Don Bravo — Restaurant in San Diego

Don Bravo Grill and Cantina in the Birdrock neighborhood serves my favorite traditional Baja-style fish taco in San Diego. I know this because I've had a gazillion others this year leading up to my #SummerOfTastyTacos.

Here are a few things that make this godly fried fish taco one of the very best you can buy in America:

The flaky piece of mild white fish they use is both gigantic and delicious Fried in canola oil, the fish's beer-batter is dark, thick, and crunchy, like the kind you'd expect at a "fish and chips" shop in London. It is distinctly superior to any other rendered batter I've had in the region The ratio of toppings-to-fish was perfect. Here, toppings include red cabbage, white cabbage, a rich and creamy white sauce, tomatoes, onions, and cilantro. The corn tortilla, while not made in-house, was sweet, thick, somewhat pleasant, and was not distractingly bad like so many others leveraged in other fish tacos around town. By the way, not too many places are making their own tortillas for their fish tacos in San Diego, so it's difficult to hold that against Don Bravo.

My biggest complaint? Although the chipotle salsa at the salsa bar had great flavor, I would need to pour a tub of it onto my taco to feel any heat. Don Bravo boasts that they replace their salsas each shift with freshly-made salsas.

This restaurant is named for the Bravo clan, a family who have been operating restaurants south of the border since 1980. During my visit, a frenetic group of tourists had manic, out-of-control children spilling food everywhere, literally dumping it on the floor while laughing, requiring extensive clean-up on two occasions. The restaurant could not have been more gracious as they dealt with these horrible people without a hint of aggravation. I'm a father of a 3-year-old, and if my daughter ever behaved like these kids were allowed to in public, I'd be appalled and embarrassed, and I'd expect the restaurant to kick me out, not clean my mess up with a smile and an "aw shucks, kids will be kids" attitude.

When I think Baja fish tacos, I think of how lucky we are to have so many great options in San Diego, as it is one of the few style of tacos that San Diego does better than Los Angeles. Oscar's. Mariscos German. Mariscos El Pescador. Mariscos Nine Seas/Ocean 97. TJ Oyster Bar. Las Olas. Death by Tequila. Brigantine. Kiko's. Galaxy Taco. El Zarape. Mariscos Alex. Lola 55. Mariscos y Frutas Kyrios. Mitch's. Tahona Bar. Puesto. South Beach Bar & Grill. Taco Nazo. Tacos la Bufadora. Guerilla Taco. Petty Cash Taqueria. Ricky's Fish Tacos. Go ahead, tell me who you think makes a better traditional Baja fish taco than Don Bravo Grill and Cantina, and I'll tell you why...

I grasped the bar running above the steps in the La Jolla Cave as I slowly made my ascent. I had to catch my breath. How old am I? Will these steps ever end? Where does a man get good fish tacos?

Two of those questions were answered as I bested the staircase and entered the odd gift shop still panting. Yet, it was that third question that overtook me.

Like Bruce Banner becoming the Incredible Hulk, my Hanger level dialed up to 11, and it was fish Taco Time.

I decided to have a little throwback moment. You know, I wanted to hearken back to days of old, the days before technology, the days before....Yelp. Yes. I said it. I wanted to drive down a road and find a restaurant.

I felt like Luke Skywalker turning off his targeting computer. Like Peter Parker taking off his glasses the morning after his bite altered his D.N.A. Like a modern day Columbus, striking out in uncharted territory for the wealth of spices and flavors sought after by the known world.

I saw the sign, Don Bravo, and I knew: I found it.

The bell swung back and forth as I bravely waltzed through the entrance. It was 3:00pm, there were a few customers eating the last bites of their food, and the kitchen staff eagerly waiters behind the counter for my next move. A match made in heaven.

I survey the menu, but my eyes are drawn to the one thing I came there for. I stepped up the counter, head held high, chest puffed out. "4 fish tacos please, and an order of chips to start."

I was a conquistador claiming his spoils. I sat down at a table and posted my proverbial colors. My time was now. My table bore my name. My travels were not in vain.

The salsa selection prompted me to try each of their offerings, and I was pleasantly surprised at their flavors and heat. Within a couple minutes, I had a tray with my tacos on my island of a table, and ready to be enjoyed.

Sweet, sweet, sweet victory. The chopped cabbage and perfectly breaded fish were nestled in a warm corn tortilla. It was to perfection. If Magellan had only discovered fish tacos, he may have ended his travels prematurely.

The price was fair, the service friendly, and the atmosphere humble. I felt that I was in a coast town taco shop.

Yet for those few minutes, I had conquered my apetite in a tour De force a la fish tacos. With neither stars above or Yelp below to guide me, I happened upon Don Bravo. And it was there I found joy in...

I've dined in Mexican restaurants from the US , Mexico and other countries across the world , even Bolivia ! Hundreds of them , worldwide. In my opinion the US has excellent Mexican restaurants , many far exceed the quality of many places in Mexico. Don Bravo in Birdrock ,la Jolla rates way down the ladder on the way to the bottom. The salsa bar is decent , mild tomato, green tomatillo , chipotle and a habanero. The usual. Monday Dec 9 I went for the second time in months thinking things might have changed and perhaps the management had realized their sub-standard quality. In many restaurants quite often I order a side of frijoles with corn tortillas. Cheap but satisfying with salsas . This place jacked the price of 10¢ worth of beans from 4 bucks to 7.50. Really ? The audacity.! So I ordered the vege burrito with a whole wheat tortilla . It arrived looking like it had been assembled by a chimpanzee. On the menu board it said it included beans , rice , avocado, cheese and sour cream. Black beans were the only thing I could locate. Normally burritos come wrapped in foil or at least a paper wrap to keep it intact . Not here . Too cheap and besides , foil costs money. Let the mess fall apart in your hands and land on your plate in the first bite. Who cares. Not them. This thing only consisted of beans and a tiny trace amount of cheese. Complete and utter theft of customers money and trust. The guy at the counter was a " it is what it is " type with a could care less ,mildly gruff demeanor. I searched the so called burrito from top to bottom and it was pathetic. 11.50 gone , never to be seen again. Greasy rice on others plates appeared in squirrel amounts . Stay clear ! There are so many much better places to give your money to . Yeah la Jolla is expensive and inflation is rampant worldwide but this place is not getting...