Cocina De Barrio - Point Loma — Restaurant in San Diego

This place was beautiful. There is indoor and outdoor seating but since we came on 3/6/2024 it was very rainy so we sat inside. My family loves coming here every birthday or father’s day because the food so so delicious and well presented. Every time I eat there I make a joke to my family that the plating on these dishes is so beautiful, it could be on masterchef. They have a good deal of vegetarian/vegan options. Which I’m always excited for as a vegetarian. But the vegan dishes are so good- one of my moms favorite dishes is vegetarian, even though she eats meat. She says she could easily be vegetarian if she only ate from this restaurant. The severs were super on top of everything and were so amazing and awesome. I’m an anxious person, so sometimes when I order I’ll end up speaking a bit too quiet- But the server we had picked up on every thing I said and never even had to ask me to repeat my quietly said orders. Then, later on the same server asked if I needed a box and I said yes. Then after they left, I realized I may also want a small container for my sauce, but I didn’t want to trouble them for it and I was getting stressed out even thinking about asking for more boxes after they already had grabbed them and making him go all the way back to get more. But, when he got to the table- he had brought me a small container for my sauce! It’s like he read my mind! It reminded me of in the TV show The Bear when one of the main characters does a short apprenticeship at a super fancy michelin star level restaurant, and he’s learning all the things they do there. One of the things he learned was to find out what the client wanted before they even did. For example, he overheard them saying how they were sad they wouldn’t get to try deep dish pizza while in new york- so the guy has to run down the street, pick up a pizza, re-plate the pizza so it looks all nice, then he brought it to the table and they were all so happy- saying,”You did not!!! You read our minds thank you so much!” That was a bit long winded of an explanation but in that moment where he got me an extra box, I felt like the ladies in that show, he read my mind and gave me exactly what I needed without me even having to ask. Thank you for the wonderful experience, I know for sure you’ll be seeing my family...

Not sure what i walked into. I had no preconceived notions on this place before walking in. Decor was decidedly not Barrio, but whatever. Lots of tequilas on offering with flights available...but aren't flights of tequilas just a shot glass. Was surprised to see a selection of Mexican IPAs that I have never tried, I asked about a flight of these but none was available. No way to drink 4 full pint IPAs so I tried 2.

The menu was something I've never seen before. Certainly not barrio again, more regional to a geographic location but intriguing still. I selected the [Tiraditos de Salmon] that had in its description [pickled strawberries]-took a pic but cant attach. I've never tried pickled strawberries before and it seemed like a good blend with the other ingredients so I chose this. The delivery was as described except the strawberries were just sliced fresh and not pickled. I made the server aware of the difference in what was ordered and what was received based on their menu description and was given a shrug and it was basically ignored.

Continuing on the salmon dish, it has 5 ingredients but it comes with a 6th-sliced radish. Probably 2 radishes in the dish freshly cut. The chefs couldn't be bothered to remove the heel of the radish that was filled with dirt and slightly rotten-took a pic but cant attach.

I opted for a different starter as my main dish because I didn't find anything that stood out. My partner had the birria tacos that were a bit dry. I was surprised that nothing is offered with the dishes as a salsa, sauce, salt or pepper. Your table contains only what the server brings you, nothing...

The culmination of a wonderful holiday week in San Diego was a New Year's Day brunch at the Point Loma location of Cocina De Barrio.

There's a lot going for this spot. The food was delicious and the interior of the restaurant was obviously created with care and attention to detail. We ordered chilaquiles (both verde and rojos) as well as an omelet. The food came out fast, and everyone enjoyed their meals. I've had amazing chilaquiles before, and something kept this one from achieving that "amazing" characterized IMO. But it was great.

Service-wise: the place was barely 60% occupied yet we were told (with no one else waiting) that we would need to wait for a table unless we sat on the patio. It was a bit chilly so we opted to wait, and while we were told it could be 30 minutes, we were sat in just 5 min. We were told the patio had no heating, but as we walked by it, there were clearly space heaters there - just not offered to us.

We waited at least 15 min for our server to appear, after which he apologized. From that point on, absolutely no issues with service.

The price point was excellent. All three of us ate for about $30/piece, although we didn't have alcohol after a long New Year's night celebration last night. 🤪 🍾

I'd recommend this place, and I'd come back. But I probably would try a non-holiday weekend and might even give the San Diego location a try. The vibe here was pleasant but not a live as I expected for...