Pristine beaches, a thriving craft beer scene and surrounded by the ocean, desert, mountains and Mexico. San Diego should be top of your destination dream list for 2019 – coupled with a stay across the border in Baja California, Mexico. Savour editor Georga Spottiswood says these are the places you need to visit in her week-long San Diego feature. Check back each day to see another review and recommendation. Today, it’s El Jardín.
Chef Claudette Zepeda-Wilkins brings her experience of growing up between San Diego, Tijuana and Guadalajara – as well as during her travels throughout Mexico – to life at her restaurant, El Jardín.
Her mission statement is to: “honour both the diverse cultures that have lent a hand in shaping the seven regions of Mexican cuisine, as well as the ancestral recipes created and shared by matriarchs throughout history.”
Expect to find brightly-coloured dishes on the menu, such as brisket tortas and huevos rancheros featuring two fried eggs, garden tomatoes, serrano, cilantro, charred onions and beans.
Cocktails are just as soulful and the surroundings are as pretty as a picture. While there’s an outside dining area, inside features decor from artisans, murals by artist Gloria Muriel, Huichol-beaded bull skulls, handmade chairs from Guadalajara, and textiles woven by families in Chiapas.
READ MORE: A fine-dining pop-up in breathtaking surroundings.
