Stout, San Diego

I've gotta hand it to San Diego- for a food lover, there's no place quite like it. For someone equally enthusiastic about spirits, it's unbeatable. Before this I thought myself an expert on culinary variety, and I'm sure there are places even more rampant with speakeasies, pubs, saloons as well as hole in the wall joints and white collar silver settings, but until I go to that place I'm content staying right here. Stout is a fantastic pub in the Downtown district that's large enough to accommodate a party of any size, and still dark enough to make you feel a little bit dirty and ready for a beer. Seemingly filled with hockey fanatics, they offer a wide span of sports offerings across countless HD TV's, but this doesn't strike me as a typical sports bar. Stout remains first and foremost an Irish pub, and one of the most popular across-the-pond experiences for San Diegans.



Typical Irish fare is served, along with some bar requisites like burgers and buffalo wings. However, how can you waste a pub opportunity by not getting a Reuben? With a Smithwick's in one hand, my eye on the Penguins, and a mouth filled with sauerkraut, there are few places I find myself as happy, or as full. Recommended for meatheads, hooligans, and drunks alike!

Stout Public House
1125 6th Avenue
San Diego, CA 92101
(619) 702-7933

Brunch, pub style

We've been surprisingly lax with our brunch outings in the past few months- with visitors, making breakfast, or just being out of town, there have been serious breaks without our weekly outing! However, this week we planned ahead and FINALLY made it to Shakespeare's Pub and Grille at 3701 India Street, at the bottom of the hill on Washington where India dead ends. We had stopped by for drinks once with some friends previously, and the food looked incredible. It looked better than the food I had while IN England! They offer first-class authentic fare at reasonable prices, and their spirit selection is exactly what you would hope for in an authentic English pub. The restaurant layout is eccentric, twisted, and totally perfect. Outdoor seating for brunch, indoor seating for soccer hooligans, and a cramped, dark bar perfect for a pint. Since it was a perfect San Diego morning, we took advantage of the near-empty patio overlooking the airport and watched the planes go by while awaiting what promised to be a gut-sagging brunch experience.

My bloody mary was perfect. Their "secret spicy" mix was a delight, and for $5 it was large, cool, refreshing, and the perfect companion to my Full English Breakfast. Their brunch menu is basically 3 options, so don't go if you aren't in the mood for either a Full English Breakfast, Omlette, or Small English Breakfast. They also have a few side options, but as far as the English Breakfast goes I can't imagine a better one in San Diego. It comes with 2 eggs your choice, English bacon, sausage, black and white pudding, potato pancakes, button mushrooms, and a generous portion of baked beans with a few tomato slices as garnishes. HB Sauce topped everything off nicely, and everything was bland enough to be authentic, but tasty enough to gobble down and enjoy heartily. I am anxious to go back and enjoy some of the dinner dishes available! Fish n' Chips, Shepherd's Pie, Steak and Kidney Pie, Bangers n' Mash, Scotch Eggs... prepare to be stuffed, jolly, and full of Guinness!