10/10 experience! Everything we tried was so good the fried chicken and caviar was such a fun…read morecombination, and the hamachi ceviche was definitely one of my favorites. We also had the mie goreng noodles, kimchi marble potatoes, and broccolini -- the broccolini was amazing, especially the sauce. The atmosphere was lovely. It has such a cute tropical outdoor vibe and the whole place is super aesthetic. The drinks were great and service was good as well. Overall, we had a great experience and would definitely come back!

This is by far my favorite restaurant in Encinitas! it's hard to find a spot that has both vibes…read moreand fire food and Sago has it all. As soon as you enter it gives Tulum/sexy vibes which is perfect for a date night or an evening with the girls. I didn't have a single drink or meal on the menu that I didn't like. The options on the menu were creative and mixed well together. I really enjoyed the lychee martini and had to order the noodles twice because we couldn't get enough. Our server was also an angel and helped us decide what to order and was very attentive to our table! Another bonus to add to the vibes is the DJs that play each night. I had my reservation on a Thursday night and unfortunately had to cut my night short for the work day but I could have stayed all night long dancing! I can't wait to come back already

Starting off ambiance is perfect, good overall feeling, they do what they can with the small space…read more Service is awesome, workers are friendly, welcoming, and considerate. Food is also really good, their chicken wings are nicely seasoned and flavorful. To future customers. ((Parking is limited & hard to find)) ((And please if waiting in line leave the sidewalk open for pedestrians))

I came here with a good friend to celebrate our birthdays. We sat on the patio & it was the first…read morecool night in weeks! Lovely! We ordered garlic string beans, lo mein, honey walnut shrimp & general tso's chicken. Food comes out in the order it is done which can be a little off kilter. In our case, the chicken and shrimp came out first, then the lo mein, and much later, the green beans. All of the food was just okay. Nothing was truly a show stopper. I did not taste any honey or walnuts in the shrimp, just a lot of mayonnaise. The lo mein was the best dish of the night. We took some leftovers home in the cute packaging. The branding here is definitely a strong suit. As we were sitting on the patio, there was a steady stream of customers ordering & picking up takeout. Service was fine. We sat for quite awhile once we were done, and we had to ask for to-go boxes. Then about ten minutes later, our server came by to run our cards. Verdict: FS is cute and bustling. The food is adequate but honestly pretty basic. The prices are quite reasonable. One restroom for the whole place. Paid street parking on Adams Avenue until 8pm & free parking on some side streets. Just check for the parking signs. Peace.

I'm sincerly sad that Choi's has closed. We've met Jiwoo Choi multiple times, he's kind, truly…read moreengaged in his craft and very creative. We've eaten here on our anniversary a few times - It seriously was the best Asian restaurant we've tried in San Diego, bar none. I'm a chef as well and this guy impressed me. To Chef Choi - I hope you pick yourself up and rebuild. I know the industry is tough, but you have what it takes. Good luck!

My second time at Choi's was not as memorable as the first, but still one of my favorite…read morerestaurants in the entire Southern California region. Not sure who was the chef today but the food in general needed a pinch of salt. Food Birria tacos - A bit underseasoned and dry but some bites were so good. 4.4/5 Dolmas - Very punchy app that is a good one to try. I've never quite had something like this before. 4.5/5 Mexican corn - This was a bit underseasoned too but after adding some salt it was the best corn dish I've ever had. Balanced poblano flavor with creamy notes. 4.7/5 KFC - An absolutely incredible dish... but... a tiny bit underseasoned. 4.8/5 Octopus taco - I only had a bite of this but holy fuuuu this was the best bite of the night. 4.9/5 Peachy lemonade mocktail - An excellent elevated drink for happy hour. 4.7/5

