Ponyboy — Restaurant in San Diego

We had been to this locale's previous iteration several times and loved it at first then later not so much. So I was very excited to read about Ponyboy - my favorite dining decade was the 1970's and I was eager to see how the modern interpretation would be. I was not disappointed!

First, the service, which was excellent. All service was friendly, informative, and prompt. The meal was spaced perfectly - this has been a problem for us at many area restaurants where courses are rushed or long extended periods between. Not here! Everyone was happy to chat and listen to our reminiscing about favorite restaurants in our past.

Next, the ambience. So relaxing and different! Even though we kidded about our pool being bigger, sitting poolside under the lights gave us both inclusion and privacy.

Finally, the food. As others have noted, the Chicken Kiev was fantastic and my favorite dish. Yummy and luscious, and my reheated leftovers were almost as good as the original, including the potato. I am looking forward to returning to have it again. And again. My Banana Daiquiri was fine; it seemed small but had a kick. I enjoyed the Pineapple Fritters; they definitely need to be shared. My husband said his Chiffonade Salad was tasty; he did mention expecting more than one piece of grapefruit in it but I said the dressing likely included grapefruit juice. The Prime Rib was well flavored, but slightly chewy and closer to medium than medium rare. All vegetable sides were perfectly al dente. We shared the Grasshopper Pie for dessert - dense and tasty but I expected perhaps a bit more minty taste. Just a thought - it would be fun to include a shot of Grasshopper cocktail with it!

Our server mentioned that the menu would be changing with the seasons - hope you always have the Chicken Kiev! It might be fun to try the cheese fondue this fall/winter and maybe they'll add a chocolate fondue (hint, hint).

(Note - I posted this same...

Ponyboy is simply amazing on so many levels. From the time you give your car to the valet and are greeted by the hostess, the service is excellent. Our waitress and wait staff were attentive but not overbearing. When my Chicken Kiev was late coming out of the kitchen, our waitress apologized and then gave me a free cocktail (which was not necessary but very much appreciated). . The manager came by to ask us about our experience and to make sure they gave a dessert to my sister who was celebrating her 50th birthday. Again, all of them went beyond what was expected and really strived to make sure our dining experience was excellent.

Every dish we ordered was delicious. We couldn't decide so we had the ambrosia salad (refreshing and the spices on top really made it tasty), the devil eggs (my sister said they were the best) and the fish cerviche (so delicious) as our starters. The kebobs pastor put an interesting spin on vegetables that was creative and so delicious. My sister loved her tuna casserole and I loved the chicken Kiev. Really you could not go wrong with any thing you order at Ponyboy. The grasshoper pie was a wonderful way to top an excellent meal. Both my sister and I declared that Ponyboy was our new favorite restaurant in San Diego. In fact, I loved it some much that I came home and made a reservation to eat there. Thank you Ponyboy for being a wonderful addition to San...

Too long;didn't read: Great food and atmosphere for a great price point.

I was going to say that we were surprised at how good it was but that is actually pretty far from the truth. We knew it would be delicious but even with the high expectations we were very impressed. It feels like fancy eating that is approachable and unassuming. The theme was completely recognizable and distinct while not feeling forced. We were making comments during our meal to eachother about how on the ball our server was as well as the random folks swinging by to refill water cups The water cups were about half the height of a standard cup but even so I don't think I ever made it tot he bottom without someone approaching to refill it. As someone who has worked waitstaff before, that is really impressive! They hit all the waiter "touch points" perfectly and were very personable.

Also, the food was super good. The ambrosia salad was especially memorable and fun with the spicy salts on top.

We had a lot of fun eating there, the lack of loud music was welcome as the general energy around the pool was a nice soundtrack for a meal.

The price point is in a nice spot where it is low enough that it is a place that one could easily be a regular to without having to be too concerned...