There are a few Karl Strauss locations in San Diego but my favorite is the location on Scranton Rd. in Sorrento Valley.  This place has a cool wooden bridge deck area with fountains and a giant serene coy pond that will calm you down after the most evil day.  They have awesome specials on tap for every taste ranging from a banana scented hefeweissen to dark bitter types that only die hards can stand. 

Your waitress will tell you what’s new, what’s on tap, and will be very knowledgeable to the point where you’ll start rolling your eyes when the waitress has this to say:

“The Belgian Tripel goes beautifully with the beer braised pork dip sandwich because the zesty citrus hop character strikes a flavorful balance between the succulent braised pork loin and creamy horseradish Havarti, while its spicy undertones are accentuated by hints of star anise and ginger.”

“Riiiight.  I’m still getting a beer and a sandwich, right?”

“Uh-huh”

“Ok then”

Beer snootiness aside, the food is great:  they have a nice beer brined chop, a drunken cioppino and their short rib comes in wreck alley stout BBQ sauce.  Tasty.  They also have a selection of gourmet mac n cheese- which I think can never go out of style.

The burgers are made perfectly and the starters are imaginative:

My favorite is the black garlic fondue, which is basically a plate of molten cheese with a whole wedge of cambazola, caramelized onions and roasted black garlic cloves.  It comes drizzled with red trolley ale cream sauce and is served with toasted bread wedges.   And you can order beer, mye, whatever,

The items that are not based on a nice tender piece of roasted marinated meat are covered in cool kinds of melty cheese.  My kind of place.

They have daily lunch specials and they occasionally fry bits of pizza dough in duck fat and serve them with truffle dip.

They used to have desserts but for some reason even serious foodies weren’t crazy about the bitter beer flavored cheesecake with stout sauce and little bits of sharp cheddar inside.  I had this a while ago and I never thought I’d say this but I’d rather stick with something a bit more simple.

Just saying that makes me feel like a failure.

They are also a great way to start your Oktoberfest celebration early, like say in April, or tomorrow morning perhaps.

For your hangover, consider white fungus bird’s nest drink, it’s craptacular.

Karl Strauss Brewery Gardens
9675 Scranton Rd
San Diego, CA 92121
(858) 587-2739
Mon-Wed 11:30 am – 9 pm
Thu-Fri 11:30 am – 10 pm
Sun 10 am – 2 pm