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Don't be put off by the name, or that it is part of a small chain. This fine-dining restaurant at the Headquarters at Seaport in Downtown has won a devoted following for classic seafood, casual but sophisticated settings, and nightly live jazz. Chilled oysters and other shellfish compete with Maine lobster tacos and kung pao–style calamari to start the meal. The polished staff helps with informed descriptions of almost two-dozen entrées starring fish flown in fresh daily and prime steaks. Sea bass in a savory soy broth and Parmesan-crusted sole are favorites, while the seafood chopped salad is light and sharable. Truffled mac and cheese and au gratin cheddar potatoes are not-to-be-missed sides. Nightly happy hours in the V Lounge offer $8 wines, cocktails, and appetizers. A second location in La Jolla has wonderful ocean views and the same dinner menu and happy hour specials. It also serves lunch on weekends.
789 W. Harbor Dr., San Diego, California, 92101, USA
Known For
- Wallet-friendly happy hour deals
- The shellfish tower, featuring oysters, crab, shrimp and Maine lobster
- Indulgent truffled mac and cheese
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch
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$$$$ | |
Adjacent to the Hotel Del Coronado's more casual, family-friendly Sheerwater is its more dazzling upscale restaurant, Serẽa. With tables featuring stunning views of the Pacific Ocean and a menu of sustainable, market-fresh seafood, Serẽa puts full emphasis on its seaside location. Sip a seasonal cocktail, indulge in a rich shellfish platter—either roasted or on ice—and let your server wow you with a tableside whole fish presentation, set to the sounds of nearby crashing waves.
1500 Orange Ave., San Diego, California, 92118, USA
Known For
- The "Pearl Diver" dessert, served in a white chocolate shell
- Tableside wood-grilled or flash-fried fish
- Breathtaking ocean view
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon.--Wed.
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$$ | Pacific Beach |
Occupying a prime oceanfront lot just south of Crystal Pier, the views from the raised dining room are impressive. Throw in an excellent raw bar, a wide selection of shared plates, and a buzzy bar scene and you get Waterbar's "social seafood" concept.
4325 Ocean Blvd., San Diego, California, 92109, USA
Known For
- "Boardwalk hour" oyster specials
- Boozy weekend brunch
- Ocean views
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$ | Ocean Beach |
Portions and prices are on point at this OB seafood hole-in-the-wall where dining is a three-step process—choose your fish, pick your marinade, and decide how you want it prepared (sandwich, plate, salad, taco, or à la carte). There’s an on-site market serving wild, organic, and local seafood ranging from snapper and calamari to shrimp and scallops, and all the soups are from scratch including the New England clam chowder served in a bread bowl. The chilled seafood cocktail is refreshing on a hot summer day, especially when paired with local craft beer. For greasy comfort food, try their tuna melt, fish-and-chips, or beer-battered tacos.
5083 Santa Monica Ave., San Diego, California, USA
Known For
- Fish served five ways
- Locally sourced seafood
- Beer-battered fish tacos
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$ | Mission Hills |
Blame a television segment by Guy Fieri on “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” for the long lines of fans from around the globe. But it’s the fresh seafood cooked to order that keeps them coming back to this no-frills fish market and restaurant.
3667 India St., San Diego, California, 92103, USA
Known For
- Beer-battered cod tacos
- Classic cioppino plate with mussels and clams, scallops, shrimp, and red snapper
- Fresh catch cooked to order
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations not accepted
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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$ | La Jolla |
This bustling café first opened as a full-service fish market in 1974, and has been popular with locals ever since. Order the char-grilled, locally caught halibut, swordfish, or yellowtail on a toasted torta roll to enjoy in-house or to go for an oceanfront picnic at nearby La Jolla Cove. Other delicious choices include seafood cocktails, ceviche, Dungeness crab and shrimp salad, and fish and shrimp tacos. The fresh, sushi-grade fish arrives daily from local anglers, making it a great spot to grab your catch without getting wet.
634 Pearl St., San Diego, California, 92037, USA
Known For
- Clam chowder
- Bustling on-site fish market
- Daily-caught cuts to go
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations not accepted
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Hundreds of piranhas cover one wall of this soaring, nautically themed dining room dedicated to fresh seafood in all its guises. At the raw bar with its refrigerated metal top, a half dozen or more varieties of oysters are available for slurping, along with drinks from the booklet-size cocktail menu. Platters for sampling and sharing—a mix of oysters, shrimp, mussels, and lobster—can be ordered for up to eight people. For entrées, day-catch fish and lobsters just plucked from a tank can be savored grilled or à la plancha. Other specialties range from zesty mussels with bacon to a hefty lobster roll slathered with brown-butter mayo.
1654 India St., San Diego, California, 92101, USA
Known For
- $1 oysters during weekday happy hour
- Extensive cocktail menu
- Fresh whole fish with simple sides is a bargain at less than $25
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One of several options inside the Pendry Hotel, Lionfish is a showcase for chef Jojo Ruiz's seafood-centric cuisine inside of a spacious, two-story room. The atmosphere is hip, yet aesthetically pleasing, though the menu itself is what's worth returning for, from the butter-poached king-crab leg to the wild mushroom and potato gnocchi.
