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Bringing out Lakeside's best at Eastbound

“We said, ‘Let’s see if we can make it happen in Lakeside.’” - Image by Chris Woo
“We said, ‘Let’s see if we can make it happen in Lakeside.’”
Place

Eastbound Bar & Grill

10053 Maine Avenue, San Diego

Lakeside. Unless you live there, you probably only know it as that rodeo alcove of tweekers, rednecks, and Klansmen out past Santee. Often the butt of the joke, Lakeside touts a handful of merits that tend to get overlooked in the punchline: picnicking at Lindo Lake Park, fishing at Lake Jennings, and hiking on “El Capitan” — named after the iconic Yosemite attraction that it resembles.

Now you can add quality drinking and dining to the list with Eastbound Bar & Grill, located on the historic Maine Avenue strip of downtown Lakeside. Looking like a sports bar that had a summer fling with a craft-beer joint and gave birth to a family restaurant, Eastbound was started just over three years ago by a trio of friends from El Capitan High School.

Co-owners Marco Rodriguez, Ben Clevenger, and Jason Nichols met playing football during their freshman year, and, a few years later, began tossing around the idea of opening their own bar. Inspired by Nichols’s grandmother’s place, Waterfront Bar (a downtown San Diego landmark that holds the city’s earliest liquor license), the three amigos inaugurated Eastbound in February 2010.

“We said, ‘Let’s see if we can make it happen in Lakeside, because there aren’t really any great spots out here,’” Rodriguez recalls. “People don’t come out to East County for a drink and karaoke, so we wanted to give people an option in this area.”

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The result is a welcoming neighborhood bar with open-air patio ambiance that specializes in award-winning burgers, pizzas, cocktails, and brews. Rodriguez likens it to a chameleon.

“We have everyone from 7 to 70 years old; we have kids coming out of a Little League game with their grandparents. On the weekend, we have brunch. During sporting events, we are a big Chargers bar. We even open up early if people want to come watch the World Cup.”

Accordingly, the bar touts about 16 flat screens and just as many taps focusing largely on local beer selections.

“We like to support local guys,” says Rodriguez, who curates rarities such as Belching Beaver from Vista and boasts Eastbound as the buyer of Helm’s (Kearny Mesa) first keg.

“Lakeside has kind of a negative connotation, but we try to bring out the best in the neighborhood,” Rodriguez says.

Keep an eye out for Eastbound’s new location in La Mesa, which will be opening this summer.

  • Attire: Vivacious vaquero
  • The Deal: Mon., 50-cent wings; Tues., $2 tacos; Wed., $2.50 pizza slice; Thurs., steak, whiskey, and karaoke!
  • Hours: Mon.–Thurs., 10 a.m.–12 a.m.; Fri./Sat., 8 a.m.–1 a.m.; Sun., 8 a.m.–12 a.m.
  • Happy: Mon.–Fri., 3–6, all drafts $4
  • Prices: Domestic drafts, $4; micro drafts, $5
  • Food: Yes
  • Max Cap: 157
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“We said, ‘Let’s see if we can make it happen in Lakeside.’” - Image by Chris Woo
“We said, ‘Let’s see if we can make it happen in Lakeside.’”
Place

Eastbound Bar & Grill

10053 Maine Avenue, San Diego

Lakeside. Unless you live there, you probably only know it as that rodeo alcove of tweekers, rednecks, and Klansmen out past Santee. Often the butt of the joke, Lakeside touts a handful of merits that tend to get overlooked in the punchline: picnicking at Lindo Lake Park, fishing at Lake Jennings, and hiking on “El Capitan” — named after the iconic Yosemite attraction that it resembles.

Now you can add quality drinking and dining to the list with Eastbound Bar & Grill, located on the historic Maine Avenue strip of downtown Lakeside. Looking like a sports bar that had a summer fling with a craft-beer joint and gave birth to a family restaurant, Eastbound was started just over three years ago by a trio of friends from El Capitan High School.

Co-owners Marco Rodriguez, Ben Clevenger, and Jason Nichols met playing football during their freshman year, and, a few years later, began tossing around the idea of opening their own bar. Inspired by Nichols’s grandmother’s place, Waterfront Bar (a downtown San Diego landmark that holds the city’s earliest liquor license), the three amigos inaugurated Eastbound in February 2010.

“We said, ‘Let’s see if we can make it happen in Lakeside, because there aren’t really any great spots out here,’” Rodriguez recalls. “People don’t come out to East County for a drink and karaoke, so we wanted to give people an option in this area.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

The result is a welcoming neighborhood bar with open-air patio ambiance that specializes in award-winning burgers, pizzas, cocktails, and brews. Rodriguez likens it to a chameleon.

“We have everyone from 7 to 70 years old; we have kids coming out of a Little League game with their grandparents. On the weekend, we have brunch. During sporting events, we are a big Chargers bar. We even open up early if people want to come watch the World Cup.”

Accordingly, the bar touts about 16 flat screens and just as many taps focusing largely on local beer selections.

“We like to support local guys,” says Rodriguez, who curates rarities such as Belching Beaver from Vista and boasts Eastbound as the buyer of Helm’s (Kearny Mesa) first keg.

“Lakeside has kind of a negative connotation, but we try to bring out the best in the neighborhood,” Rodriguez says.

Keep an eye out for Eastbound’s new location in La Mesa, which will be opening this summer.

  • Attire: Vivacious vaquero
  • The Deal: Mon., 50-cent wings; Tues., $2 tacos; Wed., $2.50 pizza slice; Thurs., steak, whiskey, and karaoke!
  • Hours: Mon.–Thurs., 10 a.m.–12 a.m.; Fri./Sat., 8 a.m.–1 a.m.; Sun., 8 a.m.–12 a.m.
  • Happy: Mon.–Fri., 3–6, all drafts $4
  • Prices: Domestic drafts, $4; micro drafts, $5
  • Food: Yes
  • Max Cap: 157
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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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