Noble Experiment — Restaurant in San Diego

Probably the best part of my trip to San Diego was the Noble Experiment. Most likely the best Speakeasy I have been to.

TLDR: Amazing Drinks, Amazing Bartenders, Amazing Atmosphere that feels cozy and warm. Highly Recommend.

History First of all, if you do not know what a Speakeasy is let me explain what it is. The origin of Speakeasy comes from the days of prohibition. It was an illegal establishment where unlicensed liquor sales happened. Although there a few origins of the word Speakeasy coming from Australia and Britain in the early 1800s, the word did not show up in America until the late 1800s. It was usually meant to tell the rowdy customers to "speak easy" as to not alert the police or neighbors. It began to take off during the 1920s - 1930s during prohibition. The "classic cocktail" before speakeasys were originally raw liquor drinks. The cocktail as we know it today was created to mask the taste of of the rough moonshine. Today speakeasys are used to describe "retro" style bars of the prohibition days.

The Noble Experiment The Noble Experiment is tucked away in Gas Lamp, in a very unassuming way. The outside has a sign that says Neighborhood, and looking in looks like a very small kitchen with a popcorn maker. Through the kitchen is a small hallway with a wall of kegs at the end, that is the door. Past that is a small room with a dark room with the real name showing in neon lights. Past the curtain is the real bar. Ill let the pictures speak for themselves. It is super dim inside but adorned with exquisite decorations everywhere.

It is pitched as a small bar that you can go in small parties and have intimate conversations with your group. For parties larger than 5 you have to notify them to get approved. When I went there was a large bachelorette party so it was a little louder than I was expecting, but it did not detract from my experience at all.

This spot was recommended to me by my friend and it lived up to the hype! I came down during Crossroads and Twitchcon so the city was pretty packed. This is a great spot to go to when you want to get delicious drinks that are strong (in a good way). I had 2 drinks and felt a nice buzz before going out for the night. The cocktails were delicious and everything that everyone ordered seemed to rave about how great they were. I recommend checking out...

Came here a few months ago in January. This place is really cool, the atmosphere is awesome and the dealer's choice menu is great for when you want to try something new. This place has everything going for it if you want a fun night out for some drinks. Except our experience was ruined by a rude bartender.

For context, I have a tree nut allergy. Usually places are good about asking or making it clear on the menu. I was not really thinking about this because I have never been served a drink with tree nuts in it.

First warning sign, the bartender taking our order seemed agitated. She interrupted us multiple times in a rude manner. Whatever, we order and get our drinks. The bartender says my drink has an almond liquor in it and I'm allergic to tree nuts. No big deal, just make a new drink, right?

Wrong, the bartender gets upset and claims she asked if I had any allergies in a really rude way, as if it was fully my fault. I asked if I can get a new drink, it was just a mistake and I didn't hear her ask. Nope, she says to just switch me and my girlfriend's drinks, which completely defeats the purpose of the whole "describe what you want" part of ordering. Obviously my girlfriend wanted the drink she ordered, and I was going to push back but decided it wasn't worth making a scene over and just switched our drinks. I don't think the customer is always right, but when it comes to an allergy that might be deadly is it worth it to be so rude instead of spending 1 minute remaking a drink?

The drinks were good, but I was upset so my good mood was completely ruined (on our anniversary, by the way). My girlfriend and I both agreed we never hear the bartender ask for any allergies. I listened while she was taking the order of the table next to us, and the same bartender very quickly said "tell me if you have any allergies" then promptly continued her speel. Not yes or no, just an open ended question. Anytime a server asks about allergies it should always be a "yes" or "no" question. This place is kind of loud and it's hard to hear. What if I have bad hearing or wasn't paying attention? Even if it was a mistake on my part, just fix it and move on instead of being a jerk about it?

We finished our drink and left. We originally planned to stay longer but obviously the...

I was so so excited to come here. The atmosphere is so cool. The giant skull wall, Paintings on the ceiling, and wax dripping chandeliers are all stunning. We waited an hour to get in but we didn’t have a reservation so that’s totally understandable. Im surprised we got in at all. We got food at the neighborhood while we waited it was perfect timing and highly recommend. The entrance is so cool. The entire vibe and experience itself is great. I loved how the bartenders came up and asked for drink profiles it felt very intimate and specific to our needs at 1st…it did take 25 plus minutes for them to come over to us and then another 20 plus to get the drinks at least but it was busy so I kinda expected that. I realized after we got the drinks that all of our drinks were just classic cocktails. The drinks were simple but they did taste good. I was a little under whelmed with the cocktails if I’m being completely honest. I am a bartender and I could have made all the drinks we had. They were not unique to the bar, they were classics that anyone can get at any somewhat decent cocktial bar. That being said they did a really good job showcasing the classics, I just was expecting them to have an actual cocktail menu or something that was unique in that regard. Also we hardly had time for 2 rounds before they make you settle up so more people can come in, it felt a little rushed due to it taking so long for them to get our 1st round going. I’m still gonna leave 5 stars because the experience overall was fun and I recommend it. It’s worth it for the...