7 New Restaurants to Try in San Diego

Taking inspiration from the culinary heritage of Vietnam, Kingfisher's fusion of classic Vietnamese/French-influenced food with a California sensibility has made it one of Michelin's "New Discoveries." Nestled in the historic neighborhood of Golden Hill and offering a fresh, elevated craft cocktail program, Kingfisher aims for an exciting balance of the soulful and intricate flavors of traditional Vietnamese dishes and ingredients.

Not exactly new but definitely renewed, Mister A's is a certified San Diego institution that has seen a major re-envisioning under its latest ownership. The elegant restaurant, perched on a Bankers Hill rooftop with views to forever, contains a classic, 180-seat main dining room, a brand-new 18-seat bar and a 72-seat indoor-outdoor lounge. The menu leans more plant-based than before, and there are far more share plates for guests to enjoy while taking in stunning vistas of Downtown San Diego, the sparkling bayfront and the ocean beyond.

Mabel's Gone Fishing has quickly become a go-to dining destination in North Park, serving up Iberian coastal cuisine and highlighting San Diego/Baja ingredients as well as a gin-forward cocktail and natural wine program. Most of the restaurant's ever-changing, seasonal dishes are based around seafood, including bycatch or less-popular but more sustainable local varieties. The place's creative cuisine has earned Mabel's the much-coveted Bib Gourmand honor from the Michelin organization, denoting exceptional food at good value.

With San Diego's ever-adventurous CH Projects riding herd, the landmark Lafayette Hotel is seeing a wildly inventive culinary transformation. The eight eateries now open or coming online at the historic hotel include everything from the retro Beginners Diner to the Oaxacan restaurant Quixote to The Gutter, a bar with its own two-lane bowling alley. And it's all happening under the creative gaze of Spanish-born culinary director Perfecte Rocher, a veteran of multiple Michelin-starred European kitchens who has also made a splash with restaurants up and down the West Coast.

A rising favorite in La Jolla, Marisi features a menu rooted in regional dishes from the whole of Italy, including handmade pasta and hearth-cooked meats and seafood. The international and highly intense cocktail program features an array of Italian aperitivos, homemade limoncello, rare spirits and an Italian pilsner made specifically for Marisi.

A little hard to pronounce (it's "para-DEE-see-uh") but very easy to like, the restaurant and cocktail bar Paradisaea has made its mark in the seaside La Jolla community of Bird Rock. With a background in Michelin-starred dining, culinary director Mark Welker crafted the menu based on seasonal ingredients, ranging from white sea bass crudo with Thai basil, finger lime, strawberries, and chile de arbol oil to summer squash with crispy sheep's milk dumplings, pistachios, capers and mint, and pasture-raised roast chicken with seasonal greens, croutons and chimichurri.

Zama brings Latin American cuisine with an Asian infusion to San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter. Against the lush backdrop of the restaurant's jungle-inspired space, Zama's menu and beverage program focus on Latin American foods and cocktails, highlighting such refreshing tropical ingredients as pineapple, coconut and hibiscus.