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Lunch at Nine-Ten

Perfect pit stop in La Jolla

BBQ Pork, with addictive, steal-able fries.
BBQ Pork, with addictive, steal-able fries.
Place

Nine-Ten

910 Prospect Street, San Diego

When I’m in La Jolla, most often to gawk at the seals or check out the latest installation at the Museum of Contemporary Art, my number one go-to spot for lunch is Nine-Ten, located at the historic Grande Colonial Hotel (which first opened in 1913).

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The three-course lunch for $24 may cater to busy professionals, but when I find myself exploring La Jolla, I’m never in a hurry. The first thing I do is settle in with a glass of rosé. On my most recent visit, my sister Heather was with me, as we had spent the morning sea-horsing around at the Birch Aquarium.

Silky smooth, savory soup

We both began with a silky soup, which on this particular day was a red-pepper blend with pancetta.

Sumptuous short rib panini

For my main course, I got the Short Rib Panini, and skipped the fries in favor of a simple green salad, mostly because I’d had this sandwich before, and I knew the succulent beef braised in port wine, aged cheddar, and onion marmalade would more than satisfy my craving for richness. Plus, dessert had already been decided the moment we opted for the 3-course lunch. Unfortunately, the salad was not on par with the rest of our meal — it was one-dimensional, just greens and a flavorless vinaigrette. I would have appreciated a tomato, olive, or any other kind of addition.

Molten Lava—I mean, Half-baked chocolate cake.

Heather ordered the same thing David often does — the BBQ Pork Sandwich, a hickory-smoked pulled pork Kansas City-style concoction with crispy onions and poppy seed coleslaw on a housemade bun. I was happy when she deemed there to be too much pork for her bread-to-meat ratio, because I enjoyed the tender, sweet and savory balance of the scraps she shared with me. Oh, and I also might have stolen one or two, or five of those fries.

For dessert, I ordered the Half-Baked Chocolate Cake, which was pleasantly submerged in caramel sauce and topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Sure, some might say molten lava is so 2005, but I think there’s always a place on a dessert menu for a bit of gooey chocolate, whatever the year. And this version, with its hot center, salty caramel, and cold, creamy vanilla, is a lovely incarnation of the classic dish.

Cheesecake... sort of.

My sis ordered a deconstructed cheesecake, with the crust in the form of a cookie on top. It was flavorful for sure, but the cookie ended up being awkward to eat, and we agreed we would have preferred it maybe crumbled on top.

Overall, my lunches at Nine-Ten are always relaxing and pleasurable. And that’s enough to keep me looking for new reasons to day trip in La Jolla.

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BBQ Pork, with addictive, steal-able fries.
BBQ Pork, with addictive, steal-able fries.
Place

Nine-Ten

910 Prospect Street, San Diego

When I’m in La Jolla, most often to gawk at the seals or check out the latest installation at the Museum of Contemporary Art, my number one go-to spot for lunch is Nine-Ten, located at the historic Grande Colonial Hotel (which first opened in 1913).

Sponsored
Sponsored

The three-course lunch for $24 may cater to busy professionals, but when I find myself exploring La Jolla, I’m never in a hurry. The first thing I do is settle in with a glass of rosé. On my most recent visit, my sister Heather was with me, as we had spent the morning sea-horsing around at the Birch Aquarium.

Silky smooth, savory soup

We both began with a silky soup, which on this particular day was a red-pepper blend with pancetta.

Sumptuous short rib panini

For my main course, I got the Short Rib Panini, and skipped the fries in favor of a simple green salad, mostly because I’d had this sandwich before, and I knew the succulent beef braised in port wine, aged cheddar, and onion marmalade would more than satisfy my craving for richness. Plus, dessert had already been decided the moment we opted for the 3-course lunch. Unfortunately, the salad was not on par with the rest of our meal — it was one-dimensional, just greens and a flavorless vinaigrette. I would have appreciated a tomato, olive, or any other kind of addition.

Molten Lava—I mean, Half-baked chocolate cake.

Heather ordered the same thing David often does — the BBQ Pork Sandwich, a hickory-smoked pulled pork Kansas City-style concoction with crispy onions and poppy seed coleslaw on a housemade bun. I was happy when she deemed there to be too much pork for her bread-to-meat ratio, because I enjoyed the tender, sweet and savory balance of the scraps she shared with me. Oh, and I also might have stolen one or two, or five of those fries.

For dessert, I ordered the Half-Baked Chocolate Cake, which was pleasantly submerged in caramel sauce and topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Sure, some might say molten lava is so 2005, but I think there’s always a place on a dessert menu for a bit of gooey chocolate, whatever the year. And this version, with its hot center, salty caramel, and cold, creamy vanilla, is a lovely incarnation of the classic dish.

Cheesecake... sort of.

My sis ordered a deconstructed cheesecake, with the crust in the form of a cookie on top. It was flavorful for sure, but the cookie ended up being awkward to eat, and we agreed we would have preferred it maybe crumbled on top.

Overall, my lunches at Nine-Ten are always relaxing and pleasurable. And that’s enough to keep me looking for new reasons to day trip in La Jolla.

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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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