The Duck Dive — Restaurant in San Diego

I have both good and bad memories of this town. I used to call it “PB”, now I say it’s full name “Pacific Beach” as if to think it’s initials have some connotation I’m trying to avoid.

My previous experiences were the heat of day in the summer on a weekend or looking for a place to park your butt for a while and sort of day drink all day in the spring. They have drastically improved their drinks menu over the years from mostly beer and drinks to making some legit cocktails. I’d never eaten here until recently and I was seriously impressed. I don’t normally eat at dive bars, but really it’s just in the name, it’s really a beach bar. The décor is still holding strong with booths, tables, a small covered patio with a good vibe.

The staff is pretty excellent. Industry friendly, attentive staff, aware security. They are cranking drinks with 6 wells a dozen beers on tap, cans/bottles and a solid back bar. I’ve never been a fan of the duck under bar top, but their bar chairs are pretty comfortable and they have that old school lip, good height. Bathrooms are surprisingly not trashed like most placed pushing this much volume.

Thought they fly, I consider Ducks aquatic and even though it has dive in the name I was not opposed to getting the oysters here. The accouterments came a little late, but these were fresh and quite large. Mild brine and subtle sweetness, perfectly shucked. Spinach dip was good, but a little on the runny side, hot sauce was a must here. The poke probably could have been fresher, but we mainly got it for the avocado and the wonton chips which imo work better than tortilla chips for the spinach dip.. The poke lacked sesame seed oil, heat and was plated like beef tartar. Wings were large and cooked perfectly, the sauce again was a little runny, ranch not bleu cheese and not much vinegar tang. Happy Hour pricing is legit.

Our shots came fast and steady, my tropical beer was refreshing, my cocktails were balanced and not over diluted despite the ice being not my preferred kold-draft.

I think it’s a great place to come and make it your own, carpool with some friends because parking is crap and once your down here you should walk or uber around until you’re ready to leave. I always get a Duck Fart here as an ode to my historical love of Deadliest catch. Brunches go off because there are a lot of basic people still living that PB life and not living in...

When Captain James Cook sailed his vessel the HMS Endeavor to Tahiti he discovered the native Polynesian people doing something he’d never seen before. They called it “heʻe ʻana” or “surfing” as we know it today.

Just like the Tahiti that James Cook experienced in the 1700’s, today Pacific Beach California is also known for its sense of community, its great people, great waves, and most importantly its great restaurants. Duck Dive on the corner of Emerald Street and Mission Boulevard is one of those great restaurants. The popular all-day brunch and to-go drinks are just two of many reasons to stop by this establishment named after a move used by surfers to dive under breaking waves.

The friendly staff practiced social distancing while wearing masks and gloves when I placed my take-out order of a DD burger and fries. The place looked really cool inside and the ceiling architecture captivated my full attention. It looked like numerous wooden curved spines shaped by someone who might have shaped a few surfboards as well. I could totally see myself enjoying a beer, the ocean breeze, and a padre’s game in this place with the centralized bar and TV’s.

The wait was totally worth it when I took the first bite of my DD burger. I cannot explain how the different flavor combinations complimented each other, nor will I try. But, one thing I will explain is how juicy and flavorful the hamburger patty was. The meat must have been held together with some sort of magic defying the laws of both physics and chemistry. In my mouth it basically disintegrated into a heavenly mixture of ingredients like nothing I have ever eaten before. Then there was the bun which I will not describe because I am not a fan of spoilers and I want everyone to enjoy it themselves.

So, if you find yourself in Pacific Beach, then try out Duck Dive. In these tumultuous times we are living in, it is nice to have a place like this who’s staff takes social distancing and cleanliness seriously. Plus the...

There are no words strong enough to say how disappointed I was in this place. Tonight my father, who is visiting from out of town wanted to visit this spot for the 1st Nebraska football game of the season. He found the place online & was so excited about it. From the moment we walked in we were met with rude & unhelpful staff. we were told we could sit outside or at the bar. There was one option for outside but no tv was visible, so we sat at the bar. After sitting down, a male bartender starting telling us we’d have to stand because that spot was reserved, despite there being no sign or indication of it being reserved. As he was speaking, he THEN pulled out a “Reserved” placard and slammed it on the bar in front of us…absolutely disrespectful & uncalled for. My father & I said alright and went to look again for different seating, however 95% of the seating was “Reserved” despite being completely empty and us arriving 2 hours before game start time. As we got up from the bar, the same disrespectful bartender said, “that’s how reservations work”…again so uncalled for. He continued mumbling under his breath & rolling his eyes. There is no issues with reservations, we’ve all been on this earth long enough to understand how reservations work…but say that. The reserved sign should have already been there. We should have never been told to “sit where we’d like” just to be berated for doing just that. Please understand, if you are a Cornhuskers fan through & through, this place is NOT for you. It’s for locals and the smug employees . This place is not about community or customer service. The male bartender is the epitome of hateful & will do nothing but tank this establishment. He needs to learn how to speak to people & I truly hope one day he gets what’s coming to him. Extremely disheartening experience & I wish the staff would have...