Here's something you might be interested in.
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed
Big Screen — Movie commentary
Blurt — Music's inside track
Booze News — San Diego spirits
Classical Music — Immortal beauty
Classifieds — Free and easy
Close to Home — What it’s like on the street where you live
Cover Stories — Front-page features
Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes
Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts
Feast! — Food & drink reviews
Feature Stories — Local news & stories
Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore
From the Archives — Spotlight on the past
Golden Dreams — Talk of the town
The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it
Letters — Our inbox
Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites
Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans
Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists
Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news
News Ticker — News & politics
Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated
Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna
Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated
Poetry — The old and the new
Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers
Reading — The hunt for intellectuals
Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails
San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds
SD on the QT — Almost factual news
Sheep and Goats — Places of worship
Special Issues — The best of
Street Style — San Diego streets have style
Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves
Theater — On stage in San Diego this week
Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative
Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work
Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego
Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads
Your Week — Daily event picks
Vinyl grooves set the mood at Nómade Tapas and Records
Spanish small plates joined by Japanese and more at Adams Avenue listening bar
Tapas and global small plates best for sharing at Nómade Tapas and Records
Don't tell the tech bros, but I've found a new bar and restaurant in North Park that gets me better than the algorithms ever have.
Nómade Tapas and Records has an intimate vibe, decor styled around warm wood grains, and a soundtrack governed by individual music lovers. The restaurant’s discreet sound system means there are no blaring speakers harshing the vibe. Everyone can hear the music, yet nobody has to shout to be heard. It almost gives a second meaning to "listening bar" — I'm hard pressed to think of a better place to practice the lost art of conversation.
Vintage vinyl LPs fill shelves behind a long bar that's bracketed at one end by two turntables and a mixer. DJs might step in to provide fresh evening jams, but on a mellow weekend afternoon, Nómade's management may simply drop the needle on Side A of something classic from off the shelf, and let it play. Say, the Rupert Holmes album Partners in Crime, led off by Holmes' biggest hit, "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)." According to Wikipedia, the song was number one in two different decades, holding the spot in both December 1979 and January 1980.
Music at the bar of Nómade
Today, it's playing when the clock strikes 2 pm, a noteworthy time at Nómade, because that's when the morning menu gives way to tapas and mains. Before two, you'll find the likes of French toast, avocado toast, and breakfast burritos — a short but sweet list of familiar items, priced around $14-18 apiece. After two, things get interesting.
We know from its name that Nómade Tapas and Records is a tapas bar, serving up Spanish small plates along the lines of patatas bravas ($9), crispy fried croquetas ($9), and olives ($6). But it's likewise inspired by Japanese listening bars, and the menu shows that influence as well. I noticed a miso-based clam and noodle soup ($19) and a chicken katsu sando ($22), the sort made on milk bread with a trimmed-off crust — though here they use buttermilk bread.
Japanese-inspired katsu chicken sando
As enchanted as I may have been by the ambiance and record collection, this chance for a culinary voyage spanning half the globe was what made me feel truly seen. Because while I might dig a few tapas here and there, the chance to satisfy cravings from multiple cuisines in one sitting is more likely to keep me coming back. Gotta vary the playlist.
There's nothing strictly Spanish or Japanese about the lineup, either. I spotted a chile poblano soup ($12), steak frites with tallow fries ($32), and a ribeye smash burger ($26). If I wanted something creative and refined, I could order the heirloom tomato carpaccio ($16). Something indulgent? I could try the sourdough pan tumaca with iberico ham ($20). And if I felt like straying from my comfort zone, there was always the matrimonio (sourdough topped by a schmear of cream cheese and anchovies, $14).
The matrimonio: sourdough bread topped by cream cheese and anchovies
As I considered my options, I realized that it felt impossible to go wrong — I could truly just go with my gut. The only mistake I made was in coming alone; with such a strong assortment on offer, it was clear that the best thing would be to order one of everything and share.
A comfortable place to eat and chat while enjoying music
Here's something you might be interested in.
Vinyl grooves set the mood at Nómade Tapas and Records
Spanish small plates joined by Japanese and more at Adams Avenue listening bar
Vinyl grooves set the mood at Nómade Tapas and Records
Spanish small plates joined by Japanese and more at Adams Avenue listening bar
Tapas and global small plates best for sharing at Nómade Tapas and Records
Don't tell the tech bros, but I've found a new bar and restaurant in North Park that gets me better than the algorithms ever have.
Nómade Tapas and Records has an intimate vibe, decor styled around warm wood grains, and a soundtrack governed by individual music lovers. The restaurant’s discreet sound system means there are no blaring speakers harshing the vibe. Everyone can hear the music, yet nobody has to shout to be heard. It almost gives a second meaning to "listening bar" — I'm hard pressed to think of a better place to practice the lost art of conversation.
Vintage vinyl LPs fill shelves behind a long bar that's bracketed at one end by two turntables and a mixer. DJs might step in to provide fresh evening jams, but on a mellow weekend afternoon, Nómade's management may simply drop the needle on Side A of something classic from off the shelf, and let it play. Say, the Rupert Holmes album Partners in Crime, led off by Holmes' biggest hit, "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)." According to Wikipedia, the song was number one in two different decades, holding the spot in both December 1979 and January 1980.
Music at the bar of Nómade
Today, it's playing when the clock strikes 2 pm, a noteworthy time at Nómade, because that's when the morning menu gives way to tapas and mains. Before two, you'll find the likes of French toast, avocado toast, and breakfast burritos — a short but sweet list of familiar items, priced around $14-18 apiece. After two, things get interesting.
We know from its name that Nómade Tapas and Records is a tapas bar, serving up Spanish small plates along the lines of patatas bravas ($9), crispy fried croquetas ($9), and olives ($6). But it's likewise inspired by Japanese listening bars, and the menu shows that influence as well. I noticed a miso-based clam and noodle soup ($19) and a chicken katsu sando ($22), the sort made on milk bread with a trimmed-off crust — though here they use buttermilk bread.
Japanese-inspired katsu chicken sando
As enchanted as I may have been by the ambiance and record collection, this chance for a culinary voyage spanning half the globe was what made me feel truly seen. Because while I might dig a few tapas here and there, the chance to satisfy cravings from multiple cuisines in one sitting is more likely to keep me coming back. Gotta vary the playlist.
There's nothing strictly Spanish or Japanese about the lineup, either. I spotted a chile poblano soup ($12), steak frites with tallow fries ($32), and a ribeye smash burger ($26). If I wanted something creative and refined, I could order the heirloom tomato carpaccio ($16). Something indulgent? I could try the sourdough pan tumaca with iberico ham ($20). And if I felt like straying from my comfort zone, there was always the matrimonio (sourdough topped by a schmear of cream cheese and anchovies, $14).
The matrimonio: sourdough bread topped by cream cheese and anchovies
As I considered my options, I realized that it felt impossible to go wrong — I could truly just go with my gut. The only mistake I made was in coming alone; with such a strong assortment on offer, it was clear that the best thing would be to order one of everything and share.
A comfortable place to eat and chat while enjoying music