I am typically not a fan of "Asian fusion" but Animae gets it right! We had our Girlfriend weekend…read moredinner here and it was a great choice. We were a bit nervous signing up for Asian street food for bougie prices, but were pleasantly surprised! I think as a millennial that grew up on authentic Asian food, it's always hard to eat "modern" Asian food because historically that meant it had been americanized. Chef Tara Monsod does a great job putting her own signature on so many different classics from Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese and more. I was thoroughly impressed by the sea bass cha ca. This is such a homey dish for me growing up and doing it with sea bass was perfect as I always thought the original catfish was too dry. The tumeric flavors were all there. It felt really familiar and yet new at the same time. We also had the Australian NY strip, which was cooked to perfection, sliced for sharing. All the dishes are family style. The human lamb chops were just the right amount of spice and flavor. I also indulged in the melon milk tea, which was in the sweet side but definitely could taste the melon! Our hostess was very helpful, friendly and the pace of dinner was perfect. The restaurant itself has impressive high ceilings, backlit art on the walls, and smart decor. It's definitely a beautiful space. Overall a great experience and delicious dinner. Highly recommend!

Once again, I am so impressed by the service in the presentation of each and every dish and the…read moreattention to detail that animae presents. I think getting some new dishes versus what I tried in the past, made the experience more unique. I loved the lobster plate that came with perfectly cooked pasta and the right amount of sauce and lobster ratio. I took two pictures of it. The Taiwanese chicken was so delicious because of the hot honey and their basil sauce that really accentuated the flavors of the fried chicken. The chicken adobo variation was good as always nothing too surprising and the flavors were also really good. I wish we saved room for dessert because that was what I was looking forward to, but I ate too much. They were kind and gave us a small dessert for our anniversary. This place is beautifully decorated, and I would encourage everyone to try it for a special occasion.

I am so happy I was able to make last minute reservations to Kingfisher for right when they open at…read more5pm on a Saturday! They only had a table for 5 but we ended up having 6 people in our party. They were so kind to be able to accommodate the additional person! They had personalized menus that greeted my party and it wished my friends a happy birthday!! They actually got to take the menus home! This was really a nice touch, I appreciated the details. We family-styled everything which is honestly the way to go so everybody can try a little of everything! It was majority of our party's first time dining there. We started off with some drinks, I got the Non-alcoholic Guava Mocktail and I got to try what was the equivalent to an espresso martini too. Definitely liked the guava drink better because it tasted like guava nectar juice (kind of like Kerns or Jumex). The Expresso Martini had fresh mint in it and it tasted earthy which wasn't my cup of tea. For food we started off with the Heirloom Tomato Salad which was DELICIOUS!! I don't know what they put in the Vietnamese Green Goddess (probably fish sauce since all the dishes basically had this) but it was magnificent and one of my favorite dishes of the night. Then the Scallops and the Black Cod came out. The Scallops came in a set of 3 and we cut them in half so we could all have a taste. The sauce on this was DIVINE!!! It was citrusy but still really flavorful bursting with umami. I'm literally starting to drool reminiscing about it xD We wanted to keep it to use on other dishes because it was so good. The Black Cod was also delicious. It had fried skin attached and a sesame soy glaze. Next up came the Beef Tartare and the Wagyu Steak. The Beef Tartare was probably the least flavorful out of everything we ordered, but it was still well seasoned. My friend said it was really spicy but it might have just been her bite because I didn't think it was spicy at all. I like that the give you the option of leafy greens or shrimp chips to eat it with. The Wagyu though, was an all-star dish. It was the crowd favorite for sure, we all enjoyed not only the steak but the picked baby eggplants that come with it, and the sauce was phenomenal!! Lastly came the Dry Aged Duck which is what they're known for. It was definitely the biggest fish out of all. You were able to eat the duck with two different sauces, one they called a "Fish Sauce Chimichurri" and "Vietnamese XO sauce" which is more so satay. My friends liked the XO sauce but I liked the Chimichurri better. They had actually forgotten about the side of Buttered Rice but I was told it was incredibly flavorful on its own so we still asked for it. It had more than just butter in it, there was dried shrimp and sesame seeds, and it was made with coconut milk or something because it had a sweet but savory taste to it. I saved some of my duck and Wagyu to eat with it which was actually pretty good. Overall I liked that they brought out the dishes from lightest to heaviest and especially after they brought out out 2 sides of Buttered Rice we were all satisfied and full. It was the perfect amount of food. Honestly EVERY dish was different but amazingly dank and I think it's the fish sauce in everything. They were also sweet and kept the cake we brought in the fridge, placed the candles on it for us, and even after we sang they cut the cake for us!! 10/10 would recommend coming here for not only the food but the impeccable service!! Since we had a larger party there's an automatic 20% gratuity already added to the bill, which came out to be $555! (Look at that angel number!)

