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Tom’s Watch Bar

4.2 (159 reviews)
Closed • 11:00 am - 12:00 AM (Next day)
Updated 2 months ago

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TOM’S WATCH BAR ATMOSPHERE

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Honey bbq wings
Stephanie B.

Tom's Watch Bar took over the old social tap location. The location is perfect for baseball lovers, as it overlooks Gallagher square. They have tons of seating, both indoor and outdoor, and lots of huge tvs! A great spot for a padres pregame. Food: we ordered the honey bbq wings to start and they were decent. Unfortunately, they don't har any dry rubs for wings. For entrees, I ordered the grilled chicken sandwich, my husband ordered the grilled chicken avocado salad, and we got the kids Mac and cheese for our son. The chicken sandwich was ok, but I felt could've used some more seasoning or sauce. The giant lettuce pieces were somewhat overpowering the sandwich. The fries were just ok and actually slightly disappointing. Looked like frozen fries from a bag. My husband wasn't impressed with his salad. It was very lettuce heavy, not enough toppings, and he didn't feel the avocado or tomato were fresh. The kids Mac and cheese was small, but very cheesy and creamy. It came with a small side of fries. Service: service was pretty bad for the place being mostly empty with two servers. My husband had to go to the bar twice to ask for something because our server was not around. One of which was asking for a half cup of water with no ice and the bartender had to go and find the server to have her bring it to us...why couldn't the bartender support this simple ask? We were the brought two full glasses of ice water...we were waiting forever before getting our check (second time having to go walk around looking for our server). She didn't come back to check on us when we had empty glasses either.

Cornbread pancake and Nashville tossed chicken tenders with Happy Dad Peach Hard Iced tea
Joshua D.

This place is amazing! The service is great and it's right by the ballpark. I came in because I know they carry Happy Dad here. They have fruit punch, grape and peach tea. I chose to drink peach tea and my server Jenny, recommended the cornbread pancake with chicken tenders, it was a great choice and delicious. I chose to sit outside it was nice and sunny, peaceful San Diego day right by Petco Park. The service is prompt, the food is delicious and price is decent 24 ounce can of Happy Dad only $8.49.that's an amazing deal. I will return because I know the prime rib here that sandwich is top-notch. And the service and atmosphere is great!

Janelle F.

This place was so fun! From the moment we walked in, we were greeted with smiles, sat at a table with a really good view of the backside of Padre Stadium, which was a plus. Kolten. (not sure if I spelled that correctly.) was our server and he was wonderful. I will say I am a little partial to the name as it is my own sons as well. He was knowledgeable, friendly fast and gave some great recommendations.. I'm not a lover of regular beer, typically and tend to go towards sour beers or cider, but unfortunately, they didn't have any. When I asked him if there was anything that might be similar to a sour beer, he brought one for me to taste and it was pretty good so I opted for that. I appreciated that he made the effort. We also ordered nachos with chicken, which were huge thank goodness we didn't order anything else. Again Kolten brought out an extra thing of queso just in case our chips didn't have enough underneath all the toppings but honestly, I was impressed at how they were plated and why we did use a little bit of the extra queso. It really wasn't needed. They were delicious. I was honestly surprised that there wasn't more people in there, but it was a little later at night. It is a cashless bar so be aware of that. If you do come, there was plenty of paid parking spaces that we found along the way but again it was a night and it was a weekend with no game going on since the Padres were playing out of town. There were plenty of TVs to watch sports which my husband loves and I could people watch while I ate. We had a wonderful time. Prices were fair especially for portion sizes and for the service we received. I do it again thanks Kolten for an awesome night. Give that guy a raise.

Paloma
Samantha G.

Came here to watch the NBA playoffs. It was a concert going on at the same time and it was pretty loud. Our server was very attentive and quick to get our orders in. I forgot her name but she was sweet. I wish they had more queso because the dish was barely filled. This is a good spot to watch any sporting events. Plenty of tv's.

Ahi Tuna Tower
Joyce L.

Fantastic downtown location (sitting outside on the patio, I felt like I was practically inside Petco Park!), but unfortunately that's where my accolades end. The Ahi Tuna Tower (marinated ahi tuna with sticky rice, avocado, sesame seeds, and crispy onions topped with a drizzle of truffle oil) and Adobo Chicken Tacos (flavorful adobo chicken with avocado, shredded cabbage, diced onions, and queso fresco) were both rather disappointing, with the former dish light on tuna and heavy on rice that went beyond sticky to mealy and the latter dish served lukewarm with stale tortilla chips. The lone server we encountered seemed overstretched - I think he was taking care of several tables inside as well as the patio - and we barely saw him. I doubt I'd return, but other Yelpers seem to have had better experiences so your mileage may vary!

Jason W.

