Blue Whale — Restaurant in San Diego

I had really high expectations of this place because it seemed to have a beautiful menu and very nice aesthetic as well but totally did not live up to the expectations.

Tres Leches Iced Latte was beautiful. No doubts about that at all. Really good blend of coconut milk, oat milk and almond milk I believe with a bit of cinnamon on top. The barista definitely did a good job here.

Food was very much lacking though. Verde Bowl - It said there would be charred vegetables but that was actually deep fried broccoli rabe. It was actually proper crispy from having been deep, fried and so oily. It took away all the healthy aspects I was expecting from this bowl. Ended up asking the server to just get some plain greens on the side and left that entire broccolini. Really liked the dressing on here though but when added to the bok choy and kale which was kind of soggy since it was cooked together... That texture combination did not work out at all. I'm not sure if the vegetables also were cooked in oil because the dressing didn't seem to stick on the vegetables as much as I was hoping. Did not enjoy this dish at all to be honest.

Chicken teriyaki bowl had the same fried broccolini as the verde Bowl, so that was a little bit of a disappointment here as well. We left out that broccolini and had the rest of the chicken, rice and a bit of shredded vegetables that seem to be there in there. There ended up being more of a chicken and rice dish with that broccolini removed. Definitely appreciate the amount of chicken in here and the sauce was also quite nice, but would have rough to see more nutritious vegetable in here.

I was super excited about the Ube Pancakes, but they didn't live up either. Okay to be fair, the pancakes themselves were absolutely lovely with the perfect fluff factor and perfect flavor and all of it. The whip on top was also really nice but the main issue was the extreme amount of maple syrup that was on the plate. The bottom pancake completely soaked up that syrup and it just made everything so so so sweet! It would have been great if the syrup was just served on the side instead of poured on the dish.

Overall thoughts are that the menu was really nice and they had so much potential but none of the items actually...

Edit 2/22 - came here at 5pm and the kitchen closes at 5pm. They should definitely note this on their website and/or Instagram because I was under the assumption that all services would be available up until their 6pm closing time.

Original review:

Came up to La Jolla on a Saturday afternoon specifically for this place. I'd been wanting to try it since it opened because the menu and photos looked bomb.

There was plenty of street parking within a 1-2 block radius. Blue Whale was super busy with a line out the door, but it moved quickly. There were no available tables inside or on the patio/sidewalk, so I opted for to-go. One of the bar stools became available while I waited for my order so I did end up eating there. I noticed that they turned tables pretty quickly because 2-3 became available during my visit. I deducted a star for the atmosphere just because the inside is pretty small/intimate and with how busy it was, it got a little chaotic.

I got the teriyaki bowl and added chicken. It was sooo good. I was afraid that the chicken would be dry, but it was nice and juicy. It had good flavor to it as well. The charred broccolini was seasoned and added a really nice, crisp texture to the dish. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I would love this bowl with shrimp--I hope they consider adding that to the protein options in the future.

I will definitely come back again, but on a weekday when it'll be less busy. I can't wait to try more of the menu, especially the...

My boyfriend and I were excited to try this place, but the service left us feeling uncomfortable and disrespected.

When we walked in the staff member at the counter didn’t greet us. She just stared silently and looked unhappy to be there, but that’s okay really. I said hi, but still got no response, which was awkward. I ordered my dish, and while my boyfriend was mid-sentence giving his order, she interrupted him, handed him a table number without explanation, and said “here take this.”

We tried to add drinks but before we could, she turned around to chat with her coworker and ignored us completely. I said “excuse me” twice & no response. So we didn’t add drinks we just paid which was ridiculous. I decided I’d walk back up & let her know that we didn’t appreciate how dismissive and rude the service was, she just said “uh okay” & rolled her eyes. No apology. Not surprised. I phrased it in a kind way because we all have bad days, but customers and people in general don’t deserve that.

As customers, we don’t expect over the top friendliness, but basic courtesy is the bare minimum. Hoping the management sees this and addresses the service since no one should feel like a burden just for placing an order.

Needless to say we won’t be back. The food was good but not worth that experience. I recommend...