We came here during Restaurant Week which was probably our first mistake. For $75, it just wasn't…read moreenough food. Looking at pictures from other nights, most of our food was half the size or missing some major component. For example, the egg noodles had only a few very thin truffle shavings compared to what I saw online. They also lacked the real truffle flavor. The chocolate dessert was half of its normal size. Overall, everything is extremely overpriced and lacks flavor. The food was so bland across the board and it felt like we were being skimped out not on just the size but the flavor too. We eat a lot of Asian food and the taste wasn't even close to matching our expectations. All the workers were very friendly, but the food came out very slow. They also gave us a printed out menu for our anniversary with our last name on it which was spelled wrong. I don't care about that, just thought it was very funny. The restaurant was smaller than we expected, but we did enjoy the colors, the layout and the overall ambiance. Wouldn't go back!

I recently tried this restaurant, named "Dao Fu," in the Normal Heights neighborhood of San Diego,…read moreCalifornia. I must say, I never would have stumbled upon this restaurant by myself, but it was highly recommended by my friends who live nearby. My daughter and I were visiting San Diego for a one-week trip because I was required to come here for work. My workdays were pretty packed, but my daughter and I also took advantage of this trip by filling our evenings with lots of fun activities. One thing we did was visit some wonderful friends who live in San Diego. My friend, John, told us that he found an amazing restaurant in San Diego a few decades ago, and he was really sad to find that it had closed down. Several years later, and more recently, he was surprised to find that this same restaurant owner reopened his restaurant in a new location, which is here on Adams Avenue in the Normal Heights neighborhood of San Diego. He was overjoyed to find that this restaurant had reopened in a different location, and he says that this is his favorite restaurant in San Diego. After a story like that, I had to come here to experience this place for myself! We parked on Adams Avenue, and I paid the meter for a reasonable amount of time for us to enjoy our dinner together. I would imagine that parking here can be a bit congested and tricky at times, so I would just suggest that you're patient and careful with where you decide to legally park. We had a party of five for our dinner together, and it was an absolutely wonderful evening with good friends and delicious food. Our waitress was Jun, and she was friendly and professional, as well as attentive to our dinnertime needs. The owner also came out to say hello to us, and he took the time to chat with us for a few minutes during our meal. He was so incredibly nice. I always appreciate it when an owner is willing to devote some time to connect with their customers. For an appetizer, I ordered the "Japanese Pork Gyoza," which are pan fried dumplings filled with pork, fresh ginger, onion, green onion, cabbage, garlic, and soy. It was absolutely delicious, and I had to resist the temptation of eating too many of them so that our friends could enjoy some too. For my meal, I ordered the "Katsu Chicken Curry," which is chicken thigh meat battered in Panko breadcrumbs, deep fried until golden brown and crunchy. I got my meal with a half-and-half mix of white rice and brown rice. My meal was prepared perfectly, and it was incredibly delicious! My meal was concluded with some of their delicious ice cream, which satiated my post-meal sugar cravings. Our evening with friends was special and memorable, and our meals and service at Dao Fu made our evening even more pleasant and enjoyable. Thanks to the owner, our waitress, and the staff for making our evening a wonderful one. The next time I'm back in this area, I'll be sure to come here again!

Everything we had was great!! Large menu so everyone can find something they like…read more Complimentary tofu salad is really good. Friendly welcoming staff that get to know their regulars. Gets busy but we had reservations. We are visiting from out of town but would for sure come back when we are in the area again. Recommended is the cast iron pot.

