SAN DIEGO, CA. December 3, 2007 – Zagat Survey today launched its 2008
San Diego Restaurants guide, covering 472 eateries in San Diego County
(plus 460 Orange County and Palm Springs restaurants). The ratings and reviews
are based on the experiences of 2,453 surveyors and the 411,000 meals they ate
out in the past year.
Tim Zagat, CEO and Co-Founder of Zagat Survey said, "We are thrilled to be
back in San Diego and pleased to see how vibrant the dining scene has
become."
And The Winners Are: Sushi Ota
earns the highest rating, a 28 out of 30 for Food, joining the long list of
Japanese restaurants to reach the top spot in cities surveyed by Zagat such as
Sushi Sono in Baltimore, Oishii in Boston,
Makoto in Washington D.C., Kotobuki in Long
Island and Takashi in Salt Lake City. Sushi
Ota also received top survey honors for Food in 2001 and 1996.
WineSellar/Brasserie is the only other San Diego restaurant to
score a 28 for Food this year. George's Ocean Terrace was
deemed Most Popular, A.R. Valentien won for Décor and
Le Fontainebleau for Service.
Top Five Most Popular:
- George's Ocean Terrace (24)
- Pamplemousse Grille (27)
- Prado at Balboa Park (22)
- Sammy's Pizza (21)
- Roppongi (25)
Top Five Newcomers:
- Market Restaurant/Bar (27)
- Phil's BBQ (26)
- Saigon On Fifth (25)
- Blanca (24)
- Blue Coral (24)
"With an influx of celebrity chefs and cutting-edge cuisine concepts," said
Maribeth Mellin, editor of Zagat's San Diego Restaurants guide, "the
once trend-resistant San Diego is well on its way to becoming a world-class
dining city – and with that comes world-class prices."
More Expensive Than Los Angeles: Sixty-eight
percent of surveyors report that they are paying more for their meals than they
were two years ago, while 27% claim the same amount. Not only is the average
cost of a meal ($35.78) in San Diego above the national average ($33.15) – it's
even higher than cities like Los Angeles ($33.29) and Chicago ($33.75).
Interestingly, the average meal cost among the 20 most expensive San Diego
restaurants is in the lower range of $62.33, well below the national average
($71.62).
Top Newcomers: Out of an impressive list of new
restaurants throughout San Diego, Market Restaurant/Bar in Del
Mar was named Top Newcomer, and Phil's BBQ at the Sports Arena
also earned high marks with surveyors. Urban hangout Basic Urban Kitchen
& Bar is also luring East Villagers with its "amazing" thin-crust
pizzas. In a mini-boom of eclectic eateries, other standouts include homestyle
Moroccan Kous Kous, Vietnamese Saigon on Fifth
and New American game haven, Tractor Room. The Gaslamp Quarter
continues to draw San Diego's biggest crowds with new spots like
Bondi, Nicky Rotten's, Nobu
and Quarter Kitchen.
Extreme Makeovers: Some of San Diego's old
favorites are unveiling dramatic design and cuisine overhauls. In La Jolla, the
stately street-level dining room at George's at the Cove is now dubbed
George's California Modern and sports a fresh glass-and-steel
setting. Its upstairs sibling and the city's Most Popular restaurant,
George's Ocean Terrace, received a face-lift post-Survey.
Sky Room in the La Valencia Hotel has also undergone a sleeker,
simpler renovation. Then there's the restaurant formerly known as Azzura
Point, which has been redecorated and now serves Mediterranean cuisine
under the name Mistral.
Eating Green: It's no longer just a fad, as 59%
of surveyors say they are willing "to pay more" for food that is sustainably
raised; 58% for organic food and 69% feel it's important that the food they eat
be locally grown or raised. Reflecting this preference are newcomers such as
Anthology, Blanca, Clay's La
Jolla, Market Restaurant/Bar, Stone World
Bistro & Gardens, as well as JRDN and
NINE-TEN. Even desserts get the organic treatment at
Michele Coulon Dessertier. What surveyors don't like are trans
fats – 71% want them banned from food preparation in restaurants. All of these
findings are consistent with current Zagat surveys in Los Angeles and San
Francisco, and demonstrates a greater West Coast prevalence toward eating green
that is consistently higher than on the East Coast.
Dining Scene in Critical Condition: Rating San
Diego as a whole, surveyors were rather critical, giving the city's Culinary
Creativity a 16 on the Zagat 30-point scale and Choice/Diversity of cuisines an
18. These are among the lowest grades handed out anywhere in the country.
Left Coast Tips Trending Downward: As for
tipping, local diners give an 18.7% average tip – slightly below the 19%
national average – but in line with other West Coast cities such as Los Angeles,
San Francisco and Seattle – all at 18.4%. However, left-coasters are
considerably more frugal with their tips than their eastern counterparts in New
Jersey and Philadelphia who tip an average of 19.2% and 19.4%, respectively.
Like all Zagat Survey guidebooks, the San Diego Restaurants guide is
made by consumers for consumers. In addition to Most Popular and Top Food lists,
the guide also includes such useful categories as Best Buys, Late Dining,
Outdoor Dining, Romantic Places and Singles Scenes. Restaurants are also broken
out by cuisine, location, and dozens of other groupings. The guide, ($13.95),
was edited by Maribeth Mellin, David Nelson, Bill Corsello, as well as Gretchen
Kurz, Angela Pettera, Michelle Golden and Karen Hudes (Orange County and Palm
Springs). It is available at local bookstores and at ZAGAT.com.
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About Zagat Survey,
LLC
Known as the "wildly popular" "burgundy bible", Zagat Survey is
the world's most trusted source for information about where to eat, drink, stay
and play. With more than 300,000 surveyors, Zagat Survey rates and reviews
restaurants, hotels, nightlife, movies, music, golf, shopping and a range of
other entertainment categories and is lauded as the "most up-to-date",
"comprehensive" and "reliable" guide ever published. Zagat content is available
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ZAGAT.mobi. For more information, visit
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