for nearly two years, Scout, my orange, husky-looking mut and I have been driving by their…read morenow-shuttered Encinitas location four times a week after playdates at Power Lines Dog Park. every time we do, I think "we gotta back there for another visit." pretty sure CHIKO has aged out of my draft queue. now that I've finally gotten around to finishing the review, they've been closed for months. in the draft, I suggested CHIKO might not be a destination restaurant, but if you happen to be in the neighborhood, it's definitely a place worth stopping by for eats. if you wait long enough, like I did, the nearest ones are in the DC area and probably not worth a cross-country trip. sad.

Post-mortem... I was sad to hear that CHIKO permanently closed their doors at the end of last year…read more It's rare for an East Coast based Asian chain restaurant to migrate to California, but that was what CHIKO did. As noted by its name, this place served a fusion of Chinese and Korean cuisines. Their Encinitas location took over what used to be a roadside diner along N Coast Hwy 101. The seating capacity was less than 40 people which included a few high-top counter spots. At my last visit, I came for a late dinner before their closing time. A large menu was posted on the wall behind the service counter that listed about two dozen food offerings. The items seemed to be comfort food like pot stickers, spring rolls, fried rice, and chicken wings but flavored with unique combinations of seasonings and spices. I started my meal with the Marinated Beef Tri-Tip Skewers which came as a set of three and a Chinese mustard for dipping. The meat was very tender and well-seasoned. I also ordered the Cumin Lamb Stir Fry which the cashier said was medium spicy. After tasting a couple of bites of the noodles from the serving bowl, I agreed that the heat level was moderate, even for my palate. I thought the portion size should have been more for the price. That was my main criticism for both items, otherwise the food was solid for an Asian fusion eatery.

What a great place. I walked from my hotel and it was about a 10 min stroll. I was craving some…read moreAsian food and this is a small quaint place. The food was awesome and so was the service! I had the chili pork dumplings and Mongolian beef. It all came out freshly made and super hot. She recommended the chili pork dumplings and they were fire!! So good. The flavor, spice, and sauce were on point. I would have 5 orders of these. I forgot the pic but I had the Mongolian beef lunch deal and it was also great. Portion was good the flavor was on point, not too much sauce, great spices, The service was quick, the two ladies were so nice and respectful and funny. Great time and meal before I headed out.

I got food to go. We got an appetizer, Hong Kong BBQ pork bun, which neither of us liked. It is a…read morefluffy soft bun filled with pork. We ordered a Pad Thai Shrimp and Thai Drunken combo- beef, chicken and shrimp. These dishes were good. I liked the flavors of the Thai Drunken combo. My boyfriend ate his whole dish, the Pad Thai shrimp, so I didn't get a taste. He said we probably won't order from them again, but it is close by and it tasted good. The staff was friendly and quick. The guy after me asked for hot sauces. So then I knew to ask for them. They didn't offer, but once I asked, they gave them to me.

My current favorite restaurant! Joseph is a fantastic server! We definitely recommend the flying…read morepig bowl :)

Food is great here! Joseph served us and he was very kind and polite. Come visit this location. The…read moreambience was lively and warm.

Ignore all the 1-star reviews. If you want something fast on a Friday-Sunday night go to McDonalds…read more There is a reason things can take some time and why they are always packed - ITS GOOD FOOD (and it's a scratch kitchen where everything is prepared fresh). This is some of the best food in north county. Great vibe, indoor, patio and side walk seating. Just a straight up great locally owned and operated business - nothing else to it - Every dish I've had is phenomenal - Pad Se Ew, Chow Mein, Beef Pho, Pineapple Fried Rice with Curry powder is exquisite, bring a date and split a few plates. Or order for pickup and eat it at home. Eating in wait time for food usually like 20-30 mins (order an app, or a drink and chill). Togo orders usually around 45-90 mins. Thanks for all the hard work and incredible food Birdseye staff!! Encinitas loves you.

I am not sure even this place has so many starts. I get that we came on a busy night so the wait…read morewas expected and we planned for it. We looked at the menu while waiting so we knew what we wanted to order, food and drinks. Once seated, our server went to get us waters. We told them that we were ready to order. He said he'd be right back. So then we wait again. 5mins go by, 10 mins go by. We tried to flag him down but he was busy with other tables. When he came back, he took our drink order and ran off again. We were upset at this point because we told him as we were sitting down that we ready to order. We tried to flag another server and noticed that there were only 3 servers for the entire restaurant. 45 mins in we finally got to place our order. I was really turned off by the service. Their food is good but the service is just awful. Maybe they ought to hire more help.

