Water Grill San Diego — Restaurant in San Diego

Celebrated my birthday at Water Grill San Diego. This upscale restaurant is conveniently located a couple blocks away from Petco Park. Street parking is tricky and limited but you can park vehicles at pay parking lots. We got lucky and found street parking. There were only a handful of tables filled when we walked in around 5:15pm. We were seated immediately even though our reservation was at 5:30pm and two people in our group have not yet arrived. The dinner crowd filled the restaurant after 5:30pm. Glad we had reservation. We ordered one clam chowder to split into two bowls to share. The free freshly baked sour dough rolls with sea salt were warm with slightly crunch top and bottom. The homemade butter was creamy and light.

We ordered these appetizers:Wild Spanish grilled octopus, charcoal grilled with finger sized potatoes, pine nuts, roasted tomatoes, lemon and olive. This was our favorite. Octopus was grilled to perfection with massive Unami flavor, tender, moist with delightful , melt in your mouth texture. I would come back for this dish alone. Clam chowder was creamy and tasty and we mopped up the soup with sour dough bread rolls. We had the oyster sampler which included oyster varieties from Eastern James River (Chesapeake Bay, VA); Misty Point (Pope’s Bay, VA); Wellfleet ( Wellfleet, MA); Kumamoto (San Ignacio Bay, MX); Malaspina (Malaspina Strait, BC) and Eld Inlet (Rld Inlet, WA). Oysters were creamy and fresh and chilled at right temperature. Selection of the four sauces were good.For side dishes, we had baked Mac and Cheese which supposedly had 7 cheese sauce, but we found it bland and the melted cheese covered only the top barely. Definitely a “miss”.We brought this to our waiter’s attention and he took the dish off of our bill and said he’d let the chef know. We also ordered the toasted Brussels sprouts with bacon and chestnuts and maple roasted carrots with feta mousse and Marcona almonds and our group liked these. For entrees, I had the pan seared halibut with spring peas, fingerlings with braised leeks and lemony veloute. Halibut, a generous portion, was slightly overcooked by 1 or 2 minutes and has a firm texture and paired well with the spring peas and braised leeks. Waitstaff poured lemony sauce on the plate around the seared halibut at our table.I enjoyed the dish but not sure it’s worth $52. Table mates had charcoal grilled whole fish, Black Sea bass, 1-1/2 pounds at $42 per pound. Since part of the weight of the whole fish came from the fish head and my friend didn’t eat the fish head so he should not have ordered a whole fish. Lesson learned. Other entree was wild Alaskan black cod with seared eggplants, shishito pepper and red miso sauce. The fish was decent portion for one, tender flakes and moist. Another person had the Chilean sea bass with butternut squash gnocchi, sage brown butter. Fish was cooked very well. Very solid piece of fish, very juicy but not overly oily. Gnocchi had great flavor but was very rich. Carrots were smoky with a hint of sweet maple flavor. Final entree was wild jumbo shrimp Louie salad with deviled eggs, bacon and traditional ingredients which was a messy, deconstructed shrimp salad and at a cost of $33, this dish was a huge disappointment. We encourage the owners/management to remove this salad from the dinner menu. After dinner, waitstaff brought out a piece of the caramel bread pudding with a lighted candle, on the house, to help celebrate my birthday which completed my BD experience in an upscale seafood restaurant. Note: restaurant does not have corkage so bring your favorite bottles to enhance the overall dining experience. Restaurant is located in the heart of downtown in a prime location. The down side of the East Village is that it is increasingly becoming a homeless tent city that stretched over few blocks and pedestrians have no access to the walk way. Water Grill offers lot of dining options to choose from crab, lobster,shrimp, fish, oysters, mussels, steak, salad and even cheeseburgers, great ambiance and able waitstaff...

We went to Water Grill for dinner this past Thursday. This was our second visit. We had 6 PM reservations and were seated immediately. Our waiter, Shaun, was absolutely wonderful and quite cheerful and happy.

We placed our order - I ordered the organic mixed greens salad and shrimp scampi and my husband ordered the Chilean sea bass on creamed cauliflower. While we waited for our food, we were brought some fresh baked bread with butter. The bread was absolutely delicious. It tasted like it has butter and light parmesan cheese on top. The crust was fabulously tender-crisp while the inside was soft and airy. The flavor was out of this world, soooo delicious! My salad was also brought quickly. The golden balsamic dressing has a delightful flavor.

Our entrees came and the presentation was every bit as wonderful as the flavor! My shrimp scampi had about ten large shrimp with the papardelle pasta and had a delicious lemon and butter flavor. Positively divine! My husband's sea bass was a huge portion. He loved the taste and had plenty for another meal. We also ordered the chocolate mocha ganache cake (something like that). It is small,but ohhhhh so mighty! Outstandingly rich and sweet, but not the least bit sickeningly sweet. I had one bite and it was like heaven. I highly recommend this calorie splurge.

We did not order drinks so I cannot speak on the bar however, I suspect the quality is top-notch, right in line with the food.

Shaun was fantastic, the food was superb, and the customer service was second to none.

I highly recommend Water Grill. It should be on everyone's culinary bucket list. ♡

UPDATE: 3.24.22 - We went to Water Grill yesterday for dinner. We were seated and given the menus and decided quickly on what we wanted. Our waiter was Bryan. We placed our orders - my husband ordered his "usual" sea bass and mixed it up with the organic greens salad and, channeling my inner six-year-old, macaroni and cheese. This is the most grown up version of macaroni and cheese I have ever had. It has hollow, spiral noodles with a ton of ooey, gooey cheese.

When we received our food, we were both impressed. The sea bass was an incredibly generous portion and the macaroni and cheese was enough for a family! The food was delicious and prepared to perfection. We have been to Water Grill many times and I feel this was the best experience thus far.

We have plenty of leftovers and were delighted with our service. Bryan is incredibly attentive without being hovering or annoying. He took very good care of us. Ask for his section when you go, I promise you will not regret it!

Again, a fantastic experience and highly...

I recently dined at Water Grill in San Diego for dinner and had a mixed experience overall. The appetizers, including the calamari and beets salad, were delightful and left a positive impression.

The fried calamari was a standout. Crispy and perfectly seasoned, each bite provided a satisfying crunch and a burst of flavor. It was an excellent start to the meal, and I would highly recommend it to anyone visiting Water Grill. The beets salad was also delicious, offering a refreshing combination of earthy beets, vibrant greens, and a well-balanced dressing.

However, my experience took a slight downturn with the shrimp scampi, which was my chosen entree. While the flavors were acceptable, I was disappointed by the quality of the shrimp. They had an unpleasant smell that detracted from the overall enjoyment of the dish. It was unfortunate considering the high expectations I had based on the appetizers.

In terms of service, I found it to be decent. The staff was attentive and responsive, ensuring that our needs were met throughout the evening. However, I felt that the service lacked the personal touch that can make a dining experience truly exceptional.

Despite the mixed experience, Water Grill in San Diego offers an inviting and upscale atmosphere that sets the stage for an enjoyable evening. The restaurant's elegant decor and comfortable seating create a pleasant ambiance for guests to relax and enjoy their meal.

If you decide to visit Water Grill, I would recommend trying their delicious appetizers, particularly the fried calamari. However, I would exercise caution when it comes to the shrimp dishes, as my experience with the shrimp scampi was not as favorable.

Ultimately, the overall experience at Water Grill in San Diego was a bit of a mixed bag. While the appetizers shined, the quality of the shrimp and the lackluster service left something to be desired. It might be worth exploring other dining options in the area for a more consistent and...