Anthony's Fish Grotto — Restaurant in La Mesa

I was so excited to try this place because friends had talked it up and it had great reviews, but our experience was completely different. The reviews rave about the service - I haven't had service this bad in years. My friend and I went Saturday night for dinner. We were told it was a 15 minute wait (not bad at all for Saturday at 7pm), so we asked if we could sit at the bar and have a drink while we wait. The bartender was completely rude, didn't smile once and practically threw our drinks at us. We brushed it off and thought maybe he was having a bad night. Then host came over to show us to our table and while pulling out a $20 bill to close out with the bartender, started rushing us and said that one of us had to come with him to the table immediately while the other one stayed and cashed out. He couldn't wait 10 seconds for us to give the guy cash? So my friend stayed and payed while I hopped up and felt like I had to run to the table with the host. He didn't say two words to me on the way to the table or when I sat down - not even a "you're welcome" when I said thank you for the table. 15 minutes later our waitress finally came to the table, didn't introduce herself and said went straight into taking our orders. Okay, fine. It's Saturday, I'm thinking she's probably tired and has been busy all night. My friend ordered the "fresh wild caught" ono which came out deep battered and tasted like something you would get at the fair. I ordered the shrimp pasta primavera; the shrimp tasted like it was frozen from a bag and the pasta was overcooked. We ordered chowder and coconut shrimp as an appetizer which were both good, so I was surprised how bad the entrees were. While having dinner, our waitress never once came to check on us, ask how the dinner was, or even refill our waters. We finally were able to flag down a bus boy to get some water. At this point we've been here for an hour and 45 minutes and haven't seen our waitress since we ordered, so we flagged down another waitress and asked for the check. Another 15 minutes goes by and we finally got the check from our waitress and left. To top it all off, we both got food poisoning immediately after diner and took 2 days to recover. Hopefully this was an off night for them, but I could never recommend this place...

Updated review 8/6/25 I went to lunch at Anthony's Fish Grotto today. I asked the server how the salmon reuben was and she said it was really good. Then I asked about the crab/macaroni salad and she said it's macaroni salad with imitation crab in it, and it's pretty good. All I can say is what a let down and what a rip-off. I paid $19 for a little sandwich on a small piece of roll. Like smaller than a roll you would get for a 6 inch Subway sandwich, with a micro thin piece of salmon that was barely a quarter of an inch thick that was super dry, with the sauerkraut, house dressing and swiss cheese. For $19 you think you'd get a nice piece of salmon, but no. Now let's talk about the crab macaroni salad. It was basically tasted like overdressed store bought macaroni salad that had 3 little pieces of imitation crab in it. At least, that's all I could dig out and maybe 3 little tiny olives that was also a total rip-off. They didn't even try to elevate it. It was horrible. I was so disappointed in my meal, but I didn't make a scene or say anything because of the person we were there to celebrate. The portion of salmon you get at California Fish Grill on their new $10 menu is at least twice the size of what I was served here. This is the third time I've been to Anthony's in the past 6 months because other people chose it It has been disappointing every single time. I should have just ordered the fried calamari appetizer (which was great the last time I was here) and called it a day. I did leave a fairly large tip because our server, I think her name was Anastasia (or something like that) and Alec, our bus person, were awesome and did a great job.

Went to Anthony's in La Mesa for lunch for the first time. The calamari appetizer was fantastic and was everyones favorite. I had a cup of New England clam chowder, my friend had it in a bread bowl. And my sister had the tuna melt. All were...

This place is a hidden gem! I must've driven past it a thousand times or more since I've been living in San Diego for the past 16 years and I never knew it was there. Finding it almost feels like I got let in on a secret that I don't want to tell too many people about, but here I am, telling everyone who will stumble across this review. Going here felt like I was transported to a bygone Era. It had this mid century to 1970s ambiance and a freakin' lake out back with ducks, geese and even some exotic birds! They even sell duck food for a dollar. I'm coming back with my daughter! So if weather permits, definitely dine outdoors. Our fellow diners were almost exclusively made up of the retired set, which seems to be the population to which this establishment caters, which is why they have early relatively early closing hours. Because when you eat dinner at 5, who needs to be open past 8:30? LOL. But the seasoned clientele were all part of the charm for me. The service was great, our server RJ, took great care of us and even gave us the history on the joint. By the looks of it, it may have been decades since the place underwent a remodel, but that's preferred, because I think it's a draw for its kitschy charm. Don't you go changing for anyone, Anthony's! It did concern me that perhaps the food would not be up to snuff, but I was wrong about that. I had the ceviche and also the pasta with clams and they were fresh and delicious, and even somewhat innovative. Specifically, the ceviche was served in a "chalupa-like" taco that is hard to fully describe, but it was truly sublime. Beats chasing a pieces of marinated fish around the plate with a chip! I enjoyed all this along with a cocktail and a wine flight, all for pretty reasonable prices, though not cheap. But hey, good food ain't cheap and cheap food ain't good, right? Wholly recommend this place. But let's keep this place our...