The food here was amazing!! Came here with my boyfriend and sat at the bar which was a cool…read moreexperience. It's so cool to watch them make it fresh. Everything chef Gio recommended was so good! All the online menu pictures you see look just like what you get. We started with the salmon specialty which was the perfect sweet and salty combination. Then we had tuna nigiri that was great and my favorite the hamachi specialty which I thought was so unique and delicious! We also had some yellowtail hand rolls. I've never had a hand roll before and wow! We ended up ordering more they were so good. We had the Southtown roll which I thought was great and not too spicy (I took off the jalapeño and gave it to my boyfriend). We also had what I believe was yellowtail sashimi which also was great and not too spicy. Everything was super fresh and every employee was so nice. This place is all my boyfriend and I have been talking about the past 2 days. I cannot wait to go back!

Arrived at 6:30 solo on a Tuesday evening and was seated immediately at the bar. There was a big…read morescreen TV playing the World Cup and they had a special World Cup menu with special food and drinks. The place has a large central bar with a few tables around the periphery as well as a few outside on the sidewalk. The decor is clean and modern and the place has a vibey feel. Not exactly sure how to rate this place. If rating it as a bar primarily that also has decent sushi, I'd give it five stars. If rating it as a sushi bar I'd give it three stars. All of the sushi that I had (nigiri, cut rolls and hand rolls) were good but nothing special. If you're looking for a great sushi experience, this is likely not the place. They have a small selection of Japanese and local craft beers as well as bottled and tap sake. I originally characterized the service as slow and inattentive. But looking at it from the perspective of a bar, it was casual and friendly in the slow way you'd expect for hanging out in a bar and socializing or watching sports.

Food, service, and ambiance are all 5 out of 5. Try the noodle soup and the fried rice. They were…read moreexcellent!

Honestly this was one of the BEST meals I've had in such a long time, I had to come and tell…read moreeveryone about it. If you're considering visiting this gem, just do it! I was kind of bummed that I was the only person dining for lunch, they honestly deserve a crowd. The food and service was 10/10. The setup is really cute on the inside as well and I was able to sit comfortably at a table with my daughter's stroller right next to me. Upon entering, I was greeted right away. I already knew that I wanted to order the Khao Soi because I had looked up their menu and pictures way before coming in and it looked like their specialty. I ordered an iced jasmine green tea as well and chose a table to sit at. The woman who took my order was really nice and helpful with ordering. My food didn't take long to come out, and it was DELICIOUS. This was my first time trying this dish so I didn't know what to expect but it was everything and more. It was topped with what I think was fried onion and chili crisp as well for some added spice. The tea was also so delicious, the crushed ice they use is my favorite. The tea was garnished with an orange slice and my toddler decided to much on it. The woman who took my order noticed my daughter eating the orange slice and she brought me out a couple more on the side. You really don't experience that level of customer service anymore, so it was such a sweet gesture. They have a lot of other things on their menu that I would love to come back and try. I also used the restroom before leaving and it was super clean. I honestly have no complaints whatsoever and I hope this business continues to thrive!

I've gone here over the years but it has been a while. Went there for my bday last weekend and was…read moreserved by Jose H. He did excellent job helping us and explain the menu and gave recommendations. Helped with our allergies too. We want to go back cause they have a gluten free menu and it's great. Try the pickled wasabi!

Personally, I LOVED the freshness and flavor present in everything my group ordered for take-out:…read moreteriyaki chicken, avocado-eel rolls, protein rolls, salmon sashimi, miso soup, and Philly rolls. I waited an extra 15min past the estimated pick-up time for the order and the restaurant wasn't that busy at the time for the wait to make sense, but beauty takes time I suppose. The staff appeared friendly and the interior of the restaurant was very laid-back and casual. This would be a fun spot to go for a relaxed sushi dinner.

Love this place. Have been going for years. Not too expensive and the lunch deal is amazing!read more

I will preface that I grew up in garden grove OC area. Was craving a viet chicken curry and it was…read morethe blandest watery soup-like taste ever, it was so sad, and then I got mad cuz it was $23!!!!!! The wings were not authentic too, I was hoping for those viet style ones. The pho soup was good, but I only had a side of it so not sure how the reg pho usually is. I'm so sad