The best thing about this place is its location. Tom's watch bar is adjacent to Petco Park, in fact its patio borders Gallagher Square at the back of the park. You could not ask for a better location without being inside Petco Park. Lots of people pregame here before Padres games, but surprisingly the place is relatively empty during the actual game. Might be because the food isn't great and the prices are similar to inside the park. But if you don't have tickets to the game, you can see and hear the in-stadium broadcast (but cannot see the actual field) from the back patio - which you'll want to catch if you're following the game, because the TV broadcast is delayed by a few seconds and it's hard to watch because the crowd noise tends to give away every play before it happens. I was here during a Padres game. Service was alright as there were not many customers. The food here is very average, my chicken tacos were lukewarm, and the shells were stale. Seemed like the food had been sitting around, nonetheless these are easy problems to correct. So five stars for the location, three stars for the food, overall four stars.

Chloe K.

Came here to watch the SD/LA game and it was a great environment!! TVs everywhere, loud, right behind Gallagher square. Our table was literally looking into the square. Loved it. Good food. Service was quick considering how packed it was!

Ahi Tuna Tower
Dan M.

This was a large location that had lots of outdoor seating. They served classics to innovative options. There was a lot to choose from. The service was appreciated as everything came out quickly. The ahi tuna tower was ordered. It had marinated ahi tuna with sticky rice, avocado, sesame seeds, and crispy onions topped with a drizzle of truffle oil. I was nervous the truffle oil would be too overpowering, but that was not the case at all. It appeared very light. The tuna seemed fresh as it was soft to eat and marinated nicely. The sticky rice was a nice touch while the sriracha mayo provided more of a kick then I thought. It was an all-around satisfying dish at a place like this. Will I go back? Probably.

Loaded Tots
Jim E.

Our server Madison was very attentive, food came quickly, flavor was very good, order spinach artichoke dip, Birria tacos, poke bowls, loaded Tots. We were originally seated outside in the sun, asked for a table change out of the sun and they were very accommodating, moving us to the back patio in the shade. Great place to eat on a Saturday evening during Comic Con, no wait at 5pm. Dinner, drinks, apps, tax and tip for 4 came to about $230.00. Great location near Petco park and the convention center. Lots of TVs to catch sports. Highly recommend.

Helena was amazing! We came one a Thursday and was a little slow, however Helena brought the vibes and energy to our slow afternoon! This place has an unbelievable view of the stadium. Has 100s of TVs and great drinks. 16, 22, and 40oz draft beers. Cocktails are very tasty. My wife got a double Lavender Lemon Drop and came out great. Loaded Tater Tots were great, came out fast and hot. 10/10 service, 10/10 food

E Williams ESPN
R R.

Best place to be with friends or just to meet some new friends. make sure you say what's up to Daniel on the mic!

Birria Tacos
Katie N.

It says they have 50+ beers but the menu says otherwise. They have enough taps but I think a lot are still empty. They've only been open 3 weeks but I was sad to see the draft beer selection was really lacking. I thought it was the Social Tap because Yelp still had it listed as it, but it switched to Tom's. The menu is smaller and I came for the salads but was sad to see their options. I had the birria tacos which were good but the sauce was super salty. My husband had the chicken and cornmeal pancakes which were to die for! I would give it another chance as it does seem to have a lot of potential (once they get all their beer in). *They are kid accommodating and have a kid's menu!

Chicken sandwich with loaded tater tots.
Erick M.

Great spot. My friends and I came here before the Padres game. The food was great and the service was great as well. We sat outside but the ambiance was nice. Definitely coming back whenever I go to the Padres games.

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22 days ago

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20 days ago

had a great time w David as our waiter !!! everything was on time, food was good, nothing went wrong. cool ahh dood

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6 months ago

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29 days ago

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1 month ago

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3 months ago

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5 days ago

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26 days ago

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10 months ago

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14 days ago

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9 months ago

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5 months ago

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21 days ago

Great experience, food and good vibes. Shout out to David for the awesome customer service.

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22 days ago

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2 months ago

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10 months ago

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13 days ago

David rips. Best member on the staff fr He sat us outside while others were unwilling

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14 days ago

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14 days ago

Went in today before the padres game and had David as my server he had amazing service and was very friendly and welcoming!

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11 months ago

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15 days ago

Food came out 10 minutes before drinks, waited 15 minutes for a dressing and a plate.

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1 year ago

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25 days ago

Caitlin is such a good server. Really made the experience enjoyable. She was a freaking rockstar!

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14 days ago

David! Best server! Kept the beers coming. Always checking in on us. Definitely will be back

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26 days ago

Food was good and our server, David, was great and very attentive! Great lunch spot before the game.

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1 year ago

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Ask the Community - Tom’s Watch Bar

Good job on the menu pricing for drinks. Does anyone know how much their higher end margaritas are? They have them all listed on the menu but no prices. Thanks!

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Tom’s Watch Bar - cocktailbars - Updated May 2026

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