We came here for a table of three on a Saturday evening at exactly 5 PM. It was Labor Day weekend…read more Great center easy to park. Was seated quickly our waitress was very nice and was perfectly tentative. Immediately we enjoyed the vibe. Had all of my favorite K-pop mix. I could've sworn they were playing my Spotify daily mix videos. Menu wasn't huge, but everything that we got was amazing.. Son, husband and I enjoyed all of our dishes. Bossam is a must come again for! Perfectly boiled sliced pork belly that you layer yourself with shredded fresh green onion, sliced raw garlic, strips of kimchi radish, some sort of pickled radish, and a ssamjang sauce. The pork alone was amazing and the portion was huge! We barely made a dent in the platter. The kimchi jjigae stew was sooo good too! The broth was savory, just enough spicy, it has a pork riblet stewed in it that was cooked perfectly. Came out to our table still bubbling.. Takoyaki was pretty standard, but what made it a little extra was that you could tell it actually had two pieces of octopus and each ball most places only have one. It was moist on the inside, but firm on the outside perfect amount of sauce on top. Bulgogi was a good size. Portion flavor was spot on beef with sliced nicely and very tender however, there was nothing outstanding besides the portion. Cheese corn was pretty standard as well, but oddly the corn kernels were very sweet and tender so that was very nice. I couldn't tell if it was fresh corn or frozen corn. I was leaning towards it being fresh corn because the kernels popped very nicely and were so sweet. I'm pretty sure they fooled me and it was frozen corn. The staff was so nice. They gave us an order of fried dumplings on the house. And that was very delicious. We will most likely order this next time. It was a perfect mixture of meat and vegetables. The skin wasn't too thick so it wasn't overly chewy or hard but perfectly crispy. The restaurant is on the smaller side. I can see it getting very packed very quickly. By the time that we left a little after six all the tables were full, and there was a party or two waiting. It was very lively, and although there was only one waitress, she was on point.

A thousand times YES. Cozy, comforting Korean food and good music and vibes is what makes me keep…read morecoming back here. Along with their service as they are friendly and accommodating. For a laid back night to enjoy drinks with friends and food or even just a date night the vibes will be there. Their BOSSAM PAMUCHIN is on a whole different level that also has me itching to order every time I go there, but so torn cause I want to try other things on their menu haha.

Roppongi is so legit. We went here the first night they were open. The Hot Rock steak is a really…read morecool dining experience. And that crab tower is really neat. The half price apps from 4-6 are where it's at. They're super affordable. Been here 3 times and it's just great every time. Plus they have NA Asahi. The Sweet & Sour Calamari. Damn. It's probably the best calamari AND sweet & sour sauce I've ever had. I'm picky about that sauce too. Like really it's that good. I hope this place actually sticks around because it's so good. Everyone who works here is super good at what they do too. Super nice people. Oh, and ocean views.

Roppongi Asian Bistro is a restaurant and bar serving Asian fusion cuisine…read more AMBIANCE Coastal, modern SERVICE Staff were friendly and helpful. Food was freshly made. FOOD 5/5 Shishito peppers: stir fried hot in oil and served with bonito flakes - some shishito peppers were spicy while most others were mild PARKING Streetside

However infrequent, im always coming back! I always have that lek yum craving!…read more I like how much toppings were on the soups but I know my daughter would highly disagree!

This review is just about their customer service as I never got the chance to dine in…read more After driving around and around looking for parking on a late Saturday night in Hillcrest and finally finding one a few blocks away, I was excited to dive into some Asian food but sadly we did not get the "treat like family" or "welcoming" vibe here. There were several groups who arrived at the same time. The young guy seated the two groups before us and then asked us to wait. There were only 2 of us and clearly plenty of tables available so there's no excuse of lack of tables or our party being too big. We waited. And waited. And waited. The guy never came back to give us a ETA or let us know he is getting a table ready for us. None of the other waiters or owner who was just sitting at the cash register acknowledged us. How about give me a menu to look at while we wait? So we just left after 15 mins. Sure they may be open late but if they do not provide fair customer service to all patrons and communicate about wait times or acknowledge their customers, I'll take my money elsewhere.