1810 W. Washington Street, San Diego, CA 92103 / 619 296-8226
THE LOWDOWN: Insanely good quality and a creative menu, they take the taco shop concept to a new level .
LOCATION: Close to the airport, down the street from more famous El Indio Taco Shop
LOCAL TIP: Try the TJ Hotdog, a beef frank wrapped in bacon and topped with ketchup, mustard, grilled onions, peppers... and mayonnaise!
WALLY SAYS: You don't want a tourist trap taco shop? OK, then check out this local's only favorite, recently "discovered" by the Man V Food travel show.
111 Washington Street, San Diego, CA 92103 / 619 291-3341
THE LOWDOWN: New York style thin crust pizza, buy by the slice and take it to go. Tired after a long day at the beach? Have them deliver a full pizza to your hotel! No credit cards.
LOCATION: North Park
LOCAL TIP: Park at the laundromat or behind the shop only if you want your car towed. These guys mean business.
WALLY SAYS: You wanna piece of this? At $2 for a slice of cheese pizza and $.50 extra for toppings, fans of NY pizza should be very happy.
137 D St, Encinitas, CA 92024 / 619 942-4642
THE LOWDOWN: Authentic "Hawaiian plate lunch" - 2 scoops of rice, a scoop of macaroni salad, an entree like Kalua Pork or chicken katsu, and of course, a can of POG. Run by real Hawaiians, a local favorite with ukulele players in front on weekends.
LOCATION: Encinitas, a couple of blocks from the beach
LOCAL TIP: Get some "to go" before heading to the beach or fill up after a day of swimming or surfing.
WALLY SAYS: Encinitas is a cool surf town that looks nearly like it did in the 60's. You have to visit and when you do, you have to get a bite at Keilani's, even if you're not hungry.
Don't risk your life going to Mexico! Great authentic Mexican food ahead!
Get the your Mexican food fix without getting kidnapped and beheaded in Mexico! Sounds like a fair deal to me. Follow me to the BEST tourist friendly Mexican restaurants in San Diego!
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