435 5th Ave., San Diego, California, 92101, USA
619-738–7200-Pendry Hotel
Known For
- Fresh seafood, including oysters and crab
- Nigiri (special sushi rice treated with vinegar) flights
- Elegant yet unconventional craft cocktails
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$ | Point Loma |
Three local families—with a fishing history—joined nets in 2008 to provide the best catch in Point Loma; a chalkboard menu showcases sustainable seafood caught mostly by them, off the shores of San Diego and Baja. The fisherman’s stew and fish tacos are on point, loaded with swordfish, octopus, calamari, and rock fish, while the tuna melt and breaded shrimp beckon a cold brew to wash it all down. Regardless of the time of day, there’s usually a line out the door on Fridays. At low tide, you can see oysters under the pier, reminding you that you're as close to fresh seafood as it gets. Bypass the small indoor dining space for a patio table overlooking the dock, but keep an eye on your fries. If your neighbor doesn’t grab them, a seagull most certainly will.
1403 Scott St., San Diego, California, 92106, USA
Known For
- Big fish sandwiches
- Seafood combo with chips
- Great seafood without the fine dining price
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$ | Pacific Beach |
Also known as the Fish Shop, this is a favorite among locals. Peruse the customizable menu that lets diners select a type of fish, marinade, and preparation style (grilled or fried, and taco, sandwich, salad, or plate) that suits their tastes. You can dine-in on the heated patio, order your food to go, or buy the daily catch to cook at home.
1775 Garnet Ave., San Diego, California, 92109, USA
Known For
- Serves local beer
- Daily fresh fish
- Fish tacos like the TKO Taco
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$$ | Point Loma |
When fishing boats unload their catch on-site, a seafood restaurant and market earns the right to boast that they offer “the freshest thing in town.” In the late 1950s, mostly sportfishermen came here, but word got out about the just-caught fried fish on San Francisco–style sourdough bread, and now locals and visitors come to enjoy bay views, sunshine, and a greatly expanded menu of seafood dishes. A friendly, efficient crew takes orders for food and drinks at the counter, keeping the wait down even on the busiest days. In addition to sandwiches, favorites include fish tacos, seafood cocktails, sushi, salads, and fried platters of fish, shrimp, and scallops. This is San Diego's top seafood market for those who like to grab fresh fish to prepare at home.
2805 Emerson St., San Diego, California, 92106, USA
Known For
- San Francisco–style seafood on sourdough
- Dockside bay views
- Hickory-wood smoked fish
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$ | Pacific Beach |
Credited with popularizing fish tacos in the United States, Ralph Rubio brought the Mexican staple to San Diego, opening his first restaurant in Pacific Beach where it still stands today. The original beer-battered fish tacos have fried pollock topped with white sauce, salsa, and cabbage atop a corn tortilla.
4504 E. Mission Bay Dr., San Diego, California, 92109, USA
Known For
- The original fish taco
- Taco Tuesday deals—$1.99 fish taco
- $8 lunch specials
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$ | Ocean Beach |
This two-story-tall restaurant and bar in Ocean Beach looks like a typical sports bar from the outside, but inside is the place to eat what many consider to be the best fish tacos in San Diego. Grab a seat at the bar and choose from an ever-changing array of fresh grilled fish from lobster to mahi. Visit on Tuesday for $4 tacos, Friday for $1 oysters, and Saturday for $3 mimosas.
5059 Newport Ave. #104, San Diego, California, 92017, USA
Known For
- Mahimahi fish tacos
- Great sunset and ocean views
- Taco Tuesday $4 specials
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$$$$ | Pacific Beach |
Nestled in a quieter, less-touristy section of Pacific Beach, The Fishery is a local favorite for high-end, sustainable seafood. With a fish market incorporated into the restaurant's design, the freshness of their ingredients is proudly on display, and the extensive, albeit pricey, menu offers tartare, sushi rolls, and other raw bar favorites alongside excellently cooked preparations of spot prawns, crusted halibut, and a delicious bouillabaisse. The grand seafood tower is sure to make an impression. An engaging wine list and cocktail selection round out the exceptional offerings.
5040 Cass St., San Diego, California, 92109, USA
Known For
- Sustainably sourced menu
- Engaging wine list and cocktail selection
- The impressive Grand Seafood Tower
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon. and Tues.
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$$ | Harbor Island |
It’s hard to top this longtime Harbor Island restaurant’s incredible views across San Diego Bay to the Downtown skyline and Coronado Bridge. An alfresco dining deck and a contemporary seafood-focused menu ensure the dining experience at this working lighthouse doesn't take a back seat to the scenery. Sample the iced shellfish platter before moving on to traditional lobster bouillabaisse and paella or grilled prawns with spicy grits. The family-owned institution also serves a popular Sunday brunch that stars crab legs, peel-and-eat shrimp, smoked salmon, and oysters along with mimosas. Prefer beer? Choose from a long list of on-tap and bottled craft brews.
2150 Harbor Island Dr., San Diego, California, 92101, USA
Known For
- Sunday brunch
- Alfresco dining deck with skyline and Coronado bridge views
- Fresh seafood and beer-battered cod
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With its bay views from Point Loma to the Coronado Bridge, this upscale seafood house is just right for a memorable evening. The romantic teak-paneled dining room and a deck that sits over the water are popular spots for visitor splurges and locals celebrating special occasions. Starters include smoked fish samplers or a chilled seafood platter with a half Maine lobster, Dungeness crab, clams, prawns, and oysters, shared with sips of champagne. The star among salad offerings is the Dungeness crab Louie. For mains, choose from mesquite-grilled Pacific coast swordfish or specialties like the Dover sole, zesty cioppino, or lemon saffron linguine with prawns and scallops. Do not confuse this with the tourist-oriented Fish Market downstairs, which can offer an uneven dining experience.
750 N. Harbor Dr., San Diego, California, 92101, USA
Known For
- Romantic atmosphere
- Smoked fish appetizers
